A fire pit is a great source of warmth and atmosphere for a party.
But they can also be dangerous if the fire gets out of control.
Fire pits are not as hard to build as you think they might be, which means that it’s easy to make mistakes when creating your fire pit.
A fire must have three elements to stay lit: oxygen, heat, and fuel. Remove one of these elements and the fire will stop. If you notice that your fire seems like it is growing out of control, then chances are that there is too much heat or fuel in the fire pit. You should immediately get rid of some of the firewood to reduce the fire’s size (and thus its heat).
Let’s take a look at some fire pit design considerations to avoid any problems, as well as what to do if your fire pit begins to explode.
Table of Contents
Best Fire Pit Ring (EDITOR’S CHOICE)
Rule of Thumb for Establishing Range for Fire Pit
The fire pit that is being used matters a lot, when it comes to safety.
The fire pit should be contained within an area where no one can get too close to the fire by accident. This includes animals and children who might not understand the fire’s danger.
A rule of thumb with fire pits is to have anything combustible at least 6 feet away from the fire’s outer ring.
If you are using wood, then make sure that there are enough loose materials (such as leaves or dead branches) nearby to act as kindling, in case your fire goes out or needs more fuel later on in the night.
Designing Fire Pit For Safety
The basic fire pit can be made with bricks, concrete blocks, rocks, or stones.
If you do not want to go with the fire pit, then it can simply be an area where firewood will be placed on the ground. When making your fire pit, make sure that there are no flammable liquids or materials nearby (such as gasoline or lighter fluid).
Finally, you should never use gasoline or any other flammable substance to light your fire; invest in a fire starter log instead.
These can often be found on sale at hardware stores and they work great for lighting fire pits – they produce little smell and burn out after only 30 minutes of use.
You can also invest in a fire blanket which you can use to cover your fire pit and cut off the oxygen supply in case a fire becomes too big for a quick-fix solution.
Always remember to have water nearby when using a fire pit.
Fire safety experts advise keeping a bucket filled with water nearby at all times when lighting a fire – just in case something does happen!
How To Fix Exploding Concrete Fire Pit
Concrete fire pits are the most common fire pit type since they are affordable and very easy to build.
If you have created a fire pit with concrete blocks or bricks, then there’s a good chance that it might explode – even if you’ve installed fire pit safety screens.
The reason this happens is that cement brick fire pits have cracks where gas can escape through.
This means that there is more oxygen traveling into the fire pit than usual, causing it to burn hotter and faster.
Much like your car uses too much gas, the fire burns away at your materials quickly leaving small potholes in its wake.
There are several solutions to fix exploding concrete fire pits:
Use fireproof cement mix. By using something other than normal garden cement, you will be able to build fire pits with fewer chances of an explosion.
Use fire pit safety screens. This is probably the most important fire pit design consideration when it comes to fire pit explosions.
By using fire pit safety screens, you will ensure that excess oxygen cannot enter your fire pit at all. That means no more burn holes in your fire pits!
Add wire mesh around the top of the fire pit where cement blocks or bricks are located. You can use rust-resistant wire mesh if you think that it’s a good idea (though this isn’t necessary).
This is another great way to cut off excess oxygen flow into your fire pit – just don’t forget about it when making fires
Final Thoughts
No fire pit should explode, period. Now that you know why fire pits are exploding you have all the information necessary to avoid this fire pit mishap.
Don’t forget about fire safety design considerations when building your fire pit and always keep a bucket of water nearby just in case anything happens!
Read More About Fire Pits:
- Using Fire Pit On Grass
- Finding The Right Fire Pit Rug
- Using Fire Pit 24/7
- Finding The Right Clearance For Wood Fire Pit
