I Perfected The DIY Smokeless Fire Pit That Works 

To start comparing quotes and simplify insurance-buying, check out Policygenius: www.policygenius.com/haxman . Thanks to Policygenius for sponsoring this video!

I like that a life insurance company saw one of your videos and said "This, this is the perfect place to find people who should have life insurance."

Ever since a friend forwarded me your Smokeless Fir Pit a year ago, it has been a dream to make it. I am not very hand it and it felt like a huge task. You made the directions so easy. I finished it a week ago. It took me 4 hours to do. Last night we built a huge fire. It was perfect. It is the first outdoor fire I have made where I did not smell like a campfire. I am blown away. Thank you so much Haxman!

In the event you were ever curious how an aerospace engineer would approach this, here's my input. Naturally step 1 would be to review all available material, thus I watched your previous two videos. 😁 Step 2, address where the smoke comes from. This being a process where fire is involved and relatively simple, it's incomplete combustion of the chosen fuel (wood, waste products, yard refuse, etc.). To knock it up a notch, you can go hog wild with calculations based on the dimensions of your 'combustor' (inner/outer diameter, height and material tolerances) to figure out not only optimal burn temperature, but also to know precisely how much air your fire could optimally consume to provide the most complete consumption of fuel and air mix. Since that's rather tedious, let's just optimize for three feet and essentially unlimited volume at standard atmospheric pressure (14.7psi at sea level). Leaving an air gap between your exterior material and inner combustion ring, (two inches for this diameter should be plenty) your primary holes (largest at 3-4" above ground level) could be up to a convenient hole size drill, let's say 2", spaced equally apart around the base diameter. Moving up to midpoint on your inner combustor (called secondary air here) reduce hole size by 1/2" and increase space between the holes by the same measurement. If you are so inclined to torture yourself, you can run a third ring near the top, two inches from the rim, and reduce your hole size by half of your secondary selection, spaced in equal measurement to this tertiary dimension drill size and run two rows in full circumference, slightly offset of one another. You can also save a fair amount of work as well as tool fatigue and just cut vertical slats with an angle grinder in length equal to what the final dimensions would be of the two combined rows top to bottom. End result, a completely passive method of air control to burn an extremely hot inner ring of fire and death to any would-be fuel leaving no remaining source of smoke. Small caveat, the further away you are from sea level geographically, available atmospheric oxygen naturally reduces at higher elevation, i.e., your holes need to be larger. 😉 On coatings for the metal ring, the ceramic-containing spray paints found in hardware and automotive stores work fine so long as your follow the application directions stringently. Longish story shortish, there's normally several application steps with heat cycles in between at given durations and min/max temperature variations that allow the coating to cure correctly. If you're in a hurray for a dinner party, one of the best natural coatings from nature is simply a carbon barrier, which can be achieved by slathering on a combustible, sticky fuel (for instance a mix of lamp oil/kerosene and lard). Set it ablaze and let the charred outer crust burn all the way to the metal. If you have the time, scrape off the first coat's flaky bits and repeat. If your primary fuel for your firepit is going to be wood, this will happen over time anyway, but this 'primer' is a great way to jumpstart the process.

When you clean up those metal drill shavings you should use a big magnet (Neodymium) with some plastic wrapped around it. Just pick up all the shavings and pull off the plastic over your waste basket. I have granddaughters that don't seem to know what shoes are for and this really helps to get rid of the shavings. Great video.

Stumbled upon your content tonight and I couldn’t be happier. Very informative, detailed, and easy to watch/follow along… keep up the great content 👍🏻

I actually recently built a fire pit. I used bricks and put a gap in between each one of the base layer. I may eventually add an inner ring, but so far it's working great! awesome video as usual!

This video series has been some serious firepit goals. Definitely going to be my framework when I go to replace mine down the line.

It's kinda nice to see somebody else fail at measuring and having a project get blown up. Everytime it happens it's so discouraging--especially when it's like a 2 hour trip both ways. Cool to see the finished product after all that! Thanks for posting the whole thing and not editing that out!

Your sister and brother n law had firepit envy. Now steps in the good brother. I've seen far to many estranged siblings and family, im rather glad to see such a good example. Driving 2 hours one way 3 times for a fire pit for the simple pleasure of doing something for a sibling is special.

I was glad to see that you used the top caps that you made. It just cleans up that whole look. Great Job.

I'm using you're fire pit video series as the model for perfecting mine. Thank you for sharing!

