Frequently Asked Questions
Use
Fruit flies are a difficult one. They are not so much attracted by the waste in the box, but come from eggs that were already present on the peel before you threw them into the bowl.
Maybe you brought them from the supermarket, because it takes seven days before the eggs come out. Other insects that effectively end up on the waste are effectively noticeably less attracted by the slightly drying out of the waste.
Yes, no problem. As long as there is sufficient ventilation. And you must realize that the more moisture there is in the bag
the more airflow around the VentiMax® must be in order to drain the “exhaled” moisture. Otherwise you will still get condensation and moisture drops in the bucket.
If the “breathing” effect is disturbed, you can still get condensation. This is possible because the contents of the bag contain a lot of moisture (eg rot fruit) and / or because the air flow around the bucket is too weak.
The latter can be the case if you place the filled bucket in a small closed room (eg cupboard or drawer).
Bags
Best use the CompostBag® VentiMax® Refill Rolls ™. These have been specially developed for the VentiMax system. They have the right size and the optimal “breathable” effect to prevent odors and insects.
Most other bags on the market do not have that same effect or much less. You will then lose a lot of benefit if you use them.
That entirely depends on how intensely you use it. Usually a modal family changes the bag 2 to 3 times a week. Because it has become full. If there is not an excessive amount of moisture and the ventilation around the VentiMax® is sufficient, it can be used a little longer.
The CompostBag® bags are OK Compost Home certified. They can therefore be used in industrial composting, where they are completely absorbed into the biomass after 2 or 3 weeks. You should check with the municipality or the intermunicipal company that organizes the GFT collection.
The bags can also be used without problems in the composter, although it will take a little longer before they are gone. In contrast to industrial composting, home composting is very dependent on weather conditions (mainly moisture and temperature).
Dan heb je waarschijnlijk een oud zakje gebruikt. Biodegradeerbare zakjes gaan na verloop van tijd degraderen, da’s hun natuur. Koop bij voorkeur de zakjes in kleine hoeveelheden en gebruik ze zo snel mogelijk (liefst binnen de 12 maanden na de productiedatum die je op de zakjes vindt).
Then you probably used an old bag. Biodegradable bags degrade over time, that’s their nature. Buy the bags in small quantities and use them as quickly as possible (preferably within 12 months after the production date you find on the bags).
The CompostBag® bags have a membrane effect. If the humidity inside is higher than on the outside, the bag will let water vapor through.
Through a good ventilation on the outside, that moisture is then led away, so that the waste inside dries out slightly and so rotting, odors and attraction of insects noticeably reduced.
To maximize that ventilation we have designed the patented VentiMax® bucket.
The bags are best kept at room temperature (20-23 ° C), moderate relative humidity (50-55%) and away from direct sunlight. An ideal place in under the sink.
If bags rupture prematurely, this usually indicates dehydration. Rub such a bag just before use with a damp cloth or fan it through a steam cloud, and the bag will reassume the old strength after some time. The bag must then be used immediately.
The CompostBag® bags from Mater-Bi® are made with renewable materials of local origin. It is strategically important to become less dependent in the long term on petroleum-based products, which must also be supplied from all over the world.
Mater-Bi® is a Novamont brand.
Environment
There is a lot of confusion about the term ‘bioplastic’. Grosso-modo is the term applicable to plastics that are either
- made of materials that are renewable in origin, eg plants (= bio-based)
- at the end of their useful life can be taken back into the natural cycle (= biodegradable), or
- combine both these properties.
Biobased plastics therefore exist, which are not biodegradable. Just as there are biodegradable plastics, which are not of renewable origin, but are extracted from petroleum. And finally, there are plastics that are both (partly) bio-based and biodegradable. Novamont’s Mater-Bi® materials, used by The Compost Bag Company, are from this latter category. They are largely made up of vegetable oils and starch.
Apart from the fact that the disposal of waste (even biodegradable waste) in nature is in any case not advisable, the decay of accidentally released bags in nature will depend on, on the one hand, the weather conditions (temperature, humidity … ) and on the other hand of the environment in which the bag has ended up. In contrast to the situation in (industrial) composting, these parameters are beyond any control and can therefore not be indicated in advance how long the biodegradation time will be in that specific circumstance.
