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Product Description
With over 5 years in development the new patented ECOmposter incorporates the best of known technologies to create top grade compost in as short a time frame as 4-6 weeks. The spherical shape, the air induction tubes, the optional base and the dark forest green color help promote the 4 key elements of composting while making it fun for the entire family. The nutrient rich compost can be added to all gardens and potted plants as a natural fertilizer.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
90 of 91 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Mine came with a mini stand not a spider leg stand, looks like a sculpture, fun to compost
February 26, 2010
Note: Apparently they have changed the composter since some of these reviews. I have no metal parts that will rust and I could jump on top of this thing and not dent it. ( I even had a 12 year old do that when rolling it so I found out through no method I would want to test again, how sturdy it is.) Fortunately, I think they must have made improvements. The seams are SOLID...follow instruction directions. They apparently listened to complaints since mine didn't have metal parts to rust and is apparently stronger than the old ones.
I began looking at this composter when it came out and was $500. The stand shown in the picture is the old stand. The new model looks better if you google it and see the newer models...and you'll find it for various prices all over the net. It now looks more like a sculputral ball in your yard rather than a giant spider and the stand being very small rather than tall with legs as seen in this picture makes it easy for me to turn...and I'm not a big gal. It also makes it a better height so you can more easily put items in to the bin.
First, I'll touch on the things I love about it. It's the only composter I've ever seen that looks cool in the yard and doesn't proclaim "compost heap! Garbage in here!" I have an uber modern home and, I kid you not, people have complimented me on my orb sculpture, thinking I bought art. And it's right next to my deck. But remember, mine didn't come with the funky spider legs...I think it's aesthetically better, but that's just me. Looks more like a riveted gazing ball sculpture on the new model.
It's engineered brilliantly with oxygen tubes you can't see that go from the outside to bring oxygen to the middle of your compost.
There are both small and large openings on both top AND bottom. If you have large items, you can open the larger opening. Small items go in the small one. The nice thing about this is I can turn my compost and I don't turn the opening to the bottom...it always ends up with an opening on top no matter where it winds up.
You can't see it from the photo but there are handles you can pull out too to move it easily around. On both top and bottom.
It's frickin fun or I'm just crazy. This can make your kids want to garden. You get to either roll it easily on the new stand (I heard the old stand was not so easy) or pop it right off the stand and have fun in the yard rolling your compost! I have actually put it out on a windy day because we live at the top of a hill and have massive winds and I let the wind roll it for me. It was kinda funny to watch. I don't mind turning this bin; it feels like a big funny ball.
It doesn't look like green plastic. It's very dark and the rivets that you put in somehow make it look like riveted metal. That sounds crazy but it doesn't look cheap at all.
It is creating great compost, easily. You need to know the correct percentage of dead material to live material in order to make correct compost; although it goes into it in the manual, you can't put in tons of veggies and get compost that isn't yucky, you need to also have your dry material such as dead leaves, paper etc. I haven't gotten bad compost yet from this and it's always the perfect moisture level because it gets just enough dampness through the air holes that I've never had to add any.
To me it's way easier to turn than those I have tried with handles. And more fun.
NEGATIVES:
Okay so the negatives? This thing took me HOURS to put together. And I mean HOURS. Look, they are just molded heavy duty plastic parts...could they have not molded a few together so that I didn't have hundreds of rivets and snaps and stuff? I was shocked when I got this box, totally flat, not big at all, at the door wondering how that big orb could possibly be all in there...it was, after hours and hours of place, snap, hammer, rivet...you get the picture. If you have little patience, you best know that going in. You'll need it. If you accidentally forget one of the steps, the good news is it's made well enough you'll have to break a rivet to fix it but don't panic like I did, the other good news is they apparently expect you to mess up a little because they send LOTS Of spare parts!
