12 Steps Simple How To Build A Stone Fire Ring

How To Build A Stone Fire Ring - If you want to add a space to have fires safely on your property, try building a stone fire ring out of retaining wall blocks to keep the fire contained and avoid scorching the ground. As long as you have the space and are sure it’s legal to build a fire pit in your area, it’s a job you can get done in a short amount of time. First, choose a flat, clear site to excavate and lay the foundation for the ring. Then, build the ring with at least two layers of wedge-shaped retaining wall blocks. Soon enough, you’ll be roasting marshmallows over your very own fire pit!

Excavating the Site and Laying the Foundation

Choose a flat site in an open area, away from anything flammable. Pick a spot well away from the sides of buildings, fences, and other flammable objects. Make sure there are no low-hanging tree branches or shrubs nearby.

Note that you will have to dig down into the soil, so it’s best not to choose a site where the soil is rocky or extremely hard.

Lay out 12 retaining wall blocks, facing outwards, in a ring at the site. Place 1 wedge-shaped block flat on the ground with the narrow side of the wedge facing inwards towards where you want the center of the pit to be. Proceed to lay out the fire ring with 11 more blocks, adjusting them as you go to make them fit neatly together in a perfect ring.

You can adjust the number of blocks if you want to make the fire ring bigger or smaller.

You can use concrete retaining wall blocks for a basic, more economic option, or some kind of natural stone for a fancier, more rustic-looking ring. Avoid porous rocks like sandstone and limestone because they can explode easily when they get hot.

Push the tip of a spade into the soil around the ring to trace the outline. Plunge the tip of a spade into the soil on the outside of 1 of the blocks you just laid. Walk all the way around the ring, continuing to stab the tip of the spade into the ground outside the blocks as you go, until you have created a small trench in the soil around the ring.

You’ll have to remove any grass sod and dig down into the ground to create a foundation for the pit, so this also gets that process started for you.

If you want to create more of a buffer between the fire ring and any surrounding grass or soil, you can make the outline about 12–18 in (30–46 cm) bigger in diameter than the ring. That way, you will end up with a ring of gravel around the outside of the fire ring as well. However, this is totally up to you.

Move the blocks to the side to clear the area for digging. Pick up the blocks one-by-one and set them off to the side. Make sure they are well out of the way so you have lots of room to dig and won’t trip over them.

Dig about 2 in (5.1 cm) down into the ground inside the outline. Use your spade to dig out any sod within the outline of the fire ring and down into the soil to create a shallow pit that is approximately 2 in (5.1 cm) deep. Try to excavate as evenly as possible so there are no spots that are deeper than others.

You’ll be able to level out the pit as you lay the foundation, so don’t worry too much about getting it perfect at this stage.

Fill the excavated pit with 2 in (5.1 cm) of paver sand. Pour paver sand into the site you just dug out and spread it out evenly with your spade. Compact it and level it out by hitting it with the flat side of the spade.

This will create a solid, level base for the fire ring as well as help with drainage of rainwater.

Paver sand is sand used in all kinds of masonry work to create level, solid surfaces on which to lay stonework as well as fill in gaps between stones.

Check the levelness of the pit’s foundation using a level. Lay the level across the compacted sand. Look at the bubble to make sure it is in the middle of the 2 black lines in the glass tube, which means that the surface of the sand is level.

If the foundation is not level, you can make adjustments by adding more paver sand to 1 side and compacting it until you get the base as level as possible.

It’s important to have a very level foundation for the fire ring so the stones align properly.

Constructing the Fire Ring

Arrange the first ring of stone blocks on top of the new foundation. Bring the 12 retaining wall blocks you set aside back to the fire pit. Arrange them in a ring again on top of the sand base. Don’t try to put the blocks together extremely tightly, but rather leave narrow gaps between the inside walls of the blocks to allow for airflow.

Good airflow will help the fire burn better and also let heat escape. The gaps can be about the width of a pencil or a little smaller.

Use a caulking gun to apply masonry adhesive to the top of each block. Fit a tube of masonry adhesive into a caulking gun. Squeeze out a bead of the adhesive in a zig-zag pattern across the middle of the top of each block.

The masonry adhesive will make the next row of stones stick in place and add stability to your fire ring. However, you can skip this if you want to. The stones are heavy enough that they will stay in place on their own as long as nobody pushes them or picks them up.

Stagger a second row of retaining wall blocks on top of the first. Place the first block so it spans the crack between 2 blocks of the bottom row. Place the following 11 blocks around the rest of the ring in the same manner.

Staggering the blocks makes the fire ring more stable as well as makes it more aesthetically pleasing.

Add a third level if you want the fire ring to be higher. Some retaining wall blocks are thinner than others, so it might make sense to add a third ring to help contain the fire better. It’s up to you, just remember to stagger the third ring so the blocks span the cracks between the blocks of the second ring.

A good rule of thumb is to make the fire ring at least 12–14 in (30–36 cm) tall, but it’s up to you and your personal preference.

Concrete retaining wall blocks range in thickness from 4–12 in (10–30 cm). If you use blocks that are 8–12 in (20–30 cm) thick, then 2 layers is probably sufficient.

You could also add a third layer of thinner, more decorative stones to cap off the retaining wall blocks and add a special touch.

Fill the center of the fire ring with 4 in (10 cm) of lava rock or gravel. This will help with drainage when it rains and prevent the bottom of the pit from getting muddy. Red lava rock also looks nice and provides a contrast with the surrounding stone blocks.

If you made the outline bigger than the ring, pour gravel or lava rock around the perimeter of the blocks as well.

Don’t use river stones because they can crack and explode if they get too hot.