Standard Fire Pit Size

I like to plan for about 5 feet around the fire pit for seating and access.

Standard fire pit size.

Be sure that you leave room to move chairs around and walk behind them. Building a fire pit yourself offers room for customization on every detail size included. Or you go up to 6 feet wide including the thickness of the walls to accommodate six or more people. If you re choosing low slung seating such as adirondack chairs don t forget to account for the extra real estate they take up.

For a more intimate gathering space a 3 foot wide fire pit would work. The optimal size for a fire pit is between 36 and 44 inches inside diameter. Built in units often have an exterior dimension of 36 inches to 58 inches. So now figure how much room you want to have around the fire pit.

That will create enough room for a healthy fire but still keep gatherers close enough to chat. Cut the circle out of the soil or sod using a shovel and dig down to a depth of about 6 inches. Lets say 4 for a sitting area and such. If you want to be able to sit on the edge of the pit itself go a bit higher 18 20 inches will be comfortable.

When marking out the area where you want to build your fire pit allow for the outside diameter of the circle. A good rule of thumb is to make an above ground fire pit 12 14 inches tall. Local ordinances permitting your fire pit should ideally measure between 36 and 44 inches wide including. You also need to take the depth in ground or height above ground of the fire pit into consideration.

Most store bought units are available in a 24 inches to 30 inch size. Size of your fire pit generally a good inside diameter for a fire pit is 36 to 44 inches. The size of fire pits varies greatly. As an added precaution the fire pit should be lined with a thick steel ring like the ones used for park campfires.

A fire pit itself is rarely bigger than four or five feet across and the patio space around it should be an additional six feet or so on all sides. So at the 36 inside diameter with say 14 coping that gives us an outside diameter of 36 14x2 64 inches.