We've done the closed barrel humanure compost for 2 years and just moved to open compost bins this past fall. I thought it was great! It didn't smell and didn't attract animals or our dogs.
Our barrel set up used 55 gallon plastic olive barrels. We located them in an area 200' from our cabin.
We prepared the area by, 1) flattening the land and clearing out underbrush, 2) ensuring the barrels were in a spot that got some sun and shade, 3) preparing an easy path to them, wide enough for a wheelbarrow and able to be easily cleared of snow in the winter. Prepared enough space for 24 barrels, assuming filling one per month on average(family of 2 with frequent visitors) and allowing then to sit a full year. 4) we made a leeching base for each barrel with 12" of leaves,
hay, straw, grass clippings and
wood chips. 5) we made sure we had an area we could get shovels full of top soil to add to the barrels as we went along. 6) we dedicated a little covered
shelter to keep extra clippings/leaves/hay dry while it also acted as a catchment for rainwater. 7) we set up a rain barrel for
water to wash out buckets I'm the warm months and in the winter we cleaned ok it with snow. 8) we dedicated a garden fork, shovel, gloves and toilet brush to be kept at the site for humanure use only to ensure cleanliness.
Preparing the Barrels. 1) We drilled holes in the bottom, 2) almost all barrels had a screw top. We saved those for when we capped them and while a barrel was being filled we had a metal window screening over the opening with a bungee cord holding it taught and then placed a small piece of tin and a large rock to hold it from blowing off and kept the rain and snow out.
3) place a 2" layer of soil in the bottom to start
Using the system
1) empty buckets into the barrel 2) wash the toilet buckets out with some water and the toilet brush and pour that water into barrel. 3) cover with a few handfuls of dry leaves/hay/clippings and a thin layer of topsoil(this adds microbes to your compost and reduces smell...make sure it's soil, not sand or clay). 4) you can and
should include humanure, urine and anything you would normally compost including animal scraps and bones(we farm meat animals for personal use and compost the entrails after harvesting) I have heard of people composting sanitary napkins in this way too and just picking out the plastics after it's all done. I am sure this would work, but it wasn't a need for us. 5) when the barrel is full, cap with a solid, tight fitting lid . Label each full barrel with month and year so you know when it is ready. We used spray paint pens. Sharpies wear off after a few months.
Tips/Observations
1) 24 barrels takes up
alot of space and looks rather unsightly. This is the main reason we went to large bins. 2) after a full year, the barrels were about 1/2 to 1/3 full of beautiful, black compost. The only things that didn't break down after that time were some onion skins and some eggshells. We no longer compost eggshells and use them for other things. 3) a barrel is tall when lifting a full bucket. I dug a few a foot into the ground which worked for filling but was horrible for emptying. Plus they got covered in deep snow over winter and I would say took longer to thaw out and get working again. I kept a
milk crate nearby to stand on as my ultimate solution. 4) you won't have soil to cover each deposit in winter. Leaves, etc work fine and since it all freezes, there is no real odour. In the spring I did reopen those I had capped in winter and added a few shovels of soil and then closed up again. 5) make sure you prepare your barrels and site all together at first and clear it of snow as winter progresses. Nothing sucks more than trying to setup barrels on snow and then when the snow melts having the barrels topple over. 6) make sure you have enough barrels!