What to do with this smelly mess ???

16 years ago

A couple of weeks ago I spread some finished compost (well, almost finished), which had been cold composting all winter. My friend's 4 year old granddaughter wanted to play in the dirt, too. I told her she could help build the new batch.

I was using mostly freshly cut grass, shredded leaves, a few coffee grounds, some brown yard waste. The little princess had a ball. I made the mistake of letting her add water with a sprinkling can. Man, she's fast!

Fast foreward 2 weeks. I knew I had to flip and aerate that pile. I almost passed out from the stench. I added some more dry leaves, and topped with leaves. In the covered bin, it's not too noticeable unless you get close.

I have been composting for many years. Occasionally it gets too wet or smelly, and is easily remedied by adding some leaves and flipping to aerate. Somehow, I don't think that's going to be enough here. My husband was having fits. It smells like someone crawled in and died. I don't dare spread it out on the ground to dry. I live in suburbia and houses are close. My neighbors would run me out of town.

If left to sit a long time, flipped a few times, will it improve? I don't know what else I can do with it. I really dread ever flipping it again, it's THAT bad.

But the little princess had fun. Neither her parents nor grandparents garden, so she has no exposure to gardening. When we finished I took her in the house, washed her hands, and gave her a pop. Then I paid her $1 for "helping". She went back to Grandma's house saying "Karen gave me 100 dollars!". If I had it to do over, I'd let her help.

Thanks for any advice or comments.

Karen

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (9)

jbann23
16 years ago
Hi. You've got to add a lot of browns to kill the smell and absorb the moisture. Even shredded paper or cardboard will help. Dried leaves are good but you'll need quite a bit. True, rotten grass is really a powerful aroma. You could also just bury the pile in dried leaves and wait it out. Eventually it'll break down enough to lose it's aroma.
kqcrna
Original Author
16 years ago
Will it be OK to use in the garden, ever?

Karen
Related Discussions
Mess! Mess! Mess!
Q
Comments (9)
Oh, I am so sorry, you have my sympathy. It must have been the week for water damage. After a summer of 100 plus degree temps and no rain, Monday night a wind storm took off the roof of our office building, and then the rain came. Tuesday on my way to a dr appt I get a call that the office has been flooded. This is our second floor in a month, mind you. The property restoration people showed up not long after I got there, with their fans and dehumidifers. It looked like a mess, but that we would survive. It rained Tuesday night. Office flooded again. More carpet sucking, then carpet removal, more dehumidifiers and fans, Thursday it rained again, TWICE. By now it was way past funny and on the threshold of disaster. Fortunately the computers and files were fine, just everything else was soggy and/or destroyed. Clients of ours gave us some temp space until they can rehab our entire office. It rained again last night, I ran up to check today. They had supposedly temporarily fixed the leak, but I didn't trust it, but lo and behold, the floor was dry and a massive blower with super hot air was blowing through the office. Monday we have to tackle inventorying what was destroyed and trying to decide how to store what didn't die.
...See More
Valve Box is a Mess - What Do I Do? (pictures)
Q
Comments (33)
Thanks, Carol. Well, the result of my overnight valve leaking test are in! Not too bad. Bottom line: If I extrapolate the results from last night to a full day, those valves are leaking just under 5 gallons in a 24 hour period. Given my current water/sewer rates, about 4 cents a day. I'm still going to replace all the diaphragms though since they are so old. More to prevent a huge failure vs this weeping issue I have. For anyone who stumbles across this string (thank you, Carol, for starting it!). Here is my information: Toro Flo Pro Valve: Model #284-16-04 Replacement Diaphragm Part Number: 89-9861 Replacement Solenoid Part Number: 89-0114 As of this writing, 8/3/22, both replacement part #s are available on Sprinklerwarehouse.com If I ever replace those valves, I was told by Toro that the Jar Top valve part number 53708 is the current replacement. I checked and it is available on Amazon. If I don't have to replace those valves, I'm not going to. I'm a DIYer and that job, although doable, would be a pain.
...See More
Messed up tile behind fireplace - what to do?
Q
Comments (0)
We wanted to add tile on the wall around the fireplace. The linear fireplace is in the center of two windows. Initially, wanted to have about 3-4” gap between tile and windows. But somehow decided to cover the entire wall between the windows. I’m not sure if this good now. Please could you help with some ideas on how to address this. I have attached a photo. Thanks.
...See More
Can't believe this mess. What should i do?
Q
Comments (15)
@RES2, The OP indicated that their closing is December 17. That doesn't sound like a custom home being built on the OP's property to me. Rather, it sounds like a spec home or production-built home that may be being built with some level of client personalization. If the home is the property of the builder and the fix is being implemented at the builder's expense, I don't see an obligation on the builder's part to check with the buyer as to whether or how to fix a problem. Time is of the essence here and the builder appears to be doing their level best to deliver a good home on time.
...See More
treeinnj
16 years ago
Would a bunch of 100% cotton fabric scraps help you? maybe help absorb moisture? From my posting last year about cotton fabric scraps, I learned from this wonderful forum that plant fibers (cotton, flax) are browns. So, I have a bunch & if you want them, I'd be happy to mail them to you!
All the Best, Tree
[I just received 6 free, huge cinder blocks today, so I'm happy to "pass it on."]
kqcrna
Original Author
16 years ago
tree: Thanks a bunch, that's really nice of you. Having composted cotton fabric in the past, I know that it can take quite a while, so I think I'll pass that up this time. I'd rather try stuff like leaves and paper for now, which disappear faster. Normally, I throw "leftovers" which don't compost into the next batch, but I really want to keep this batch isolated!

