I Built a Smokeless Fire Pit for Less than $100
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- Опубликовано: 19 апр 2022
- I wanted to find out if I could build a smokeless fire pit for less than $100. I came up with this cheap design, and it actually worked pretty well! A few notes...
Smokeless fire pits don't work immediately; they need time to heat up. The fire wood must be dry and well seasoned for best results. The bigger and hotter the fire, the better the smokeless effect should be. Air supply holes should be small, or else they won't create enough pressure - anything larger than a half inch probably won't work well. Lastly, if the flames are too high above the pit, smoke will appear.
offgridtiny.house/how-to-make...
Great video, loved the fact that it is square and large and you used very simple construction materials. No steel fire ring needed and no drilling out numerous large diameter rings for that secondary combustion. I like the copper tubing on the interior at the top, and a few simple holes drilled in the cinder blocks on two sides for the additional air it needed. A much simpler design from all the other "smokeless" fire ring videos I looked at. Excellent job and thanks for sharing it with us!
Thanks a lot! Glad you found it helpful.
Pretty colours and now I want one of these for pits
Just what I wanted/looking for. My backyard build for next summer ❤😊. This summer build is outdoor kitchen. And summer is short here in Pacific north west.
Cool! I used to live in the PNW.
I just made your fire pit this morning and I'm sitting around it tonight and this thing is awesome. But I haven't finished all the holes or the brass tubes in it yet but the draw between the cinder blocks makes this fire burned like Hades. Thanks so much for the information and I appreciate your fire pit help. I'll comment later when I finish everything that you did to yours.
Hey Larry, that's awesome to hear! Thanks.
Great fire pit. I wish we could have seen the parts where you installed the copper tubes.
Thanks. The copper tube bit was pretty long and boring. I promise you didn't miss anything special.
Hello! I really like your project. What do you think about a design with blocks on the outside and fire bricks on the inside with gaps in the right places to get the same effect as drilling holes?
Thanks! I think that is a great idea.
Love this much simpler design! We are starting to build our fire pit by reusing heavy natural stones (looks like cobblestones) from an old outdoor fireplace. Do you think it’s possible to make this material smokeless without having to use a metal insert?
Thanks! Nice. Yeah, I think the main thing is that you have air flow to the top and bottom. You just gotta get some warm, fresh air flowing over the fire. Good luck with your project!
Hi , I like the idea. Questions: What is the size of copper pipe ? and What size of concert bit did you use to drill wholes for pipe and fresh air intake ? Let me know. Thx.
The pipe was a 3/4" o/d, and I used a 5/8 carbide tipped masonry bit to drill the holes.
@@arizonaadam3000 Thank you sir, will build the same before fall :) . I love your idea and thinking. Simple and it is working perfectly.
@@mstudiosdj Thanks!
Did you drill intake holes along the bottom of the inside, or just the outside? I just built a square firepit like this last weekend. I didn't think about making it smokeless but I think I will go with your ideas and see if I can do it too.
I drilled one large hole at the bottom all the way through from outside to inside. I think it was 5/8 diameter. All the other holes along the bottom are only on the outside. It's worked out fine for me. I've been using it a lot lately to incinerate waste materials from the construction of out new house - cardboard, paper, and wood - as well as dead fall from around the property. We don't have recycling where I live, so it's either that or a landfill.
@@arizonaadam3000 I feel you. Thank you for the response!
Hi there, love your design. Is it oK if i cut the copper to the edge? Inside did u make some more holes?
Thanks! I don't see why not. I left 'em sticking out because I figured they'd get hot a bit faster, but they'll get hot either way. Yes, I did add more holes.
Your copper is gonna be an issue when they start to get bent and your airflow starts to get picked off. Maybe cut them off with a cutting wheel
What did you use to make the copper tubes stick in the top inside holes?
Some of them friction fit, and others I used gasket cement.
You dont use any cement between blocks? Not concerned if someone bumps into them?
Good question! No. The blocks are heavy enough and have enough friction between them that they're pretty hard to move by accident. By all means, mortar them if you want to; but usually when I do stuff like this, even with natural stone, I just dry stack.
@@arizonaadam3000 next question, only a 5/8 masonry bit for 3/4 inch copper tubing ? Is it a press fit
@@brucenotalmighty Yes, exactly. Even with the smaller bit, I still had to use gasket cement to hold some of the tubes in place.
I found that the 3/4" bit was producing holes too large. Counterintuitive, I know.
@@arizonaadam3000 thank you. Anything special about the paint due to the Heat generated?
Question : The holes where you have the copper tubing,how deep did you drill into the concrete block ? For some reason I thought they would go through to the other side.
