This free compost turning schedule planner helps you make a turning schedule from a start date, with one plan for hot piles and another for slow piles. Turning mixes air into the pile, and air is what lets microbes break waste down fast instead of letting it rot and smell. It runs fully in your browser, so nothing you type is sent to a server. You need no account and no sign-up to use it.
A pile turned on a plan breaks down weeks sooner than a pile turned only when someone remembers. Regular turns also spread wet and dry patches evenly, so no part of the pile stays soggy while another part stays dry and dead.
To use the tool, fill in the boxes on screen and press the calculate button. You can change any number and calculate again as often as you like. The result updates at once, so you can test different plans side by side and see which one fits your garden best.
For example, start a hot pile on 28 October 2026 and compost for eight weeks. The tool shows a turn every 3 days, 18 turns in total, a first turn on 31 October 2026, and a ready date of 23 December 2026. Switch the same pile to slow and the plan drops to one turn every 14 days.
Turn more often in warm weather, when microbes are most active, and less often in a cold winter, when the pile rests. A schedule that fits the season keeps the pile working without wasting your weekends on turns the pile does not need.
Tip: Write the turn dates on a calendar the day you build the pile. A plan on paper beats a plan kept only in your head.
Tip: Turn the outside to the inside each time. The dry outer layer needs the heat of the centre, and the centre needs fresh air.
Tip: Skip a turn after heavy rain. A soaked pile needs to drain first, or turning just mixes water deeper into it.
The most common mistake is turning a hot pile every day. Daily turning cools the pile and stops it reaching the heat that kills weed seeds. Hot piles need frequent turns, but they also need rest days to heat up again between turns.
Common question: How do I know if my pile is hot or slow? If it steams on a cool morning and feels warm inside, treat it as hot. If it never warms up, use the slow plan.
Common question: What if I miss a turn? Just do the next one on time. One missed turn delays the pile a little, but it does not ruin it.
Common question: Do I turn in winter? Yes, but less often. The slow plan suits cold months, when microbes work slowly in any case.
Gardeners with a first compost bin, allotment holders with several piles, and anyone tired of a heap that never finishes use a turning schedule. It also helps families share the job, since the dates are clear for everyone.
Keep a note of your pile dates and results through the season. After a few months you will see which mixes heated fastest and which plans finished on time. That record is worth more than any guess, because it comes from your own garden and your own waste.
Before you build the pile, read your plan once as if you were doing it tomorrow. Do you have the browns, the space, and the dates clear? If anything looks unclear, fix that line before you start. A plan that needs no guesswork works far better than a bigger plan that confuses you.
This tool is free to use as often as you like. Bookmark it and come back whenever you start a new pile or plan a harvest. A clear plan helps you compost with less smell, fewer flies, and more finished compost for your beds.
Remember that every result here is an estimate for home composting, not professional advice. Your local climate, your waste mix, and your bin type all shape the real result, so use the tool as a starting point and adjust it to your own garden.