I'd suggest that you find the cheapest one that you can, say one from Walmart or Target. Why ? Because chances are that you will use it once or twice and then it will sit quietly on the patio for the rest of its life until you turn it into a planter. Unless you like your hair and clothes smelling like a smoky campfire you'll not find the thing too alluring. You'll have to have your kids take a bath or shower after sitting around the campfire or their bedsheets and pillow will stink of smoke until you wash them. The firepits that seem to get the most continual use are those that are run by clean burning gas. You can find these at the large department stores. You simply replace the propane cannister just like a propane bbq. If you do choose a wood fired pit, check your local code compliances. In many locations ( especially california and other progressive anti- pollution states) you are restricted in using wood burning appliances/ pits.

Mostly I'd be concerned for fire safety. For the prevailing wind picking up sparks and embers and moving them into dry material/duff. I know that when Someone uses our incinerator that the scorch zone around it is at least three to five feet away when woody material is being disposed of. That's from the sides of the drum - not actual flames. The other aspect that may be of consideration is where to put all the rear ends of guests... Enough space for stools, benches, loungers, direct sitting on sun-warmed pebbles - without turning a prized cushion plant into an ottoman. You might want to look at the alternative of a chiminea (think that's right) which has the plus of being portable for winter storage. Perhaps instead of choice plants in the area - more hardy species among the grasses, ericas and callunas, or mat-forming species that have the plus of scent. Thyme is an option - for the evenings when the bees aren't around. Or species known for their ability to repel bugs. Being a wary soul - I'd make sure the access paths were wide and well-lit, too. Flames can be a bit night-dazzling.

Oh my gosh, Pal, how unbelievable that they would chew through that concrete! It makes me shudder just thinking about it. And those being rats, not mice. Thank goodness you knew what to do. Busy: Yellowjackets are scary, as they can be so aggressive. Oakley, I would have done the exact same thing! Mdln: that can is what we used. I bought it at Home Depot for $8.95, which is expensive. I was glad to get something engineered to work for rodents, though, so I wasn't' arguing the price that day (LOL). But, this stuff is injected into holes via a long, plastic tube. It hardens fairly quickly, which is good for the hole, but makes the tube unusable soon after. So, have a game plan before you start and fill everything quickly. Wet paper towels, a sturdy paper plate and a metal spatula to smooth out the foam worked best for us. I had to use Goof Off to get it off of the spatula, though. Tibbie: I'm kind of concerned, as I pick up our new furkid on Wednesday afternoon, which is just 2 days from now. I need to make sure nothing harmful such as mousetraps, etc. (we don't use poisons) are around for him to get into. P.S. I'll try to post pics of my new boy on Thursday.

I nearly laughed myself into convulsions once after watching a cat playing with one, then gag, but it kept going back LOL! I finally put it outside (the bug, not the cat). We get box elder bugs at work. Again, harmless, but they get EVERYWHERE and they stink too when you kill them. Like propane, if you ask me. We walk around thinking there is a some sort of exhaust or gas leak, and realize somebody has squished some. We are starting to see stink bugs here in the city, although thankfully one at a time. A couple of years ago a lot of garden produce in the county was ruined because their bites make things like tomatoes go bad. Stink bugs, squash bugs, Colorado potato beetles, and now Japanese beetles on my grapes...grrr. Oh, and pepper flies that ruined a lot of peppers this year. Dances.