Compost Bins - Vermin attack!

spartacus173500

I've currently got more compost material on the outside of my bin than on the inside!

How can I stop the mice/rats? from burrowing under?
Anyone else similar experiences and potential solutions?

Somebody suggested preforated mesh on the underside of the bins as opposed to chicken wire - any suggestions where to purchase from?

angelavdavis

I put double thickness of chicken wire under my bins and they haven't got through in two years.

I ensure that the wire extends beyond the edge of the bin and fold up the edges up the sides of the bin to prevent the critters getting in - the slightest hole allows them to get in, so you might even want to tie the edges together with some wire to prevent this.

A._Badger

This isn't a lot of help, but I offer it in the hope it will save someone else from a rat infestation.

A year or so back, Mrs Badger purchased a 'Green Johanna' compost bin - widely touted by 'save the earth' hippies and, in this case, heavily subsidised by our local council.

Personally, I was deeply sceptical of the claim that it was proofed against vermin attack by virtue of having a semi-locking lid and a plastic mesh base. None the less, in true 'never let experience get in the way of Green propaganda' the Council recommend users to dispose of food waste in the bin. Yes, even meat and even bones.

So, of course, the local rats (not being members of Greenpeace) simply took their time and gnawed through the silly thing, which now has holes, top and bottom. The locking lid? They chewed through that, too, of course.

The same local council's pest control officer had an entertaining turn of phrase to describe his colleagues in the 'let's throw money at Greenie causes' department, when he came to put down poison to control the inevitable ensuing ratfest.

The moral? Rats are hungry, patient and clever animals. They will get in - sooner or later. And when they reach the source of food, they will breed and invite their relatives round for dinner.

Don't believe your local council if it tries to sell you a plastic rat-proof bin. There's no suchama thing. Certainly not a 'Green Johanna'!

Oh, and if you want metal mesh, try a hardware store. Hope that, at least, helps. Rats don't like it, it's true. I got that from the rat catcher. Plastic, though? My, how he laughed!

Lotus-eater

Although I agree with Badger about the green plastic bins being (non) rat proof, I am getting a little tired of his calling everyone who cares about the world a hippy, give it a rest, it's getting a little boring now.

Anyway back to the OP.
If you get some sort of wire, I use heavy duty small square mesh because I had some left over from building a broody coop, but I expect 2 or three layers of chicken wire would do the same job. Stick it underneath and up the sides as Angela says, I then put three layers of old bricks round the bin, holding the wire in and making a uneatable barrier.
Not had a problem in years since I started doing it. Before then, all the time with rats.

A._Badger

Lotus-eater wrote: »

Although I agree with Badger about the green plastic bins being (non) rat proof, I am getting a little tired of his calling everyone who cares about the world a hippy, give it a rest, it's getting a little boring now.

Equally, I'm getting tired of the implication that there is only one way to 'care about the world' and that anybody who disagrees is a planet-ravaging maniac.

Moreover, while these self-styled 'carers' continue to make life awkward for anyone who doesn't happen to agree with their notions (banning peat in compost, banning perfectly innocuous herbicides and pesticides) I will continue to take the mickey out of them.

If you don't like it, I suggest you simply skip my comments.

Farway

I had rats in my daleks, I bought metal small mesh from Wilkinson's, think is is for hamster cages & the like

I used two layers, so the holes do not line up, and took it up the sides and tied off with wire, so far so good, but only started reusing bins end of August, so time will tell

I had poisoned the blighters as well, Rentokill poison also from Wilko

PS, next is an air rifle if all else fails

angelavdavis

A._Badger wrote: »

This isn't a lot of help, but I offer it in the hope it will save someone else from a rat infestation.

A year or so back, Mrs Badger purchased a 'Green Johanna' compost bin - widely touted by 'save the earth' hippies and, in this case, heavily subsidised by our local council.

Personally, I was deeply sceptical of the claim that it was proofed against vermin attack by virtue of having a semi-locking lid and a plastic mesh base. None the less, in true 'never let experience get in the way of Green propaganda' the Council recommend users to dispose of food waste in the bin. Yes, even meat and even bones.

So, of course, the local rats (not being members of Greenpeace) simply took their time and gnawed through the silly thing, which now has holes, top and bottom. The locking lid? They chewed through that, too, of course.

