sexy hot pile

[berryman]

Here is my newest compost pile consisting of 13 pickup loads of horse manure with wood shavings. I have added some sulphur as you can see and the temps are going up as we speak. About 120 deg F right now after two days.

[berryman]

Last time I made one this big it got up around 140.
Check out the mountains in the background. That's our water for the summer.

[AlittleSalt]

I've never done the hot compost. It's going to be interesting to see this happen.

[Cole_Robbie]

That is some hot s**t right there. Nicely done.

[Ricky Shaw]

Looks medieval.

[Starlight]

That is some big pile. Lots of shoveling too.

Looks good. : )

Do you have to add other stuff to it? I have read on here where some folks add molasses and other stuff.

[Worth1]

What is the sulfur for?

Worth.

[taboule]

Only here do people think a big pile of s**t is sexy.

[berryman]

Worth,
My soil here is quite alkaline, ph about 8.5-good for asparagus and root crops but not so good for other stuff.
The bacteria in the pile convert the sulfur into sulfuric acid and this acidifies the compost.
I didn't measure the temp today but it's getting hotter.

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by berryman

Worth,
My soil here is quite alkaline, ph about 8.5-good for asparagus and root crops but not so good for other stuff.
The bacteria in the pile convert the sulfur into sulfuric acid and this acidifies the compost.
I didn't measure the temp today but it's getting hotter.

Thanks that is what I thought you were doing.
I never thought about it until you mentioned it.

Worth

[berryman]

Ricky,
That's funny, it does look medieval. Just some old pallets and a piece of plywood that I was going to burn.
I started by making a pile on the ground but all around the edges there wasn't enough of the good stuff to keep the heat going, that's why I stacked it up like that.
IF the timing works out, I am going to grab a bunch of it when it's at its hottest and bury it down below some tomatoes as an experiment. The ground around here is cold and has a hard time warming up even during the summer.
Will post more pics later

[berryman]

Check out the temp! 168deg F.

[Worth1]

I used to see steam coming out of fresh sawmill saw dust piles.
This is why you dont put green hay in a barn.

Worth

[Mike723]

Nice pile Berryman!! I haven't incorporated manure into my piles yet but it's definitely heating up nicely for ya! Just becareful as you don't want to get any higher than 150-55 as that is where beneficials will begin to die. It's a bit of work but I'd give it a turn to cool that baby down a little lol.. Good luck!

Ps: here's a source in relation to compost temps etc.. http://compost.css.cornell.edu/physics.html

[berryman]

Good article Mike, thanks. I dug into the middle of the pile today and you are right, it's 180 in there. I'll do something about it tomorrow.
I figure that if the really hot part gets sterilized, when I turn it then it will probably recolonize with the beneficials again.
bob