Tips for Building a Backyard Fire Pit
Tips on How to Build a Backyard Fire Pit
Bringing my family together was my goal. Creating a place that we could gather together in the early evening that didn’t include a television took some thinking. A fire pit is a small dug out pit where you can start a camp fire and just gather around and talk. It is a somewhat cozy way of getting warm and at the same time bonding with the people around you.
For so many years, a fire pit has been used for outdoor activities and camp outs to foster good relations among campers. Getting people around a fire and talking about anything under the night sky just create a mood that is hard to describe. But how to build a fire pit has been a topic of many camp fires because it usually requires some planning and thought. You don’t want the fire pit too close to any structures that might catch fire easily or any dried up plants or wood that are highly flammable.
Build your Fire Pit and Keep Safety in Mind
Starting with the basics is alway a solid decision. You want to think about the size of your fire pit. You don’t need to build a huge hole nor do you need a lot of open space. Initially plan for your fire pit to be about a foot and a half in circumference.
Building a fire pit can be easy once you gather all your materials. Make sure you have some digging tools and a supply of pea gravel and sand. You might want to purchase some concrete pavers or blocks to surround your fire pit. Check with your local home supply company like Lowe’s or Home Depot for some great ideas.
Once you have your fire pit supplies, mark the circumference by drawing a circle on the ground. Dig your fire pit within the circle about one foot deep. Within this one foot deep hole, in the very center of it, you must also dig another hole with a circumference of around six inches. This hole should also be about eight to twelve inches deep.
Fill up both holes with pea gravel and then add about three inches of sand at the very top of your fire pit. The sand should be level with the ground already. The gravel acts as a drain for your fire pit. You can now surround your fire pit with the concrete pavers or blocks. It would be better if your pavers would be at least two stacks high to prevent any rolling logs of sticks.
Don’t forget to create a place to sit around the fire, you can build a simple bench using a couple of cinder blocks and a six (6) foot length of redwood 2×6 lumber. You can dress up the bench by using “Key Stone” landscaping blocks. These blocks are used to build retaining walls and come in a variety of colors and textures.
It doesn’t have to be expensive to build a backyard fire pit. Make it a fun family project.