Every morning after I make a pot of coffee I dump the grounds out into the trash; is there a use for coffee grounds on a layout?
A moldy science experiment would be the only thing I could see. Perhaps you could supplement your hobby dollars by growing and selling penicillin with FDA approval of course.
Pete
Tea leaves work for sure. I haven’t tried coffee.
The only use for coffee grounds that I know of is in the garden, mixed into the soil. I would never consider putting them on a model railroad layout for any purpose.
DRY coffee grounds, dry them first, never put anything wet on a layout, dye them black (DRY) and they could be coal piles etc etc etc. DRY–DRY–DRY.
Over 50 years ago I used dried coffee grounds and as long as I got them DRY, the worked quite well for dark earth. If they got damp they would get moldy. Don’t know if the current idea of mixing in a little Lysol (as some do in their Goop) would prevent the molding or not. A little experimenting would answer your question, maybe.
I used dyed sawdust then and had no mold problems.
Since there are products, such as black (and other color) sand at a craft store, at a fairly reasonable price, without the chance of problems, I think I’d forgo using them.
Have fun,
Richard
OK, I’m convinced, the grounds go in the trash; although I am drawn somewhat to that penacillin idea. Appreciate the advice and replies y’all…thanks.
Bob,If you’re a fisherman you can use some of your grounds in you worm/night crawler bed…I mix some in with potting soil.
And get really ALERT worms!![(-D]
This is a great idea. I used to be a finishing carpenter for new homes. Used MDF for shelving alot. This stuff makes exteremely fine dust and is very easy to dye.
Based on how well (and how long lasting) a coffee stain permeates paper it might be possible to use the grounds to create a sort of scenery dye but frankly india ink and the wash from acrylic paints can do much the same thing.
I can testify about the mold. Back in our proto-hippie, green, compost and mulch days we used to put the day’s wet coffee grounds in a tupperware container (with a lid) and every few days take it out to the compost heap where it did indeed seem to stimulate the growth of very large worms. But in the warm summer months after just a portion of the day the grounds would be covered with white fuzzy mold and my better half finally proclaimed “enough.” I guess we weren’t saving any whales either. I suppose we could have baked the grounds to prevent the mold.
Dave Nelson
Got a stock yard on your layout? Need I say more?
Holy cow stuff Batman!
My Dad used coffee grounds 60 years ago as plowed fields for a temporary display layout. Layout was only set up 2-3 days as an attraction at a church carnival.
Not on the layout itself, but in a jar close to the wall on the floor. Has a fatal attraction for our undesired six-legged visitors of the non-flying variety. Just dump dregs, grounds and all into the jar and leave the cap off.
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
Coffee grounds are great compost material. Mold, worms, and insects are just natures way of making sure the process gets along quickly. Make your compost pile… or better yet, three bins, at some distance from your house. Mix an equal volume of “green” and “brown” (in other words, just barely dead stuff, like your coffee grounds, grass clippings, and kitchen scraps and dead stuff like leaves). Don’t add non-plant materials, because they attract skunks and racoons. Stir once a week, and water it if it dries out (the decay bacteria need water to function), and it will not smell. One 27 cubic foot bin (3’ x 3’ x 3’) should hold all your compost for a year. I have 3, an “active” bin, a “composting bin” and a “ready for use” bin. This stuff works great to help your garden and lawn grow, and if you fish, will be a never ending source of worms for bait.
As for the layout, use sawdust or commercial layout materials.
Folks,
Sorry I got in on this late - been away for a few days.
My first layout - an 8x20 Lionel was built in 1956-57. Coffee grounds was one of the few major ground covers. Coffee was a “big deal” in my family, and a large amount of grounds was generated daily. My aunt would spread them on a piece of tin foil on a cookie sheet, and bake them to dry them out - which of course killed anything that might be inhabiting them.
They work great, and I would recommend adding them to your scenery repetoire!
Fresh, unused coffee can be used in small amounts, for ground cover; I used it for (as someone else suggested) the fenced yard around a horse shed.
Thanks for posting!!
The filter does have a layout use. Once dry, note how it resembles old newspaper left outside. So cut it into scale size and scatter freely as paper trash in back lots and and such. The idea of grounds as a dye, i will try it ona couple of ties and see. Some experimenting is in order.