Jestersix

Used carbon ... compost? garbage? bbq?

Vincerama2

Vincerama2

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Do you guys just toss your used carbon in the garbage can? Can it be put in a compost pile? It must be chock full of organic stuff and even if it doesn't decompose, the gunk on it would and it would be pretty neutral when you put the compost in your garden, right? Or maybe toss it onto your bbq coals for that nice fishy smoke taste? :p

V
 
I put mine in the compost along with my GFO, I do rinse it though to get some of the saltwater out, it may not matter, however I do like my garden and want to be extra careful :)
 
tuberider said:
I put mine in the compost along with my GFO, I do rinse it though to get some of the saltwater out, it may not matter, however I do like my garden and want to be extra careful :)
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+1 for compost and rinsing. Some plants tolerate the salt, but would grow shorter and slower. Other would just die if not rinsed. :(
 
tuberider said:
I put mine in the compost along with my GFO, I do rinse it though to get some of the saltwater out, it may not matter, however I do like my garden and want to be extra careful :)
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+2
 
out of curiosity does the carbon break down that quickly? Or does it just become a bacterial colony?

I might start tossing my carbon block filters out there :D
 
It's not entirely about breaking down Mike. Plants can utilize it in the form we use it in (solid) until it breaks down :)
 
OK...rinse and compost (or dump directly into some garden plot).

I think I've seen iron supplements that are supposed to green up your lawn.

In terms of composters, I also have a worm bin and if you haven't tried one, it's pretty cool. Well except for when the fruit flies breed in it. Or the ants get to it (not a big deal as long as they leave the worms alone). I have three GIANT slugs living in it too. At first they were normal sized and I figured ... who cares, they aren't in the garden and they'll help compost the stuff, but now they are HUGE, we're talking the size of a thumb. I didn't think hard enough about it because if they lay eggs, the eggs would get into the garden...

V
 
if you put that stuff in your compost..... and grow vegetables in the soil...... and perhaps i ever visit......make sure i dont eat anything you serve....
 
Smiley1 said:
if you put that stuff in your compost..... and grow vegetables in the soil...... and perhaps i ever visit......make sure i dont eat anything you serve....
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So you're much more happier eating food that was grown with chicken and/or steer poop? :D





Vince: I've always thought about getting those worm composters, I see them at the garden shows (although they usually want quite a bit of money for them). It's pretty easy to keep alive?
 
UGH!

Ma... get my hunting rifle!

Did kind of forget the whole idea you usually put food scraps in them.. oh well when I get the greenhouse up and online I'll maybe toss it in there... or just shoot the raccoons.
 
Worm bin is great. They may seem pricey ... Wait...holy crap! I see San Mateo is selling worm bins $92 and composters for $116 or so.

When I bought mine (I bought the limit of one each) they were discounted for residents to about $30 each.

Honestly, you can use a $15 rubbermaid bin.

Are they hard to keep alive? Nope, I ignore mine for weeks while we store up veggie scraps (in the freezer). My worms are descendants of my original pound of worms from 6 years ago. The bin used to be in the garage but fruit scraps tend to come with fruit flies so they are in front of the garage now. They have lived through all the heat waves and cold nights we've had.

I use a tie down strap around the bin to keep racoons out, but they don't seem to go after it even though it's full of yummy stuff, they seem to like going after grubs in the lawn instead. I hate racoons.

If you start a bin, give me a holler and I'll "frag" some for you...no point in you paying $20 for a pound of worms!

I check it every once in a while, aside from food of course, they consume bedding (newspaper) and of course needs some water and sand. (sand for grit, in fact un-salted aragonite is ideal as it keeps the bin from getting too acidic)

The worm poop is pure gardening gold. Add that to the GFO and carbon and anything you grow with it will make a nice tasty salad for Smiley1.

:p

V
 
tuberider said:
sfsuphysics said:
or just shoot the raccoons.
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Plaster of paris and some peanut butter works wonders, I got yelled at for shooting them, so now I just resort to more draconian measures.
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What do you do with plaster of paris and PB?

I had an "issue" with the raccoons eating everything in my barrel pond. Its a half a wine barrel with a PVC liner, got a little fountain and some plants, one shubunkin and some gambusia. Well, I had some plants and fish until the raccoons found it. So last weekend I took some chicken wire and circled the top, cut the wire so its sharp and makes a nice little deterrent to raccoon paws. Only thing I have noticed is that the wire was bent down in one spot, I think its just enough so they can still drink out of it but not climb in and have a bath. Next option is an electric fence for the barrel.



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Wouldn't it be awesome if you could have an aiptasia-bin? I mean a tank full of aiptasia and you just chuck in your left over after dinner :p

Sadly instead of getting rich worm-poop, you'd just get more aiptasia. I wonder if aiptasia corpses are good fertilizer? :p

V
 
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