Help! My Compost is Too Wet: How to Fix Composting Problems

So, you finally decided to make compost and it’s a wet stinky mess. Let’s take a look at what to do when your compost is too wet and get you on your way to having perfectly finished compost.

Help! My Compost is Too Wet

Don’t fret when your compost is too wet. Last year, I had a pile that was way too wet but found an easy way to fix it. I gathered up some carbon-rich materials and a pitchfork and had the problem solved in no time. 

Turn & Aerating the Compost Heap

A compost pile is actually a living thing.  Too much water and not enough oxygen will give you poor aeration and drown the life in your pile.  

Turning or aerating your compost pile will add the necessary oxygen that the beneficial bacteria and microbes need to break down the organic matter in your compost pile. So, grab your pitch fork, friend.  It will only take a few minuets to turn your compost pile. 

Adding Absorbent Materials to the Compost Bin

Successful composting requires a good balance of carbon-rich materials (brown materials) and nitrogen-rich materials (green materials). If you find that your compost is too wet, adding more absorbent materials to the compost pile will solve your problem.  So, as you are taking the time to turn your pile add in a few more layers of brown materials to soak up the excess moisture. 

Types of Brown Materials to Add

• Wood Chips or Shavings
• Dry Leaves
• Peat Moss
• Brown Yard Waste
• Egg Shells
• Shredded Office Paper
• Brown Paper Bags
• Shredded Cardboard
• Saw Dust from Untreated Wood

Add a Nitrogen Activator

Once you have taken the time to turn your pile and add brown materials to soak up the excess moisture, you could consider adding a nitrogen activator after a couple days, if you pile isn’t hot. They are organic materials that help build a hot compost pile. Adding these will speed up microbial growth, speeding up the decomposition process.  In other words, you’ll have that black gold for the garden faster.

Nitrogen Activators to Add to the Compost 

• Blood Meal
• Coffee Grounds
• Comfrey
• Alfalfa Pellets
• Vegetable Kitchen Scraps
• Green Garden Waste
• Sprinkle in Grass Clippings (Avoid Thick Layers)
• Animal Manures.  Just be sure it’s not manure from ruminants that have eaten hay sprayed with herbicides. I prefer chicken manure. 
• Or Even Urine, Yes, urine! It is a fantastic source of nitrogen and a great fertilizer. Just be sure it’s unmedicated. 

Signs Your Compost is Too Wet

Trust me on this one, friend. When your compost is too wet, the first thing you’ll notice is the stench and overall yuck in the compost bin. A properly built and managed compost pile should not be gross.

Foul Odor in Your Compost Heap

Putrid odors happen when compost is too wet or when the food waste ratios are too high. A high moisture level in the compost pile breeds anaerobic bacteria, which will cause a smell bad enough to make you run from your compost bin.  

Your Compost Has a Slimy Texture 

A slimy texture in your compost is also another sign that your compost is too wet. This can be caused by layering nitrogen-rich materials, or green materials, in thick layers.  When you have thick layers of greens, oxygen cannot get into the middle of them.  This leads a slimy anaerobic conditions in your compost pile. Give that pile a good turn and consider adding some dry materials to break it up. 

Water Pooling at the Bottom of the Compost Bin

This is an obvious sign that your compost is too wet.  Stagnant water pooling in the bottom of your compost bin is sure to breed bad bacteria. Again, turn your compost and add brown materials. 

How to Prevent Wet Compost

There are several different reasons why people struggled with their past composting experience. Having compost that is too wet is a common problem.  

Once you figure out how to make compost successfully, the process will be much easier. Whatever you do, don’t give up on trying. Let’s take a look at how to prevent compost that is too wet.

The Correct Ratio of Green and Brown Materials

The correct ratio of materials is the first step in successful composting. A rough rule of thumb is to layer 2-3 brown materials to 1 green material. Sticking with this ratio of compost ingredients is a good way to prevent soggy compost. 

Covering the Compost Pile

My composting game changed when I got a compost bin with a lid.  It happens to be a broken chest freezer.  Keeping your compost contained and covered will keep wet weather from ruining your composting pile. Just don’t forget that compost needs oxygen, turning your pile every few days will do the trick. If your composting pile is on the ground, maybe consider putting a tarp on it. 

Don’t Add Too Much Water

Water is necessary to all living things, even compost! Just don’t add too much.  As you build a compost pile it’s a good idea to moisten, not drench, each layer of the composting pile. Add just enough water to make each layer as moist as a wrung-out sponge.  If you see water running off and pooling in the bottom of your bin, your compost is too wet, which leads us to drainage.

Make Sure Your Pile Has Good Drainage

A few good drainage holes in the bottom of your compost bin go a long way.  They will keep too much water from pooling in your compost bin.  You could also have a bin or open pile built on a hardware cloth frame for a pile with good drainage. 

