Brewing Your Own With A Compost Tea Maker

Compost tea has been hailed as a powerhouse liquid fertilizer and you can actually brew your own with a compost tea maker. The question is, “Is it worth the effort?” and if so, “What is the best brewing method?”

The scientific community actually has two sides to the argument of the power of compost tea and its benfits! And, the method of brewing that is preferred is aerobic brewing and not “steeping”.

Below is an article snippet that discusses both sides of the scientific communities’ views:

However, Jeff Lowenfels, Anchorage gardening writer and coauthor of “Teaming With Microbes,” continues to tout the benefits of compost tea. In a spirited online debate with the other Jeff, Lowenfels made the case that not all compost tea is created equal but that aerated compost tea is well worth it. In the end, both Jeffs agreed more research is needed. My point for drawing attention to their comments is that before you spend exorbitant amounts on compost tea, keep in mind that some of the claims may be a bit exaggerated.

If you believe in the beneficial effects of compost tea, or what author Novella Carpenter calls nutrient teas, but want to cut costs by making your own, check out her brand new book, The Essential Urban Farmer. She has three pages of recipes for various teas — anaerobic, aerobic, actively aerated compost tea (AACT, the kind favored by Lowenfels) and concentrated aerobically decomposed fish emulsion.

Read more: Fairbanks Daily Miner

As you can see from the snippet, Novella Carpenter confirms and attests to the fact that compost tea does have its benefits and they are powerful. And, the best brewing method is a compost tea maker that uses an aerobic process.

There are several makes and models of compost tea makers that use aerobic processes and they are readily available online. Aerobic brewing is actually just a turning or diffusion of a compost tea solution to introduce oxygen (aerobic) or aeration. This aeration process inside the compost tea maker or brewer provides the optimal environment for the reproducing of thousands of highly beneficial microorganisms.

Compost Tea Makers Online:

Compost Tea System – 10 Gallons by Growing Solutions is a compost tea maker or brewer that is perfect for home owners all the way to those who run nursery businesses. Their system is actually patented and is designed for years and years of durable usage.

The Compost T System uses a fine bubble diffusion technology, which as mentioned above, that introduces the aeration process. The fine bubble diffusion aeration process the worldly mixes the compost tea maker catalyst solution and it completely eliminates the need for external agitation.

Your compost tea is ready after just 24 hours. It’s advised that you use the tea quickly as it contains living microorganisms and you can actually use it for either watering or as a foliage sprayer.

If commercial grade is important to you, the Compost Tea System by Growing Solutions is a patented commercial grade product.

The 25 Gallon SoilSoup Compost Tea Brewer uses and aerobic process as well to make or brew compost tea him. It is available in a 25 gallon and smaller 6.5 gallon size.

A finished batch of compost tea that is produced by the Soil Soup is loaded with billions of beneficial microorganisms. The benefits of using this tea is the fact that just a thin layer is equal to 2 to 3 layers of regular compost. The tea also produces healthy soil and the use of it in your garden and for your fruit trees and plants will result in an overall better tasting and more nutritious selection of veggies and fruits.

The SoilSoup is available as a “kit” to get you up and brewing quickly!

The Vortex Junior 10 Gallon by Progress Earth is a compost tea maker that uses the vortex to circulate “water”. The Junior is the smallest member of the Vortex family, which has commercial grade units available all the way up to 1000 gallons! The Vortex Junior is perfect for those who still want a commercial grade compost tea maker but not at the hefty price!

The movement of the water caused by the vortex is accomplished by the influx of air. So, the folks at Progress Earth are using the natural vortex action rather than aeration to enhance and stimulate the biological activity of microorganisms to create their “living water”. Every Junior unit comes with enough Earth Kelp, Earth Syrup, and Earth Compound for two complete brewing cycles so that you can start making compost tea right away The manufacturers of the Vortex treat water as the primary nutrient in compost tea.

Here is a video demonstration of what makes the “Vortex” different! It’s a bit long but a beautiful demonstration of vortexes in nature:

You can replicate the aeration process of brewing compost tea at home without a store-bought compost tea maker but it will come at the cost of a slight “mess” and the fact that you will have to use finished compost that is free of any manures if you are going to use the tea as a spray. You could replicate the process by using an aquarium pump and porous air stones that would act as diffusers much like the Compost Tea System above!

You can also have the byproduct of “compost tea” through composters such as the Bokashi Kitchen Composter or the Envirocycle Composter, but these 2 composting methods are basically draining the liquid from a compost batch and they are not really brewing through aeration or steeping!

But, if you want the assurance of an aerobically produced safe, natural, and metabolically active tea, you have some excellent choices of compost tea makers above. And, Amazon has that “buying power” that allows you to save both on shipping and also always lists the “list price” and “your price” and the amount “you save”! Click here for Savings…