See our full list here!

We are always expanding, so please drop us a line if you live in Greater Boston, Rhode Island, Worcester, the Berkshires, or Southern New Hampshire.

Except for metal, plastic or rubber, almost anything goes!

Feel free to include fruits & veggies; cooking oil; eggshells; meat, bones, seafood & dairy; bread, grains & pasta; coffee grounds, filters, tea-bags, & biodegradable cafe items; nuts & spices; napkins, paper towels, & compostable cutlery; and small yard clippings & flowers. If you’re unsure, just ask.

Please note, due to COVID-19, we are asking you to please refrain from composting used tissues to mitigate the risk of exposure to our staff.  Learn more here.

Infographic: What you can and can’t compost with Bootstrap.

Yes! Meat and dairy are perfectly viable building blocks for quality finished compost when managed properly. Our partners at Rocky Hill Farm are vigilant with their piles. The material is regularly aerated through turning (which promotes microbial activity). As a result, the stubborn animal products decompose along with other standard organic material (landscape debris and food).

Please note that meat and dairy products can play host to fragrant bacteria, so exercise caution when including these items in your Bootstrap bucket. We encourage you to freeze these items until your bucket is ready to be picked up.

For half the cost of your regular service, Bootstrap offers additional buckets for larger hauls amounting to $5.50 for weekly clients and $7.50 for biweekly clients (per bucket). If you cannot arrange for an extra bucket in time for your scheduled pickup, you are welcome to leave extra scraps inside a plastic bag (placed inside a paper bag, please) next to or on top of your bucket. Please note that we charge a flat fee of $6 per bag for any materials left outside the bucket. To avoid this extra fee, we offer these (AUTHOR’s NOTE ADD LINK)  100% compostable compostable bags through our store page. Perfect for households with regular overflow, these Bag to Earth bags come in one gallon (10 per pack for $5) and five gallon (5 per pack for $8) bundles. 

To avoid this extra fee, we offer 100% compostable Bag to Earth Bags through our store page.

Please place your full bucket near the front entrance of your residence by 7 a.m. on your scheduled Bootstrap day. Should the front entrance prove difficult to access, we will happily arrange another drop off location.

Nope. Just leave your bucket near the front entrance of your residence on the day of your pickup and we’ll swap it out. Service occurs between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m, so it may take a few hours.

Please write to us to let us know and to arrange a new bucket, or an alternative collection method for the current cycle. Please note we charge a $3 fee for buckets lost or stolen from your address.

Indeed there is! Sign up a friend and receive two free pickups. Just make sure they mention your name in the “Hear About” section during enrollment.

We sure do. Our commercial clients range from high-rise offices to corner cafes and condo buildings. If you’re looking for service in your commercial space fill out one of these forms (office form + restaurant form) to receive a quote.

Team Boot returns finished compost on a by-request basis. You can request compost in your account portal and a delivery for the coming weeks will be scheduled. Each customer is allotted five gallons annually. You can request it all at once or one share at a time — whatever your project demands.  If extra soil supplements are needed you can purchase them here.

We provide an automated billing system for all clients, making payments to BSC hassle and worry-free.

To update your payment information log into your customer portal and head to the Account & Billing tab.

Questions? Email our billing guru here. Sorry, cash or checks are not accepted.

Maggots are macro-decomposers like our old pals worms. And though maggots might be a little unpleasant to be around, they are a natural part of the decomposition process. To mitigate their presence, try covering your scraps with shredded newspaper or by adding several hefty pinches of salt. These techniques will serve to dry out their environment and effectively send them to a better place.

Certainly. Currently we offer weekly and biweekly service. We’ll work with you to come up with the best pickup plan, just email info@bootstrapcompost.com.

If you log-in to our customer portal (link here), head over to the ‘Service Calendar’ page via the ‘Service & Support’ tab. There, you can skip any future services and your account will be credited for days of skipped service! Please be sure to put in your skip request *at least* 24 hours in advance to be sure it goes through.

We occasionally offer in-kind deals as part of our Bootstrap Buddies program. In the past, Bootstrap has partnered with JP Centre Yoga to offer free yoga classes, Boston Organics for discounts on produce delivery and Buckle Farm for 10% off Buckle Farm CSA shares. We also teamed up with Mei Mei Street Kitchen to give away free iced teas to Bootstrap customers. 

Basically, we’re always up to something in the Perks Department, keep an eye on your email and our social media platforms for the most up to date information.

One of the best perks of Bootstrap’s service is the option to receive compost back! We return finished compost on a by-request basis. Every customer is allotted six shares of one-gallon compost per calendar year. You can request it all at once or one share at a time – whatever your project demands. To request a compost delivery, please log into your customer portal and click on the “shop” tab to place your order and we’ll add it to your next scheduled visit (orders must be placed 48 hours before the visit, or the delivery will be bumped to the following visit).

Regardless if you have a bucket out for pick up or not, we provide you an extra bucket to use until your next scheduled visit. For your next visit, if you leave out all the buckets in your possession we will replace them with the number of buckets you are signed up for! If you have a more urgent need for a visit, let us know at info@bootstrapcompost.com.

We’re sorry to see you go! To end your service, please email info@bootstrapcompost.com and we will schedule a final visit for you as well as take the steps necessary to close your account.