Using an old Kettle as a fire pit?


 
Kyle in Woodstock

Kyle in Woodstock

TVWBB Guru
Has anyone used an old kettle as a fire pit?

Curious to see if burning lots of wood in the kettle would be harsher on the bowl than charcoal.

Thinking it would be cool to buy an old kettle for $20ish and repurpose as a fire pit. Maybe cutdown the legs some and then surround it with some landscaping bricks. Seems like it’d hold up better than one of those cheap metal fire pits at Lowe’s and Home Depot that rust away after a season.
 
I've used both a Jumbo Joe and a 22 kettle as a fire pit. Both work great and I've seen no extra stress on the bowl. I still use the charcoal grate for better airflow and to keep the fire from being right on the bowl. On the 22 I keep saying I'm going to cut down the legs but I keep putting it off. I don't know how much I want to chop though as I like the height so the smoke doesn't go into our faces as much, but we also can't see as much of the fire, so I will cut some to see what the best height combination is. But, I can't come to a decision on it so I keep putting it off. Lol

The Jumbo Joe works awesome as a portable grill and fire pit. We take it with our camper. I use it to cook dinner over charcoal then while the coals are still hot I just toss in some firewood and a few pieces of pinion and within minutes the fire is raging. End of the night I put the lid on, close the vents, and secure the latch. In the morning I just dump the ash that's completely extinguished, rinse with water, and pack away. It's perfect.
 
MikeLucky said:
I've used both a Jumbo Joe and a 22 kettle as a fire pit. Both work great and I've seen no extra stress on the bowl. I still use the charcoal grate for better airflow and to keep the fire from being right on the bowl. On the 22 I keep saying I'm going to cut down the legs but I keep putting it off. I don't know how much I want to chop though as I like the height so the smoke doesn't go into our faces as much, but we also can't see as much of the fire, so I will cut some to see what the best height combination is. But, I can't come to a decision on it so I keep putting it off. Lol

The Jumbo Joe works awesome as a portable grill and fire pit. We take it with our camper. I use it to cook dinner over charcoal then while the coals are still hot I just toss in some firewood and a few pieces of pinion and within minutes the fire is raging. End of the night I put the lid on, close the vents, and secure the latch. In the morning I just dump the ash that's completely extinguished, rinse with water, and pack away. It's perfect.
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Not sure why I never thought of this until my wife recently asked about getting a fire pit. Gives me another reason to bring home another kettle :cool::blackkettle:
 
A lot of people have done it. You can do a midget mod with shorter legs. Keeping the wheels on is up to you really. Then simply keep the charcoal grate on. It could be helpful to porcelain finish if you use a ring or something to keep the logs from directly touching it. Logs tend to burn a little hotter than charcoal at times. Right now the only alternative would be ordering a Weber fireplace overseas or finding a used model in the US. Unfortunately, unless you get lucky and find one at a good price both are a little cost prohibitive. Especially when the used model is pretty far gone after being well used and left outside.
 
Yeah, I have 9 Webers now. My wife is pushing back HARD about how many grills I have. My first original Kettle was one she was eyeing about getting rid of, so I had to think fast to save her. Lol. I said, "that's our new firepit." So far it's worked. After reading this thread I might actually make the cutdown mods to it this weekend and make it more official.

You can see her in the background of this picture. I've debated about keeping the ash can assembly on it and cutting the legs down to just below that, or taking it off and cutting the legs a bit lower. Haven't settled on what to do yet.

image.jpg
 
Might be better to try and find some kind of tubing at Home Depot the same diameter as the legs and cut that to size and use as fire pit legs...then at least you'll have the original legs to throw back on if you ever wanted to convert back to a cooker.

I'll be doing this probably sometime this spring/summer after I've procured a cheap older kettle to play with.
 
Kyle in Woodstock said:
Might be better to try and find some kind of tubing at Home Depot the same diameter as the legs and cut that to size and use as fire pit legs...then at least you'll have the original legs to throw back on if you ever wanted to convert back to a cooker.

I'll be doing this probably sometime this spring/summer after I've procured a cheap older kettle to play with.
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That's a really good idea. I'll see about doing that and I'll post pics and info so it can be a reference for you when you get to do yours.
 
I found this in an older thread about replacement legs from 2012....


I have been using 3/4" copper tubing cut to the length of each leg. Once cut, I wrap approximately 8 wraps of 2" wide masking tape on each end followed by 2 or 3 more evenly spaced between the ends (enough tape to make a snug fit but still allow the copper pipe to slide into the leg). Then assemble as normal. The legs can be a bit difficult to push into the socket (make sure they are in all the way) but this creates a very snug fit resulting in a solid kettle...no more wobbly legs. I have only been doing this for about a year but so far its holding up well.
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Lewis B said:
I cut down the legs so the bowl is approx 16" high. I notched the heat deflector for the legs. I still use it more for a grill than a fire pit though. I love the fact that putting the lid on extinguishes the fire
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The more I think about it, using a Kettle as a fire pit is a great idea. Those cheap fire pits at Lowe's and home Depot are around $50-75 or more, they only last about a year if you keep them outside and you certainly can't use the lid to extinguish anything.
 
Found a beat up 18"er for $5 today. Doesn't have a main grate and one touch blades very rusty. Think this is a good candidate for fire pit....or maybe use it as a planter and grow some herbs in it.


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Yep, I did that with my old daisy wheel vent that bit the dust years ago. I would suggest putting down a layer of sand to protect the bottom of the bowl if going for a dedicated fire pit.

Tim
 
Bill - MO said:
It could be helpful to porcelain finish if you use a ring or something to keep the logs from directly touching it. Logs tend to burn a little hotter than charcoal at times.
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I agree on this point. You'll get some crazing of the finish if you build a big fire against the surface of the bowl. At least in my experience.
 
Surprisingly, after soaking the one-touch blades in Blaster oil, they actually move back and forth. Wasn't expecting that...still, don't think I'll be using this little guy as a grill. The vent is stamped with AA, so it's only a 2011. I'm sure it would still cook fine, it's just beat up a lot.
 
timothy said:
Yep, I did that with my old daisy wheel vent that bit the dust years ago. I would suggest putting down a layer of sand to protect the bottom of the bowl if going for a dedicated fire pit.

Tim
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Sand in the bottom of the bowl, or under the bowl? Seems like if you put it in the bottom of bowl you would have to keep adding more after you cleaned out old ash
 
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