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- Greener Thumb
- Posts: 970
- Joined: Thu Sep 09, 2010 4:50 pm
- Location: MO
You may not have enough mass there for it to retain heat as long as a bigger pile would, and if it's in a tumbler where air circulates all around (no ground to insulate the bottom), and it's on a windy roof...well it's not surprising that it cools off quickly. It doesn't mean you won't get compost though. Heat is not essential to making compost.
Ihave neglected slightly the tumbler for the past four days. At 2pm the temp reading was 86F. I watered and turned the pile. A lot of fruit flies where noticed. Also when I poked the pile with the termometer a lot of mites came running out. Had to go have a shower as they where all over me! At 6pm the core temperature was 96F.
Any suggetions on the fruit flies and mites?
Any suggetions on the fruit flies and mites?
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- Greener Thumb
- Posts: 970
- Joined: Thu Sep 09, 2010 4:50 pm
- Location: MO
How is the odor? If it's smelly you might have too much N and need more browns. That can attract more insects. Or, it may just be too wet. I haven't used a tumbler but I've heard they tend to have more fruit flies. I think this is because the high N material (greens) can be buried in a static pile so flies don't have access, but in a tumbler it's mixed frequently and they can lay their eggs on tasty bits.