We have one of the tumbler composters in the backyard of our row house. We have never had problems with rodents or anything. If you want to try one, you can have ours for free. We live in petworth.

We are in a Baltimore row house. We have used an envirocycle tumbler for the last year and we have not had any problems with rodents. We put fruit and veggie scraps into it, plus old leaves and the occasional newspaper. No grains or meat.

Anonymous wrote:You could also try a different approach, like Compost Cab, it you're afraid of rodents and insects: http://compostcab.com/

Yes! love compost cab!

Anonymous wrote:I agree, you should be ok with a tumbler. We are in the burbs, so not as big of a rodent problem anyway, but I have one of the open cylinder types and we just bury any food scraps several inches below. Haven't had a problem yet.

Same here. Knock on wood, no problems yet.

You could also try a vermiconposter- we have one of those too and it works well. And as long as the conditions are right, it doesn't smell at all. Check out Happy-D-Ranch.

Maybe one of those vermicomposting towers would work for a townhouse. I have no experience with them, but they are kind of interesting.

Composting is stupid

I'm in the suburbs and my neighbor, who keeps a very large open compost pile, has also had a big rat problem off and on over the years. I vote for tumblers or compost cab.

You could also try a different approach, like Compost Cab, it you're afraid of rodents and insects: http://compostcab.com/

I agree, you should be ok with a tumbler. We are in the burbs, so not as big of a rodent problem anyway, but I have one of the open cylinder types and we just bury any food scraps several inches below. Haven't had a problem yet.

Anonymous wrote:Don't use food scraps if you don't want to attract rodents.

If you have an enclosed tumbler you won't really need to worry about insects:
http://www.amazon.com/Lifetime-60076-50-Gallon-Compost-Tumbler/dp/B009PJUGVA/ref=sr_1_8?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1416352635&sr=1-8

If you use an enclosed tumbler, vegetable and fruit scraps should be okay. Rodents cannot get into those compost tumblers. Well, at least the metal type.

Don't use food scraps if you don't want to attract rodents.

If you have an enclosed tumbler you won't really need to worry about insects:
http://www.amazon.com/Lifetime-60076-50-Gallon-Compost-Tumbler/dp/B009PJUGVA/ref=sr_1_8?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1416352635&sr=1-8

I live in a DC rowhouse with very little yard space, but I would (technically) be able to fit an enviorcyle tumbler or something similar out back. However, I have a hard time believe it won't attract bugs and/or rodents. Anyone manage this successfully in a very small yard?