For the last couple of years, Josh and I have been talking about building a fire pit. We have a tiny portable one, but it just didn’t give us the feeling of raging fire without the fear of melting / warping the cheap metal (we bought it cheap, so we got what we paid for).
We bought all the products from Home Depot, which was surprisingly easier than expected. We purchased a fire ring and the “other suggested items” of concrete retaining wall blocks and concrete adhesive. We also picked up 3/4″ stone, some bags of paver base, and some leveling sand. We referenced 2 videos, one from This Old House and one from Home Depot on building fire pits. (All of the purchases and resources are listed at the bottom of this post.)
The project went very smoothly, taking about 4 hours (not including the extra time needed to get extra bags of 3/4″ stone, which was necessary due to the depth of the hole we dug. Did I mention that we dug too deep? We also ran into one difficulty; the blocks did not fit snugly against the ring. We had approximately 4″ of space left as we placed the last block around the ring. I was surprised by this as I assumed that the recommended products would just work. Live and learn! However, we adjusted to allow for space between other blocks which made it look more appealing. The retaining blocks also had a little lip on them (to build a retaining wall on an angle), so we had to apply much more adhesive than expected.
No DIY project is without unique challenges, and these small issues were easy to overcome. We’ve now had two fires (so far) in the fire pit, and we’re very excited to have more! The size allows for larger fires to be built, and we’re looking forward to having friends over! S’mores anyone?
Links
Fire Ring
Concrete Retaining Wall Blocks
(44 used, we purchased 50 in case some broke. Also, you may want to get ones without the retaining wall guide lip (flat on top and bottom)
3/4″ Stone
Paver Base
Leveling Sand
This Old House – How To Build A Fire Pit
Home Depot – DIY Fire Pit: How To Build A Fire Pit
PS – There is no affiliation with these links!
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