Warning: My fire pit in Portland almost burned down my new fence

I was having a small get-together a month ago, and the wind picked up out of nowhere... I had the pit about five feet from the fence, which seemed fine before. A big gust blew embers right onto the dry wood and it started smoking. I had to dump a whole bucket of water on it. How far do you guys keep your fire features from fences or sheds?

3 comments

3 Comments

dakota5051mo ago

Yeah, five feet is way too close with wind. I learned that the hard way too. I keep mine a solid fifteen feet back now, and I still wet down the fence line if it's been dry. It's not just the distance, you have to watch for floating embers that can travel farther than you'd think.

lauradavis1mo ago

@dakota505 learned the hard way, so we don't have to. Fifteen feet sounds smart. My neighbor thought five feet was fine last year. He also thought the fire department's visit was a social call. Those floating embers are sneaky. Wetting everything down is the only safe move.

tessadixon21d ago

So you had to use a whole bucket, did it leave a big water stain or mess up the finish on the fence at all? That's my big worry after putting out a spot fire.