There is now a hand-powered food
waste composting machine on the market called the Ridan, named after Richard and Dan who
have developed it. It’s basically an insulated pipe with an axle running along
its length with paddles along it which you turn using a large wheel. Material
is put in through a hatch at one end and exits at the far end underneath.
This composter will compost
50 litres of cooked food waste, plus 50 litres of raw peelings etc and 50
litres dry wood chip a day. (This is equivalent to the throughput on the
smaller Rockets and Big Hannas). The materials are put in and mixed around with
the turning wheel and about 30 litres per day are harvested at the same time.
The woodchips are generally sieved off into a maturation bin to finish
composting.
Cost
of Ridan
£2,225 + VAT
Now there is the mini Ridan too
The Mini Ridan is intended for smaller kitchens, with under 80 litres of food waste per week.
Smaller and cheaper than the standard Ridan but with the same simple and effective thermo-composting process at its heart.
Dimensions 2.1 meters long, 1 meter wide and 1.5 meters tall, weight about 50kg empty.
Cost £1,575 plus vat and delivery, for more information please send an email or call, 01598 750109.
http://ridan.co.uk/mini_ridan_composter/
Pros of Ridan
- Much cheaper that the electrically driven machines
- Can compost large amounts of food waste quickly
without flies smell or rodent problems
- Does not require a building to house it
- Does not need to be connected to a power supply
- Great for some schools, businesses and institutions
- Great at mixing and getting compost through the thermophilic ‘hot phase’ of composting.
Cons
of Ridan
- Price – although much cheaper to buy and run than
the powered machines
- Needs more attention than a powered machine
- Needs a supply of dry woodchip
- Can take quite a time for the operators to get it
right
The Ridan differs from the other two systems in that materials are harvested every time fresh materials are added and the mechanism turned.
When starting to add materials to the Ridan include a good bucketful of active compost and also some more or less finished compost if at all possible. Add a really generous amount of dry wood chip too. When starting up a good proportion mix is for each bucket of wood chips have one bucket of fresh peelings.
When you are getting some high temperatures generated (50 – 60 degrees Celsius) then you can start to add cooked foods too. One bucket of cooked should be mixed with a bucket of fresh raw peelings etc and two buckets of dry wood chip.
Chopping up whole vegetables and fruit with a spade in a bucket is advisable otherwise they tend to emerge relatively unscathed from the machine.
The first materials to emerge from the Ridan can be recycled through the front end again, this helps to boost the pH and to get all the right bugs multiplying. Sieving the materials through a coarse sieve into the maturation bin enables you not only to reuse some of the woodchip but helps the pH and microbe mix.
The proportions above are only a guideline and if you don’t have as much fresh raw peelings you can substitute with fresh green materials from the garden.
See the Ridan website for more advice www.ridan.co.uk
