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There’s nothing like gathering around a campfire to roast marshmallows on a summer evening. You can’t always get away for a weekend, though. As a solution, fire pits have long been a fun addition to a backyard, allowing marshmallow roasting to happen at home. Let us give you a few cool fire pit ideas to make yours stand out from the rest.
Sunken Fire Pits
The term “fire pit” implies digging, but it’s pretty common these days to use the term to refer to above-ground installations or even movable bowls. However, digging into your landscape to create a homemade sunken fire pit is relatively simple. Before you start digging, be sure to call your local authorities to ensure that you aren’t digging through power lines or cables. Once you’ve chosen your location and made sure you aren’t disrupting any services, dig a pit and line it with bricks to make sure it maintains its shape and can handle the heat of a fire. For a sunken pit, you will want to line the bottom with gravel to ensure water has someplace to go—you don’t want your fire pit turning into a bird bath.
Stacked-Stone Fire Pits
Popular—and for good reason—the stacked-stone pit is an easy fire pit to make on your own. Decide where you want the fire pit to go, and prepare your landscape. Clear the area you want your fire pit to occupy by removing grass or other plant growth. Create a fireproof base; gravel or other loose stone is preferable because it allows water to drain out of your pit. Start stacking stones in the shape that you want your pit to be. Be sure to include vents on either side to provide air to the fire. When you’ve made the pit your desired height, you can leave the stone bare or finish it off with a metal ring or brick paint.
Fire Bowls
If you can’t nail down your favorite backyard fire pit design, your best option might be a fire bowl. While concrete fixtures can be heavy and difficult to move, fire bowls come in all kinds of materials, making them very versatile. You can move them around your yard, clean them easily, and if you decide to make one more permanent, some can be mounted on stone or even onto an outdoor tabletop.
Gas Fire Features
If you are looking for something modern and elegant, you may want a gas-powered fire feature. Placing tempered glass beads or stone over a gas fixture provides a unique and beautiful feature. These can be set into retaining walls or patio masonry, tabletops, or freestanding fire bowls, and they are sure to draw the eye. Gas features also enable you to make smaller fire features that you can use in place of lamps or centerpieces.
These are just a few of the ways that you can brighten up your backyard with fire features. There are an abundance of fire pit landscaping ideas online to help you make the most of your new focal point. A fire pit will add to your yard year round, as it provides a centerpiece for evening gatherings in the summer and gives you a reason to spend time outdoors in the winter. Get out the marshmallows—the fun of gathering around a campfire can now happen in your own backyard.