Fire Pit Tables

A Fire Pit Table Is a Table That Happens to Burn

That is the whole argument for the format. A fire bowl is an object you gather around; a fire table earns its space during the day as a surface and becomes the fire when the temperature drops. The burner sits in a recessed opening with a ledge of solid surface around it, so drinks and plates stay on the table while the flame is lit.

Where the Fuel Goes, and Why It Varies

This is the question to settle first, because the answer is different on almost every model. Propane tables need somewhere for a cylinder roughly two feet tall. Many designs here conceal it inside the base behind an access door, so nothing shows and you open a door to swap it. Plenty of others have no cavity for it at all, so the tank stands alongside on a hose and a cover to hide it is sold separately. Natural gas models need no tank, with the line coming up through the base, which means nothing to refill and nothing to hide, at the cost of having a line run professionally. Ethanol tables take fuel poured straight into the burner, with no line and no cylinder at all. Check the individual product page for how a given table handles its fuel.

Shape Decides the Seating, Not the Look

Rectangular tables are the most common here and suit a sofa with chairs facing it, because the flame runs the length of the conversation rather than sitting at one point. Square tables put four sides on equal footing, which works for four chairs around a compact patio. Round tables have no head of the table at all, so nobody is left out of the circle, and they fit awkward corners better than a rectangle does.

Height Should Match the Furniture You Own

Coffee height sits with deep lounge seating and keeps the flame low in the middle of the group. Dining height works with standard patio chairs and lets people eat at the table. Bar height suits stools and standing groups and brings the flame nearer to seated eye level. Several designs offer the same table in more than one height, so check the options rather than assuming a model comes only one way.

Cast Concrete, Stone and Wood

Most of this collection is glass fiber reinforced concrete. The glass fiber lets the wall be cast thinner and lighter than poured concrete while staying non-combustible, which is what makes a large table something two people can reposition. The color runs through the material rather than sitting on top, so a chip does not reveal a different shade underneath. Natural stone and wood-clad designs read warmer and heavier, and they generally stay where you first place them.

Sizing It to the Space

A fire table has to leave walking room on every side once chairs are pulled out, which is what catches people out on a small deck or balcony. Smaller tables suit a balcony, a narrow side yard or a seating group of two or three. Larger tables anchor a full outdoor living room and give more usable ledge for plates and glasses, but only where the patio can take the table plus a clear path around the seated ring.

What to Confirm Before Ordering

• How the model handles its fuel. Whether the cylinder hides in the base, stands alongside, or is not needed at all is a per-model answer, and it changes where the table can sit.
• Media is required on a gas burner, not optional. It needs fire glass or lava rock over it to spread the flame and shield the burner. Some models include it, many do not.
• Overhead clearance rules out most covered patios. Manufacturers call for several feet of clear space above the flame. Read the clearance diagram in the manual rather than judging by eye.
• A wood deck needs a non-combustible barrier underneath, to the specification in that model's manual.
• Ask whether a burner cover is offered. It turns the table back into a plain surface when the fire is off, and not every model has one. Covers and accessories are worth pricing at the same time.
• Indoors is a different product. Never run a gas fire table inside; see indoor fire pit tables for models built for it.