Moreover, biodegradability and compostability are highly dependent on the environment where a product is broken down. Every environment (compost, soil, water, …) has different temperatures and micro-organisms, resulting in different rates of biodegradation. For example, a bioplastic that is biodegradable in an industrial composting plant (= the most aggressive environment) is not always in water or the ground, or even in a composting tank at home (because of the lower temperatures).
If the term is applied to plastic, then ‘compostable’ means that the material can be processed in industrial composting. The compostability of packaging and plastics is determined according to two European standards, EN13432 and EN14995. Practically speaking, ‘compostable’ means that a material:
- completely disintegrates into on
- e compost cycle,fully biodegrades in composting,has no toxic effects on and
- does not release heavy metals in the compost andhas no ne
- gative effects on the composting process itself.
The compostability (according to the standard) is determined after
- carrying out the following tests:assessment of the degree of fragmentation of the material over time,determination of the released carb
- on dioxide or of the oxygen consumed during the composting process (as a measure of biodegradation),assessment of the
- toxic effects of the material after composting on cultures of different micro-organisms and plants.
Plastic products, the compostability of which is determined according to the standard, may bear a specific logo. The most common logos are the OKCompost® logo and the ‘seedling’ logo.
OKCompost® is a TUV brand. The ‘seedling’ logo is a brand of European Bioplastics
Aeroob composting is a method to treat organic waste in the (abundant) presence of oxygen (hence ‘aerobic’). Micro-organisms convert the organic solid into carbon dioxide, water and compost by aerobic bio-oxidation. Composting requires a relatively high degree of humidity and an abundant presence of oxygen, as well as a sufficiently high temperature.
In industrial composting, the process is constantly monitored and adjusted. This allows the process cycle to be accelerated drastically. At home composting one is much more subject to climatic conditions and the cycle is much slower.
Compost is a substance similar to humus, the fertile part of the soil rich in organic substances. Compost is used in agriculture and horticulture as soil improver. It again brings carbon into the soil. Compost is a commercial product that must meet specific (legal) criteria.
Miscellaneous
The CompostBag bags made from Mater-Bi® are non-toxic (the LD50 – oral, rat – for a typical Mater-Bi® foil is> 2000mg / kg body weight). Given their origin, we can assume that they are well tolerated by the animal digestive system and are removed without negative consequences. Studies on dogs, cows and mice confirm this for the tested Mater-Bi® materials, which were compared with traditional polyethylene films for their effect on animal digestion. The Mater-Bi® films can perish in conditions that simulate the digestive system of animals (such as turtles), whereas this is not the case for polyethylene films. The test method used does not simulate the peristaltic / anti-peristaltic action of the intestinal tract, while this would still be an important factor in degradation. This would allow the obtained test results to underestimate the true degradation as it takes place in the intestines. It is therefore reasonable to assume that the swallowing of foil, whose mechanical properties decrease in the intestines, causes less bowel obstruction than the ingestion of non-biodegradable foil. Consequently, it can be stated that biodegradable films are less dangerous in this area than traditional polyethylene films.
Mater-Bi® is a Novamont brand
The CompostBag bags, made from Mater-Bi®, do not contain substances that – on the basis of the available information – can be cataloged as allergen. Some materials have also been effectively tested ‘in vivo’ (on a number of volunteers). These tests have shown that these materials are hypoallergenic.
Mater-Bi® is a Novamont brand
Depending on the technology used and on the presence of certain forms of pre-treatment, the bags are either removed from the digestion stream with the coarse organic waste and are diverted directly to the after-composting. If they are led into the digester, the biodegradation will begin there. The digestate, containing the residues of the bags, will undergo a post-composting after fermentation. In both cases the bags will compost. The use of compostable bags instead of traditional plastic bags will in any case have a positive effect on the efficiency of the fermentation by maximizing the production of biogas and of qualitative compost, if only because it reduces the need for pre-treatment, while still maintaining a substantial part of the organic material, and thus the potential biogas is lost. Moreover, it has been shown that citizens then participate more in the collection of organic waste and are more careful not to contaminate this waste with plastic
All plastics used for CompostBag bags are industrially compostable according to the European standard, but only a few are also suitable for home composting. These bags can be recognized by the OKCompost HOME® logo.
OKCompost HOME® is a TUV brand.