On the inside, at the top, the holes only go through one side of the block. On the outside, at the bottom, one large hole all the through both sides to bring some extra air to the bottom of the fire, but all the rest only go through one side. Think of them as tubes bringing fresh, warm air to the top of the fire. Air gets sucked in through the bottom, warmed up inside the blocks, and then fed to the top of the fire where it quickly combusts.
@@arizonaadam3000 Thank you very much for the explanation.
@@christianpolytechnique7404 Sure thing!
I have a pre built fire pit but the stone is solid I guess then I'd need to drill all the way through at the top to get the same effect - yours works because the blocks are hollow?
@@nickwilliams1975 Yes. Air from outside the pit has to flow through the blocks to the inside, like it's passing though a tube. If you just drill holes through solid block, in theory, you should increase air flow to the fire, which makes a hotter fire; but it's not exactly the same.
Good video, my mom wants me to make this with my dad, but im confused, do you cut the copper line and inject it? also you said something about drilling small holes, but I don't see this when you did it, also it's very simplistic and hopefully i can build this but im confused by the following questions i asked.
Yes, I cut the copper with a copper cutter and inserted the tubes in to the holes around the inner top. Some of them are held just by friction, and others needed gasket cement to glue them in place. I later drilled more small holes around the outer bottom (not shown on vid) to increase the airflow in to the blocks. Hope that helps, and good luck to you!
P.S. The copper tubes only need to be a few inches long. But honestly, if you're having trouble with that step, I would just give it a go without them and see how that goes, because they might not make all that much of a difference.
love the simplicity. seems to work. i'm curious, were you able to see any secondary flame from the pipes? also, since most smokeless use metal inner walls to allow the fire to preheat the air intake, i'm wondering does it take longer to get the fire up to smokeless with the brick inner wall?
Yes, it does take longer for the blocks to heat up. No, I have not seen any flames come out of the pipes - I was so hoping for that! My guess would be the airflow isn't tight enough, or the blocks don't get hot enough, or both. But I'm still using it 5 or 6 months later and happy with it. Thanks for the comment and the questions!
How deep are the holes for the Cooper tubing?
Same thickness as the concrete block: 1-1/2".
What dill bit did you use to drill holes
5/16 carbide tipped masonry bit.
@@arizonaadam3000 thank you
This looks awesome! I've got an off-grid property in Northern AZ, and have been looking for somethign that works, and can withstand the elements. Question: did you anchor the copper tubes in with gasket cement, or were they snug on their own? Thanks!
Thanks! Good question. Some of them friction fit, and others needed the gasket cement. I've also added more air holes around the bottom because when I put the grate on top for cooking, I've noticed it restricts airflow into the pit. Hope that helps.
@@arizonaadam3000 Definitely helps. We're building ours this weekend. Was your copper pipe 1/4" or 1/2"? Thanks again!
I believe it was a 1/4" inner diameter. Anything between that and a half inch should work just fine. Also, fair warning: drilling holes in the concrete with a cordless drill is brutal. If you have a hammer drill, drill press, or corded drill, one of those is the way to go. If not, cordless can do it; you just have to apply a lot of force and be really patient. Hope it turns out well for you!
I just remembered... I wanted 1/2" O/D with 3/8" I/D, but all they had at the hardware store was 3/8" O/D with 1/4" I/D.
@@arizonaadam3000 We built ours over memorial day weekend, and it came out great! Definitely need a good hot fire to give the bricks time to heat up, but after about 30min or so, we noticed definite reduction in smoke and a very warm fire. Thanks for the inspo!
Combustible 😮?
Ann
👍🏼🇺🇸🏜️🌵🌾🌽🌽🌽
You show tooo much after the fact instead of showing procedures....
so that will only last a few fires before the heat destroys the blocks....its why fire brick exists
Nah man, I've already made several fires in it. I also have a large rocket stone made of concrete blocks that is over 4 years old. Fire bricks are only necessary if the fire is enclosed, like an oven or fireplace.
@@arizonaadam3000 can confirm
I built one of these, had many many blazing hot fires. Cinder blocks holding up fine
Mine lasted 2 seasons. the fire burned for 2 years. it never went out. every day i just went out and threw wood in and it self lit. Cinder blocks - $2.50 a piece... Fire Bricks $15 for 3 small half thickness bricks. tell me youre rich without telling me youre rich...
I am looking forward to building one of these myself. Thanks for sharing!
So you filled in the gaps and then drilled holes to allow air flow… should have just left the gaps 👎🏻
Controlled air flow is the key to a smokeless fire pit. It has to be forced to follow a certain path to an engineered exit hole.