The Sumus bag can be used without issues in two ways:
• by placing it in a ventilated bin, meaning one with perforated bottom, sides, and lid.
• without any bin, but making sure to place the bag on a surface that allows air to flow, especially from the bottom (a coarse mesh floor cloth is sufficient).
The important thing is to ensure air circulation. The Sumus bag was designed to allow waste to breathe. When placed in a closed bin, air cannot circulate, bio waste begins to rot, and unpleasant odors and liquids develop.
Yes, but please note that the bin you were provided with is not perfectly suitable for use with the Sumus bag, and therefore unpleasant liquids and odors may develop. For a bin to be truly ventilated, it must have a perforated bottom. Yours is a “nearly” closed bin (see Q1). We recommend asking your municipality to replace it with one that also has a perforated bottom. In the meantime, if possible, make about ten half-centimeter holes in the bottom of the bin.
Alternatively, if you don’t have pets at home or have a space they can’t access, you can place the bag on its own on a surface that allows air to flow, especially from the bottom (a coarse mesh floor cloth is sufficient). The location must still allow for air circulation.
Dear user, do not lift the bag when it is too wet.
The Sumus bag is made of recycled paper and, by its nature, as soon as it comes into contact with waste that is more than just damp—such as watermelon or melon rinds—it immediately becomes moist.
If the bag is lifted while still very wet, there is a risk of tearing, almost always due to the paper ripping where the bag is gripped, and much more rarely due to partial detachment of the bottom.
In these cases, you simply need to be patient and wait a few hours before lifting the bag.
This allows time for the paper to dry thanks to the evapotranspirative action of the airflow activated by the internal bottom of the bag.
Some tips to reduce waiting time:
• Watermelon or melon rinds should be cut into pieces before being placed in the bag. This increases the surface area exposed to air and helps the waste “dry” faster.
• If there are many rinds, it’s advisable to place a sheet of kitchen paper between the first and second layer. This helps absorb excess liquid initially.
• If possible, place the bin with the bag under the sun.
The development of fruit flies, which is completely natural in the presence of bio fruit waste, occurs during warmer periods.
Under normal conditions, their appearance is linked to using the same bag for about five days (the time it takes for fruit flies to develop from eggs to adult insects).
To reduce their presence, a useful tip is to cover or wrap fruit scraps in a sheet of kitchen paper—the kind used to clean dishes or kitchen surfaces.
Even though some people find it difficult because they use the bag for seven or eight consecutive days, it’s best not to use the bag for more than five days from the first insertion of waste.
However, fruit flies don’t always originate from the bag itself.
There have been cases where they came from other sources (e.g., a neighbor’s garden where fruit was left to rot on the ground). Flies—a much rarer phenomenon—are instead attracted to meat residues.
The advice in both cases remains the same: cover fruit scraps with kitchen paper.
Sumus bags are ideal for maximizing the performance of home composters.
Inside them, the very first composting reactions already begin, so the waste coming from a Sumus bag and poured into the composter is already much more active for composting processes.
Not only that: in general, those who have a composter can reuse the same bag multiple times (typically three or four). Once the bag is no longer usable, it should be torn and thrown into the composter—it serves as an excellent structuring material for composting.
We invite you to overcome any understandable prejudice and try the Sumus bag, which has been used for years in Italy and abroad by over one million families.
The only precautions for proper use of the bag are:
•Gently open the bag by holding one edge with one hand and inserting the other hand inside to begin forming the bottom.
• Lay the cardboard insert you found inside the bag flat on the bottom.
• Fold the edge flaps and place the bag in a fully ventilated bin (with perforated bottom, sides, and lid).
You’ll discover within a few weeks that the bag doesn’t tear, doesn’t smell, and doesn’t produce unpleasant odors or liquids.
Every time you go to the supermarket, the bag they give you is paid for at the checkout. Do the math yourself, but on average your family spends between €25 and €40 per year.
These bags—assuming they haven’t torn during transport—when used for bio waste may cause issues both in terms of collection costs and in bio waste processing facilities.
Your municipality made the right choice: even if—though unlikely—there is an increase in the waste tariff, it will be limited to a few euros, and your family will have saved much more.
And if you really want to do the right thing, go to the supermarket with a reusable shopping bag. The environment—and all of us—thank you.
