How to properly equip a street hearth?

If it seems that something is missing at the dacha, perhaps it is about him - about the fireplace. If you have to tinker with the fireplace, and it is not always possible in principle, then you will be able to build a fireplace even in a small area and without big expenses.

The street hearth can become the heart of the site, where the whole family will gather in the evenings (and not only). Sitting by the fire, frying kebabs or baking a fish is a pleasant pastime. A campfire, a bonfire, a fireplace (as soon as this place is not called) can become just such a point in a summer cottage: both utilitarian and atmospheric. Indeed, you can really look at the fire for a long time.

By its structure, the hearth is a small pit with solid stone walls. They help build a fire, and they are also the guarantor of fire safety. And this, meanwhile, is the main task in the construction of the hearth.

At the same time, it is quite possible to put a couple of benches near the fireplace. If the benches are metal, this will be the safest solution. The place where the hearth will be should be flat. It is possible that the site will have to be leveled. And it is also necessary that the site is well blown by the winds: good traction is necessary for normal combustion.

In general, the hearth at the summer cottage is both a place for preparing various dishes, and a location where a family can gather and spend time talking around a campfire, and just a beautiful place for solitude with nature, the elements and their own thoughts.

Usually the focus has the form round or rectangular. The first case is more popular, since the finished shape of the circle even visually looks more pleasant. The fire pit can be buried so that it will be on the same level with the ground. But you can bury it and partially, make slightly towering walls. There are also options in which the fire pit will be above ground level, that is, it will be placed on a specially constructed site.

To prepare the site, you can simply lay out 2 or 3 rows of bricks on a base made of paving slabs. Or use concrete and stone instead of paving slabs. If there is sandy soil on the site, you can omit the previous point. And if the soil does not drain rainwater well, they approach the construction of a fireplace in the country more thoroughly. It's just that if water gets into the recess, the hearth for the fire will dry out for a long time.

First, the top fertile layer is removed, the root system of plants is necessarily removed. Then the selected area is well compacted and leveled. This work will be completed by laying a layer of crushed granite. If there is clay soil at the summer cottage, the crushed stone layer can easily "crawl" into the ground, so a geotextile substrate is required.

Formwork is being prepared for the concrete site, the concrete mix is ​​mixed. If the basis is paving slabs or decorative stone, a layer of sand is poured on top and sand / crushed stone is compacted. And only then the laying is carried out.

The fireplace itself can be either simple or more complex in design, equipped with a special lid, for example.

Having decided on the place and general ideas about the work, it's time to choose what kind of dacha hearth will be.

For a start, it is more convenient to divide all the fireplaces into simple and complex ones. Simple ones are considered to be those for the construction of which a minimum of material will be spent; special constructions will not be required. A bowl is simply constructed, an open area is set up around it, garden furniture is placed.

Complex campfires require a lot of preparatory work. For example, a retaining wall may be required. On the one hand, it will be functional: it will keep the elevation level differences of the site; on the other hand, additional functions are formed by themselves, decorativeness is also not the last thing. For example, on this wall you can put dishes with food that has just been removed from the fire. Or even build in lamps, hang homemade cozy candlesticks from cans and twine. Someone will decide that this is an open-type gazebo, and therefore a flowerpot with flowers is appropriate here.

A fireplace with a pergola, which is sometimes even fenced off from curious neighbors' glances, can also be attributed to complex structures. Very often they dwell on the topic of constructing a brazier-fire pit and even try to make the structure portable. And this is also a good option. Still, classical forms and ideas win.

The metal fireplace will be portable, and the stone one will be stationary. And this fundamental difference must be determined immediately.

Characteristics of fire pit by material.

• Metallic (for example, cast iron). This option is convenient because it will be mobile. Such cast-iron bowls can be bought ready-made, even fully equipped: there will be a poker, a grate for a grill, a lid that will cover a cooled bowl, etc.

• Stone. Technologically, this design is more complex, since you cannot buy it ready-made - you have to tinker. But it often looks more solid. By color and texture, the stone is selected so that it harmoniously fits into the landscape.

• From scrap materials. Very often, what seems to be time to take to the landfill can find a new life in the right hands. For example, a hearth is made from a truck disk, from a metal barrel, using concrete rings, and even from a washing machine drum.

• Forged. You can also order from the masters, you just have to correctly install it.

• Ceramic. They are also purchased ready-made and are often installed in forged bases. They look very stylish.

A round fireplace is considered more convenient, because it is customary to put firewood in a hut. But it is easier to build square and rectangular, especially if it is a brick hearth - the masonry is carried out according to the principle of an ordinary wall. The shape for the hearth is almost always geometrically correct. A circle (like a ball) in this sense is an ideal shape that has no beginning or end. And the optimal size of a circle is considered to be a diameter of 80-100 cm.

For a square, the most convenient dimensions are 50 by 50 cm; in a rectangular fireplace, the most harmonious data are 60 cm in length and 40 cm in width.

A garden hearth should be, first of all, safe, and then functional, comfortable, beautiful. A recessed fire pit becomes a frequent choice. This option is suitable for everyone who wants to do something simple and inexpensive. The fireplace should be deepened in the ground, the height of the side in "pure form" from the bottom - more than 30 cm, the diameter or the smallest side - no more than 1 m. The shape of the fireplace and the site is arbitrary.

Tips to help you choose an outdoor fire location:

• if the site is made in the form of a circle or square, the design of the hearth should repeat this shape;
• there should be a platform for garden furniture next to the hearth (if, of course, there is such a request), while it is worth remembering that flammable materials should be located at a distance of 10 m from the fireplace;
• the material with which the hearth will be lined must be organic to the rest of the small forms on the site: if, for example, there is a rock garden or an alpine slide on the territory, the hearth itself can be made of natural crushed stone;
• it is desirable to pave the site with the same materials that prevail on the site.

