Compact, cosy, and cool, outdoor fire accessories are all the rage
by Ben Ikenson
The perennial appeal of fire pits and other ambient fire accessories is easy to understand: They add a welcoming atmosphere to outdoor living spaces while providing the elemental presence of fire—especially inviting as the heat of summer yields to the chill of autumn. Fire pits continue to rank high in annual surveys of outdoor design trends by the American Society of Landscape Architects, which calls the trend a “good indicator of our continued love affair with the primordial camp fire.” As the popularity of these outdoor fire features has expanded, so too has the menu of options, from small bowls and pots, to elongated tables, to permanent sculptural containers custom-designed in place.
“The consumer interest in fire features is part of a larger trend in outdoor living, especially in the Southwest, given our pleasant, year-round climate,” says Gene Butler, president of The Firebird (thefirebird.com), a longtime Santa Fe–based retailer and installer of indoor and outdoor fireplaces.
Of The Firebird’s fire feature offerings, Butler says his business mostly focuses on gas-fueled fire pits and fire tables. “The prefab tables are easy to set up and can be moved around anywhere,” he says. “They come in a variety of styles and sizes, are simple to use with electronic ignitions, and most manufacturers even offer a removable windscreen, which is handy when it’s breezy outside.”
If customers have a more permanent location for their fire feature in mind, they can set it up to run off natural gas from the house. “More permanent features are typically done by landscapers or the homebuilders themselves in new construction, and the sky is the limit in terms of designs,” Butler notes. “The companies we work with can make burners that accommodate practically any design, including those that can be accessorized with water features to dramatic effect.”
While circular features are always popular because they more naturally accommodate for seating, Butler says he is noticing a growing demand for more linear features, which can often be used to create an “accent edge” in the outdoor living space as part of the hardscaping.
Jim Lyle is noticing the same trend. As vice president of Mountain West Sales (mountainwestsales.net), a family-owned supplier of home and hearth products in Albuquerque, Lyle is also selling more of the linear designs, where, as he says, “you have one long line of flame emanating from the base. And we are also seeing a lot of fire features, like fire pits and outdoor fireplaces, being incorporated into new home construction as well.”
Mountain West Sales offers a decent selection of outdoor fire structures that can accommodate various fuel sources, from wood-burning and propane to gel fuel and natural gas. The store carries anywhere from 50 to 100 off the shelf fire feature options, “but customers can do almost anything they can imagine when they have their features customized,” says Lyle.
Certainly one of the benefits to a non-fixed fire pit or pot is its ability to easily relocate, so you can instantly create mood lighting or bring warmth to a seating area in the backyard. But many homeowners know exactly where they want their fire pit to go—and stay—and will install it permanently in a place where it will receive regular use. Steve Biernacki, of Albuquerque-based Urban Earth Landscaping (urbanearthlandscaping.com), has built many a fixed fire pit for clients who have eschewed an outdoor fireplace.
One of the benefits to a non-fixed fire pit or pot is its ability to easily relocate, so you can instantly create mood lighting or bring warmth to a seating area in the backyard
“From a purely economic standpoint,” Biernacki says, “more people want fire pits, which may cost around $2,000, as compared to fireplaces, which require much more construction, with costs closer to $10,000.”
While his business, a full-service landscaping provider, will install out of the box fire features for customers, Biernacki mostly focuses on building customized fire pits and outdoor fireplaces for clients, primarily with stuccoed CTU blocks or stacking stones. He too is noticing a demand for more linear designs with fire pits, and a preference for glass beads rather than lava rock. When it comes to any fire feature being incorporated into new home construction, Biernacki cautions that it’s “important to ensure there will be enough BTU load”—enough power and heat to successfully roast marshmallows and hot dogs, warm chilled hands, and cast a beautiful flame upon a cozy spot in the backyard.
