Even with the recent surge in popularity, garden firepits remain one of the most underappreciated outdoor furniture pieces. Here’s a selection of our firepit tips to make the most of your garden firepit.
Nothing beats spending the evenings around a firepit with friends or family. We all know the standard firepit tips, like placing your firepit on a level surface and ensuring no flammable materials nearby could catch fire. These are all essential tips to keep in mind, but they don’t make for a fascinating read! In this post, we’ll dive into nine unique firepit tips. You may have already heard of some, but we’re confident that most of you reading this will at least come away with a few new insights and new ideas to try for yourself.
1. Sand for safety and heat damage
Our first tip is to add a layer of sand to the bottom of your firepit for safety and maintenance purposes. A layer of sand at the bottom of your firepit can help improve fire safety by preventing the fire from spreading to other flammable surfaces as quickly. It also makes it easier to put out the fire should you need to.
The sand protects the garden firepit from intense heat, preventing fire damage and staining. Absorbing some heat also helps reduce heat being transferred to the firepit’s base, possibly leading to burns if touched.
2. Buy firewood in bulk for the best prices
Firewood can be cheap and sustainably sourced if you know where to look. Buying in bulk can save money and ensure plenty of firewood to last you through the spring, summer and autumn months. This could save you hundreds of pounds over the long term.
The good thing about logs is that they can be stored for a long time if they remain dry and off the floor. They also make for a beautiful garden feature when stacked neatly, adding a touch of rustic charm to any garden.
3. Don’t neglect sustainability
Sustainability should always be taken into account, especially when it comes to consuming fuel sources. If you live in the UK, ethically sourced UK timber is the best option when it comes to fuel.
We like to buy ethically sourced kiln-dried firewood from Cozilogs since the wood they sell is ethically sourced within the UK. However, you can find plenty of other providers online, too.
Regarding your fire pit, you can buy secondhand or opt for a DIY project that repurposes other items. Fire pits from old washing machine drums, bricks, and sand can be made. If you buy new, look for garden firepits manufactured in the UK and made of sustainable materials.
4. Don’t sit in the smoke
Where there’s fire, there’s smoke. Or, at least, that’s what the expression should be for this firepit tip. There’s no avoiding smoke when sitting around your firepit, but you can do plenty of things to prevent the smoke from ruining your evening.
First, try to position seating upwind from the fire to ensure most of the smoke is blown away from where people are sitting. Secondly, make sure only to use properly dried wood. Wet wood can not only create a lot more smoke than necessary, but it can also change the consistency of the smoke, resulting in more harmful particles being released into the air. Learn how to create a firepit without smoke here.
5. Cook on your firepit
A garden firepit can be more than just a centrepiece for a relaxed evening in the garden – it’s also great for cooking!
You can use your firepit as a makeshift barbeque using a grill grate. Place it above the fire and start cooking. One thing to note is that the heat distribution likely is lower than on a more traditional coal barbeque. This means it’s best to use it for food that only needs to be heated up or food resistant to longer cooking times.
You can still follow plenty of firepit recipes, including steak, garlic prawns and grilled vegetables.
6. Recycle the ash
Instead of throwing the ash away, you can put it to good use. For one, it makes an excellent fertiliser for plants, especially for vegetables like tomatoes and shrubs like ferns.
It’s also great for repelling slugs and snails from your garden, helping to prevent them from eating your plants. Ash from autumn campfires can be saved for the winter and used to melt snow and ice, helping you clear your driveway.
7. Mind the furniture
Your furniture sets the scene for those memorable firepit nights, and it’s essential to take care of it and protect it from the elements.
Choose firepit-friendly furniture that’s not just comfy but also heat and spark-resistant. Embers can burn tiny holes into furniture seats and covers, so using durable furniture around your garden firepit is essential.
Positioning the furniture upwind can also help to reduce the number of embers that drift onto the furniture.
8. Scented smoke
Although smoke is generally inconvenient, you can use various aromatics and herbs to change its smell. Firepit aromatherapy can be done with herbs like sage, lavender, citrus peels, and flowers.
This also comes with the added benefit that scented smoke, particularly the smoke produced by sage, can help to repel mosquitoes.
9. Let the fire extinguish naturally
Finally, our last firepit tip is to allow the fire to extinguish naturally. Patience is a virtue, especially when it comes to extinguishing your fire. Letting the fire burn out naturally can help prevent your garden firepit from getting damaged by sudden temperature swings and also ensures it doesn’t reignite after the water has evaporated.
Please wait for the fire to extinguish entirely and ensure it’s cool to the touch before leaving it unattended. This ensures it doesn’t reignite, which can be a significant safety concern if left unattended.
If you want to speed this process up, you can use water once the fire has been reduced to just embers to cool the remaining embers down quickly.
Hopefully, you found our firewood tips guide helpful. We hope these tips to help you achieve a safe, warm, and cosy evening in the garden.
