As easy as composting can be, there are some common problems that may hinder your composting experience. The following is a list of common composting problems, causes, and tentative solutions:
| PROBLEM | CAUSE | SOLUTION |
| Pile smells rotten and/or attracts flies | Too wet and/or non-compostables are present | Turn, add dry-woody materials, cover pile from heavy rains and/or remove grease, etc. and turn |
| Compost is damp and warm only in the middle | Pile too small | Get more material, mix old ingredients into a new pile |
| Pile not composting | Too dry and/or too much dry-woody material | Moisten till slightly damp and/or turn, add fresh green materials or organic nitrogen fertilizer |
| Pile is damp and sweet-smelling but won’t heat up | Lack of nitrogen | Mix in nitrogen source such as fresh grass clippings, fresh manure, bloodmeal or ammonium sulfate |
| Rodents in pile | Food wastes in open bin, holes larger than 1/4 inch or non-compostables present | Turn compost and rodent-proof your bin and remove meat, grease, etc. and turn |