Glass fire pits?

[Andiejj]

We are putting in a gas fire pit when we put the new pool in. We keep hearing about these glass fire pits but no one actually has one. So I searched the internet and they look awesome. Anyone here have them? What's the difference between the 1/4" vs. 1/2" ....obviously the size but anything else? Thinking it would be cheaper to have the pool builder do the pit but we do the glass ourselves. Is this an easy DIY? Thanks so much. Also, if you have it, what color and do you like it?

 

[jblizzle]

I do not know too much about them, but I thought a "glass fire pit" was just a regular gas fire pit with glass beads above the fire ring instead of lava rock.
The install would be the same regardless of the media you decide to put on the top.

 

[257WbyMag]

I have seen one recently with cobalt blue glass beads. The effect was strikingly beautiful. I think that jblizzle is right though...it's a gas log that is essentially buried in glass beads instead of lava rocks. The one that I saw was a ring.

 

[Melt In The Sun]

I had one and got rid of it this spring, and replaced it with a real fire pit. The gas flame was whispy and blew around way too much in the wind.

 

[257WbyMag]

I had one and got rid of it this spring, and replaced it with a real fire pit. The gas flame was whispy and blew around way too much in the wind.

Was the wind blowing the fire out or was it not generating the heat that you expected it would?

 

[Melt In The Sun]

The wind blew it at about a 45 degree angle pretty much all the time, and would sometimes even blow about half of it out. It just wasn't usable. We do have a lot of wind, so I imagine if you have less it would work just fine. Still can't cook on it though!

 

[Artacoyote]

I/We've had a Firepit with "Azure" (light-medium blue) 1/4 " inch glass for years. The glass is expensive, therefore, we have about 90% of the firepit height covered in Fine Sand. The last 2-4 inches are glass. We added some large "diamonds" to it (both clear and blue) to put on top and it adds the final touch. The firepit looks nice!!!! Glass firepits simply look better than sand, fake log or lava rock pits. Go to fine Vegas clubs and they all use glass.

I have also found that the "mirrored" glass (on one side) adds to the overall effect of the firepit. You need only a few pounds to mix in.

I hope this helps and I hope you're glass is good.

 

[gtojohn]

I'm not sure if the glass is different than "normal" glass, but our city recycling program gives away crushed glass people can use in "landscaping" projects. Again maybe firepit glass needs to be pyrex or something different.

 

[jmurph]

I recently converted a wood burning fire pit table to propane gas. After dragging my wood burning fire pit table away from the house numerous times, I started looking at glass fire pit tables. The $800 and up prices discouraged me, so I started looking into a conversion. My total cost including the glass, was less than $250. I attached some pictures of the process. I had an aluminum pan made out of 1/4" plate, with a 1/2 NPT coupling welded in the middle. I bought a SS 12" double burner ring, air mixer, no-whistle flex line, control valve, and LP hose w/ 0-10 PSI regulator. I may downgrade the regulator since it's way too much. This thing throws a 3' flame at 50%. I assembled everything, and poured pea gravel under the burner. Covered the pea gravel with screen, so my glass doesn't mix, and I can remove it easily. I just ordered the glass. I bought 10lbs of sapphire blue eco-glass beads and 10lbs of royal blue luster beads. Everything I read said to avoid the broken recycled glass, and use actual fire pit glass for the best affect. If you build one, do your research. There are differences when using natural gas or propane. Make sure you consult a gas professional for the install.

 

[Artacoyote]

I second what Jmurph says. ONLY use glass treated for fire-pit usage. The constant joke around our family visitors and friends is to throw all the beer bottles into the fire-pit to save money... Please don't do that. That glass is not made for it. Hence, why actual fire-pit glass costs a little more.

 

[pragmatic]

As Melt in the Sun said, the Glass/Gas Firepits don't do well in the wind. It sounds like Artacoyote's design would provide plenty of heat in a light wind, but propane gets expensive. With our mild Texas winters, we have plenty opportunities to enjoy the evenings outside. For occasional use, I would look into the stainless standup heater for heat; they're very efficient, safe and are now selling for around $99. For fire I would suggest a good large chminea (protect them from water). I like these over a firepit because the way they vent smoke up and away. Wood is cheap and always available in your area!
I've tried them all and after burning through chiminea's (both clay and metal) decided to invest in an outdoor fireplace. I realize it's an expensive route, but if you enjoy winter evenings outside it's well worth it! I was lucky and found this one within my budget.

Another route is a Fireplace kit; a liitle DIY but well worth the expense. I like the Stone Age kit (ACME Brick in Houston is a distributor).
http://www.stoneagefireplaces.com/fireplaces.html
The Stand heater’s in the back ground (5gal=about 8 hours on full power)

Good luck and Merry Christmas!

 

[mmeisner]

I just got a nice double-sided glass fireplace for the living room of my house, and hadn't thought about one for outside but that's a great idea. I actually got the NuFlame Ardore, which is beautiful; would probably look just as nice outside on a patio near the pool.

 

[Wadeod]

Can I see what these diamonds look like?