If the hearth is ground-based and superficial, you can install an iron barrel or a metal box. Then they can be painted with a special heat-resistant paint (by analogy with the design of fireplaces). In fact, barrels have only one drawback - tightness. Precipitation falling into it can only evaporate. For this reason, the bottom is cut out, the barrel itself is placed on a prepared site with a removed layer of fertile soil and a cushion of rubble or sand. A heat-resistant stone or tile is laid at the bottom, between them there are seams covered with sand.

Someone more suitable for such an option as a well ring. Working with it is similar to that with a bottomless barrel - a structure is installed on a prepared area with a sandy bedding layer. Then the bottom is laid out with stone / brick. Outwardly, this will not be the most attractive structure, so it will have to be faced with tiles or bricks.

For those who want an even easier option for a recreation area, you can do this - find a suitable garden flowerpot in the form of a hemisphere or a cube. These forms are often used for biofireplaces with burners, filled with organic ethanol. True, such flowerpots, in order for them to become centers, will have to be modified - to make drainage holes at the bottom.

If the brazier is considered the most common type of hearth in the country, then this concept can be preserved when building a fire pit. A brazier is a type of surface structure with a removable steel grate.

There are rules established by the Ministry of Emergency Situations, and their violation is not only illegal, but also very dangerous. Here are the rules that should be followed when choosing a place for a hearth.

1. The proximity of buildings (houses, sheds, other buildings) is at least 8-10 meters from the fireplace. The distance to trees is 5-7 meters, to shrubs - 3-5 m. In the area of ​​the future hearth, roots must be uprooted from the ground, if any.
2. The place should be secluded, preferably away from prying eyes, that is, not particularly visible.
3. Nearby in the yard (in the garden, in the nearest building) there should always be supplies of water and tools for extinguishing. This is security measure # 1.
4. It is possible to decorate the hearth and the site for it only with non-combustible materials.

The design options for the hearth site depend on the imagination of the owners and their capabilities.The main elements that can be used to decorate a beautiful fire pit will be paving slabs, pebbles, gravel, stones (both artificial and natural). Garden furniture made of non-combustible materials can be placed around the hearth.

What to place next to the hearth (taking into account security measures):

• a place for a firewood;
• awnings over seating areas, as well as the dining or cooking area;
• local lighting (for example, garden lanterns or homemade candlesticks from cans);
• decorative garden figurines (preferably stone or metal);
• water dispenser;
• sun lounger or hammock made of materials that are protected from combustion.

In these examples, you can see how resourcefully and stylishly decorated the hearth.

• Luxurious playground with a brick sofa, a very convenient place to start a fire.

• Everything is very compact, and at the same time, the proximity of the zones is compared with the safety rules. The square-shaped hearth is perfectly combined with the site. The street kitchen is in the same style.

• Interesting and atmospheric setting of the fire pit. The hearth, rather, resembles a ball, and this regular shape, as it were, organizes the space around. The colors and textures are well chosen. Lighting design makes this area especially cozy.

• Another interesting solution: the hearth is round, the platform for it is of the same correct shape. The sofa is next to it, too close for a permanent stay, but it is possible that it is portable furniture.

• The hearth is, as it were, built into a small enclosure zoning the space. An open dining room is at a distance. And at the same time, you can sit down for conversations, with a cup of mulled wine in hand and next to the hearth on stone "seats". For convenience, you can bring pillows, sun loungers.

• Almost a round table, only with a fireplace in the middle.

• Similar options – some of the most popular. Of course, textiles do not stay overnight, but are carried away with them so that the fabric does not suffer from rain. Wooden chairs can also be hidden somewhere under the roof.

• A simple but interesting solution to how to arrange a fire pit. Perhaps only the site also needs to be thought out more interestingly and safely.

Not far from the hearth, you can arrange an area where firewood will be stored, for example, a wooden rack with a canopy, but taking into account a safe distance.

What other recommendations should be taken into account by everyone who is engaged in the design of a fireplace:

• an open hearth cannot be left unattended, especially if there are children next to it;
• a bucket of water or sand should be placed near the fireplace in advance - in the event of a fire hazard, you will not have to run anywhere;
• it is better not to use a fireplace in windy weather;
• before leaving the site, it is imperative to extinguish the flame;
• built-in seating will make the space around the fireplace more comfortable.

As for the design, this moment is not deprived of attention today. I would like the fire pit to masterly fit into the look of the entire territory, maintained in a single style. A standard type of hearth is often combined with a stone fence; beautiful masonry can create an imitation of the outlines of a fireplace. A campfire made of cobblestones with minimal processing, laid out deliberately carelessly, will be a very good solution if the suburban area obeys the Naturgarden style. And in such a zone, stumps, logs, spectacular boulders, and not chairs will be more organic.

A coarse open-air stone fire pit, adjacent at a safe distance to bulky wooden furniture, will be the perfect addition to a chalet-style country house or an alpine-style plot. If we are talking about a scandi house, you can make a round or square campfire from bricks, slabs, stone.

If techno or hi-tech style reigns in the country, or maybe a brutal loft, experts advise taking a closer look at the gas fireplaces. They are smooth, polished with concrete. They can go flush with the site, they can protrude beyond its limits. In the same styles, integrated campfires that are built into the retaining wall, the side of the pool or a semicircular bench will also be successful.

For information on how to make a street hearth, see the next video.