I used these videos to make my smokeless firepit and it turned out perfect. 😊

Thank you! I followed your plan with some mods. Works well. I used lava rock on the bottom, that allows a little air to come from the bottom of the ring. The fires light a lot faster that way. I also cut trapezoids out of rectangular 10" flat piece pavers, that fit like a key on the top. Peace, my brother

My wife and I just built our own Smokeless fire pit because we were inspired by videos just like yours. We also used a 36 inch steel insert but we went with a square design. You are definitely right when you say you have to make a fire that "fills" the entire pit to get the proper heating for the secondary burn. Great design! Great aesthetic! We love ours. Thanks for the inspiration 😁

I think I just found my favorite channel on RU-vid. Love the mix of knowledge and comedy! Trying to build a homestead soon and I’m sure I’ll be blasting through your videos

Great work love the channel very good vibes and very easy to follow along,and the content is great just started watching your old videos very entertaining 💯💯🤙 your doing a great job with the channel hope more ppl find this gem.

Wow... a fine update to your previous foray into the 'smokeless fire-pit' topic😎🚭Thankyou for posting, educating _and_ entertaining us, sir... hats off to you😁

I Love this guy!!! He is so entertaining & most important, Educational!!! The Belly Button Lint Cracked Me Up!!!!

you can wrap that magnetic broom with a paper towel or rag or something and not have to deal with picking off all the little bits of steel shavings from the drilling.

Did mine like this after I watched your first smokeless pit video a couple years ago with that black ring and later made a wood lid (my wife was inspired by a Pinterest post)to cover it for from the weather. Very happy with it. Thanks for the know how and inspiration! Get that fire burning👍🏻 🔥

I place a patio stone in my fireplace, that way It gives me a 2 inch elevation if it recently rained and when cleaning out the pit, I am not scooping up a bunch of small stones. Keep making great videos.

Great series of videos. Also I wanted to pass on an idea my neighbor had for great homemade fire starters. Start will an cardboard egg carton then fill it with melted paraffin. Cut into individual sections and what you have is basically a candle. When pouring the paraffin put the top of the egg carton underneath as it will leak.I use these and they work great. Try this and if you like the way they work maby make a video to share the idea with your viewers.Thanks for the videos and have a great day.

A bit of oil will help that bit stay sharp when drilling that steel. And a strong magnet wrapped in some cling wrap will make shavings cleanup a breeze. Just wrap it and stick it close to each hole, and it will collect most of them. Then when you remove the plastic and shake it off into the trash, the absence of the magnet will let them easily fall off.

LOVING those PLUMERIA’s!!

"The hew-mid-dit-tee is most high!" I enjoyed watching how you made both of the smokeless fire pits and I mean to tell ya HAXMAN, you make it look easy and eminently doable with dramatic savings compared with simply buying ready-made. Which of course is fine but, the home build idea is something I have always liked. It's economical and satisfies the Tim Allen do it yourself person! For me personally I like the look of the concrete caps that you made. From my vantage point, it looks less busy than if you use the larger concrete pavers on top. Great job and as always you did make me laugh! Watching more of your videos as time permits. Thanks HAXMAN!

Cool to revisit and improve a project. We all learn by trial and error.

Very cool! I'm going to have to go back and watch the earlier video now! And I don't know if someone else has mentioned it but it never hurts to have some fatwood around to help start a fire! That's what a country boy would have! Take care, be safe and God bless!

One year update…..THIS THING KICKS ASS! Lol. Definitely a great DIY project and backyard addition. One thing to keep in mind, the larger you make this, the more wood you’ll need. I went with a 36inch ring. Great size. But for the “smokeless” feature to work you MUST get the ring hot. This takes time. And wood. But once it’s going, man it’s magic!

I completed this project using the galvanized ring (not the Home Depot phalanged ring), large pavers and custom, homemade concrete caps and I couldn’t be more pleased with the result. The pit only smokes at the beginning and end of the fire. It burns very hot when going strong and the concrete caps stay cool to the touch. Not only do the caps help keep the pit smokeless but also gives the pit a professionally finished look. Making the caps was definitely the part of the project that I felt least confident about, especially since I had never worked with concrete before. Making the molds was the hardest part of the project but I followed the demo and it turned out great. Thanks Haxman!!!!