Other Common Problems You May Have in Your Compost Heap

Compost is amazing to have on hand for your garden and to reduce waste.  Sometimes I feel like a broken record on telling people not to give up on figuring out how to successfully make compost. Not only do people struggle with finding their compost is too wet, there are also other common problems with making compost. 

Compost is Too Dry

While a dry pile of leaves will break down over time, it will seem to take forever.  So long, and you’ll probably forget it was there, although this happens naturally on the forest floor.  Beneficial bacteria, microbes, oxygen, and water are needed for a finished product in a reasonable amount of time.  Again, a rough rule of thumb is 2-3 carbon-rich materials to 1 nitrogen-rich materials.

Bugs in the Compost Bin

If you have a compost pile, you can expect to see bugs in there.  It’s just part of the process.  There are good bugs and bad bugs though.  Let’s take a look at the creepy crawlies in the compost bin.

Good Bugs to Have in the Compost Bin

• Red Worms, like in a worm bin.
• Black Soldier Flies
• ​Isopods, like Rollie Pollies
• Slugs

Bad Bugs to Have in the Compost Bin

• Ants- No one wants an ant pile in their compost, also an indicator of a dry compost. 
• Houseflies- Mainly a nuisance and a sign the compost is too wet, causing maggots in the pile.
• Spiders- They will eat the beneficial bugs.
• Centipedes & Millipedes- An indicator of a dry compost pile, also feasting on beneficial bugs.
• Roaches- They are actually great at breaking down organic matter but you have roaches. Nobody wants roaches. A well balanced pile shouldn’t have them.
• Rodents- Again, a well balance pile shouldn’t have them. Bury your food scraps in the center of the pile, covering the pile with a thick brown layer to keep attracting smells down.

Plants Are Growing In Your Compost

This is a very common problem if you don’t have a hot compost pile.  Hot composting will kill any weed, grass, or other seeds in your pile keeping them from germinating.  So, if your pile isn’t hot you may find your self having to pull unwanted seedlings out of the top of the pile.  

On the plus side, you may find plants that volunteer that you can transplant into the garden or leave them to grow right in the compost pile.  This is a great way to grow pumpkins, which are heavy feeders. 

Compost is Too Smelly

Unfortunately, compost can sometimes be smelly.  A stinky compost problem is often caused by having too much nitrogen or when your compost is too wet.

Keeping the moisture content in check, by having the correct amount of dry ingredients, is important to the composting process and to keep bad odor at bay.

Understanding the Composting Process

Making good compost requires four things in the correct balance: brown materials, green materials, oxygen, and water. According to the EPA, “Composting is a controlled, aerobic (oxygen-required) process that converts organic materials into a nutrient-rich, biologically-stable soil amendment or mulch through natural decomposition. The end product is compost. Microorganisms feed on the materials added to the compost pile during the composting process.” 

Benefits of Successful Composting 

Having finished, high quality compost on hand is priceless.  Not only does compost reduce waste and greenhouse gasses, it is an extremely beneficial soil amendment.

Adding compost to the garden or your landscaping helps build soil structure, reduces erosion, and adds beneficial bacteria and microbes to the soil. It also feed plants and makes nutrients and water more accessible to your plants. Learning how to successfully make compost and correct problems in your compost pile is a win-win for the home gardener.

​When is My Compost Finished and How Do I Use It?

You’ll know that you have finished compost when all the materials that were used to start the pile are unrecognizable. It will also have a nice earthy smell to it with no off putting odors.  A handful of compost will also have a nice crumbly texture if it’s finished.

Use it to amend your garden soil, side dress plants throughout the growing season, start seeds in compost, or even plant directly into compost. To take it a step further you can make compost tea.

Solving Compost Problems: Your Compost is Too Wet

Now that you have a better idea on what to do if your compost is too wet you can get busy perfecting your compost making skills.  Just don’t give up.  It was created to work. We just need to understand the process and be good stewards to our compost pile.  If you can do that, you’ll have wheel barrows full of wonderful compost to help you grow an abundant garden. 

Happy Homesteading & Composting,

Jenny @ The GrahmStead Family Farm

Jenny and her family have been homesteading for over 20 years. They are currently farming on their 10 acre Florida farm, that they built from the ground up, 9 years ago, growing 100% of their meat and most of their vegetables. From their small herd of Aberdeen Angus Cattle, pastured poultry, sheep, and seasonal pigs, they are able to raise enough meat for the family while selling extra to the community. Striving to butcher at home, as much as possible, using the bits and pieces of their harvest by preserving food, making bone broth, and (Jenny’s favorite) tanning all kinds of hides!