Have you ever gone camping with family or friends? If so, you understand what a great bonding time it is with those you love. There’s nothing like being out in nature and breathing fresh air while cooking over an open fire. Depending on your location, you can also see animals in their natural habitat. If you have enough property space, you could always create your summer campfire right from the comfort of your home. Here are some tips on how to turn your backyard into the ultimate summer campfire spot.
Campfire Materials
You can’t have a campfire without the right materials. Start building up your materials by finding a local firewood supplier. Believe it or not, you may be able to find some people on Amazon, Craigslist, and other online sites. If you have additional trees in your yard, you may want to call your local arborist to chop one down so you can supply your firewood.
When it comes to who you plan on inviting to your summer campfire, do any of those people also have access to trees or firewood? Maybe you could pay them or barter for services so they can bring some wood. You may also want to check sites like Facebook Marketplace where people also often advertise items that they have for sale.
Of course, you’ll need more than just firewood itself. You’ll also need something to Tinder, which is the smallest or easiest thing to ignite fuel. This includes items like dry leaves, needles, or small twigs. Kindling items are usually small sticks that you can also add to the campfire.
You can also make things easy for yourself by investing in a fire pit. Fire pits have gained popularity among homeowners who enjoy outdoor living. You can buy a fire pit from specific manufacturers. If you don’t know how to build your fire pit, you can always buy a fire pit kit that comes with basic instructions.
Safety Measures
Fire can bring warmth and comfort when you gather around it. However, fire can also be very dangerous if you don’t know how to manage it. When you’re using your home to host a campfire, you should take extra precautions, as you don’t want to put your home or your neighbor’s homes in danger. And the first thing you should do is make sure you have items nearby to quickly extinguish the fire in case it gets out of control. So you should have at least one or more Grade A fire extinguishers nearby. If you’ve never used a fire extinguisher before, make sure you learn how to use one before you begin your summer campfire adventures. Make sure other people also understand how to use a fire extinguisher in case something happens.
You can also have your fire hose on hand so that you can quickly use irrigation to put out any flames that may get out of control. Be very mindful of where you place your campfire. Don’t have your fire pit or homemade summer campfire near anything combustible. In other words, don’t have it near your actual property or a wooden fence. Make sure the area is clear of debris, as debris can quickly spread a fire. You may also want to put your animals out of sight or have them tied up so that they don’t knock anything over and cause an accident.
Regardless of how nice it is in summertime, make sure you stay posted about the weather. After all, you don’t want to host your summer campfire during a windy day. If the winds are too high, it can make a spark or fire easily spread and create havoc.
Land Clearing
If you’re serious about hosting an ultimate campfire, then you need to make sure that your landscape is ready. To have a safe space for people to gather around comfortably, you may need to invest in some local tree removal. While it can be hard getting rid of a tree, in this case, you’ll need enough of a safe zone to successfully camp out and build your fire pit. Remember, you don’t want your fire pit in a super combustible area, and if there are too many trees and branches hanging overhead then it won’t be safe.
One of the benefits of utilizing land clearing in your space is you can take the wood that’s chopped down and use it for your campfire. In other words, you won’t have to buy additional wood from someone else if you’ve cleared trees off of your property. If you’re handy with an axe, chop your firewood from removed trees, or hire someone else to do that.
Landscaping
Once you’ve cleared the land of any excessive trees that might pose a danger to a campfire, find other ways to enhance your landscape. When people go camping, they want to enjoy the benefits of being in nature. People enjoy different trees, flowers, animals, and various scenery. Make sure your landscape is up to par, so anyone invited to your summer campfire event can feel just as comfortable spending time in that area, even when they’re not sitting around a campfire itself.
If you haven’t done so already, now is a good time to call a local tree service. A local tree service could make sure that your trees are properly pruned and trimmed. Your arborist will check your trees for any signs of illness. After all, if a tree has sick branches, those branches can spread illness to the entire tree and can cause premature death. The situation becomes even more dire if it’s near other trees, as it makes illness easier to spread. Can you imagine a landscape full of sick trees? Before you know it, those sick trees can turn into dead trees. And a landscape full of dead wood is no fun for anyone. Plus, it’s a health hazard.