Mortared up the stones from my Haxman inspired fire pit yesterday after adding a fresh air intake from outside to center of pit. Using the larger capstones to top it off. Haven't drilled holes yet but only have a small gap to allow the heated air to secondary combust the smoke. Gonna try a test fire Sunday night (90° here in Philly) to see how she works. Great job on the videos and love the humor.

Great job 👍🏻, belly button lint omgggg 🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂, good one Adam. Have a great weekend 🙋🏼‍♂️

Thank you for this excellent video. I learned a great deal. Carry On Sir!

Glad I could see this method. I think Ill order one for my place.

Love the top! I’m definitely going to build one!

Now let's see you do a fireless smoke pit.

Watching these videos gives me motivation to take on my own projects. Love it!

i know im a few weeks late but one of my homemade fire starters would work even better to get a fire going. Just need to light one of the tab end and all you need is one. Plus they burn hot and for about 20 mins. But burning in over 100 degrees out is not recommend but thanks for taking one for the team. You get a cookie. Also i do enjoy watching your videos too.

The base for the pit should be at least 6 inches of compacted modified crushed stone aka 2A, it should be 3-4 inches wider than the diameter if the pit. Set the block on a 1 inch layer of stone dust, screenings, don't use sand. Gap the stones on the bottom course then glue the remaining courses with masonry adhesive. And no, the adhesive won't burn or lose adhesion from the heat, that would take a blowtorch. Trust me, I've built and repaired enough patio/retaining walls and block steps to know what I'm talking about. Putting the block directly on the ground or on sand will only lead to sinking or heaving in the long run.

I have seen a few of these videos, but what I didn’t know is this was the video I was looking for. Thank you. Sincerely, New subscriber

I bought that same 36” four piece ring and had to return it to buy that same 32” ring you mentioned :) it works great. And I wouldn’t have the awesome fire pit I now have if it hadn’t been for your videos showing me how to build it. Thanks for posting!

Absolute decked with laughter at that belly button fluff part! Bravo! 🤣🤣

I picked up a Milwaukee step bit a couple months ago...best step bit ive ever used.

This is how I made mine a month ago, after watching another youtuber do it like this. Works great 👍

Nice work!. Thanks for the good content!

I found you bc of the smokeless fire pit video! I’ve watched almost every video on your channel now! Thanks for the great content brotha!

That’s a awesome fire pit. great job. Only thing I would have added was high temperature paint where you made the hole to prevent rust. Love all your videos.

I laughed so hard at the dog scoop ! Thanks for all the tips we will be building your design It is AH Mazing

I enjoyed watching your youtube event on the smokeless firepit (including squelching the haters who didn't believe it worked). Keep your show going. I can see the honesty (and normal people awkwardness). Much better than the paid shills.

Dude this is like the 3rd video of yours and I’ve laughed out loud at your dad jokes. Great content, great jokes.

Great update!

Can't wait to build my firepit based on this video.

2 questions- but first, great video series! thank you. I've learned a lot and am going to try this on my fire pit. Q1. how far down should the holes be? if you stated so, I missed it, and I don't recall you making adjustments to that. Q2. what size gap between the ring and stones? I imagine that matters a lot. thanks again!

Also, you were great in “Stepbrothers”

I made your original design and love it. I sprayed the inside with high heat black paint and it looks really good. I have noticed that the wood you use does make a difference. If I burn some Pine or Fir logs it goes great, but I have some old Birch that smokes a lot. I normally just hit it with my Dewalt cordless leaf blower to give it a head start. 👍

Well finally got really use my haxman smokeless firepit. (from the original video)And Boy Howdy does it work. Got it fired up and built a BIG fire (wood sticking above the top) once it got to temp was AAAWESOME ! My daughter was disappointed...dad there is no campfire smell on my clothes. Thanks and keep the videos coming

Another great video! Keep it up! 🔥👍🏼

Awesome job. Very handsome fella

Fantastic Info. and your humor kept me ROFL. Great job and I am in hopes of making one..any suggestions on making one say in the middle of a wood deck (safe). ???? Love your videos!!!!

I see you took my advice. Mine worked out great. I did the same thing with more smaller holes.

Oh my goodness, the belly button lint, too funny. Thanks for your tips and silly humor.😅

Building a campfire on a hot day - that's dedication.

Nice job !

I have to tell you you did a very very very nice job on This video I built a fire pit for the last 20 years and I’m going to use the final picture of the fire pit as a sales item on a brochure I would also suggest you can put a handheld blower feeding it with a 1 inch or one and a half inch pipe just a really fired up in the woods wet to blow on it and get it fired up again great great great job

You the MAN!!

