As the thermostat continues to drop over the winter season, it may seem difficult to imagine a great Outdoor Living Experience for you and your family.  Yes, you can head to the mountains for a day of skiing or snowshoeing, but what happens when you get home again? Where’s the après ski experience?

Why not continue your fun with a family gathering around your own fire pit in the back yard?  According to the American Society of Landscape Architects, fire pits and outdoor fireplaces are among the most popular outdoor additions with a 97% rating in popularity for 2013.  Here are some of the reasons we found for this:

• Fire pits extend your Outdoor Living season – the added heat, while not enough to warm your entire back yard will keep those gathered at your pit comfortable.
• Fire pits bring people together—Let’s face it. Part of the human experience is to gather close together, share stories, and enjoy each other’s company.  We have been gathering in fire rituals since time began.
• Fire pits add beauty and ambiance to your Outdoor Living experience—Fire seems to have a magnetic draw for people, and watching flames climb from a beautifully built pit with unusual and equally aesthetic fire media adds a lot to your Outdoor Living time.

If you decide to get a fire pit, you have a seemingly endless array of choices for building the social center you dream of. But don’t let the abundance of materials and decisions overwhelm you.

According to Vince Stover of DeckTec, there are basically three types of fire pit to choose from: wood burning or natural fire pits, freestanding propane, and direct gas-fed pits. He explained the choices from least effective to best, in his opinion.

“To me, there’s no better way to get women and people with allergies to abandon your party and go inside, than with the smoke and smell of an open wood fire pit,” said Vince. “It’s messy and time-consuming. Free standing or propane fed systems are better and mobile, but then you run into the same problems as with propane grills. The propane tends to run out at the worst time, and instead of enjoying your company, you’re scrambling for another tank.”  Vince recommends talking with a professional to help you come up with a more permanent solution.

“The the past few years we’ve seen a significant increase in the number of people who once built spas shifting interest to fire pits,” said Vince. “So if you’re not using your spa any more, we can help remove this unwanted piece and rebuild the space for a protected area with a great fire pit.”

DeckTec works with a number of reputable fire pit/fireplace specialists to make sure your Outdoor Living experience leaves you feeling great even in the cold of winter.  One of those specialists is Colorado Comfort Products, headed up by Dave Hall.

“At Colorado Comfort Products,” said Dave, “we can work with you to get the size and shape of pit you want.”  This family owned business has been in operation since 1987 and has specialists on staff who can run the appropriate gas lines to make sure your fire pit is safe and reliable.  They have a showroom with all of their equipment for beautiful, secure, and reliable fireplace and fire pit experiences on display and ready to choose from.

“We started in the business of building fireplaces and added gas logs and gas barbeques.  When fire pits became popular, it was only natural for us to progress to this offering.”

And the best thing about all this planning is that you can have your own fire pit built at any time of the year. Vince said to allow a four to eight week time frame in your project to make sure you get exactly what you want. The experts at DeckTec will consult with you to design a great Outdoor Living area, draft up plans and coordinate with fire pit specialists to make sure the job goes well.

When asked about the claims of do-it-yourself home shows, both Vince and Dave recommended using caution.  As Vince said, “Sometimes those shows accidentally lead you to believe you can remodel your entire house in a half hour. And now that fire pits are so popular, you have a lot of companies entering this business, when you really need experts from planning to construction.”

Dave agreed.  “At least talk to a licensed contractor.  Making a phone call never hurts.” And with both DeckTec and Colorado Comfort Products, this consultation is complimentary.