I did a lot of (youtube) research before building my own firepit a few years ago. The gravel/paver base underneath the firepit itself is usually for drainage, so your firepit doesn't become flooded after a heavy rain. It's not needed, but it is a nice convenience. People also like to bury pavers underneath around the outside of the pit to help with the "stiletto effect" of chairs sinking through the ground, but depending on your chairs and how they distribute weight, this may not be needed either. Finally, if you have not locked in your firepit with mortar, and are open to a little more work, I would recommend looking into turning it into a smokeless firepit. There are a ton of videos on it on YouTube(I personally learned a lot from both Haxman and Fix This Build That, both of who have a bunch of firepit videos and you can learn a ton from all their experiments with making them.) Reducing smoke blowing around into people's faces is a huge quality of life improvement for any firepit. Answer from hangmandelta on reddit.com
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Sprucing Up Mamahood
sprucingupmamahood.com › home › small backyard makeover with diy propane fire pit
DIY Propane Fire Pit: How to Build a Fire Pit
March 9, 2023 - We built a really simple DIY Propane Fire Pit, added some seating from Wayfair and some string lighting over head.
First Time Building A Stone Fire Pit… Did I Make A Mistake Here?
I did a lot of (youtube) research before building my own firepit a few years ago. The gravel/paver base underneath the firepit itself is usually for drainage, so your firepit doesn't become flooded after a heavy rain. It's not needed, but it is a nice convenience. People also like to bury pavers underneath around the outside of the pit to help with the "stiletto effect" of chairs sinking through the ground, but depending on your chairs and how they distribute weight, this may not be needed either. Finally, if you have not locked in your firepit with mortar, and are open to a little more work, I would recommend looking into turning it into a smokeless firepit. There are a ton of videos on it on YouTube(I personally learned a lot from both Haxman and Fix This Build That, both of who have a bunch of firepit videos and you can learn a ton from all their experiments with making them.) Reducing smoke blowing around into people's faces is a huge quality of life improvement for any firepit. More on reddit.com
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2016
May 29, 2025DIY Backyard Gravel Area and Smokeless Fire Pit
Sod cutter brother. Tilling takes way longer. Even a manual sod cutter would've gotten that grass outta there quicker. More on reddit.com
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March 18, 2022Fire pit glass rocks
http://www.exoticflames.com/
More on reddit.com 8
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January 11, 2008Fire Pits - Lowe's vs Hardscape Dealers
I haven't looked at the lowes kits, but generally that sort of stuff is lower grade at the box stores. The custom stuff may be overkill. Just depends on your usage. I got a fitpit/table at Walmart a few years ago. It's junk, but I only have a fire about twice a year, so it's worked for me. More on reddit.com
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September 21, 2013Videos
10:59
I Built This Fire Pit for $1200 (Contractor Quoted $5K) - YouTube
40:49
3 Ways To Build A Fire-Pit (Beginner-Intermediate- Advanced) - YouTube
16:48
Building Your Perfect Fire Pit on a Budget - YouTube
09:21
DIY Your Own $57 Backyard Fire Pit. - YouTube
35:33
Making a GLOWING PATIO + STONE FIRE PIT - Full DIY Build - YouTube
35:45
Solo Stove Hates Me For Showing You This! - YouTube
The Spruce
thespruce.com › diy-backyard-fire-pits-4142011
26 DIY Fire Pit Ideas and Plans for Any Style and Budget
March 11, 2025 - Simple DIY Firepit. Credit: ... This fire pit from Keeping It Simple can be built in a few hours using retaining wall blocks, sand, and pavers. It's great for DIY beginners because it does not require grout, mortar, or concrete, making it a ...
Tylynn M
tylynnm.com › home › $50 diy fire pit
$50 DIY Fire Pit | Tylynn M
April 20, 2020 - Build your own DIY fire pit for $50 with landscaping bricks and adhesive. Get that backyard ready for fire pit season with this quick tutorial!
Instructables
instructables.com › outside › backyard
DIY Fire Pit and Seating Area : 15 Steps (with Pictures) - Instructables
April 30, 2021 - Again, I'm not a construction-minded individual, so I did the best I could here. I staked a post in the center of the fire pit ring. Then I unrolled some garden twine and attached one end to the stake. I ran the string out to 12 feet* and attached the other end to an eye bolt** I had lying around.
The Turquoise Home
theturquoisehome.com › diy fire pit area with pea gravel
DIY Fire Pit Area with Pea Gravel - The Turquoise Home
May 12, 2024 - Instead of sodding this bare spot left from the trampoline, we decided it was the perfect place for a fire pit! Here’s how we created the perfect s’more-making space in our backyard. This is such an easy DIY project with such a huge benefit for family enjoyment!
Reddit
reddit.com › r/diy › first time building a stone fire pit… did i make a mistake here?
r/DIY on Reddit: First Time Building A Stone Fire Pit… Did I Make A Mistake Here?
May 29, 2025 -
I have a large area in my backyard where a 24’ above ground pool used to be and I got the idea to turn the area into a stone fire pit with a gravel seating area around it.
Over the weekend I got the stone fire pit built and it looks good to me. It feels very sturdy and I got it completely leveled. But, I was doing some reading on DIY fire pit areas because I am going to finish it this weekend when I realized that most people use gravel or paver base under the fire pit and build on top of that. I guess I should’ve researched more, but I only used sand and tampered that down level.
Now I’m second guessing myself and am wondering if this will be an issue down the road. I used landscape adhesive on all the stone blocks already too. Should I just keep moving forward and if it falls apart redo it then? I’ve attached some pics of the project so far.