The same local council's pest control officer had an entertaining turn of phrase to describe his colleagues in the 'let's throw money at Greenie causes' department, when he came to put down poison to control the inevitable ensuing ratfest.

The moral? Rats are hungry, patient and clever animals. They will get in - sooner or later. And when they reach the source of food, they will breed and invite their relatives round for dinner.

Don't believe your local council if it tries to sell you a plastic rat-proof bin. There's no suchama thing. Certainly not a 'Green Johanna'!

Oh, and if you want metal mesh, try a hardware store. Hope that, at least, helps. Rats don't like it, it's true. I got that from the rat catcher. Plastic, though? My, how he laughed!

I had exactly the same experience. I had kept a compost heap for 20 years in several locations and never had problems with rats or mice. Yet we placed the green cone/Joanna in the garden and got infested.

Oh, by the way, I have also had a wormery for ten years without having to restock on worms. It has moved house with me and I have used this for disposal of cooked food without any issues with vermin.

When I reported the issues with the green cone, the Council "expert" came round and told me everything I was doing wrong with my compost heaps and wormery - so it was clear the rat infestation was my problem! He then proceeded to tell me he actually had never kept a wormery but that his OH had just started keeping one! I was not impressed!!!

Needless to say, the Cone got dug up and cut up and I am afraid thrown away in the landfill.

A._Badger

Farway wrote: »

I had rats in my daleks, I bought metal small mesh from Wilkinson's, think is is for hamster cages & the like

I used two layers, so the holes do not line up, and took it up the sides and tied off with wire, so far so good, but only started reusing bins end of August, so time will tell

I had poisoned the blighters as well, Rentokill poison also from Wilko

PS, next is an air rifle if all else fails

Funny you should say that! I've got a new one standing in the corner of my room and it's going to be put to use very soon!

The rat catcher told me that rats hate wire mesh as their teeth slip on the individual filaments, so it's clearly the stuff to use.

A._Badger

angelavdavis wrote: »

I had exactly the same experience. I had kept a compost heap for 20 years in several locations and never had problems with rats or mice. Yet we placed the green cone/Joanna in the garden and got infested.

Oh, by the way, I have also had a wormery for ten years without having to restock on worms. It has moved house with me and I have used this for disposal of cooked food without any issues with vermin.

Likewise, and I'm glad to hear it isn't just me.

That said, I had a plastic bin in my last garden and that was OK (in fact it made excellent compost) but the difference is that I didn't put food waste in it.

angelavdavis wrote: »

When I reported the issues with the green cone, the Council "expert" came round and told me everything I was doing wrong with my compost heaps and wormery - so it was clear the rat infestation was my problem! He then proceeded to tell me he actually had never kept a wormery but that his OH had just started keeping one! I was not impressed!!!

Needless to say, the Cone got dug up and cut up and I am afraid thrown away in the landfill.

I have a feeling ours is heading the same way!

What irritates me is the way people are being persuaded to pay for things that often don't work - and, of course, that other people are having to subsidise them through their council taxes!

conradmum

Can I ask what the people who have had rat infestations have been putting in their bins? My understanding was that if you never put cooked or animal-based waste in your bins the rats won't bother.

I've had green compost bins (not the green cone type) for many years and never had a problem with rats or mice, even when we actually had rats around. (Our neighbours had rabbits in their garden and the rats were eating their food I think. They found they had an infestation in their shed. My toothless cat proudly presented me with two dead youngsters. :rotfl:)

I've never put mesh or anything else to protect my bins either. All they get fed is raw vegetable and fruit waste, cardboard and the odd contribution of lawn clippings and suitable weeds. I'm not sure if I've just been lucky. We live in a semi-rural area.

conradmum

A._Badger wrote: »

Equally, I'm getting tired of the implication that there is only one way to 'care about the world' and that anybody who disagrees is a planet-ravaging maniac.

Moreover, while these self-styled 'carers' continue to make life awkward for anyone who doesn't happen to agree with their notions (banning peat in compost, banning perfectly innocuous herbicides and pesticides) I will continue to take the mickey out of them.

If you don't like it, I suggest you simply skip my comments.

Has this been your experience on this board, or are you speaking generally?