Chiminea?

[tsped83]

My darling wife is insisting we get a chiminea for the back yard, to spend romantic evenings out by the fire, therefore restricting me from the golf course in the summer...alas

Do you guys and girls have any advice as to what type to go for? Cast iron I'm thinking? Had a small clay one in the past and it was pretty feeble. Anything I should look out for?

Oh, and I want it to be MAHOOSIVE.

Cheers!

 

[Rooter]

Build a fire pit instead!! Much more manly!!

 

[PhilTheFragger]

This is what we have, it's a precast concrete BBQ but does chuck out a nice heat for after BBQ drinks
It's about 7 ft tall and static

Have you thought about a gas patio heater?

 

[tsped83]

Cheers fellas! A fire pit sounds awesome! Could I roast a hog on it? The mrs being a veggie may frown upon that though.

I suggested a patio heater Phil but I think the boss wants to see flames, so it looks 'nice an romantic'. Besides, I like playing with matches in a non arsonist kind of way.

 

[Rooter]

Something like this

http://www.tesco.com/direct/cast-iron-fire-pit-brazier/585-9465.prd

 

[Alex1975]

We are outdoor people, our garden is a room of our house and spend every evening out there in the summer.

We have had every fire type including large Chimineas. They are rubbish, they get really hot but they do not give much heat off.

As has been said, fire pit is best of us, though smoke can be an issue if its windy.

 

[Stegsie]

Cast Iron is the way to go for sure. I got one a few years ago, to compliment the patio heater we have. Patio heater is great for keeping you warm, of course, but the chiminea looks great and you an also bake spuds in it too!

 

[palindromicbob]

What about a glass tube gas patio heater. Kick off plenty of heat, real flame dancing around which looks excellent contained in the glass prison and none of the issues with smoke that are created by other flame sources. Just be careful with storage. Strong winds tossed my dads heater and smashed the glass because he had failed to secure it properly .

[video=youtube;02aWv2ErtA4]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02aWv2ErtA4[/video]

 

[tsped83]

That looks mental. How much do they set you back?

 

[palindromicbob]

That looks mental. How much do they set you back?

The one we got my dad cost about £200. Pricey but highly effective.

 

[Khamelion]

We've got a cast iron chiminea and you really need to keep on top of them to keep clean and rust free, our is knackered now, the cast iron grate inside and literally rusted away to nothing, the wooden bits as handles on the front grill have fallen off and the chiminea as a whole is rusty. I dare say a good scrub with a wire brush and some heat resistant paint may give it a new lease of life, but I should have done that a long while back.

After the first heat the outside becomes vulnerable to the elements so it does need protecting, also unless you get a mahoosive one, the flames are only visible out the front grill, not a problem if theres only two of you, but have a gathering and all will struggle for heat.

A fire pit is defo the way forward.

My mate in Canada built his own fire pit, about 20ft across sunk into the ground, built in seating and the pit in the middle for a small bonfire, sadly my back garden is not big enough for that.