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disgustingly smelly (wet) Hotbin compost advice

REMF33REMF33 Posts: 731
in Problem solving
My Hotbin compost has clearly gone anaerobic and smells terrible. (I pretty much know what I have done wrong (or failed to do).)  We have extracted most of it as the bin was full, and it's now sitting in a wheelbarrow down the garden attracting flies and foxes. But what to do with it? I was contemplating mixing it with some multipurpose compost (it's also very wet and cloddy) which I don't quite trust, left over from last year and then either putting it under my raspberries or putting it in a normal compost bin. I am not sure which would cause the smell to fade faster.
Has anyone had experience of this?
It really does smell dreadful. We are talking refuse collection lorry bad, almost. (But probably not quite as bad as no meat in it.) I don't know what my neighbour must think. He has his bean beds down there (and the raspberries are on the fence that divides our garden).
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  • SalixGoldSalixGold Posts: 450
    edited June 2023
    I don't know why it should smell so bad - assuming you are not putting meat or fats in it. You can dig a hole in a flower bed and add it in until it dries out and then mix it in to the soil, if it's causing a problem. Adding soil, woodchip or other compost to the mix will help the sludge balance out quicker.

    A lot of paper, cardboard and woodchip will help the bin stay less wet.
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    It sounds as if it hasn't finished rotting down yet. If you aerate it and maybe mix it up with some brown stuff if it's really soggy it should start up again.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • REMF33REMF33 Posts: 731
    @quartz You are 'allowed' to put most things inlcuding meat in Hotbins, but we don't. (We are vegetarian anyway.) Kitchen scraps and coffee grinds and the occasional bit of paper. It should have had some compost and/or wood chips/bark added occasionally and stirred more. I know what to do to try to prevent this happening again.

    Meanwhile there is a whole wheelbarrow and a half's worth so can't really dig enough) holes. I don't have enough free garden unless I dig up the lawn! Also because there is quite a lot of coffee in there it might be a bit acidic.

    @JennyJ perhaps it's not fully rotted, but fairly sure the main problem is that it's anaerobic i.e. not enough oxygen so your suggestion of aerating is  a good one. But It's out of the bin now so I have to put it somewhere. Maybe I will just put it in a normal compost bin with some compost. I am not looking forward to that job though! Will have to shovel it in.
    I think Hotbins are a bit prone to this issue as they are quite tightly sealed to keep the heat in.
    It's been on the go for a good 18 months now!
  • SalixGoldSalixGold Posts: 450
    REMF33 said:
     You are 'allowed' to put most things inlcuding meat in Hotbins, but we don't.

    It will only work if the Hotbin is run hot - over 60oC. Most people don't run theirs anywhere close to being hot enough to deal with dog poo or meat and kill the bacteria.
  • MikeOxgreenMikeOxgreen Posts: 812
    Nobody can tell you what to do with it.
    If the weather there is anything like it is here then two days outside in the wind and sun and it'll be a pile of dust.
  • nick615nick615 Posts: 1,487
    Unless, like me, you can isolate the bin well away from the house, its odour may be a problem but my 200 litre plastic bin holds all the kitchen waste (and anything else I need to get rid of) for a year.  Every March I dig my new runner bean pit and empty the bin's foul contents into it, before back filling with the soil.  The 'contents' is usually quite acidic, so I sprinkle granulated lime on the surface to even things up.  I then start my new season's plants off in trays and plant them out when big enough.
  • nick615nick615 Posts: 1,487
    Sorry!  My chosen file wouldn't transfer for some reason.
  • bédébédé Posts: 3,095
    edited June 2023
    One difference between aerobic and anaerobic fermentation is that sulphur is reduced in the anaerobic process to hydrogen sulphide and smelly mercaptans. Let a bit of air get to your remaining "compost".  It should be OK.

    The reason the temperature of fermentation is critical is that proteins (including DNA) are denatured above 60ºC.  (Denature means loose the important molecular structure.). But not at lower temperatures.  60ºC is also the "pain threshold" - it hurts when your proteins are denatured.
     location: Surrey Hills, England, ex-woodland acidic sand.
    "Have nothing in your garden that you don't know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful."
  • REMF33REMF33 Posts: 731
    Thanks @bede that's the plan. I should have been stirring it more and mixing in something like bark chippings periodically. It's almost exclusively used for kitchen waste, and I think some more garden waste from time to time would be a food idea.
    It's quite tricky to stir which is why I've not been assiduous at doing it!
    Thank you for the science. I do like to understand the science behind gardening.

    Thanks, @nick615 That is very helpful.
  • fidgetbonesfidgetbones Posts: 17,618
    Give it a good stir up, and if its too wet, put some ripped up newspaper in, then throw it all back in the bin.
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