Don't think this will fit through a sliding glass door when you are done building it like I did. No sir, this is a BIG orb. But quite sturdy because I had to carry it out the front door and then we have a 14 foot drop from the top of my front door balcony down to the backyard or I would have had to roll it a very long way to the gate on the other side of the house and have to go down several steps...so I chose the high dive compost action. I held my breath and tossed it down the 14 foot drop to the backyard. Not a scratch. Not a dent, Not a problem. In all honesty, this thing comes out so dang sturdy if there is ever a Texas tornado I am forgoing the "hiding in the bathtub" theory and just climbing inside. After the hours it took me building it and how hard it is to get a rivet out, I'm safer just flying around in here like "the Balloon boy" no doubt.
Conclusion: If you have the patience to put it together, (and the hours) it's the coolest looking comppost bin you'll find because it looks more like art than a trash pile, the build of it and the aeration tubes give you great compost, it's fun to roll, and I think it could survive a tornado.
NOTE: I found my bin on an Overstock site. The model shown here is the old model with spider legs. If you want the new model I got with the low stand, you should verify with the Amazon seller what you will be receiving. You may like this better, but the stand varies so it's best, no matter where you buy it, to ensure you get the one you desire. My guess is they made the lower stand so it's easier to roll and probably too so people don't think you have a horror movie tarantula in your garden. Just sayin'
UPDATE: I have been using this now for many loads of compost and I love it more because, just as it claims, it makes compost probably 4X faster. I just keep spitting out the stuff with no work. The oxygen tubes that deliver oxygen to every place in the bin are what do it. It seems as soon as I throw something in it turns to deep soil. I LOVE it!
I also wanted to note, however, that after I had a few difficult times trying to close the lid, I realized I need to clear the rim of dirt first because otherwise it seemed like it stopped fitting...once I realized the cause it was good.
I began looking at this composter when it came out and was $500. The stand shown in the picture is the old stand. The new model looks better if you google it and see the newer models...and you'll find it for various prices all over the net. It now looks more like a sculputral ball in your yard rather than a giant spider and the stand being very small rather than tall with legs as seen in this picture makes it easy for me to turn...and I'm not a big gal. It also makes it a better height so you can more easily put items in to the bin.
First, I'll touch on the things I love about it. It's the only composter I've ever seen that looks cool in the yard and doesn't proclaim "compost heap! Garbage in here!" I have an uber modern home and, I kid you not, people have complimented me on my orb sculpture, thinking I bought art. And it's right next to my deck. But remember, mine didn't come with the funky spider legs...I think it's aesthetically better, but that's just me. Looks more like a riveted gazing ball sculpture on the new model.
It's engineered brilliantly with oxygen tubes you can't see that go from the outside to bring oxygen to the middle of your compost.
There are both small and large openings on both top AND bottom. If you have large items, you can open the larger opening. Small items go in the small one. The nice thing about this is I can turn my compost and I don't turn the opening to the bottom...it always ends up with an opening on top no matter where it winds up.
You can't see it from the photo but there are handles you can pull out too to move it easily around. On both top and bottom.
It's frickin fun or I'm just crazy. This can make your kids want to garden. You get to either roll it easily on the new stand (I heard the old stand was not so easy) or pop it right off the stand and have fun in the yard rolling your compost! I have actually put it out on a windy day because we live at the top of a hill and have massive winds and I let the wind roll it for me. It was kinda funny to watch. I don't mind turning this bin; it feels like a big funny ball.
It doesn't look like green plastic. It's very dark and the rivets that you put in somehow make it look like riveted metal. That sounds crazy but it doesn't look cheap at all.
It is creating great compost, easily. You need to know the correct percentage of dead material to live material in order to make correct compost; although it goes into it in the manual, you can't put in tons of veggies and get compost that isn't yucky, you need to also have your dry material such as dead leaves, paper etc. I haven't gotten bad compost yet from this and it's always the perfect moisture level because it gets just enough dampness through the air holes that I've never had to add any.
To me it's way easier to turn than those I have tried with handles. And more fun.
NEGATIVES:
Okay so the negatives? This thing took me HOURS to put together. And I mean HOURS. Look, they are just molded heavy duty plastic parts...could they have not molded a few together so that I didn't have hundreds of rivets and snaps and stuff? I was shocked when I got this box, totally flat, not big at all, at the door wondering how that big orb could possibly be all in there...it was, after hours and hours of place, snap, hammer, rivet...you get the picture. If you have little patience, you best know that going in. You'll need it. If you accidentally forget one of the steps, the good news is it's made well enough you'll have to break a rivet to fix it but don't panic like I did, the other good news is they apparently expect you to mess up a little because they send LOTS Of spare parts!
