Wet Smelly Compost Bin: How To Fix It?

Why You Have A Wet Smelly Compost Bin?

Why does your compost bin smell? If you will occasionally get a little wet smelly compost bin it means there is something wrong. A well-balanced compost bin should smell like dirt and if it does not, there is something wrong and your compost bin is not rightfully breaking down and heating the organic material. Additionally, the steps to composting help break down your organic material faster and a side effect of this is to stop compost from smelling bad.

Furthermore, the type of scraps that you add to your compost bin is green waste. Too much green waste in a compost bin can smell like sewage as it breaks down. You should have a ratio of 1:3 of your green and brown waste to make it proportionate. Indeed, too many greens, much moisture, too little aeration, and if you are not mixing it well can cause a compost bin to smell bad.

Top 5 Reasons for a Smelly Compost Bin

• You added smelly waste
• The compost pile is too wet
• The waste isn’t layered properly
• Your compost isn’t getting enough oxygen
• You don’t have a good mix of green materials and brown materials

Wet Smelly Compost Bin: How To Keep Your Compost Bin From Smelling?

1. Covering your pile with brown and green materials

You can prevent smells from leaving your bin by piling some brown ingredients on the top, such as shredded newspaper or dry leaves. Green materials include fresh grass clippings and kitchen scraps. Brown materials include items like wood chips, dry leaves, twigs, and newspapers. Basically, your compost bin should have a proper mixture of browns and greens, but an inadequate ratio can also make your green waste stink.

2. Occasionally turn your compost pile 

Turn the compost pile with a pitchfork to add oxygen to the materials. Decomposition happens because of microbes and these microbes need to be able to breathe in order to live and function. If there is no oxygen, these microbes die off and decomposition slows down. The air supports the activity of the bacteria. The number of times the pile is turned influences composting speed. Turning your compost helps to aerate and mix up the waste and cuttings, which leads to faster composting.

3. Putting enough moisture in your pile

Water the compost pile only as needed to keep it moist. Too much water is harmful to the aerobic bacteria necessary to break down the materials. Water is an essential part of a compost pile. It helps with decomposition and keeping the pile’s temperature regulated. Too much or too little water can hurt your compost, causing it to decompose too quickly or not quickly enough.

4. Keep away unwanted kitchen waste and food scraps

Throw away kitchen items that contain dairy, fats, meat, and bones. These items can cause odor in your compost in addition to drawing pests. You need to make sure you know the right kind of kitchen waste that can be used to make your compost. You should also be aware of which certain types of kitchen leftovers are not allowed to be composted.

5. Breaking down useful organic material into smaller pieces

Large pieces of waste are unlikely to decompose easily compared to smaller pieces that can also be responsible for bad smells.

What Makes A Good Compost?

To sum it up, a bad smell could form due to improper decomposition of food waste. Undoubtedly, without the right conditions, anaerobic conditions take over creating methane and undesirable smells in return. It is also extremely important to know what not to put in your pile. The key to good compost lies in getting the mix right. Certain things should never be placed in your bin.

Additionally, when your compost is ready you’ll have a dark brown and almost black soil-like layer at the bottom of your bin. At the same time, It should have a spongy texture and will be rich in nutrients. It is best if you control the balance of ingredients without relying on one component only. So, maintaining the right ratio will consequently help to stop your compost from smelling.

Certainly, when you make great compost, great things happen for your plants too. Indeed, it is the single most important supplement you can give your garden. Additionally, It is a simple way to add nutrient-rich humus to your lawn or garden that fuels plant growth and restores vitality to depleted soil. And It is also free, easy to make, and good for the environment.

Have you ever come upon a stinky, moist compost bin? Post your thoughts and comments below!