Greasemonkey's Compost Pile

MustangStudFarm said:
How do you keep it alive or feed it? Does it stay in the soil when you recycle it?
Click to expand...
nah, it stays alive
and no it sorta becomes part of the roots themselves, always reapply at transplant.
And don't worry about the questions man, if I didn't like helping people, I wouldn't be here.
I'm at work anyways, and if I don't have cars to fix or smog, I like to pass the time on this site.
So don't sweat it man
 
Cool, what do you know about servicing a mini split lol. I have a vaccum and guages. I found R410a on ebay along with some scales... I bent the crap out of the copper line when I was installing it(leak), I am pulling the line and taking it to a proper hydraulic company that makes hoses and put the 90 bends and flare fittings this time... I think that I got it, I just dont understand the POE oil and how do I know if I need to add some. I was taught A/C on a recovery machine and it would recycle the oil, I have not done this w/o a recovery machine! I am sure that my unit is dry. Also, should I add a dryer to the liquid line? I have a feeling that you know the answer!
 
MustangStudFarm said:
Cool, what do you know about servicing a mini split lol. I have a vaccum and guages. I found R410a on ebay along with some scales... I bent the crap out of the copper line when I was installing it(leak), I am pulling the line and taking it to a proper hydraulic company that makes hoses and put the 90 bends and flare fittings this time... I think that I got it, I just dont understand the POE oil and how do I know if I need to add some. I was taught A/C on a recovery machine and it would recycle the oil, I have not done this w/o a recovery machine! I am sure that my unit is dry. Also, should I add a dryer to the liquid line? I have a feeling that you know the answer!
Click to expand...
I don't have much experience with those. I only do r134a and r12
If the system is opened to ambient air, i'd pull the whole thing into vacuum, and add oil with the Freon when you recharge.
If it's a new system (compressor) then you probably need to add oil, but I don't know for sure, some new compressors come pre-oiled nowdays.
I'm just not sure how it's going to work without pulling it down to vacuum, all that moisture in there..
i'd def go with a receiver/dryer, not sure how it'd work without, but i'd need to get my hands on it to figure it out.
I can do cannabis diagnostics over the internet but not tech stuff very easily
 
greasemonkeymann said:
I don't have much experience with those. I only do r134a and r12
If the system is opened to ambient air, i'd pull the whole thing into vacuum, and add oil with the Freon when you recharge.
If it's a new system (compressor) then you probably need to add oil, but I don't know for sure, some new compressors come pre-oiled nowdays.
I'm just not sure how it's going to work without pulling it down to vacuum, all that moisture in there..
i'd def go with a receiver/dryer, not sure how it'd work without, but i'd need to get my hands on it to figure it out.
I can do cannabis diagnostics over the internet but not tech stuff very easily
Click to expand...
I am sure that I saw oil leaking from the lines. Yes, I am going to vacuum it and use a dryer. The oil is the part that I am really confused on, I guess that there was 1-2 ounces of oil on the floor!
 
MustangStudFarm said:
I am sure that I saw oil leaking from the lines. Yes, I am going to vacuum it and use a dryer. The oil is the part that I am really confused on, I guess that there was 1-2 ounces of oil on the floor!
Click to expand...
that's a lot of oil, most only need 3-5 anyways
If you are going to recharge it, i'd add 2-3 oz to it, just to be safe. also depending on your evacuation method it may be able to recycle it
 
greasemonkeymann said:
that's a lot of oil, most only need 3-5 anyways
If you are going to recharge it, i'd add 2-3 oz to it, just to be safe. also depending on your evacuation method it may be able to recycle it
Click to expand...

I found a bag of rabbit pellets that was laying on the ground for a while, I thought that it was empty, but it had a little left. This stuff started off being green and I am sure that it is alfalfa pellets. Does this go in the worm bin or compost? I am hurting for some worm food right now. I thought about making some out of my chicken scratch and rabbit food possibly... Last week, I found some old corn meal and oatmeal that I added to the bin. I noticed that it is crawling with infant worms now! I just started several new worm trays and they have nothing but bedding and egg shells...

DSC00278.JPG
 
MustangStudFarm said:
I found a bag of rabbit pellets that was laying on the ground for a while, I thought that it was empty, but it had a little left. This stuff started off being green and I am sure that it is alfalfa pellets. Does this go in the worm bin or compost? I am hurting for some worm food right now. I thought about making some out of my chicken scratch and rabbit food possibly... Last week, I found some old corn meal and oatmeal that I added to the bin. I noticed that it is crawling with infant worms now! I just started several new worm trays and they have nothing but bedding and egg shells...

View attachment 3608799
Click to expand...
worms can stay alive on almost anything, hell just shredded cardboard will give them stuff to eat.
But in a pinch you could mash up a half cup of dogfood, oatmeal, whole wheat flour... coffee grinds...
you can give them all sorts of food, even decaying leaves they'll eat.
oh, and i'd say those pellets would be best in the compost pile, but you could probably add them to your wormbin too
 
Last edited:
greasemonkeymann said:
worms can stay alive on almost anything, hell just shredded cardboard will give them stuff to eat.
But in a pinch you could mash up a half cup of dogfood, oatmeal, whole wheat flour... coffee grinds...
you can give them all sorts of food, even decaying leaves they'll eat.
oh, and i'd say those pellets would be best in the compost pile, but you could probably add them to your wormbin too
Click to expand...
I was reading about "berkeley method" of fast compost. They said that a near perfect C:N ratio could have a pile composted in 18 days, I was skeptical! I went on reading, and they mentioned that alfalfa hay has a near perfect C:N ratio! I am seriously considering getting about 10 bales of alfalfa and running it through my chipper! I want compost for my yard also! I have a goal; to be able to walk on my lawn barefoot w/o worry of stepping on sand burrs ect...

