Sun-Mar 400 100 gal cap Garden ComposterWrite a review

I appreciate the warnings other reviewers gave regarding the crank arm inadequacy. Because the device as-a-whole made a lot of sense to me, I ordered the 400 anyway, planning to spin the drum either without using the crank arm or by fashioning an alternative part. So far, I've done the former; I didn't mount the crank arm. There are very convenient hand holds for two of the three tugs needed for each full rotation (I'm 5'10" tall; this task will be harder if you are shorter). Mindfulness required!

Looking at the way the grip is attached to the crank arm, it's obvious that the contents of the drum can easily weigh too much. The drum is voluminous. As I see it, the problem is that the grip pivots to fold out of the way and the flanges on each side of it are not able to deal with the torque necessary to begin and continue loaded drum rotation. I sought to reinforce the flanges, but certain clearances along the arm's sweep are so small that nothing I tried could serve the purpose. The crank arm and grip could possibly be one well-designed and well-specified piece, but perhaps something more like a wheel is called for. The challenge then would be to maintain easy access to the finished compost.

One more thing to know up front concerns moisture management. With this device you have something really different from an open air compost pile that receives rain and releases excess water to the ground or the surrounding area. Keeping the drum closed at all times, I sometimes pour in a few cups of water prior to spinning. Because the flow of materials into the drum is ever-changing, this must be where composting by this method becomes an art.

I purchased mine July 17th, 2007. It worked as expected for three months, when the crank handle broke making it nearly impossible to turn.

I've emailed the manufacturer, and left phone messages with all of my pertinent information and have gotten absolutely no response.

The one time I got through by phone, I was put on hold for the "parts department" and apparently forgotten about.

Though the product may be admirable, the warranty (three years, supposedly) and the customer service seem to leave much to be desired.

I have since seen several other complaints about the handle breaking.

After choosing the Sun-Mar and excitedly waiting months for the 400 to arrive, I'm sad to report that it the product is seriously flawed.

In only a few months use, I've broken four crank handles. Sun-Mar customer service is quite good- no gripes there -and sent out the handles quickly. They arrived in about a week and were reasonably easy to install. The last handle (the 3rd) was made from a different type of plastic. This new handle also broke in the same way.

There are other limitations, such as balling of the compost requiring careful attention to moisture content and manual breaking-up of the balls, but these are not show stoppers. Issue like those are inherent in any type of active composting. But without the crank it's nearly impossible to turn the 100 gallon drum even when it is only filled to half-capacity.

I hope Sun-Mar fixes the issues quickly as I'm tired of idling my composter while I wait for another replacement crank.

hi,
i bought the sunmar400 expecting it to make compost but instead all we get is this dry, clumpy waste product, so am not happy. the composter looks good and in theory should work well, but so far it hasn't. i would love to write a great review, but no can do.

also, the plastic handle cracked within weeks. the manufacturer quickly sent out another, but it should be metal, not plastic.

I have had 3 of these composters due to warranty replacements.
They work wonderfully for 3-6 months and then fall apart when the center seperates and it falls out of the cradle.
I have tried 2 all-thread rods through the side and a bolt in the back to hold the center drum in and they still fail.
Customer service has been great but what a headache... save your money