Fire Pits, Outdoor Kitchens and Backyard Living

On a cold fall afternoon or on a cool evening summer evening, sitting around on your back yard with a fire pit is definitely full of fun. You can do what you want their with your family or with your love ones. Indeed, you can grill some food their to enjoy the life of doing a picnic while inside your territory. This way your fire pit will no longer just be just an ordinary furniture in your back yard, but will really become part of the scenery in your place, just like having an attractive fire pits, whether it is a gas, wood generated, patio fire pit, etc. Hence, your design will become fully part of your living area.

There are a lot of models or styles, if you may, that you may explore using when you are designing your back yard or your outdoor area. For you to only spend less cost for your fire pit, you may, of course, take advantage of the patio furniture that you already have in your back yard, and all you have to do is to place it around the fire pit, which you think and see that will be a good layout.

To give you some ideas of a good layout in your back yard, you may try considering placing garden benches around the fire pit because their presence will look attractive. You have to choose, of course, benches that would match up the color or design of your fire pit. Stone benches or iron benches will actually suffice. It will definitely suit in with the fire pit you have in your back yard. Having these things in your back yard will surely make your territory look great.

Director chairs, swings, sling chairs, etc, are all some attractive seating alternatives you may place around your fire pit. If you feel like seating there as a director, you may place a director chair there, and for sure it will invite you more to keep coming back there during your free time. Benches that are made for a family setting are also good to place there especially when your family love to stay outdoor during your free time. Of course, aside from chairs, you also need side tables where you could place your food or other things that you may bring in while you are outdoor.

Basic Outdoor Kitchen Components:

Grill accessories include a griddle, baskets for grilling fish and vegetables, different levels of outdoor cooking space for varying heat requirements, a reliable meat thermometer, and tongs that will not pierce the meat when you turn it over.

Side burners are included in most better grills and outdoor kitchens sold today. A camping outdoor stove could serve in a pinch.

Work space should be adjacent to the grill and burners. Make sure you can sanitize it for food preparation.

Lighting comes in all varieties. Direct light is best for the work area, and clip-on lights are available that shine directly onto the grill so you can check the progress of the meat. Softer light sets a nicer mood for the eating area, and candles are almost always appropriate for an evening meal.

Patio heaters are a must if you plan to use the space during the chilly months.

Insect control is another requirement in most places if you are going to serve meals outdoors.

After you have the basics, add some (or all) of the extras:

An exhaust hood to keep smoke out of the eyes of diners.

Electrical outlets for using small appliances, stereos and more. (Outdoor outlets should be of the GFCI type. Make sure your electrical wiring meets local code.)

A refrigerator for keeping food cold until it is time to cook.

A sink, either fed with a hose or connected to the house's water supply. (Unless you plan to wash dishes outside, you need only a cold water connection.)

Warming drawers so nothing arrives at the table cold.

An ice machine so no one has to drag around a heavy cooler.

Wine storage so you will not have to go back inside unless you forget the corkscrew.

A wood-burning outdoor oven for roasting meats and vegetables and making authentic pizzas.

Fire Pit Designs 

Fire pits are permanent or portable containers designed for backyard bonfires and barbecues which have become popular for entertaining and outdoor living. Fire pit designs incorporate a variety of fuel sources and are available in many different shapes and sizes. Some fire pit designs burn wood or natural gas, and may be equipped to roast marshmallows or accompany you on a camping trip.

One of the most attractive and popular fire pit designs is the chimenea. This squat, circular tub sits above the ground on three stout feet. Traditionally made out of ceramic, this outdoor stove was meant to cook food and provide heat by burning wood logs. Now, the chimenea's recognizable shape, with its rounded body and cylindrical, flaring stovepipe, appeals to many homeowners. The fire is made in the rounded body, and fed through an opening in the front. It is a very simple design, and available from the smallest table-top size to a larger patio version. You can find a chimeneas made of cast iron or other metals, as well as the traditional ceramic.

Another choice in fire pit designs is an in-ground, permanent fire pit. These pits start as holes dug into the ground, and then are lined with small walls of stone that extend above the ground. The bricks or rocks insulate the fire from the soil and block the wind. This simple design allows you to build a basic campfire in the backyard, but also gives you a place to set a grill for a few skewers. This type of fire pit can be a focal point of a patio, with seating built in a circle surrounding the pit.

If you cannot afford the expense of a custom built, in-ground fire pit, there are designs that feature the open fire of a built in fire pit with the portability of a chimenea. Copper bowls, for instance, are glittering containers that sit on metal supports and provide a dish in which to build an open bonfire. These round, square, or rectangular fire generally have integrated spark screens to cover the flames, letting in fresh air while keeping flames and sparks from escaping.

These portable fire pit designs work in the desert, beach, woods, or backyard, so your investment goes a long way. Some enclosed fire pits have the option of a rotisserie bar if you want to roast chicken, an ash pan to easily remove debris, or a flat grill to cook hamburgers. With most, you can use either logs or charcoal, depending on your needs.

Some fire pit designs use natural gas instead of wood. This is the case with permanent, built-in fire pits, and they need to be connected to your home's natural gas lines. Designs that use propane are attached to a semi-portable tank and can be integrated into the structure. Just like indoor gas fireplaces, a gas fire pit creates flames above concrete or ceramic logs. The unit may be shaped like a bowl or box, but it doesn't need spark screens. This is a smart design in neighborhoods where wood fires have been outlawed as a fire hazard, but you still crave the warmth and comfort of sitting around leaping, orange flames on a crisp, autumn evening.