If you compost — and we highly recommend that you do — you’ll want a good container to store food scraps before they go into the compost pile. For most folks, keeping a small container with a lid on the kitchen counter is easiest. This can be filled as you prep and cook, and emptied periodically into a larger bucket out that’s of the way in the garage or into a plastic freezer bag until you’re ready to make a trip to the compost heap.

I’ve written extensively about composting, but my dirty little secret is that for years, I was collecting food scraps in a random salad bowl I “liberated” from a workplace cafeteria. Yes, I’m fully aware that it was not a very refined system.

Now, I’m lucky enough to be able to compost directly in my yard, so it’s not like carrot peels and old coffee grounds are hanging around for weeks on end. But, still, a bowl of sad, soggy food scraps just sitting on the counter doesn’t exactly say, “Welcome to my kitchen!” 

I’ve been making an effort to spruce up my space in small ways for a while, like getting a Yamazaki dish rack that isn’t an eyesore, so the Bamboozle Kitchen Compost Bin seemed like a good next step. The Bamboozle was featured in Kitchn Essentials and I’d seen it all over the internet with overwhelmingly positive reviews. After more than a year of using the Bamboozle compost bin, I’m so glad I upgraded!

To no one’s surprise, it looks so much nicer next to my sink than the old bowl, but there’s one major feature I didn’t consider: The Bamboozle’s lid has a disposable charcoal filter, which blocks smells. I used to dump my compost bowl every evening after dinner, but now, I can wait until the Bamboozle is completely full before taking it outside. It’s 9 inches tall, 8 inches long, and 6.25 inches wide, and holds a lot. The only time I ever notice a foul odor is when I open it to dump more stuff in there, but that’s to be expected; it is food scraps, after all. 

Now not only does my kitchen look nicer, but it also doesn’t smell like a dumpster! Which, obviously, makes me happy. If you’re getting the Bamboozle (because of course you are), here are four helpful tips to keep in mind — especially if you’re new to composting.