{"id":2982,"date":"2018-09-14T15:27:48","date_gmt":"2018-09-14T22:27:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/?p=2982"},"modified":"2018-09-14T15:27:48","modified_gmt":"2018-09-14T22:27:48","slug":"diy-building-backyard-fire-pit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/diy-building-backyard-fire-pit","title":{"rendered":"DIY: Building Your Backyard Fire Pit"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Oct-BlogImages-800x498-1.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-2983\" src=\"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Oct-BlogImages-800x498-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"498\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Autumn is in full swing and there are so many incredible changes happening. The kids are back to school, football is on TV, the leaves are changing color and you get to enjoy the crisp, cool air of the season. With everyone\u2019s schedule jam-packed, the weekends become more meaningful when the entire family can get together. With the great weather outside, you don\u2019t want to get caught sitting on the couch. Why not spend a night with the family sitting by the fire? Don\u2019t have a fire pit? Good thing they\u2019re cheap and easy to build! Here\u2019s how you can build one by yourself:<\/span><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><b>Get your supplies together<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Building your fire pit doesn\u2019t require too much equipment. All you\u2019ll need is:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Bricks<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Gravel or firebrick<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Stake and twine<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Tape measure<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Large shovel<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Tamp<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Level<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Spray paint<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Fire-resistant mortar for extra stability<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can buy any of these items at your local hardware or home improvement store. Make sure you purchase a heavy, sturdy type of brick to give your pit some extra support. You can get concrete retaining wall block or pavers at most<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.homedepot.com\/b\/Outdoors-Garden-Center-Landscaping-Hardscapes-Wall-Blocks-Retaining-Wall-Blocks\/N-5yc1vZciam?NCNI-5&amp;searchRedirect=retaining+wall+block&amp;semanticToken=20082000+++%3E++++st%3A%7Bretaining+wall+block%7D%3Ast++cn%3A%7B0%3A0%7D++cn%3A%7B0%3A0%7D++retaining+wall+block+%7Bcategory%7D+qu%3A%7Bretaining+wall+block%7D\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Home Depot<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> or<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.lowes.com\/?cm_mmc=search_google-_-FY15%20Brand-_-Brand%20Core%20Exact-_-lowes&amp;k_clickID=5a9ca91b-a80e-4805-a6e7-d6ec2b1969e2&amp;gclid=EAIaIQobChMImJCgqrW73QIVE8NkCh3zDQIIEAAYASAAEgJM7vD_BwE\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Lowes <\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">stores.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Step One: Mark the Area Where Your Fire Pit Will Be<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s very important to be considerate of your fire pit\u2019s location. The pit should not be right next to your home and should not be placed under or near any landscaping that may have branches or hanging components. Once you have found a safe place in your yard, secure the stake in the ground with a long piece of twine tied to it. Use the twine as a guide to paint a circle around the stake; this circle will be the circumference of your fire pit. You can make the pit as large or small as you want! Don\u2019t forget, you will want to check with your HOA or study your local city code to make sure the project is approvable. You don\u2019t want to start digging to find out you\u2019ve cut an electrical line!<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Step Two: Shovel and Tamp<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After removing the stake from the ground, shovel the area inside the painted circle. Once you have a clear sight of the dirt beneath, use your tamp to stomp down the dirt. Periodically check to see if the ground is even with a level. Tamp the ground until it is level throughout the circle.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Step Three: Add Base<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once the ground is leveled out, select what kind of base you want to use. Gravel would be the simplest to lay out; all you would need to do is dump it out of the bag and even it out. However, firebrick is more heat resistant and may last longer. One downside to firebrick is it may need to be cut to fit the dimensions of your fire pit. But, if you do use firebrick as a base, consider pouring a bag of sand over top and sweeping it to fill in any cracks or gaps. If you decide to use gravel, make sure there are a couple inches of the base to protect the ground below. Regardless of what base you use, make sure it is spread evenly within the circle in the ground.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Step Four: Build the Wall of the Pit<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now that you have a base for your fire pit, begin to lay your bricks in layers with each layer staggering on top of the one below it. You want the walls to be at least a foot tall, if not more. If the bricks are heavy enough, you will have a sturdy foundation for the fire pit. For extra stability, use a fire-resistant mortar between the bricks. For added safety, include a metal ring on the inside once the mortar is set. If you add a metal ring fill the inside with a layer of lava rock.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Step Five: Enjoy<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once the walls are up and the adhesive is dried, toss in some wood and cozy up to the fire. Bring out some chairs, jam to some music and roast some marshmallows with the family for a great autumn evening!<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Autumn is in full swing and there are so many incredible changes happening. The kids are back to school, football is on TV, the leaves are changing color and you get to enjoy the crisp, cool air of the season. With everyone\u2019s schedule jam-packed, the weekends become more meaningful when the entire family can get &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/diy-building-backyard-fire-pit\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">DIY: Building Your Backyard Fire Pit<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0},"categories":[419],"tags":[702,703,660,212,213,59],"yst_prominent_words":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2982"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2982"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2982\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2985,"href":"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2982\/revisions\/2985"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2982"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2982"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2982"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.realtyexecutives.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=2982"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}