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anyone used the sepura composting garbage disposal?

 
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I thought about ways of trying to pull this off with a more "basic" approach, like putting a screened box full of wood chips under the sink, or even in the sink. I also scrape things into a bowl on the counter that goes into the compost but there are still small things that get through like coffee grounds from my french press, or rice "stuff" from scrubbing out a rice pot despite having scraped in advance.

https://sepurahome.com/products/sepura

The cost is pretty high and I haven't seen any reviews that aren't from the company itself.

It looks like it has a perforated auger that pushes > 3mm into the compost bucket, and the water goes down the drain.
Screenshot-2024-03-29-at-1.05.24-PM.png
[Thumbnail for Screenshot-2024-03-29-at-1.05.24-PM.png]
 
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That is a really interesting idea, especially to retrofit into more modern traditionally built homes.

I wonder how the reliability of it is.

 
Tony Hawkins
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Timothy Norton wrote:That is a really interesting idea, especially to retrofit into more modern traditionally built homes.

I wonder how the reliability of it is.



Yeah it's pretty new. I've had augers run successfully for years in pellet stoves. Provided it's a sealed bearing I could see it work out. But man I'd feel a lot better if I could hear from a non-paid advertiser.
 
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Tony said, and the water goes down the drain.



That might be a great concept if it didn't go down the drain.

Keeping all those nutrients out of the compost pile.

Sounds like it works like an under-the-sink garbage disposer that comes with almost every home in the USA just on a grander scale.

I would not have anything to do with either since seeing ground-up garbage running down our driveway from sewer lines being clogged as a teenager.
 
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Just today I used a drill and soil auger to grind up food scraps I was putting in my aerated liquid composter.
It did a crap job, but if it has been inside a close fitting tube, it would have worked better.

For the price, that system simply isn't worth buying,imo.

I remember a video where they used a garbage disposal to prep scraps for an anaerobic biodigester.

If I were going to plumb a composting system into my house,it would be a vermifilter system, where  a big tank of carbon catches the water and waste and worms reduce it to nothing.
If it were plumbed to take only sink effluent,  the post vermifilter water would be excellent irrigation water.
 
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William Bronson wrote: If I were going to plumb a composting system into my house,it would be a vermifilter system, where  a big tank of carbon catches the water and waste and worms reduce it to nothing.
If it were plumbed to take only sink effluent,  the post vermifilter water would be excellent irrigation water.


I'd like to do that, but I'm just not convinced I can make it work through the northern Minnesota winter without having the whole thing indoors -- and I don't have that kind of space. I wonder how much electric heat I'd need to add at the bottom of a concrete vault under my deck to keep something like this functional.

Anyway, this Sepura device is pretty cool even if it's not good enough to choose to afford.
 
Christopher Weeks
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The only video I found on YouTube that isn't a production of Sepura is this installation video. He does a few use-tests at the end, but it doesn't seem particularly high-value.

 
Tony Hawkins
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Thanks, Chris.

I'm still a year or so away from needing one of these or otherwise needing to make a decision. Looking forward to other folks posting their experiences.
 
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I'll apologize for the book in advance:
I purchased a Sepura Composting Disposal and could not be more disappointed.  We were building a new home.  Sepura was having a sale - the unit is usually $799 (at the time I was looking) - I got it for $499 plus tax.  This was fall 2023.  I called the company and explained this unit would not be installed probably until March 2024 as ground had just been broken on the build.  The Sepura representative said they stand behind all of their products and they would ensure I was satisfied.  Well, far from it.  When the plumber installed the unit he was surprised at how much I paid for it since the unit was so cheaply built.  He was skeptical and had said from the get go that he would not guarantee it.  When the inspector came to grade our home before closing could happen, he ran the dishwasher and the water for quite a while to make sure the hot and cold were installed correctly and the dishwasher functioned properly.  He was not inspecting the Sepura unit because I was responsible for its purchase and installation - so it was never in use at all during the inspection.  The cabinet under the sink was flooded but he didn't notice it because there was nothing under the sink that he needed to inspect once he checked the plumbing.  It wasn't readily obvious the unit was leaking because the water was collecting in the bin - so there wasn't yet water on the bottom of the cabinet.  So much for those flood detection sensors!  My builder found it later that day and contacted me to let me know what happened.  Luckily, only the floor of the cabinet was damaged but still intact.  I chose not to have it replaced at my cost because I figured there may be additional testing I would do and I may just have to replace it again.  Fast forward, we move in and I find I can't even run water in the sink or run the dishwasher without the under sink floor flooding after the bin filled up.  Keep in mind the unit is on but I have not even run food through it yet - turns out, I never did!  I had two plumbers from two different companies check the installation of the unit and both said it was installed the same way they would have done it and completely according to the directions.  It was prime building time in our area so it took 2 weeks to get the first plumber in.  After the second plumber agreed it was installed correctly according to the directions, I had him uninstall the unit and install a garbage disposal.  I was DONE testing.  I couldn't risk flooding the kitchen to the point the floor was ruined or the ceiling in the basement got damaged.  I called Sepura and after photos and videos and conference calls (the first one Viktor didn't show up for) and emails, they told me they didn't see anything wrong with the unit and they have a NO REFUNDS policy - which I do not find stated anywhere on their website even now.  They said if I wanted to send it back to them (at my cost) they would take a look at it and refund my money IF they confirmed there was a flaw in the unit (like that's gonna happen).  Well, Sepura is located in the United Kingdom so sending it back at my cost would have been exorbitant.  I was done paying anything additional to make this unit work.  However I didn't decide NOT to send it back yet until they said I would have to also pay the cost of them sending the unit back to me if they did NOT find any flaws with it - if I wanted it.  SO THEY CAN BOX IT BACK UP AND SELL IT TO SOME OTHER CHUMP?!  I don't think so!  So, here I sit with a $499+ boat anchor which cost over $200 to install and over $200 to each of the second and third plumbers that inspected it.  So much for getting it on sale.  

DON'T RUN - - SPRINT THE OTHER WAY!  Save yourself the money, headache, and damage.  I purchased a compost unit I keep under the sink and empty a couple of times a week to our larger outdoor unit.  I only use the garbage disposal for the pieces of food washed off of plates and silver.  If you want to test my unit out, I'd be happy to send it to you (at your cost of course).  I'm in Iowa.
 
Did Steve tell you that? Fuh - Steve. Just look at this tiny ad:
GAMCOD 2025: 200 square feet; Zero degrees F or colder; calories cheap and easy
https://permies.com/wiki/270034/GAMCOD-square-feet-degrees-colder
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