How to fire up a cold composter in winter?

Nowadays--I am taking all my kitchen veggie scraps to work for a woman who has a pet rabbit...that is, if I know it is something a rabbit will eat.
SHE thanks me...........The Rabbit thanks me.................And I am glad not to be dumping a shoe-box sized container-full of veggie scraps every week on top of my frozen contents in my S.E.M.

G.

the best composter sits on the soil so composting happens. the composting off the ground makes green mush.

Sofer.....

What do you mean--"sits off the ground"? Are you saying I should still be dumping my veggie scraps on my frozen beds? ....Or was that a short poem you wrote?

i'm sorry I have been only recently known for poetry. no I mean that no compost can happen when soil bacteria are not available from the soil. many "composters" faiil to work due to this simple addition. so I was simply commenting on this problem on composters.

Wouldn't adding soil take care of this issue in the case of a tumbling composter?

yes if your mixtures in the tumbler are correct.

Since the topic initially was cold problems,. I think we could note that when you keeep it on the ground you have one surface heated from the ground heat. When you put it up you have it surrounded by cold air- like being in a refrig or deep freeze. Remember those are two places where you put your yummy food so it does not grow microbes or experience decay. Now, if you have it set up with a good ratio of N -C and water, maybe you overcome that.

Good point Sally.

Believe me, I've spent a lot of time looking at frozen compost to come to that conclusion LOL

because that's about all you can do with frozen compost: look at it!
My piles must be warm, though - there is a wee tunnel into one, and I've noticed various scraps pulled into it. I cannot bring myself to obstructing the tunnel doorway: somebody is cozy down there.

I always build the compost to fire up during the multiple warm ups we have here starting feb. then it cooks enough to use by may.

How about store bought tomatoes that are past their prime - do they reseed also or is it just the spent plants?

Its the seeds in the fruit, so, store bought tomatos would sprout. But they're so easy to pull out or smash if they do.

Thanks Sally.

OK, the nighttime temps here aren't supposed to drop below freezing until Wednesday the 11th, so I went out to my SoilSaver composter and popped the top.

I found plenty of identifiable browns and greens still visible, so I aerated the top half of the container with my trusty Yard Butler, emptied about a cup of Concern Compost BioActivator onto everything, stirred, then added some beer that I ran through my kidneys. I spread the semi-frozen chunks of unfinished compost over the fluffed stuff, closed the lid and stuck a thermometer in through a side vent. When the core heats up, the icy chunks will melt and add moisture to the mix, hopefully prolonging the cooking.

I'll post the temps as they change. At the moment, it's 50F outside and the compost's just a smidge above 40F. In the photo (which I took facing NE), the composter's visible just behind the right side of the grill tarp.

I was thinking about that other thread when I saw that this one had a new entry! Sounds yummy! I can't wait till Saturday here, maybe even tomorrow, will be warm enough to stir mine up. It got a good layer of snow to melt in.

More beer recycled will make you think it warms up. Keep putting recycled beer on it!

Truly, recycled Beer earns an official "Two-fer" status.

I added a second dose of used beer moments ago.

I wish Daves had not deleted my Compost section of how to compost with beer. But they did and it no longer exists. I photographed several stages of layering greens and browns with each picture showing another empty on the compost side. After 12 beers stacked I photographed myself passed out on the compost pile with a dozen cans around my head. It dissapeared.

Soferig- I was lucky enough to catch it once- loved it. I bet with every beer the compost just looked prettier and prettier!

Compost always looks pretty. But it did look better with every shovel full and beer.

OK, it took a few days of 40-50 degree daytime temps for the ice chunks in the bin to melt, but yesterday afternoon I re-aerated the contents. Twelve hours ago, the core temp was a smidgen above 45, and right now it's climbing past 60. Outside this morning we've got snow flurries and ~25 degrees.

Looks like I turned the stuff in time.

Whereas, I turned mine, added some urea (OK not much, but...) and we had three days above 60, and it doesn't seem like its moving. Plenty moist, chunky, should be enough air for a little action...Cold spell, so it'll get covered up again. Has worms though.
What's 60F. in C? I have an old stem thermometer I use and its in C.

60 F = 15.6 C

thanks. ! I figured you'd know. SOunds like a CG kind of thing to know

We know all and see all.

9/5 X C + 32 = F. I simply use 2 XC + 32 and subtract a couple of digits.

Good estimating tip.

Hmph. The darn composter keeps sputtering along at 85F or so, even though it's fluffed and moist. A lack of nitrogen, perhaps.

Nope. Just needed more aeration. 100 F and rising.

I finally got a thermometer.

Last weekend, I emptied three quarters of my compost, and refilled it with shredded leaves, and a few handfulls of alfalfa. The next day, it was steaming. Yesterday it was 120 degrees. Today, it was 150 degrees! I probably cooled it down by adding in some additional shredded leaves and grass clippings from the yard today, but I am amazed that this could be so hot so fast.

I know if you compost long and hot enough you'll eliminate these noxious weeds from sprouting, but since I'm not getting too technical with my composting, I'm not buying a thermometer, not adding alfalfa, not tending to it during winter so therefore not adding worms that would die from neglect, I don't want to toss in weeds I'll learn to regret, so:

How hard is it to prevent these noxious seeds from sprouting after composting?
Dandelion seeds, Goat Heads, Tumbleweed - the type from Colorado Springs area?
Thanks!