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I did a lot of (youtube) research before building my own firepit a few years ago. The gravel/paver base underneath the firepit itself is usually for drainage, so your firepit doesn't become flooded after a heavy rain. It's not needed, but it is a nice convenience. People also like to bury pavers underneath around the outside of the pit to help with the "stiletto effect" of chairs sinking through the ground, but depending on your chairs and how they distribute weight, this may not be needed either. Finally, if you have not locked in your firepit with mortar, and are open to a little more work, I would recommend looking into turning it into a smokeless firepit. There are a ton of videos on it on YouTube(I personally learned a lot from both Haxman and Fix This Build That, both of who have a bunch of firepit videos and you can learn a ton from all their experiments with making them.) Reducing smoke blowing around into people's faces is a huge quality of life improvement for any firepit.
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Believe it or not, the fire won't mind that its sand and not gravel.
Jordecor
jordecor.com › home › blog › diy fire pit area in a weekend!
DIY Fire Pit Area in a Weekend! - Jordecor
April 6, 2021 - Are you looking to create a fire pit area for your yard? Well, then this is the post for you. I’ll share step by step how we created our fire pit area in just one weekend. With the weather still cooperating here in New England, we figured we would take advantage and tackle one last…
Lowe's
lowes.com › home › diy projects & ideas › how-tos › outdoor living
How to Build a Fire Pit | Lowe's
You’ll need to construct the interior of the fire pit with fire-resistant materials, so fire bricks, which are designed to stand up to direct fire, are a must. The exterior of the ring doesn’t need to be fire-resistant, but it does need to be heat-resistant.
Published August 29, 2025
HGTV
hgtv.com › outdoors › outdoor-spaces › fire-pits-and-fireplaces › 30-cool-fire-pit-ideas-pictures
60 Gorgeous Fire Pit Ideas and DIYs
July 28, 2025 - Enjoy the ambiance and smell of a wood-burning fire with this DIY concrete fire feature. Build a concrete form then fill it with gravel and a metal fire bowl to create a unique, modern fire pit you can customize with your choice of stones.
Thrift Diving
thriftdiving.com › home › how to build a diy fire pit with gravel, stones, and walkway
How to Build a DIY Fire Pit With Gravel, Stones, and Walkway
January 2, 2021 - How to build a DIY fire pit with a stone walkway! Materials needed: fire pit kit, wheelbarrow, tamper, shovel, paver sand, lever, caulking. Time: 2 hrs max.
The Home Depot Canada
homedepot.ca › ideas & how-to › outdoors › outdoor living › how to build a diy fire pit
DIY Backyard Fire Pit - How to Build a Fire Pit - Homedepot.ca
November 1, 2024 - Use marking paint tied to a string to draw a circle around the stake. This will give you the overall shape of your pit and allow you to build it by “tracing” the line with your blocks. Now you’ll need to dig out the entire area for your fire pit about 7-inches below grade.
AHS
ahs.com › home-matters › quick-tips › diy-fire-pit-an-upgrade-that-wont-burn-a-hole-in-your-wallet
How to Build a Homemade DIY Fire Pit | AHS
March 18, 2025 - If you want extra stability, you could use some construction adhesive, but dry stacking will do the trick. ... Pour a layer of sand inside your DIY campfire pit—about 1-2 inches deep—to help distribute the heat and protect the ground.
YouTube
youtube.com › playlist
How To Build The Ultimate DIY Smokeless Fire Pit - YouTube
Learn how to build the ultimate smokeless fire pit that actually works. I built the first DIY smokeless fire pit on YouTube and I'll show you how as well var...
Instructables
instructables.com › outside › fire
How to Build an in Ground Fire Pit : 8 Steps (with Pictures) - Instructables
October 2, 2017 - I built my fire pit using 30 landscaping flagstones and 4 tubes of heavy duty construction adhesive. 30 stones will give me 3 rings of 10 with an approximate inner diameter of about 30 inches.
RONA
rona.ca › home
DIY Patio Block Fire Pit: A 5-Step Guide | RONA
Start by digging a shallow, round hole with a 45” diameter and a 6” depth. This step is important because it allows the first course to be placed belowground, which will provide the fire pit with extra stability.
Bunnings Workshop
workshop.bunnings.com.au › t5 › Outdoor › D-I-Y-fire-pit-ideas › td-p › 2806
D.I.Y. fire pit ideas | Bunnings Workshop community
June 17, 2024 - I work for an Earthmoving Spare Parts/Wreckers, and following a request from my son for an outdoor fire for a small party he's having, I found an old Motor Grader wheel rim in our wrecking yard that makes a perfect structure for a fire pit. The rim is 25"/65cm diameter by 20"/50cm high and the steel is all around 20mm thick, so it won't rust away any time soon.
B Vintage Style
bvintagestyle.com › home › diy projects › easy diy brick fire pit
Easy DIY Brick Fire Pit | B Vintage Style
June 19, 2023 - Here is the steps to this simple DIY project. Brick or Solid Stone: Quality bricks designed for high temperatures, such as fire bricks, provide the primary structure and durability for the fire pit.
Family Handyman
familyhandyman.com › home › house & components › parts of house › foundation
How to Build a DIY Brick Fire Pit for Your Yard | Family Handyman
July 7, 2025 - Give the cement and mortar a week to cure completely before lighting a fire in your pit. Pour a few inches of gravel on the pit’s floor for drainage and you’re ready for your first wienie roast. ... Complete DIY projects like a pro!
A Beautiful Mess
abeautifulmess.com › home › diy project › make your own fire pit in 4 easy steps!
Make Your Own Fire Pit in 4 Easy Steps! - A Beautiful Mess
May 15, 2023 - Once you have a 6” hole dug, you’ll want to pour your gravel into your hole until the gravel is level with the ground. The gravel will give your fire pit an important drainage area when it rains. 4. BUILD YOUR FIRE PIT.