I also have a lot of space, on the edge of a wooded area in an urban setting, so I make a point of not letting it get too stinky to annoy neighbors (the yards are big, but if the neighbors to the north come out to the garden shed at the back of the property they are within range of the compost.

I had an informal chicken wire fence set up to keep it stacked a little higher, but when I got dogs they started breaking in. So now, the compost in the back is only leaves, weeds, lawn clippings, etc. and I use a covered bin for kitchen waste. When it gets full I set it aside to break down more, then bury it in the middle of the pile.

The last time I tried this I didn't let it sit long enough; my system actually involves 2 bins, and the one left to sit for a while somehow got filled up with water during the hurricane that passed over and was too heavy to lift by myself. I'd been slowly draining out the water (I didn't want to pour it off all at once, the stink would be awful and the bins are at the side of the house). I needed room for more table scraps, so I took the newer one back and buried it - and the dogs broke in and a skunk came investigating. The dogs this summer have learned how to avoid getting skunked when they confront skunks (but the smell of a full discharge back by the pile and the frantic barking told a tale all its own).

So, other than this glitch, I have three compost piles. The food stuff rots and gets buried in the active pile. There is another pile back there that I built last year, that is still breaking down. The pile from two years ago has since been all scooped up an used in the gardens. I'm thinking about building a bin, with three sections, high enough to keep the dogs out but that will let me turn it easily and will also let me move the contents from one section to the next as the compost is used and the working stuff needs turning.

Yes, I put dog poop in the compost. There is nothing wrong with that, despite those who will repeat the old wive's tale that you shouldn't. Ignore them, they don't know how compost works or what they're talking about.

SRS