I have about 26 retaining wall blocks I removed from elsewhere on my property. I also have an extra 1 or 2 tons of gravel from another project.
How do I turn this into a firepit in the backyard?
Basics plan in my head (please correct where necessary):
- Draw out ~15' diameter circle
- Dig down 2-3"
- Put down some sand? plastic weed barrier?
- Fill with gravel (~1.75 tons)
- Stack blocks in a circle 3 high in the center (24 blocks)
The yard in this area has a very slight grade. How do I encourage this to drain?
SVreX said:
15’ is pretty big
The fire part is only about 36" across, the rest is to put a bench or some chairs on.
Duke
MegaDork
7/3/18 2:28 p.m.
Step 1: Check if your local municipality / township / county / whatever allows uncovered outdoor burning.
Mine does not. I need to have a screen over all flames.
Duke said:
Step 1: Check if your local municipality / township / county / whatever allows uncovered outdoor burning.
Mine does not. I need to have a screen over all flames.
It is allowed, however a screen is not a bad idea anyway.
Duke
MegaDork
7/3/18 3:33 p.m.
Other than that, you're pretty much on the right track for a leftover-materials project. It won't be fancy, but it will do the job well. I would work pretty hard to make sure the center circle is level, not sloped. It will look better and help the blocks stay piled more neatly. You may also want to invest in some solid cap blocks to finish off the top and keep crap out of the cores.
You may want to set the 2 remaining blocks inside to build the fire on, but that's probably not necessary. You could also stand them on end on opposite sides of the wall and improvise a spit between them.
Brian
MegaDork
7/3/18 4:51 p.m.
I’ve built a lot of cinder block fire rings. I would have to double check, but an 8 block ring is what I have for a garbage burn pit and I have two 16 block rings for big bonfires(plus old couches, and what not). My garbage ring is 5 high and my campfire rings are 2 high. If I was limited to 24 blocks I would go with a 2 high 10 or 12 ring. 8 is a little small and 3 high is tall for relaxing around. You can mock it up for the grand investment of less than an hour of your time.
Other notes, turn the bottom ring sideways so allow air in. Either all or every other block. I’m considering down sizing my way back ring from a 16 to a 12.
These aren't concrete blocks, they are small blocks used for the edge of a flower bed, retaining wall, etc.
I already mocked up the size a few weeks back, although they are only stacked 2 high in in the photo.
SVreX said:
15’ is pretty big
White man build big fire, stay warm hauling wood. Native build small fire, stay warm sitting close.
Those above ground retaining wall blocks will crumble from the heat after sometime unless you line the inside diameter with fire brick.. at least that’s what I found out with my raging infernos of hell that I make.
NoMini
PowerDork
7/3/18 9:23 p.m.
In reply to rustybugkiller :
Bahahahahahahaha
NoMini
PowerDork
7/3/18 9:30 p.m.
Here's my firepit.
Leave a few gaps around the base ring, for ventilation. Pea gravel base, blocks "glued" together with building cement (I forgot exactly what it was).
So your first layer is mostly below ground level. Is there any drainage?
I've been reading recently that you can dig a hole in the center down like 2ft or so and fill it with gravel and it will function as a sump. My concern with this is I do not need another mosquito pond near my house... my neighbor has enough of that :(
rustybugkiller said:
Those above ground retaining wall blocks will crumble from the heat after sometime unless you line the inside diameter with fire brick.. at least that’s what I found out with my raging infernos of hell that I make.
If you're not counting wood consumption in cords per hour, did you really build a bonfire?
NoMini
PowerDork
7/3/18 10:20 p.m.
In reply to ProDarwin :
My first layer is barely inches below ground level. drainage isn't a problem, The base of peagravel is maybe a couple inches, as well.
It's about 30-36" in diameter. Quite modest. I checked with the fire dept, and they couldn't find anything in the ordinances about fire pits that clearly defined them. So, the person, and officer, I was talking to said to have a bag of marshmallows there, to define it as a "cooking fire" as opposed to a "burning fire".
I'm going to be building one of these someday. Just gotta buy a house first lol (totally not gonna thread jack but should be sometime around Christmas). Going to use firebrick and hopefully a really red brick bench surrounding it (maybe brickyard red). Just depends on what I can get super cheap at work.
