How to Make a Barrel Fireplace

Decide on a location for the fireplace. Keep in mind you’ll need to run the exhaust pipe out of the back wall behind the fireplace and the pipe shouldn’t be anywhere near shrubbery or trees to prevent fire incidents. Once you have a location, mark a 5-by-5-foot square on the floor with the back wall as one side of the square. Measure the barrel’s height and mark an area on the back wall that’s at least 3 feet taller than the barrel allowing for proper smoke ventilation.

Cut a hole in the wall that’s about one-quarter inch larger in diameter than the pipe’s circumference. If you need to cut through brick, outfit your circular saw with a masonry blade. Dig out the marked-off area on the floor to about a 2-inch depth. Hammer small 12-inch stakes into the corners of the square area and screw three 5-foot boards around the perimeter enclosing the square. Mix quick-drying cement and fill the dug-out area until it’s level with the boards. Smooth the top with a float and run the float’s edge along the inside edge of the boards making removing the boards easier.

Allow a 24 hours drying time. Once dry, unscrew the boards and remove the posts. You’re left with a concrete platform the foundation upon which the fireplace rests. Set the barrel in the slab’s center and line it up with the hole in the wall. Outfit the saw with a metalworking blade and cut the opening for the fireplace in the barrel’s center. Size is a preference, but it should large enough to load wood into and be able to be cleaned.

Cut another hole in the top slightly larger than the piping’s circumference. Insert the pipe into the hole and seal it with fireclay. Insert the exhaust pipe going from outside to inside and adjoin the pipe at a 90-degree joint with a 90-degree elbow connector. Seal the joint with fireclay. Seal the small gap around the exhaust pipe and wall with heat-resistant wood putty.

Brick up the outside of the barrel with bricks, firebricks or cinderblocks. Mix more quick-drying cement and run as line of cement over the slab, lay some bricks or block, then lay the next course overtop the first, staggering the second course for more stability. Completely encase the sides of the barrel with brick but leave a sufficient opening around the opening in the barrel.