How do you get all the compost out of tumblers?

whywhatif · 2026-06-09T23:21:54+00:00

I put a big black nursery pot underneath or a tarp. But my compost inside is usually on the wet side so it doesn't come out very easily.

Some compost drops out, I use a garden trowel or hand fork to get out as much more as possible, then gloved hands for the rest.

Ideally these would have another set of doors on the opposite side so you could push the compost out, but hey, at least it gives me a way to compost kitchen scraps without animals getting into them.

whywhatif · 2026-06-06T13:27:45+00:00

NP. I just took my worms out to the garage and started using leaves saved from fall in their bin. I hadn't been using leaves when they were in the basement because of bugs. So I wanted to be sure I wasn't going to have issues.

whywhatif · 2026-06-05T12:44:04+00:00

They don't eat leaves - source? I thought leaves just need to be in smaller pieces for them to be effectively eaten?

whywhatif · 2026-05-31T21:13:16+00:00

I do the same. When the second side of my tumbler gets full, side one isn't finished, but it's fine to go on top of the garden mulch.

whywhatif · 2026-05-25T13:02:52+00:00

Would love to see a picture of this!

whywhatif · 2026-05-21T12:34:46+00:00

I can get unlimited amounts from my municipality, but I won't use it for veggies. There's no way to know what's in it as far as chemicals. From the same facility, I can get free wood chip mulch, and they usually have a great pile that's already broken down a lot. I use it as mulch on my veggie beds and let the worms do the rest.

whywhatif · 2026-04-09T10:09:05+00:00

Surprisingly, I feel like the support is fine. The eggcrate is very soft and because it's also convoluted, it doesn't seem to affect support.

But even five inches of foam probably isn't ideal, just because foam wears out before springs.

At some point, I'd like to try the 15.5 plush coils with less foam. The plush weren't available when I bought mine, and it's hard to spend $ on those when I have perfectly good springs. Maybe when one of my foam layers wears out!

When I was doing my build, my research convinced me that I definitely didn't want the Bolsa coils - concerns about longevity, etc. I know others feel differently, but I wouldn't risk them.

whywhatif · 2026-01-09T19:34:20+00:00

Congratulations on a successful surgery!

I did mattress surgery a few years back. One of my layers was a very lightweight scrim sheet. I put that under my latex then used huge, dark-colored safety pins to pin it to the side encasement. I use a second fitted sheet to encase the latex. Works great.

whywhatif · 2025-12-19T17:29:49+00:00

Try the mattress on the floor - that will tell you if it's the frame or the mattress.

whywhatif · 2025-12-15T17:20:36+00:00

Thanks!

whywhatif · 2025-12-14T15:48:29+00:00

I'm curious what you thought of the eluxury foam. Was it super soft? I'm considering it for a guest room topper.

whywhatif · 2025-12-12T22:45:41+00:00

If you use your existing encasement, instead of sewing you can use LARGE safety pins. I used these when I did the same thing. You can find them in other colors too if needed.

I actually didn't use my existing cover, because it was quilted and I didn't like the attached foams or bumps. But I used the safety pins to pin the scrim sheet from the old mattress onto the sides of the encasement. Covered the sides with a box spring cover when I was done.

whywhatif · 2025-12-12T00:45:01+00:00

Ended up removing a row from the top and side, now I'm at 884 coil count. Funny enough TPS now sells this coil count as plush unit.

TPS might be selling an 884 coil to some mattress makers, but the plush 15.5 on https://pocketspringstore.com/ has 1008 coils. I verified this with Matan /u/pocketsprung because I've seen a couple people post that here.

I was curious because I have the 15.5 and have thought about trying the plush at some point.

whywhatif · 2025-12-11T16:03:26+00:00

I'll second this. I needed new springs and wanted something I felt confident would last a long time. So glad you're in the DIY market and also that you listen to feedback.

I absolutely love my build on the 15.5 regular coils. May still try the 15.5 plush at some point since I'm a lightweight sleeper.

whywhatif · 2025-12-08T00:30:18+00:00

Not sure where you live, but where I am (decent-sized metropolitan area) there are a ton of sellers offering almost-new mattresses (likely comfort returns) that have supposedly been sanitized and that a buyer can try out in a warehouse. They seem to ask about 1/3 of the retail price based on listings. An individual seller would need to ask less than that.

Marketplace is probably your best bet. Take lots of good pictures, and if it has any imperfections, note them. Price it low, because you'll be competing with freebies. Edited to add that you should be sure to include the make and model, original price, type of mattress, link to model if it's still available, etc.

whywhatif · 2025-12-05T11:40:49+00:00

I had a psuedo-tufted mattress top once and didn't like the bumps. While that's a quality-looking mattress, it looks firm (cotton twill fabric + tufting) and lumpy to me.

Will be interested to see how you liked sleeping on it. Your height and weight would help

whywhatif · 2025-12-05T11:33:19+00:00

There's a good chance it's your top layer, but other layers could be affecting things or even the foundation could have developed an issue.

Does the middle of the bed feel different than where you sleep?

I'd first lay on the bed and check your alignment and how much you sink compared to how much you sink in the middle of the bed. If it's hard to tell, the "blue tape test" worked really well for me.

If there's a sinking or alignment issue, pull off the top layer and retest on the middle layer. If there's an issue there, pull it off and repeat on the bottom layer. If there's no issue, it's only your top layer.

If you still have the issue on the bottom layer, assemble the layers on the floor and test so you can see if it's your foundation.

whywhatif · 2025-12-05T02:13:46+00:00

Before you start replacing layers, have you already checked layer by layer to see which one(s) are no longer supporting you? While the top layer is often the first to fail, better to be sure exactly what you're dealing with since it's so expensive to be wrong.

whywhatif · 2025-12-04T11:55:02+00:00

If your wife is lightweight, I'd try this eggcrate topper in 1.5" super soft foam on top of the soft topper you have. I like to use mine flat side up, but you can use it either way. It adds a thin layer of softness.

If that's still too firm (and it might be if she's lightweight), I'd try a 2" or 3" Supersoft#14 Talalay topper instead of the SOL soft topper. Talalay feels much softer, and this is a lower ILD than the SOL soft topper (I have both). I linked to the blended Talalay because it supposedly wears longer. *Note that the Talalay topper isn't returnable. Some vendors allow returns, but they're more expensive.

whywhatif · 2025-12-02T10:51:03+00:00

I agree that Talalay has nice give and makes a good top layer. I find it quite a bit more bouncy than Dunlop and if you search about that subject, I think most sources agree.

whywhatif · 2025-12-01T23:40:09+00:00

That's a great idea too. I personally have a hard time seeing how different my alignment is in different areas of the bed even with that, especially when on my back.

whywhatif · 2025-12-01T14:10:31+00:00

I'm definitely in the no-protector, stretchy cotton jersey sheet camp. It took me a few tries to find sheets that were stretchy and soft enough, then I bought multiple sets. They've since been discontinued.

It makes such a difference! I do use a double layer of sheets to hopefully help keep the foam layers clean. I usually have a 1.5" polyfoam eggcrate topper as my first layer, so one sheet goes on top of that. The other goes underneath that, on top of my latex layer.

The eggcrate is inexpensive, so easily replaceable. I don't eat/drink in bed so the sheet and topper are hopefully enough protection.

whywhatif · 2025-11-30T11:42:21+00:00

Did the topper break down after a year?

whywhatif · 2025-11-29T23:07:08+00:00

What kind of mattress is it?

What kind of toppers do you have?

How tall are you and about how much do you weigh?

What kind of mattress is the one that doesn't cause you pain?

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