Sick or dead trees are weakened trees that can easily fall over and hurt someone. So by keeping your trees healthy, you can prevent any liability issues during your summer campfire. When trees are pruned, they look beautiful. Any overgrown branches will be cut down and won’t be too heavy and fall on people. If you have some fruit-bearing trees, that’s even better. Summer is a great time when certain fruits are in full bloom, especially citrus fruit and nuts. So if you have a couple of trees on your camping site where people can pick some fruit for their snack or take photos that can make your event shine.
Privacy
Unless you want your summer campfire adventurers to be open to anyone and everyone, then you’ll want some privacy. You can begin by hiring a local fence contractor. A fencing professional can build a fence as high as seven feet high. They can use materials ranging from wood to metal to vinyl. While you want privacy for your event, a fence can last a long time for regular security. It makes sense to think about the type of fence you want to keep long term unless you just want a temporary fence for the event.
With additional privacy, you and your family and friends can feel more comfortable letting loose during your campfire adventures. After all, with everyone having a camera phone out these days, you may not want random strangers passing by and taking videos or photos of your event. Plus, you may have nosy neighbors that you don’t want to invite over. If they see you have a firepit gathering going, they may be tempted to invite themselves.
A privacy fence is not only good for safety, it’s also good for noise reduction. After all, you don’t want to have to disturb your neighbors or have a visit from the police. As people gather around a campfire there is likely to be some laughs, drinks, and fun to be had. At least with a higher enough privacy fence, some of that noise can be insulated so you don’t disturb others.
Legal Compliance
Before you go about hosting your summer campfire, make sure you can legally do so. After all, some areas may not allow it and if you’re not the property owner, you need to get permission. So if you’re renting a house or you share the land with other people, ask the property manager if it’s cool to have a backyard campfire this summer. Some areas may also require getting permits for this type of activity. So do your due diligence ahead of time and investigate what permissions you may need and who you need to get them from.
A Firepit Area
As you set up your fire pit area, you want to make sure that it’s as comfortable as possible for everyone. You make sure you have comfortable seating so that everyone doesn’t just have to sit on the ground. You can add chairs, cozy benches, or even a sectional sofa. While the campfire will provide natural light, you should have additional light for safety and convenience. The right lighting can also add to the overall ambiance and cozy feeling. Install string lights, candlelight, lanterns, and even solo lights.
Check the natural stone supply in the area to add decorative elements. You can also have landscapers add larger landscaping boulders. Go to places like Home Depot or artsy stores like Michaels to find glass beads or decorative stones for even greater effect. Make sure you keep your firewood dry by having a proper storage bin. After all, even if your campfire happens in summer, rain can happen anytime and you don’t want your campfire to get wet and be exposed to moisture.
Driveway
Unless you’re only having people in your neighborhood or bike riders over for your campfire, you should be able to have places for people to park. So make sure you have a designated space where people know where to park. If you don’t have enough space in your driveway then you may need to direct them to street parking.
If your driveway hasn’t been paved in a while, make sure you do so before you start your campfire. After all, if your driveway is uneven, and has cracks or potholes, it can be a liability. If people end up ruining their tires or tripping over cracks, they could hurt themselves or damage their cars. You don’t want your event ruined because you have to shell out money in damages.
Bathroom Considerations
Of course, people will have to go to the bathroom at some point. Unless you want everyone flooding your house bathroom, it’s best to rent a porta potty or several. Try to get a good head count on how many people you expect. If you plan on hosting your summer campfire at various times, you may want to have a guest limit so you can ensure there are enough porta potties available for the amount of people there. When you contact a local porta potty service, tell them how many people you expect and they can recommend the amount of rentals you’ll need.
Barbeque
When people show up, they should expect something to eat and drink. After all, people will get hungry and they’re going to need something more than a piece of fruit from your trees. So clean off your grill and start stocking up on ribs, burgers, veggies, etc. Make sure you have the right fuel for the type of grill you have, whether it’s heater oil, charcoal, or wood chips.
While it may be fall now, Summer 2024 will be here before you know it. What better way to prepare for that time of year than by getting your events planned out now? Camping is a fun event for family and friends. Being able to host your fire pit event on your property can make camping easier for everyone. After all, you’re less likely to have to worry about a wild bear or a wolf coming out of nowhere. Use this helpful guide to prepare your home for a fun campfire event that your loved ones can enjoy throughout the summer.