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| Overall: |
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1
out of 5
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| Quality: |
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2
out of 5
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| Appearance: |
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3
out of 5
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| Value: |
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1
out of 5
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lovetoclimb
Location:
Savannah, GA
Shopping Frequency:
every 4 to 6 months
I have used this product for:
6-12 months
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Disappointing
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Date: June 29, 2009
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"I received this composter as a very generous holiday gift, and was excited to try it out. I have very little space but do have a small garden and it seemed like a great fit for my needs.
I followed the directions explicitly, adding a bit of soil and the requisite sawdust pellets, cutting up waste, not adding fibrous or hard material, etc. But there are some substantial problems:
First, the machine is not nearly silent - it hums like a fish tank bubbler all the time, which is not that bad, but certainly not silent. But every few hours the bar inside mixes material, and collides with other internal metal parts, which makes a good deal of noise - enough to be disturbing through two closed doors, three rooms away. This noise was dampened with an increase in material added, but I still had to close doors between it and myself to be able to sleep at night.
The next problem came after a couple of weeks of use. The internal mixing bar had become jammed, and I had to remove all of the partially composted material to pull material from between the mixing bar and the interior walls of the composter.
Mold does develop along the top and upper sides of the interior of the composter, which is a problem for those with severe allergies. You also have to empty the tray below, as it fills with compost tea even when the material above is relatively dry.
When I finally had a nice amount of dirt-looking compost, I tried to transfer it to the tray below. You're supposed to be able to do this at the push of a button, and the tray is easy to remove and replace below the composting/mixing chamber. After pressing the button, a light illuminates telling you to wait up to 48 hours. After 48 hours, the light switched back to the normal power light, with no transfer of compost. I did this twice, with no luck, and finally took the whole thing outside to empty by hand with a small garden trowel and spoon. I found that the mechanism that is supposed to drop the materials to the tray below was packed with materials between its edge and the side of the composter, presumably keeping it from moving or doing its job to drop materials. Materials had always been added at the top, and certainly never compressed. The mixing bar does come close to this area, and that is the only way I can imagine the materials became so tightly packed in that space.
Further, in the process of emptying the main composting chamber, I found a loose piece of metal from the workings of the machine. I have no idea where it goes.
This was a very generous and expensive gift and I am very disappointed with its poor performance. I am not sure if it was purchased from Gaiam but thought my experience may be helpful to those considering the purchase. It is absolutely a waste of money."
0 of 1 people found this review helpful.
Response from Gaiam:
By
Customer Relations,
June 29, 2009
Thank you very much for your feedback. We’re sorry your experience was not what you’d expected. We guarantee every product unconditionally, and we want you to be thrilled with your Gaiam purchase. If you would like to return this for a refund or exchange, please contact us by email at customerservice@gaiam.com or by phone at 1-877-989-6321.
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