How to Build a DIY Compost Bin with Pallets

Our second garden install was a tool to help us begin regenerative farming practices.

Before installing garden beds, we set up a compost bin. Ideally, we would have set this up about a year ahead of needing to use compost from it. We set up our first compost bin made of pallets about 3 months before planting our first seeds in the garden.

Pallet compost bins are simple. They are recycled and regenerative. But, be cautious about one big thing when using pallets for any DIY pallet project: How they are treated. Heat treated pallets are best for this. Any chemical treated pallets should be avoided.

We got free pallets from my husband’s work. All have had the “HT” stamp on them, so we know they were heat treated. Look for that on any pallets before you use them to make a compost bin or any garden installation like our trellises. (I will share how we made them in a future post.)

With that word of caution shared, let’s get to the DIY compost bin out of pallets.

Make a DIY Compost Bin Out of Pallets

To make one compost bin you will need four pallets. In addition, you will need these supplies and tools:

• Saw

• Drill

• Screwdriver

• Wood screws (rated for outdoor use)

• 4 heavy duty hinges

• 2 hook and eye latches

Start by deciding which pallets will be the three sides, and which will be turned into the doors. This is just an aesthetic and function assessment. Prop the pallets up and see if wood touches wood at the corners to allow you to screw the pallets together easily. If not, grab four L-brackets to hold the pallets together.

We set up our back and one side. Then, my oldest son screwed them together in about four spots. You may have to find angles to drive in the screws so that they go through both pallets.

Then add the other side the same way. If you use L-brackets, attach at least 3 per inside corner (top, middle bottom). You would need a total of 6 L-brackets if you use this method to attach the pallets.

The next step is to cut one pallet in half. You will need a top door and a bottom door for opening and accessing the compost bin. Mark a level line to follow.

Use the saw to cut through the pallet. You may need to use a power saw and switch to a hand saw depending on the depth of your pallet boards.

Take one half of the cut pallet and attach two hinges to one end.

Set it up near the bottom of the front side of the pallet compost bin and screw the hinges to the pallet side. You are making a lower door for your compost bin.

Then, do the same with the other half pallet. Attach the hinges to the top part of the side pallet. Be sure to leave a little space between the bottom pallet and the ground and the top and bottom door pieces so everything can swing open more easily.

Attach the hook and eye latches to each half door.

You now can open the top door for easy access to shovel out compost as needed. You can open both doors for a full clean out of the compost bin or for easier turning of the compost.

It is important to keep your compost turned or mixed. Our chickens fly into the bins and scratch around. They keep it mixed for us.

Once your pallet compost bin is set up, start emptying in food scraps, newspaper, cardboard, grass clippings, leaves, and any farm animal waste and bedding. We dump all soiled animal hay and pine shavings right into the compost bin.

There are great resources on how to layer your compost bin for maximum rot efficiency. I am not very prescribed with ours. I just dump in what I need to and turn it now and then.

We eventually created two additional compost bins out of pallets. You can see two bins back to the right near the treel ine. One is our active collection bin. Then, after 6 months or so, we shovel it all into the second bin. After that has sat for a few months -- and stops feeling warm (how you know your compost is “working” is it will produce heat) -- we move it into a third bin that is our working top soil bin. We scoop out of it to add compost to the garden beds and to refresh the soil in potted plants.

The three bin compost method has been perfect for us. At first, our compost was not rotting very quickly. I was not turning it enough and our chickens were not scratching in it.

Now that the birds free range during the day, they help the regenerative soil process move more quickly from scraps and manure to functional compost.

Having your own compost bin is not just about regenerative and organic farming. It is a key for farming on a budget.

Soil and compost cost around $10 per bag. For larger garden beds like our 4 foot by 25 foot beds, I would need 6 bags of soil per bed. With 12 total beds, that would be a total of $720 dollars spent each year to refresh our garden beds! I can do all that for free with my pallet compost bins and free regenerated soil.

It just makes sense. Less money, less waste (all those plastic bags that hold the store bought soil) and it’s all natural, made on site.

Pallet compost bins are great for a few reasons.

One, they are often free. Pallets are easy to come by or purchase for a small amount. (Ask local big box stores or warehouses if you can pick up their used pallets. It may even save them shipping cost to let you take them.)

Two, the wood pallets allow air flow through the composting materials. A plastic compost bin will trap too much moisture and mold more easily. You need oxygen to help the microorganisms feed off the waste materials and generate garden soil for you. (It takes about six months for compost to be ready for the garden.)

Plus, you can easily replace them if they rot away. We have had our pallet compost bins installed and working for almost two years now. They have not fallen apart yet. I did have to reattach one hinge that had pulled out. But, other than that, they have been sturdy.

Plus, walking over to your compost bin is so much easier than driving to the store, handling and loading those bags of pricey soil. It just makes sense.

We have quite a few pallet projects that I will be sharing in more detail here on the blog. To see what we have made so far, view our DIY pallet projects over on Instagram.

In fact, this pallet project was part of a homeschool woodworking curriculum that I created for my son. He loves building, so his help was perfect for this DIY pallet project.

What have you used to make DIY compost bins? Any pallet projects going on on your homestead?