Building a Fire pit
Building a fire pit is a pretty simple do-it-yourself project.
A fire pit can be simply a hole dug into the ground or it can be a composition of stone, brick or metal and can be either charcoal or gas burning. Having a fire pit in your backyard may be a really useful element when you are having friends over and choose to do some grilling. Sitting by the fire is no doubt one of the most relaxing things in the world, whether on a warm summer evening or on a cool autumn evening. Building a fire pit is a pretty simple do-it-yourself project. So here are some tips on putting a fire pit together for your upcoming social gathering.
Required Tools
- Shovel
- Hammer
- String
- Level
- Brush
- Required Materials
- Bricks
- Stake
- Gravel
- Sand
- Metal grate
- Cement (optional)
- Steel pit ring with tabs
Instructions
If you are using stones they must be as smooth as doable but for now we will presume that you are using landscaping blocks. In the location you select for your pit, dig a hole about 2 feet deep and around 4 inches in circumference and load it with gravel to drain away water that may otherwise settle inside the pit.
Dig a hole around the area where the fire pit will be around 2 feet wider than the fire pit will be. To make sure that this hole is completely round, use a hammer and drive a stake into the very center of where the pit will be and tie a string around 3½ feet long onto the stake. While holding the string walk in a full circle around the stake and mark out a circle. Your circle ought to be more or less perfect after this.
Dig down about 12 inches right around your fire pit location using the circle as a outline and fill the hole with 4 inches of gravel and 4 inches of sand. Press the sand as level as you are able and place your first set of bricks on top of it. Use the level to make sure that this layer is completely flat and then completely fill the hole outside of the bricks with gravel. The blocks will be nearly fully covered but this will make sure your fire pit has a strong base.
Carry on with setting more rows of bricks. You can use the steel ring every couple of layers to ensure that the grill is still round and the ring fits inside. You may use cement if you want to keep the bricks in place. But not using cement makes it simpler to remove lone blocks if necessary later on. The cement may give off fumes when the fire is burning therefore it is advised to simply lay the bricks with nothing between.
Use the brush to remove debris from the bricks while you place them and leave random gaps between the stones to allow air to pass through or the fire will stifle and die. When you have set a few layers of the bricks, throw gravel inside the middle and spread it over the floor of the fire pit.
Around 6 layers of bricks should be sufficient thus when you have laid 5 layers, set the steel ring in place and lay the final layer of bricks on the tabs of the ring to hold it firmly in place. Finally place the metal grate in place and you’re ready for a fire.
Tips and Warnings
Make sure the bricks or stones you use were not in water because heat from the fire can cause them to explode.
It is in every instance recommended to saturate the area around the pit with water before you make a fire to guarantee that there are no stray fires. You should furthermore keep a bucket of water and a shovel handy every time you are going to light a fire.
