Natural gas fire pits - Everything you need to know
In the past decade, gas fire pits have become a must-have feature for paver patios. In this blog post, landscaping experts from J Squared Outdoor Living tell us about amazing features and must-knows about fire pits. Please read on to learn more!
What are natural gas fire pits?
Natural gas firepits use the gas supply from your house as fuel. A natural gas fire pit is a fantastic choice for a built in permanent fire feature.
Benefits
There are more than a few perks of natural gas fire pits. A few of them are:
They improve the mood
A fire burning in the fireplace is a great way to give your room a cozy atmosphere.
While artificial light is useful, the dancing fire from a pit completely changes the atmosphere of an outdoor room.
Fire in the evenings can instantly transform your backyard from dull to dazzling. So, you can count on them to boost the ambiance.
Easy to use
Turning them on or off is easy with gas fire pits, just like turning off/on a light.
In addition, you can turn up or down the flame depending on the required heat. So, effortlessly crank up the flame on chilly nights.
With gas fire pits, you are free from the following:
· The mess of dealing with wood.
· Burning wood smell that gets in your clothes.
· Splinters from wood.
Extremely durable and Maintenance free
Investing in gas fire pits will provide years of enjoyment.
Safety
We have saved the best advantage of natural gas fire pits for the last. Yes, it is safe!
For those concerned with safety, a gas fire pit is a great option for bringing the warmth of fire into their outdoor space.
You can enjoy without the dangers of a wood-burning fire, such as sparks and flying embers. Naturally, this allows them to be used near flammable objects like patio furniture that would normally need to be kept well away from a wood fire.
Finally, a gas fire pit may be the last missing piece to your patio's ensemble. Please check some of our best works listed on our home page here.
Things to consider
With great reviews and numerous satisfied customers, J Squared Outdoor living's experts have narrowed down a few considerations before building a gas fire pit.
Naturally, it is better to learn from the experiences of others than make mistakes yourself. So, read on!
Fire pit inserts
There are a lot of options for fire pit inserts and they range in quality. We prefer the higher quality burners made by Warming Trends because of the realistic looking flame. We find other burners sometimes just look like the flame you get from your gas grill.
High Volume gas supply
The gas source must have enough volume to power the burner. If you use the small stub out that was designed for a grill you likely won’t have a very strong flame. We calculate the exact diameter of the pipe needed for every project based on the service line and the distance to the burner. This ensures that we always have enough volume to give a nice flame.
Construction damage
Usually, the large BTU requirements of outdoor fire features requires running a gas line directly to the meter. It’s important for homeowners to understand that the trench needed to install this line needs to be around 30” deep. Anytime, trenching through existing landscapes or lawns 30” deep it makes a larger mess than you might think. It’s important to ask your contractor about this and make sure that the proper repairs to your lawn and existing landscaping will be made after the gas line has been installed.
Ignition Systems
There are three main types of ignition systems. Matchlight, battery sparker with thermo coupler, and line voltage ignition. Our experience has been that the battery sparker units are prone to issues and are un reliable. Hardwired ignition is the most convenient and is very reliable but it’s also the most expensive. Matchlight is the most cost effective and the most reliable it just requires using a grill lighter to light the flame. The vast majority of our clients prefer match lit systems for simplicity.
Fire pit covers
Gas fire features need to be covered when they’re not in use. If they are not covered the small holes that gas flows out of will collect water. The water fills the tubes in the fixture and prevents gas from flowing through. It’s a relatively easy fix to drain the water but it does require a service call. Whenever we build a fire feature for our clients we include a custom made stainless steel fire pit cover made for the dimensions of their specific fire feature.
Conclusion
Gas fire pits allow you to have a great time right in your backyard. We hope this blog has been helpful!
If you have a home in Centerville, Springboro, Waynesville, Bellbrook, Sugar Creek, Spring Valley, Kettering, Miamisburg and surrounding areas, J Squared Outdoor living is your go-to place for landscape design build. Contact us for a quote if you need a landscape design, outdoor lighting, fire pits, retaining walls, or landscape renovation. Thanks for the Read, and remember to leave your thoughts on natural gas fire pits in the comments sections.