Every single article that I came across uses comfrey!!! Not only do you need a good C:N ratio, but you need calcium also, is this why comfrey is so popular? Because it has both
 
Last edited:
greasemonkeymann said:
worms can stay alive on almost anything, hell just shredded cardboard will give them stuff to eat.
But in a pinch you could mash up a half cup of dogfood, oatmeal, whole wheat flour... coffee grinds...
you can give them all sorts of food, even decaying leaves they'll eat.
oh, and i'd say those pellets would be best in the compost pile, but you could probably add them to your wormbin too
Click to expand...
I am bringing this up because my compost is not heating up at all. The top is dry but underneath is fairly moist. It is almost 80F today and night temps are in the 40's, I just cant seem to do things right the 1st time! I did water with a AACT a couple of days ago and turned the pile.

I ask a lot of questions but one day, I will be able to help other people! I feel like I am persistent to a fault sometimes, and I hope that it does not get on your nerves... I can bounce around some bad ideas, dont be scared to tell me if I am going down the wrong path!
 
MustangStudFarm said:
I am bringing this up because my compost is not heating up at all. The top is dry but underneath is fairly moist. It is almost 80F today and night temps are in the 40's, I just cant seem to do things right the 1st time! I did water with a AACT a couple of days ago and turned the pile.

I ask a lot of questions but one day, I will be able to help other people! I feel like I am persistent to a fault sometimes, and I hope that it does not get on your nerves... I can bounce around some bad ideas, dont be scared to tell me if I am going down the wrong path!
Click to expand...
don't sweat it man, i'm here if you have any questions.
greens are what you are needing.
grass clippings, alfalfa meal, even kelp meal will work.
best thing is grass clippings, go mow your lawn, and layer the grass clippings in there, then tarp it, and it'll be steaming by the weekend
 
MustangStudFarm said:
I was reading about "berkeley method" of fast compost. They said that a near perfect C:N ratio could have a pile composted in 18 days, I was skeptical! I went on reading, and they mentioned that alfalfa hay has a near perfect C:N ratio! I am seriously considering getting about 10 bales of alfalfa and running it through my chipper! I want compost for my yard also! I have a goal; to be able to walk on my lawn barefoot w/o worry of stepping on sand burrs ect...

Every single article that I came across uses comfrey!!! Not only do you need a good C:N ratio, but you need calcium also, is this why comfrey is so popular? Because it has both
Click to expand...
be careful, alfalfa is VERY "hot"... that nitrogen is readily available and it'll cause curling..
I'd go with grass over alfalfa.. or use a mix of both.
and I used a BUNCH of alfalfa on my first pile, worked really well, except the large stems of the alfalfa took a while to break down.
I probably used at least two cubic feet of it at least. But my pile made probably 5 cubic feet of compost
And yea man.. comfrey is awesome, the greatest plant to accompany cannabis, that and aloe.
 
greasemonkeymann said:
be careful, alfalfa is VERY "hot"... that nitrogen is readily available and it'll cause curling..
I'd go with grass over alfalfa.. or use a mix of both.
and I used a BUNCH of alfalfa on my first pile, worked really well, except the large stems of the alfalfa took a while to break down.
I probably used at least two cubic feet of it at least. But my pile made probably 5 cubic feet of compost
And yea man.. comfrey is awesome, the greatest plant to accompany cannabis, that and aloe.
Click to expand...
I grabbed a handful from the middle of the pile, it smells sour. Is that a hint for the conditions, I saw something about it in my book. Slimy and sour = bacteria dom and I probably dont have enough C instead of N? I did use a lot of rabbit bedding and maybe not enough leaves?

I do have some left-over kelp meal, but I dont just want to guess...
 
MustangStudFarm said:
I grabbed a handful from the middle of the pile, it smells sour. Is that a hint for the conditions, I saw something about it in my book. Slimy and sour = bacteria dom and I probably dont have enough C instead of N? I did use a lot of rabbit bedding and maybe not enough leaves?

I do have some left-over kelp meal, but I dont just want to guess...
Click to expand...
you want LOTS of leaves... those are what is going to break into humus for you.
It should smell like dirt, earthy not stinky.
stinky is either too wet, or too anaerobic, or both.
I'd say you should add leaves... always safe to add more leaves..
if the rabbit bedding is really high in urine, it'll be high in nitrogen
 
greasemonkeymann said:
you want LOTS of leaves... those are what is going to break into humus for you.
It should smell like dirt, earthy not stinky.
stinky is either too wet, or too anaerobic, or both.
I'd say you should add leaves... always safe to add more leaves..
if the rabbit bedding is really high in urine, it'll be high in nitrogen
Click to expand...
The rabbit bedding is the ONLY part that is warming up, and I was wrong, it does not really stink. I think that I got ahold of crustacean meal earlier!
DSC00284.JPG DSC00285.JPG

I am probably just micro-managing the compost! I am sure that everything is fine, but I was hoping for 10C higher temps! I am at 30C and it needs to be 40C.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top