Don't think this will fit through a sliding glass door when you are done building it like I did. No sir, this is a BIG orb. But quite sturdy because I had to carry it out the front door and then we have a 14 foot drop from the top of my front door balcony down to the backyard or I would have had to roll it a very long way to the gate on the other side of the house and have to go down several steps...so I chose the high dive compost action. I held my breath and tossed it down the 14 foot drop to the backyard. Not a scratch. Not a dent, Not a problem. In all honesty, this thing comes out so dang sturdy if there is ever a Texas tornado I am forgoing the "hiding in the bathtub" theory and just climbing inside. After the hours it took me building it and how hard it is to get a rivet out, I'm safer just flying around in here like "the Balloon boy" no doubt.
Conclusion: If you have the patience to put it together, (and the hours) it's the coolest looking comppost bin you'll find because it looks more like art than a trash pile, the build of it and the aeration tubes give you great compost, it's fun to roll, and I think it could survive a tornado.
NOTE: I found my bin on an Overstock site. The model shown here is the old model with spider legs. If you want the new model I got with the low stand, you should verify with the Amazon seller what you will be receiving. You may like this better, but the stand varies so it's best, no matter where you buy it, to ensure you get the one you desire. My guess is they made the lower stand so it's easier to roll and probably too so people don't think you have a horror movie tarantula in your garden. Just sayin'
UPDATE: I have been using this now for many loads of compost and I love it more because, just as it claims, it makes compost probably 4X faster. I just keep spitting out the stuff with no work. The oxygen tubes that deliver oxygen to every place in the bin are what do it. It seems as soon as I throw something in it turns to deep soil. I LOVE it!
I also wanted to note, however, that after I had a few difficult times trying to close the lid, I realized I need to clear the rim of dirt first because otherwise it seemed like it stopped fitting...once I realized the cause it was good.
58 of 59 people found the following review helpful
By Junlei Li
I will not repeat the assembly issue. This thing has so many parts, it took a good 2 hours, and at a crucial finishing point (two 1/2 spheres coming together, where all teeth have to match simultaneously), it took two people and about 10 minutes just for one step. If you are not the patient assembler, avoid!
The biggest problem since we had it is that ... it's not as easy as the product video suggest. The manual gives detailed instructions, hard to follow in everyday living (things like the % balance between different types of materials). The worst part ... after we loaded the compost full within 2 weeks, it was TOO HEAVY to turn. There are no handles. So you are turning a giant heavy ball with no handles. We had a hard time.
And when happens when you go out of town? We did, for a month. When we came home, the weight of the Ecomposter dented the ball in two spots -- one in the middle of a panel (the plastic warped, and cannot be reversed) and the other at the seam, which openned the seam a bit.
The marketing video made this look so painless. If we knew all these drawbacks, I don't think we would've shelled out the $200+ in the first place, and would've continued to use our trash can.
Oh, one last note ... don't expect the compost to be like rich dirt in 2 - 4 weeks. After 8 weeks, I'd say that we had black-looking stuff about 1/2 or 2/3 of the way through. It's not dirt. And then we still had about 1/3 of the stuff recognizable as original kitchen scraps or yard waste.
Overall, sorry, avoid.
The biggest problem since we had it is that ... it's not as easy as the product video suggest. The manual gives detailed instructions, hard to follow in everyday living (things like the % balance between different types of materials). The worst part ... after we loaded the compost full within 2 weeks, it was TOO HEAVY to turn. There are no handles. So you are turning a giant heavy ball with no handles. We had a hard time.
And when happens when you go out of town? We did, for a month. When we came home, the weight of the Ecomposter dented the ball in two spots -- one in the middle of a panel (the plastic warped, and cannot be reversed) and the other at the seam, which openned the seam a bit.
The marketing video made this look so painless. If we knew all these drawbacks, I don't think we would've shelled out the $200+ in the first place, and would've continued to use our trash can.
