firepit?

[mtemm]

dh was commenting the other day that he would love a firepit for his birthday. any suggestion on what to look for/what to avoid in one? I don't know if there is all that much difference between them, but figured if there was, people here would know the good/bad and ugly!

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I love fire pits! We've bought many for ourselves and as gifts.

I like the ceramic chiminea type, but if it rains and the rain gets inside, the bottom can fall out.

Even metal ones will eventually bottom out. (Which has happened to our current fire pit, but it's old and has seen many seasons.)

Don't go by looks alone. Read reviews about build and how to put together. Some are chintzy and overly complicated. Others are well made and simple to set up.

Don't skimp on price, get a decent one that has good reviews.

Some are portable if you think that might work for you. (We bought a small one to enjoy at the beach.)

Enjoy!

 

[housetomouse]

Copper bowl is your best bet. We've had all kinds. The chimineas cracked and broke. The cheap bowls rusted out. The copper bowl has lasted longest, and we know someone else with a copper bowl that's lasted for a decade (longer than we've had ours). The copper bowl will cost more, but at least you won't be buying a new firepit every year (or every other).

A spark screen is also nice to have.

 

[pilesoflaundry]

Copper bowl is your best bet. We've had all kinds. The chimineas cracked and broke. The cheap bowls rusted out. The copper bowl has lasted longest, and we know someone else with a copper bowl that's lasted for a decade (longer than we've had ours). The copper bowl will cost more, but at least you won't be buying a new firepit every year (or every other).

A spark screen is also nice to have.

I agree about the copper bowl.

We bought a cheaper "rust proof" metal one. Yeah well that was not true. It didn't' last long at all and we replaced it with a copper bowl. I bought it for $100 at the end of the season. I don't know what they cost usually. Considering how long it has lasted, it was worth it.

 

[ndelaware]

We got this one five years ago and it is still going strong.

http://www.grandinroad.com/outdoor-copper-fire-pit/154360

 

[golfgal]

We have one built in our back yard. We love it. We had a "portable" one in our old house but that thing weighed a ton so we left it there. .

You can buy fire rings at most home supply stores/garden stores. You fill the bottom with sand/gravel and add wood. Super easy, other than digging the hole .

 

[schmitty]

If you go with a permanent pit, I'd use gravel instead of stand. That way water can drain and you won't have a water pit instead of a fire pit.

 

[pperfectmom]

If your husband is remotely interested in doing things himself, I would just get him a gift card for Lowe's and put it in a card saying this is for a firepit. I don't really like any of those portable type things. We have a firepit in our backyard that we dug out and filled with sand and gravel. We actually have one of the huge heavy metal pits that we got from a campground that was renovating that we put in the hole. It is surrounded by big flat rocks we collected along the roadside and we love it. Ours was free but you can buy a lot of rocks, bricks, etc.. at Lowe's to use.

 

[TwingleMum]

Please be very careful. A homeowner here had a firepit and his 3 yr old tripped and fell in it. Poor thing got terribly burned. And there were plenty of adults around supervising. We were able to airlift him to a great trauma hospital and I'm happy to say he is doing great today (he'll need another skin graft in the future but he is doing very well.)

 

[Pakey]

We have a gas firepit table (bar height) with chairs. Wood burning firepits are illegal here. We used to have wood burning before they became outlawed and we actually prefer the gas one.

 

[stinkerbelle's mom]

Before you buy/build a firepit consider the area that you are going to be burning in. If its near anything I would definetly recommend buying one and using a screen.

If it will be out in the open a bit more you could probably get away with building one. Some people get a little fire crazy and make humongous fires so be careful of that.

I would also check to see if there are any fire codes in your neighborhood.