Compost piles and hurricanes (humanure)

I'd like to construct two 4x4x4' bins to use for humanure composting. However, I'm in south FL where we get hit with hurricanes every few years and I don't want my shit to get blown all around my and my neighbors yard. How can I construct a compost bin to make it "hurricane proof."

As a back up plan, I can use this system with the barrel buried a foot or so underground to keep it in place during extreme wind events: http://www.omick.net/composting_toilets/bucket_barrel_toilet.htm
However, it requires more management than a hot compost pile.

Mike, I'm no expert on hurricane proofing a structure, but given where you live one option might be to increase the speed of decomposition to ensure it is not recognizable.  See this post by Damon Downs on using Black Soldier Flies where it only takes minutes to become unrecognizable.

I've used both the Omick Barrel Toilet and the Joe Jenkins hot composting method.  Both require maintenance, so as far as work load it may just be a matter of preference.  According to the Humanure Handbook, it only takes 1 day to kill the pathogens at a modest pile temperature of 122F.  Deposits also become unrecognizable in just a few days.  So if you have a few days heads up you could potentially just hold off adding new material to the compost until the hurricane passes.  The center-feed method helps with oxygen, so you could also make the compost bin out of concrete barrier blocks to minimize the risk of things blowing away.

Burton Sparks wrote:Mike, I'm no expert on hurricane proofing a structure, but given where you live one option might be to increase the speed of decomposition to ensure it is not recognizable.  See this post by Damon Downs on using Black Soldier Flies where it only takes minutes to become unrecognizable.

I've used both the Omick Barrel Toilet and the Joe Jenkins hot composting method.  Both require maintenance, so as far as work load it may just be a matter of preference.  According to the Humanure Handbook, it only takes 1 day to kill the pathogens at a modest pile temperature of 122F.  Deposits also become unrecognizable in just a few days.  So if you have a few days heads up you could potentially just hold off adding new material to the compost until the hurricane passes.  The center-feed method helps with oxygen, so you could also make the compost bin out of concrete barrier blocks to minimize the risk of things blowing away.

Thank you so much from your response. One reason I'm attracted to a standard hot compost pile vs. the Omick approach is that I could throw all of my compostables into the pile. I'm not sure if that's the case with the Omick. With the Omick method, did you use the barrels only for humanure, or did other compostables go in as well?

If I live in hurricane country I would probably use the trash can method of composting.

Here are some threads that you or others might find interesting:

https://permies.com/t/139110/composting/faster-composting-idea

https://permies.com/t/139253/composting/Compost-trash

https://permies.com/t/153624/composting/Buried-trash-cans-compost-experience

I really like the buried trash can and if it happens to fill up with water during a hurricane then that is ready-made "Compost Tea".

Mike Bh wrote:One reason I'm attracted to a standard hot compost pile vs. the Omick approach is that I could throw all of my compostables into the pile. I'm not sure if that's the case with the Omick. With the Omick method, did you use the barrels only for humanure, or did other compostables go in as well?

Yes, I only used the barrels for humanure.  You could probably add other material though and even worms as suggested by Anne Miller.

I totally agree with your comment about hot compost though.  My wife loves that it can take just about anything and not stink or attract varmints: all moldy food from the fridge, chicks that didn't make it or chickens that died, still-born lambs and goat kids, raw dog food butcher trimmings that have gone maggoty, animal pelts that we never got around to tanning, etc..  I suspect you might have a harder time processing most of that in a trash can worm bin/barrel unless you also incorporated something like black soldier flies.