Oh, one last note ... don't expect the compost to be like rich dirt in 2 - 4 weeks. After 8 weeks, I'd say that we had black-looking stuff about 1/2 or 2/3 of the way through. It's not dirt. And then we still had about 1/3 of the stuff recognizable as original kitchen scraps or yard waste.
Overall, sorry, avoid.
28 of 31 people found the following review helpful
By L. Martin
I'm sure, if I ever get this thing assembled, the composter will do the job. Just be aware, it comes in a million pieces. Look at the picture, you will be pinning all those small panels together to create a globe/orb. I think there are 12 panels on the top of the orb and 12 on the bottom. Be sure to read the instructions (they are clear enough) carefully and do exactly what it says. I still haven't gotten the top and the bottom to join together well enough to get the last set of plugs/pins in - there seems to be some excess material I might have to file off.
Back to work. If you have help 1-2 hours might work. If you are by yourself have someone come over to help and bring a six pack. Sigh.
I rate myself average at assembling things. This one was hard. And I haven't even tackled the stand yet, LOL.
eta: 5/31/2009 My son put the stand together for me today and we put the half full composter on the stand and guess what, not only would it be impossible for a child to roll the thing, I can't do it. Is there a trick to this? It's too heavy and it's only half full. Does look like it's composting quickly. I've been rolling it around on the patio until we got the stand together.
Back to work. If you have help 1-2 hours might work. If you are by yourself have someone come over to help and bring a six pack. Sigh.
I rate myself average at assembling things. This one was hard. And I haven't even tackled the stand yet, LOL.
eta: 5/31/2009 My son put the stand together for me today and we put the half full composter on the stand and guess what, not only would it be impossible for a child to roll the thing, I can't do it. Is there a trick to this? It's too heavy and it's only half full. Does look like it's composting quickly. I've been rolling it around on the patio until we got the stand together.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not as pictured
This is our 2nd spider composter. Ordered this one to be an exact match to the first, but the base is not as pictured. Read more
Published 12 months ago by sandspur
1.0 out of 5 stars
DO NOT BUY! Lids will no longer turn to lock on. Useless.
Bought 2 of these in July 2011, and started having trouble with the lids no longer turning to lock in place within a couple of months. Read more
Published 13 months ago by mocroft
2.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointed
I obtained a STC 33301 last Christmas. I got mine for about $140. I have seen them for as much as $450 so shop around and be patient if you want one. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Joseph C. Opie
5.0 out of 5 stars
excellent
They must have changed the design as the stand is now a low plastic ring. I sort of liked the spider thing they had going but am glad it isn't still there as everything rusts here. Read more
Published 19 months ago by Northern Wanderer
5.0 out of 5 stars
I am a master composter! Like Bach and Beethoven!
ASSEMBLY:
Sure it took a long time to put together, but I needed the sun and it was well worth the effort. Read more
Sure it took a long time to put together, but I needed the sun and it was well worth the effort. Read more
Published on November 11, 2010 by Mr. Vitler
1.0 out of 5 stars
Extremely difficult to turn
I am very disappointed at how difficult the ecomposter is to turn when it is only 1/2 full. I am frustrated every time I try to rotate it. Read more
Published on October 31, 2010 by Wil Read
5.0 out of 5 stars
Too much whining, not enough admiration
Many reviewers have carped about the number of pieces for assembly, and the supposed difficulty or tediousness of completing the globe. Read more
Published on October 9, 2010 by Vic Ridgley
4.0 out of 5 stars
Compost tumbler
Our garden is large: it generates a LOT of weeds. I'm using three composters to keep up. Years ago, I had a composter that required shovelling out the developing material from... Read more
Published on October 2, 2010 by Country Doc
3.0 out of 5 stars
Funky Fly House
I put this composter together a couple days ago. The instructions were easy to follow and the construction wasn't difficult, just time consuming. Read more
Published on September 6, 2010 by A. Karr
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great buy
I have this in my garden. I bought it off another website and put it together by myself in an evening. Read more
Published on August 25, 2010 by Adam S. Walter