But again, I do thank you.

Karen
gratefulgardener3300
16 years ago
I had this same problem just a few weeks ago. I used all the cardboard I could find. Any boxes that had food in them (cereal, hot pockets, pasta) all got torn up and thrown in. I went to the grocerie store and got some heavier stuff and ripped it up as small as I could. The smell isn't gone but it's a lot less noticeable. Actually the pile only smells when I turn it and that only lasts until that material dries up a little. It will take a little time and a lot of browns to dry your pile up but it will be worth it.
paulns
16 years ago
You said she was fast. Are you sure she didn't have a quick poop in there when your back was turned? Seriously though the ingredients you list all sound harmless, and grass stench is not so hard to calm down if you remix with lots of browns, and you could sprinkle some soil or finished compost in there as you mix. That and the very act of aerating should do it. If the neighbours are nice you might explain to them what happened and warn them they may smell a very temporary bad smell and promise it won't happen again.

I've made some noxious concoctions - a barrel full of comfrey, nettles and water that sat in the sun for two weeks was memorable - but once dumped on the ground, and the bacteria and air got at it, the smell went away amazingly quickly.
led_zep_rules
16 years ago
It will be fine in your garden some day, don't worry about that. I wouldn't say anything to the neighbors, the smell is usually fairly localized even when dreadful. Like people said, add more browns, aerate if you can stand it, and in a few weeks it will be fine. Really! Not sure what kind of container it is in, but if you are expecting rain, I would try to cover it with a tarp to keep more water out.

Marcia
tiffy_z5_6_can
16 years ago
Karen,

I can just see your little princess have fun. Bravo to you for letting the little one play and have an enjoyable gardening experience that will last a lifetime!

As you well know, the ingredients you list are pretty much what I use to make my soil and worm food (otherwise known as compost). Mix with browns and cover from the rain and the smell will go and in the end you'll have wonderful soil and worm food too! :O)
kqcrna
Original Author
16 years ago
All these votes of confidence are indeed encouraging. In many years of composting, I had never come across anything like this, so I was kind of worried about what I would eventually do with it, especially if I had to get rid of it. But I guess I will keep flipping it once every week or two, when I can find the courage, adding browns. Assuming that the stench will dissipate as you all seem confident it will, I should eventually be able to spread it on the ground to air out occasionally without raising a public outcry. I do have great neighbors, who happen to think I'm a nutcase, but put up with me and laugh nonetheless.

This little princess is a human baby doll if I have ever met one- I really could just eat her up.

Thank you for all the comments and advice, it is appreciated as always.

Karen

What to do with this smelly mess ???

Comments (9)

jbann23

kqcrna
Original Author

Related Discussions

treeinnj

kqcrna
Original Author

gratefulgardener3300

paulns

led_zep_rules

tiffy_z5_6_can

kqcrna
Original Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

What to do with this smelly mess ???

Comments (9)

jbann23

kqcrnaOriginal Author

Related Discussions

treeinnj

kqcrnaOriginal Author

gratefulgardener3300

paulns

led_zep_rules

tiffy_z5_6_can

kqcrnaOriginal Author

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US

kqcrna
Original Author

kqcrna
Original Author

kqcrna
Original Author