Put out a fire pit quickly and safely using tried and tested methods such as smothering with water, sand or even a fire blanket. Many people find this to be the most cumbersome part of throwing a backyard party, but it doesn’t have to be.
Continue reading to find out some quick and fun methods to put out your fire pit.
How To Put Out a Fire Pit
A fire pit can be put out using water, sand, a snuffer or even a fire blanket. However, it is important to use these products and substances properly in order to be safe and prevent accidents.
A fire pit should always be smothered properly for safety purposes. Find out several ways you can do this by reading some effective methods below.
– Let the Fire Die Out on Its Own
A fire pit is usually quite small and contains a limited amount of wood, coal and other burning material. In the absence of more fuel and probing, the fire in it eventually dies down on its own. This is probably one of the most convenient methods to turn off a fire pit.
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How To Do This
After you are done with your fire pit, allow the fire to cool down to a very small size. You can now leave it alone overnight to cool out. Take care that this fire is nonetheless safe from unwanted overtures by children, pets or stray animals like raccoons that come creeping through the night and might accidentally spread the fire around your lawn.
Remove all potentially flammable things from the vicinity of the pit. A fire pit built on a stony, hard surface is still relatively safe, but a fire pit built in a garden with grass and trees around it can spread the fire anytime during the night.
One trick you can perform before leaving the fire for the night is to sprinkle water on the ground around your pit. This practice decreases the chances of sparks falling at a distance and igniting a flame in the grass outside the pit.
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Safety Precautions
We don’t really recommend this method of extinguishing fire pits because of how unpredictable it is. The fire will take a long time to fully be extinguished, putting your garden and house at a risk all the while.
Any time during the night, children or animals can roam around and get themselves harmed. Their poking might also lead to the spreading of fire further on. Occasionally, spontaneous eruptions of conflagration from dying pit fires have also been reported.
Unless you are willing to supervise the dying embers until they are cool enough to touch, refrain from using this method.
– Using Water
What better way to put out a fire than using water?
However, simply picking up a bucket of water and dousing the fire pit isn’t going to cut it. Learn how to effectively smother a fire pit using water in this section.
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How To Use Water
The best thing to use in this case is a garden hose. Choose one with a multiple nozzle pattern on it so you can set and use it in various modes. The setting we recommend for putting out a fire pit is the spray one. This is because a spray of water will slowly and gradually put out the fire and is also much safer than a direct stream of water.
Once the contents of your fire pit have been thoroughly drenched in water, grab a stick to probe and mix them further. This ensures that water thoroughly mixes with and cools the whole pit. When water touches the burning wood and coal, a sizzling sound will be produced, but don’t be alarmed as this is completely normal.
Even after the fire dies down, hold your hand above the ashes and embers to see if they are giving out any heat. If they are, douse them with some more water until they completely cool down.
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Safety Precautions
Don’t stand too close to the fire when using water to put out the fire pit. This water will most likely turn into steam and cause potentially bad burns to anyone standing nearby.
Many people think that using a direct stream of water is a more effective and quicker method to do this, but they are mistaken here. Using a direct beam on a fire pit will immediately lead to the eruption of more flames and sparks, which can be quite dangerous for everyone nearby. In any case, wear protective clothing and gloves while putting out a fire using water.
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When Not To Use Water
If your fire pit is made out of metal, then it will heat up a great deal when you light a fire in it. Using water will cool the metal immediately afterward. Repeating this cycle of rapid heating and cooling ultimately weakens the metal and it will end up breaking pretty quickly.
– Using Sand
Another method to safely put out a fire pit is by using sand. Because it is a non-combustible material, it forms a barrier over the fire. The sand prevents oxygen from reaching the fire, and without its fuel, the fire eventually dies down. This is probably the best way to put out a fire pit.
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How To Use Sand
After you are done using your fire pit for the day, stop adding new fuel to it and allow the embers to die down a little. Pour a generous amount of soil over the burnt remnants of the fire pit, but don’t cover the entire pit with soil. This will only stop the fire from increasing in size but it will still continue to burn passively underneath the soil.
Pour sand over the pit in increments instead of all at once. Take a stick and then mix the sand in with the embers. Ensure that the fire has been completely extinguished.
This method of putting out a fire pit is most suitable for metal types of fire pits as it leads to a gradual cooling of the pit. After the fire has completely been put out and the pit has cooled down, clean the sand thoroughly from it.
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Safety Precautions
Even though sand is generally a safe option, sometimes it leaves some embers smoldering underneath it. These can then reignite later on when you least suspect it. Always throw sand on your fire pit gradually and at a slow pace.
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When Not To Use Sand
When the fire is too large or still fresh, then using sand is not such a good idea. Sand should only be added when the embers of the fire have significantly died down.
– Using Dirt
Yes, dirt from your garden can also be used to extinguish a fire pit after a weekend barbeque party. Make sure that the dirt you use is pure and doesn’t contain any flammable substances in it.
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How To Use Dirt
Let the fire in the pit burn out on its own accord. Use a probe or stick to break down any large pieces of wood or ember that might be present there; you might even need to use a shovel for this purpose.