You do a good job on all the work you do you can't worry about other's that juge you they are just hater's keep up the good work.

That was a tier one video.

Fantastic!

Adding about 6 larger holes towards the bottom of the ring will also help (you may already be getting a similar benefit due to the ring not reaching all the way to the ground and loosely filling in that space with the white rocks).

Awesome video! Now I know how to fix my brick fire pit to get rid of the smoke.

I prefer the capstones that make such a nice finish.

Saw the first version a few weeks ago! Totally stoked to see you making it even better. I'm definitely building one of these next year!

I had this idea based on the stainless Uber expensive pits - then I saw your previous videos - With that encouragement I got a kit from Menards for the bricks and that exact same ring - even drilled the same size holes with the same spacing! I used high temp grill paint and coated the entire ring so the holes wouldn’t rust. WORKS GREAT! I don’t need the concrete caps, but want some because yours add that final touch of sophistication. Thanks for all of these videos!

Now that you've had the pit for a while, have you noticed any performance differences between your sister's and yours? Your concrete caps are awesome and create a lip on the ID that might help to roll the smoke back into the fire. If you had to do yours over again, would you go to the trouble of making the caps?

Lets hit that like button before the video even starts.. I need to start on my own firepit, and your "series" is giving my some ideas.

love your videos! Greetings from Germany

Great video.

Beautiful pit...I want this, I would also add a fresh air vent(tunnel) under the pit.

@Haxman Inspired by your video I got carried away and built an entire patio with bbq area and fire pit. I'm finding that watching your videos can turn out to be quite an expensive hobby 😀 1 question I have - How are your concrete toppers holding up? I was a bit concerned that with the amount of moisture concrete can hold on to that they might crack,, split or pop. Thinking of using refractory cement but I'm quickly running out of funds on this project and that stuff is expensive. Let us know how your concrete toppers are holding up! Thanks!

loved it.

Great video and I am currently working on one myself. The ring I bought looks similar to the 4 piece you used. But I am having a tough time drilling the holes with a Milwaukee step up bit. It simply stopped "stepping" my dimensions are 45 x 39 x 10. Which stone did you use? How thick are they as I would like to get them up to the lip. Thanks!

Thanks for the video. Some great ideas. Two questions: 1) do you have a list of all tools/materials you used? And 2) do you think it’s a good idea to dig 1/2 in or so into the ground for the first layer of blocks (knowing that will cover a tiny bit of your ventilation gaps)?

Great video! I'll be attempting this next week. About how many pavers did you use for the 36" ring?

Shake and bake! 😁

I'm thinkin' the insides- bricks would get black , waste of paint & time to paint but I havn't viewed whole vid yet . Love the humor

greenlee step bits are also fantastic...i use one on stainless every day! if you brushed that bit with tap magic, it rips right through.

WOW Sudden endin Great Video!

Thank you! Now I have a brand new fire pit!

Life goals.....

Pro-tip, you can also use wood stain with brick to get a better color. I used it to beautify an ugly yellow-bricked fireplace. Works great.

The reason the flames do not come out of the holes like the smokeless rocket stoves is because the smokeless rocket stove works as a wood smoke gasifier. There is usually small holes at the bottom of the fire chamber. As a draft develops in the side ring it causes a down draft in the fire chamber that draws the smoke down and into the gap in the outer air chamber. The smoke is heated there and ignites as it exits the top holes. An enclosure this wide and not as relatively tall as a rocket stove makes it extremely difficult to get that down draft to start. It would take a fire that is as large as the pit itself and the outer brick wall would have to be completely air tight except for the vent holes around the bottom.

Keep it going

This guy reminds me of Cal Naughtiness Jr. if you ain’t first, you’re last!!!

Looks pretty good. Those metal shaving off the step bit are REAL fun when they fall down inside my shoes, because my pants leg got hung behind the shoe tongue... Makes for a cool chicken/polka dance around the garage trying to get my shoe/boot off...

Amazing

Bellybutton 🤣 lint had me rolling 🤣 another great video☀️😁👍

Nice! I think I am going to try building one at the Cabin. Thanks for the tip about the gaps at the top. I better start collecting that belly-button lint -:)) Way too funny...Thanks Haxman!

Honestly this kind of reminds me teenage years and hub cap fire rings!

Just watched 3 of your videos in a row. All bangers! Thank you, now my wee wee is moving.

Thanks!