Kitchen Composter

I love it when product designers think things through. This composter is lightweight and has been in heavy use for 4 years yet nothing has broken. The back has a grip and the lid has a hinge with a stop. This makes emptying it into our outdoor composter a breeze. Emptying can be done with one hand. No lid flapping in the way. The lid has a fine mesh and breathes, so the walls inside are not always wet and contents do not smell (we empty it about every 6 days and use it only for plant foods, not meat or dairy). We bang coffee filters on the inside of it many times a day to dislodge coffee grounds and altho this has made tiny dents, nothing has broken. This composter is exactly the same color as our kitchen walls, so it does not scream "COMPOSTER HERE!" The visual design is good enough to live on the counter near the sink where it gets the most use. Vessel is designed so that the carrying handle does not prevent the composter from sitting flush against the wall. It has a small footprint - much appreciated when counterspace is at a premium. I attached a Command hook to the underside of the cabinet above the composter next to the kitchen sink so that I can prop the lid open when using the composter repeatedly, e.g. while cutting veggies. This is a GREAT product that performs like a champ.

Look, I love my mom in law. I really do. She's got a great green thumb and is great at composting. The only issue was that she was keeping her composting materials (egg shells, tea bags, veggie cuttings, etc) in a dang plastic berry container. You know the ones? With the slits on the top and bottom. I love her. I do. But lord have mercy, she'd stash stuff there on the counter for a day or two to lug to her compost and the fruit flies...not to mention staining my counter with tea bags. Could. Not. Stand.So I womaned? up and got one of these as soon as I could afford it and I am SO GLAD I did. She has a bit of arthritis in her hands and she was worried she would have a hard time opening this...Nope. Not a problem. Easy to open, easy to seal and close. Light weight! Durable! (It's been over a month and a half since I ordered and it's been used A LOT by her.) Also? NO MORE FRUIT FLIES. No more stains on my counter! No more...just....yyyuuuck. There's no smell from it ever, no leaks, and it holds just the perfect amount that when or if it gets full it's not too heavy for her (she's like, four feet tall I swear.)If you want to get into composting/saving your stuff for the heap but don't want to take multiple trips a day for food scraps or if someone's like my mom in law and driving you batty keeping stuff weirdly..Get this! It was a sanity saver!

This product is well thought out. The color is neutral to fit any kitchen and the handle ergonomic and balanced for carrying. The lid props open if desired using one hand and can snap closed tight to prevent nats. The finish is smooth and washes clean easily and is sturdy yet light. Seems a bit pricey and there are cheaper versions but they are not overall as well made. I paid the price and am happy.

This is a very good product; I was initially skeptical because it is all plastic, and the durability of plastic is very unpredictable. But I've been using this for two years and it serves the purpose. I was skeptical also of the locking lid mechanism: when you open it, you can "click" it into an open position, and it's extremely handy and ergonomic when processing food. It's very practical to use the upright, open position in which the lid stands open vertically, thereby staying open while I use it and also taking up less space on the counter than it would if I opened it fully, past the click, with the lid lying back on the counter, wide open. I thought this click might eventually wear out, but so far so good. It's handy Easy to clean. Handle is durable and sufficient to hold up the weight it's designed to carry. One thing I especially like about the ergonomics of the container is that when I dump it into the compost pile, there is finger grip on the bottom rear of the unit, so it makes dumping it no-mess and no-slip. Very good product. Previously, I had a fancy, cutesy stainless steel compost container designed to look like a miniature trash can, but in less than two years it developed pinholes in the bottom and leaked on the counter. Hard to believe it was even stainless steel. Sometimes plastic is superior.

I decided I was going to start composting to improve my gardening / minimize landfill waste (like everyone else). I use this with compostable bags, and keep this indoors in the kitchen. This is a reasonable size (2 gallons?) pail, so it gets emptied every 1-2 weeks. Given that, I've had no problems with odor, fruit flies, or other nuisances associated with compost bins. With a the compost bag, the lid doesn't really latch closed tightly, but that's not a problem as I don't have pets or small children to worry about. The compost bags sometimes tear (or start degrading) and fluid leaks through, but its not a problem because this pail is one piece (the lid is hinged but removable), so I don't have to worry about it leaking through, onto the floor. When emptying, its easy to carry the pail by the handle to the compost bin, empty it, spray it down/air dry it outside and return it to use. with that, it has stayed mostly clean, though there are a little bit of mold on bottom of the plastic.

I bought this based on the size of the bucket. I think the bucket need a couple of small improvements to make it much better for composting. 1 I would put a slot inside the top lid to hold a filter. The one recommended by Amazon now has no specific place for the filter. I put it on the bottom. Many of the lids for cat litter trays have these slots. The other change I would make would be a place a little clip on the back to hold the compost bags more securely. If you put any kind of weight in your compost the bag tends to slip of the edges. It is too bad, because other than these two issues, I like the bucket for composting. The size is good, it is sturdy yet lightweight and , as promised, the lid snaps shut tight. I will keep it and I will just gerryrig these additions for it for myself.