Is using barnstones around a firepit a bad idea? Thinking about making the keyhole pit. And have the barnstones to use if they won't hold water and explode.
Barn stones around a firepit?
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Ok so here it is, hauled the stones up to the new pit area and set them up. It's a modified version of Scottys keyhole design. They were all covered in a few inches of black muck/dirt so had to hose them down. I'm excited about this cooking firepit!
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Another member here made a similar design, used to cook over. Get a good coal bed and put a grill grate over the top and you have yourself a wood fired grill! And you can still enjoy regular fires in the main part.
Ram 1500 with an axe...
Minister of Fire
You'll be fine with those stones but if it were me I would build the walls higher...
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This is my version, I placed a cooking grate In between stones to hold it in place and I have a fireplace rack that holds the fuel...have fun with it
Thought about that, I think I'm gonna fire it a few times and see how it goes. If needed ill dig it out to make it deeper.
Ram 1500 with an axe...
Minister of Fire
That will work too... My neighbor has one that is tall and cylinder looking, prefab bricks made to make a firepit, looks professionally made. It is probably sold as a kit. he gets some big fires in that thing, So I'm thinking, the size of the pit that we all have determines the size of the fire that we are capable of having. But fire it up and see how it goes, have fun and be safe...
Trilifter7
Feeling the Heat
I think the block will be fine. I made one out of some limestone I had at my house and it all exploded and crumbled as I would get a hot fire going. Not very fun dodging exploding rocks
Certain types of limestone retain water but I believe sandstone will be fine.
Certain types of limestone retain water but I believe sandstone will be fine.
Trilifter7
Feeling the Heat
Ram 1500 with an axe...
Minister of Fire
Yeah that happened to me too on Wednesday nite, I finally got to light it up and there it went......
My guess is those stones are going to pop like crazy . I would use some granite they can take a lot more heat .
Prof
Minister of Fire
I had a big sandstone explode last year. Fortunately I was no where near it. I did hear it--sounded like a shotgun going off. The problem is that there is little variety in stones in my area. When I was breaking the new stones in my fire pit this year I built a blazing fire and worked inside for a couple hours, just in case I had another bomb.
The reason why some rocks explode when heated is the rapid expansion of small air pockets (and to a lesser extent, moisture) trapped within the matrix of the rock. You are most likely to have this with sedimentary rocks (shale, limestone, sandstone) which are generally porous by nature. You might think that sandstone would be good, as the high percentage of quartz in a lot of sandstones makes for a good refractory material, but if its a particularly porous sandstone, you will have problems of the exploding rock variety.
Certain types of igneous rocks (granite) and metamorphic rocks (gneiss) would work well. It shouldn't matter if they came from a stream, unless they are already fractured as water can exist in the fractures. Being in NE Ohio, the local bedrock is probably sedimentary, but you can find granites scattered about as they were deposited there by glaciers.
Certain types of igneous rocks (granite) and metamorphic rocks (gneiss) would work well. It shouldn't matter if they came from a stream, unless they are already fractured as water can exist in the fractures. Being in NE Ohio, the local bedrock is probably sedimentary, but you can find granites scattered about as they were deposited there by glaciers.
Looks good, Swags! I wish I had taken all that foundation stone from the barn I tore down several years ago....I want to build a wall along the edge of my property and that hand cut stone would be ideal for the job....
I've built the past two pits here at the house out of mountain sandstone....never had one explode. The only rocks I've ever seen explode were rocks taken out of a river, which had been submerged for eons....
You'll love your firepit, Swags! We cooked chicken and corn on the cob on ours in a downpour Friday night....I had to cook, then bring the food inside and change my clothes before eating, I was SOAKED....
I've built the past two pits here at the house out of mountain sandstone....never had one explode. The only rocks I've ever seen explode were rocks taken out of a river, which had been submerged for eons....
You'll love your firepit, Swags! We cooked chicken and corn on the cob on ours in a downpour Friday night....I had to cook, then bring the food inside and change my clothes before eating, I was SOAKED....
See, dry wood not only doesn't suck up moisture, it burns in the rain
I'll be building one next week, if I can scrounge enough rock off the Lake Huron beaches.
I'm still going to try and make it out that way this summer, maybe in a couple of weeks. If the stars align.......I'll let you and Dennis know if I do come out...See, dry wood not only doesn't suck up moisture, it burns in the rain
I'll be building one next week, if I can scrounge enough rock off the Lake Huron beaches.
Leaving Saturday, coming home the following weekend. That burns the rest of my vacation time for the year, but there will be a few more working weekends there this summer. After that it should be pure enjoyment
Well here it is, fired a few elk steaks over some mulberry tonight. They were amazing!
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Oh yeah....I can see me making an overnighter trip out to Ohio soon....some brews, steaks and fire.
Can't beat that smokey flavor, can ya? That's the chit I'm talkin 'bout!
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