How To Stay Warm In Your Garden This Autumn
Chimeneas, Fire Bowls and Fire Pits, Which One Is Right For Your Garden?
With the colder months drawing in, its more important than ever to make the most of our gardens before it gets too cold. Gardens can be a communal, and a productive space, but no matter how you choose to use your garden, there are ways in which you can ensure that you, and your friends and family can stay warm. There are a variety of products on the market which can keep you garden nice and toasty, but we prefer the more traditional methods, something a bit more elemental, something that can make a statement.
Chimeneas
A traditional method for keeping warm, as well as for cooking, a chimenea is a historical design that has been used for several centuries. Distinctive due to their unique shape and design, chiminea’s are most often produced in clay, but can also be made from Iron and other metals, both are exceptionally good at retaining heat and very durable. You can even cover your chimenea when it’s not in use to stop it becoming weathered in adverse weather.
With a clay chimenea it is advisable to place a few inches of sand at the bottom of the bowl to dissipate some of the heat away from the clay and prevent it from cracking.
Some chimineas also include doors, helping to keep in the heat even more, this also has the bonus of keeping embers from escaping it. Grills are another common feature of chimineas, allowing you to cook food in your garden and make the experience a much more communal one.
Fire Bowls and Pits
Fire bowls and pits create a different ambience to chimeneas, where a chimenea is a much more contained way of enclosing a fire, a fire bowl or pit is much more open to the elements. For this reason, there is an extra element of safety involved, embers and ashes can be spread around much easier, so this is something to consider when looking at fire bowls and pits. Like chimeneas, some fire bowls and pits come with grills to cook food.
Fuel
Both fire bowls and chimeneas need a source of fuel to keep burning, once the fire has started it can keep going for varying lengths of time, depending on the fuel source. Firewood or kindling is a great way to get the fire started, and we would always advise using a sustainable source of wood for your fire bowl or chimenea. If you are using wood that you have sourced yourself, it is important to use wood that is dry, any moisture at all can cause smoke clouds, something you don’t want to coat your garden!
Another fuel source you can use is coal, but if you are sitting close to it make sure to make a smokeless variety. Not only will this be a much more pleasant experience to be around, but it is also much less harmful for the environment, with less pollutants being released into the atmosphere. Coal can burn at higher temperatures too, something to be aware of especially when using it in a chimenea, it also burns for longer.
Food
Both chimeneas and fire bowls can cook food, and the type of food you can cook with them is very open, but here are a few ideas to get you started.
- Barbecue – much like a standard barbecue, you can use your chimenea and fire bowl to cook food over a metal grill for an authentic outdoor experience.
- Chimeneas work particularly well when it comes to cooking dough-based foods, pizza, bread, and so much more.
- Wrapped in a bit of foil, you can cook some delicious baked potatoes.
- Using your chimenea as a smoker is another great idea, use wood for smoking fish, or really anything you want to.
Which One Is Right for You?
Fire bowl or chimenea, which one you prefer really depends on the aesthetic you are trying to achieve in your garden. The practical uses of each are similar yet with enough differences to warrant some thought over. Hopefully this guide has given you a better idea about what both are about, and you can now make a more informed decision.
Still not sure? Take a look at our whole range here.
