A Patio Fire Pit Creates New Outdoor Excitement

Need a new way to add excitement to your beloved outdoor area? Is your deck or patio only occupied by a table and some chairs? You can easily turn your once drab patio into a warm inviting entertainment area by simply adding a patio fire pit.

Our decks and patios are the first place we turn to for entertaining family and friends. Once the sun goes down and the evening air becomes cold, there is nothing worse than having to move the party indoors. What if you could use your outdoor area all day and all year long? The addition of a simple and affordable outdoor heat source will give you that ability. There are many options for keeping your guests warm as the temps start to drop. A patio fire pit, fire place, or heater will make your outdoor gatherings last long into the night and through all the seasons.

Unfortunately some folks aren't so fortunate to have a deck or patio to enjoy and must take the party to the backyard. Backyard fire pits are the best way to get the family in the backyard and out of the house from in front of the TV or computer. There are many ways to enjoy a fire in your backyard- from a simple fire ring to a custom hand built in ground pit.

The patio fire pit offers a comprehensive guide to selecting the perfect outdoor heat source for your deck, patio or backyard. You will find a diverse array of traditional pits, heaters, fire rings, fire places, and all the accessories sure to complement any of these. There is also a great selection of information, articles, and videos detailing how to build backyard pits, both wood burning and gas fueled. Get over to The patio fire pit dot com and get prepared for the cold.

How to Build Outdoor Firepit - Material Selection

Choosing to put in an outdoor firepit is a pretty big undertaking. It's going to involve hours of work. Building an outdoor firepit is worth it though. A well designed firepit can make any back yard just pop. It provides a great gathering area for groups of friends and family. Before you grab your shovel though and start digging up the yard how about taking a few minutes to learn one part of how to build outdoor firepit: material selection.

Let's look at the basics of a firepit. In it's simplest form it's just a hole in the ground. Chances are you'll want something a little prettier than that though. So working from the inside out here are some of the materials you can use when figuring out how to build outdoor firepit.

Once you've dug the hole you have 2 options, staying natural or a liner. Both have advantages and disadvantages.

Leaving the pit bare saves you time and money. Once you're done digging all that you need to do is edge the hole. The biggest disadvantage to this method is that any rainstorm can wash out the sides of the pit and make it unstable.

If you've decided to line the firepit then you have a few options.

The cheapest method is to pour gravel into the hole and press it into the sides. It's a cheap affordable way to ensure proper drainage.

The most expensive option is to brick and mortar the entire hole, while leaving drain holes in the bottom. It's an attractive solution, and you'll never have to worry about one of the sides washing out.

Once you've figured out just what to do with the hole, let's look at some decorative edging. Again you can opt to just leave the sides bare.

Leaving a gaping hole in the ground probably isn't the greatest idea, someone could trip and fall into the pit. So here are some edging options going again from least to most expensive.

Use the dirt that you excavated from the pit to build a berm around the edge of the pit.
Like with leaving the hole unlined, you'll have to worry about wash out.

The next method is to place large rounded stones around the perimeter. The stones can get expensive but you'll only need a couple dozen to finish off the edge.

Stacked natural flagstones work great as well but you'll need much more material.

Moving away from natural stone you can choose to edge with curved concrete pavers.

The most expensive option again is to brick in the entire firepit. Like with the brick lined pit, you will just extend the bricks up out of the hole and along the peremiter.

Price is only one of the considerations for designing a firepit. Be sure that whatever you choose flows with your home and back yard theme. Hopefully this brief material guide can help you figure out just how to build outdoor firepit. Cost and style is completely up to you, whatever you decide though an outdoor firepit will make a fabulous addition to your backyard.

How to Build an Outdoor Fire Pit

What better way to light the night and ward off the chill of winter than sitting in front of an outdoor firepit with a steaming cup of cocoa? Building a fire pit is labor intensive but a great way to add beauty to the backyard. Here are a few tips for how to build an outdoor fire pit using natural stone.

Before starting the build there are a few safety items to keep in mind. Digging up the backyard can be hazardous without some precautions. Be sure to call your utility companies to come out and check for any buried lines, or pipes. You don't want to end up rupturing a gas line or hitting a sewer pipe! The other concern is building the fire pit away from any overhead obstructions. Catching a tree or roof on fire is a really fast way to spoil an evening in front of the fire pit.

If you're looking to put in a large fire pit then you might want to consider renting a small backhoe. They aren't cheap but it certainly makes life easier. You won't break your back shoveling and you'll have the hole finished in only a couple bucket loads.

Now that you've got a huge hole in the backyard it's time to pretty it up.

The first step is to line the sides and bottom of your new fire pit. Landscape shops will have a great variety of natural stone available. For the sides of the fire pit use some flat stone such as slate. This will help shed water and funnel any runoff to the deepest part of the pit. You can cement the stones into place for added strength.

For the bottom of the pit just pour in a couple inches of gravel. The gravel will help with drainage and you won't have to worry about having a muddy mess at the bottom.

Once you've finished up with the walls and bottom of the fire pit it's time to tie the whole thing together with a decorative border. Pour another layer of gravel a few inches deep around the entire edge of the fire pit. An attractive option is to use really large smooth rounded rocks, almost boulders for the edge. Be careful they're heavy. Place the rocks all along the outside edge of the hole. You'll want to wiggle them back and forth to make sure they nestle into the gravel.

 

The next step is to fill in any gaps between the stones with smaller sized rocks. Keep working your way down in size until you have a uniform rock wall edging completely encircling the fire pit.

The only thing left to do is clean up! All the dirt you dug out of the fire pit can be used to start a garden, build a raised flower bed, or fill in any depressed spots in the yard.

There you have it, how to build an outdoor fire pit using natural stone. It's an exhausting task but one you'll be able to enjoy all year long. Just add wood and cocoa!