Hotbin or Aerobin composter? What's the difference/are they worth it?

[Blackforesthotchoc]

Looking at getting a hot composter for our kitchen waste etc.

I've seen both this one: www.originalorganics.co.uk/200l-aerobin-hot-composter?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI_LLB1KTJ6AIVCrDtCh1X4Qp0EAkYECABEgI4vvD_BwE and this one: www.hotbincomposting.com

Has anyone got either of them or knows the difference? Thanks!

I'm looking at exactly the same! Hoping some people on here will have tried either or both!

Thanks @BobTheDuvet appreciate the long review. What I've read so far seems to echo your experience! So I guess the hotbin is out. I'm going to try the aerobin since it seems to have more space (the 400l one anyway) and also because I have a discount code I'd love to try similar system to you but dont think the back garden can take three bins in addition to all of the kids toys!

I can’t get it hot. The heat kills the flies so no heat = loads of flies. I don’t know what else to try, it simply doesn’t work.

I've just got a HotBin too and despite putting in the hot bottle it's not getting hot either. I had put it down to not enough green material, as there's quite a lot of soil in there. What did you put in?

I put in veg peelings and clippings from the garden, cardboard, wood chippings, the hot bottle - 20c is the max I’ve achieved in six months and it isn’t enough to kill the flies. Brown water and dead flies are leaking from the bottom. It’s disgusting, the worst thing I ever wasted money on - it doesn’t work!

I've now plumped for the aerobin too. Got a 5% discount using code SUNSHINE5, and went to the Original Organics website via TopCashback which will get me 19.2% cashback. Anyone wanting to join TopCashback, let me know and I can send you a code. Only just joined via a friend myself, that got me a fiver. She's been using it for years for shopping and holidays, so thought I'd give it a go. Will post a review when I've got the aerobin and been using for a while!

I've had a hot bin going for about six months. I've added wood chippings, garden waste (not perennial weeds), shredded cardboard and veg peelings. I don't think I as mixing it properly, as it has only just got going. It probably didn't help that I waited until late Autumn to start. I will add the warm water in a bottle today.

I actually put the thermometer into the vegetation and it has got up to 40 degrees; it only showed 20 degrees on the top thermometer. So I'm a bit happier. I'll add a bit more stuff into it this weekend.

bob sorry to be so dim, but how does your 3 pallet system work? I couldn’t make it out.

We have a bog standard 3 bin system also made from scrap wood. It works well. No flies or wet gunk described, we just generally fill with veg peelings and fruit peel, eggs shells, tea and coffee. Plus garden leaves, cuttings, grass etc..
Dh dug one out last week we only stopped filling before xmas and it was all composted down, even things like whole banana peels

@Blackforesthotchoc Did you make a decision? I am eager to hear if you found any reviewer that had a preference if you don't mind sharing.

We got a hotbin when the council announced they were not collecting green bins and to put our food waste in the black bin. We have found it to be great - no problem reaching temperature, seems to compost fairly quickly and take off a pot of brown liquid every few days which is diluted and used to water plants. Dh watched various videos on setting up and managing the bin. We also have regular compost heaps for grass cuttings. The hotbin should only have a fairly small amount of grass cuttings added so is not a replacement for a normal compost heap. We haven’t added meat bones (as I did think they would just take too long) but everything else gets bunged in.

Thanks Womble65. I have an order in for a HotBin but am getting cold feet (and it taking a long time for them to deliver due to Covid so I have been seeing other options now). The Aerobin looks really good with the central aeration column though.

With your Hotbin, do you pile up larger sticks in the centre to encourage airflow? I have heard that this works really well.

Aerobin update: I've now had the 200 litre version for about 2 weeks and very pleased so far. Was easy to put together. The main tip I would would be to ensure the drainage tap is in the 'on' position before you put it together. I would bet that it is otherwise impossible! I've not yet got a drainage pipe and tap for it, but they do sell them.

Started it off with a layer of made compost from the old bin (not essential, the instructions will give you alternatives). I'd been collecting ingredients together and started it off with a mixture of: grass clippings, privet prunings, shredded hedge prunings (hawthorn, blackthorn, firethorn, beech, hazel, rose), kitchen waste (veg peelings, kitchen roll, cooked scraps), chopped comfrey, semi-made compost from the old bin, ripped corrugated cardboard. Like most composting you're looking for a mix of greens and browns. All this was pre-mixed in a tub before adding. We managed to fill it to the top of the aeration device. Watered it with an early morning pee as an activator (thanks OH for that!). Treated myself to a compost thermometer and checked the compost on Wednesday and it had reached 32c already. Levels dropping noticeably.

Filled it all the way to the top on Saturday with another similar mix to before, watered with a little diluted seaweed extract and today it's just under 36c and has dropped again by a couple of inches. I've set up a three tub system by the side of the bin: browns, ie. woody shreddings, scrunched cardboard and paper in the bottom one, and greens, ie. weeds, grass clippings, etc. in the middle one with an empty tub on top. Then whenever we've got a full kitchen caddy, we use the empty tub to mix the ingredients and chuck it in. The instructions do say you can just do layers, but I'm being ultra-cautious!

The next test will be opening and closing the doors, will update on how easy/awkward this is.

Thanks SarahB. May I ask what swayed the decision?

@Winesalot - we don’t have larger sticks In the middle - just a mixture of food/plant waste, wood chips or shredded hedge cuttings and quite a bit of shredded paper or thin card - basically the contents of the paper shredder. Once we worked out you had to leave the little opening on the top set to slightly open, it quickly reached temperature without the hot water bottle thing. Ours is set up on a couple of layers of bricks so it is easy to drain from the tap. Ours came much faster than expected but that was right at the start of lockdown - we had ordered it the week before I think, so I hope yours arrives soon.

Thanks for the advice Womble. I think I will fill it as soon as it arrives!! I have plenty of shredded paper, grass and various sized prunings.

In the end, it came down to the Hotbin site saying you couldn't put kitchen roll in, so no biggie! We always put it in our caddy with the scraps. And the aerobin in the size I wanted was cheaper. Tbh, they both sound good! Will be interested to hear how you get on, it's turning me into a compost nerd! 🤓

Oh dear! I just went and checked. I really wanted to recycle all of my kitchen paper. I guess I will try to cut it up when it is not gross so that it doesn’t present issues.

Thank you.

Aerobin update, managed to remove/replace both doors with no problems, phew! Just need to brush any compost off the sills before you replace. Checked the temp this afternoon using a 30cm probe and it's up to 46c, very happy! Compost level dropping quite quickly, cautiously optimistic that the 200l size will be perfect for our household of two.

Thanks. Keep updates coming please.