Start throwing dirt in large scoops on the fire. After each scoop, mix the dirt and the burning materials together to stop the oxygenation of coal and wood.
The more dirt you mix with the fire, the better.
Keep doing this at regular intervals for at least two hours. Eventually, your fire pit will cool down enough to stop and call it a night.
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Safety Precautions
Do not approach too close to the fire when it is burning. Pour dirt slowly and carefully as you don’t want sparks to fly and get into your eyes or anywhere else.
The stick you should use for probing the fire should not be made of a flammable substance either. Simply dumping a bucket of dirt over the burning fire pit will never put the fire out. The coal embers will keep burning under this layer of dirt and may catch fire again.
– Using a Snuffer
A snuffer is a great way to put out a fire pit without water or sand. A snuffer is basically a lid that covers the whole of your fire pit and prevents the inflow of oxygen into it. The fire eventually dies due to a lack of additional fuel.
These days, many fire pits already come with a custom-made snuffer, but if you have to buy one for yourself, then choose one that is made exactly according to the dimensions of your pit. It won’t work unless it fits the rim of the pit perfectly.
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How To Use a Snuffer
A snuffer is super easy to use. Simply place this lid over your fire pit and see it work its magic.
As a snuffer works by blocking oxygen to the fire, it will take quite a long time for the fire to be put out. This why you shouldn’t lift the lid until much later after placing it down.
You can leave the fire pit after putting the snuffer over it. At the same time, you should also be conscious of the fact that there is a fire still burning in your yard. A snuffer also acts as a cover for your pit when you are not using it and prevents dirt and insects from getting into it.
– Using a Fire Blanket
Did you know that you can also use a fire blanket to turn off a fire pit?
It is by far one of the easiest methods on this list and we love it!
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What Is a Fire Blanket?
A fire blanket is basically a commercially-designed sheet made of fire-resistant material. It can tolerate extremely hot temperatures of up to 1,600 degrees Fahrenheit.
A fire blanket also works by blocking the oxygen supply to the fire. Deprived of its fuel, the coal and wood eventually fizzle out themselves.
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How To Use a Fire Blanket
Always buy a fire blanket from a reputed manufacturer. You don’t want to risk it by buying from a cheap and unreliable source. They usually come in a box and are meant for installing in kitchens.
Simply pull the lever of the box whenever you want to access the blanket. Your fire blanket will be released and ready to use.
Break down the wood and coal and allow the fire to mellow down a little. Pull the fire blanket over the fire pit and secure its edges tightly along the edges of the pit. Make sure there is no way the air is escaping from the pit. You can now leave the pit covered by the blanket overnight, and after a couple of hours, the fire should die down.
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Safety Precautions
A fire blanket is only meant for small, contained fires like those in a fire pit. Don’t cover your pit with the blanket when its flames are roaring and licking higher than the rims of the pit itself.
Don’t go too close to the fire even when you are using a fire blanket.
– Using a Fire Extinguisher: The Last Option
A fire extinguisher seems like the most convenient method of putting out a fire pit, and there is no doubt that it does put out the fire in minutes. While there are no major drawbacks to using a fire extinguisher, there are some points to consider. Read below to find out what they are.
Fire extinguishers are an important safety measure that you should keep in your house for emergency purposes. Casually using it for fire pits and then not refilling it poses the risk that they won’t come in handy during an actual fire.
In addition, fire extinguishers are quite technique-sensitive and complicated to use. Unless you know for sure how to use them, don’t experiment with your fire pit. Fire extinguishers are also quite expensive to buy and fill. Using them for a fire pit is wasteful and unnecessarily extravagant.
Safety Tips To Follow When Using Fire Pits
Observing the weather, keeping flammable items away, and always supervising a fire pit are some of the most important safety tips to follow when using fire pits.
Fire pits are a great addition not only to your backyard but also to your weekend parties. However, there are some standard safety precautions you should always follow along with all the fun you are having.
Read below to learn what these precautions are.
– Don’t Build Fires on Windy Days
Windy days are not a good time to build a fire in your backyard as the wind might transport the embers and sparks all around the area. Some of them might then fall on surrounding grass and trees and become a fire safety hazard.
– Don’t Use Construction Material for Burning
Construction material should never be used as fuel for burning a pit fire in the yard. These things include construction lumber, plywood, pressure-treated posts, etc. These materials are treated with chemicals that give off toxic fumes when burnt, and are definitely not something you want to inhale with your barbeque.
– Keep Flammable Furniture Away
Don’t keep furniture that has the potential to catch fire near your fire pit when you are using it. It might catch fire and risk everyone’s safety. Make sure that the chairs and tables are at a good distance away.
– Don’t Leave Your Pit Fire Unattended
This is our number one rule of thumb to follow when it comes to building pit fires in your yard or garden.
Never leave it unattended!
Even when it seems to be almost extinguished, even a spark could send it roaring again. Unless the fire pit is cool enough to touch, always remember that it is a potential hazard.