How to Build a Covered Brick BBQ

Excavate the area for the barbecue 9 inches below existing grade with your shovel. Flatten the area with your rake. Dig a 3-foot post hole in the center of each side (not the front and back) of your work area.

Place 6 inches of gravel into the bottom of both post holes. Stand a 4-by-4 in each post hole and add another 6 inches of gravel around each post to hold it in place. Hold your level against each side of both posts and maneuver each one in the hole until it is perfectly plumb.

Add 3 inches of gravel to the entire work area and compact it with a small vibrating roller (rented from an equipment supply house). Unroll your concrete cage across the bottom of the work area, over the gravel. Cut the cage with tin snips to fit the area. Lay several strips of cage into the bottom of the area to provide complete coverage.

Mix refractory mortar and gravel (10:1 ratio) in your wheelbarrow. Add enough water to obtain an oatmeal-like sludge. Stir the mixture with a hoe. Fill the post holes with the mixture. Fill the entire work area to form a base for your grill. Smooth the surface of the pad with a concrete float every hour for 6 hours. Cover it with plastic and let it cure for 72 hours. Uncover the pad and let it cure an additional 72 hours.

Mark the outline of the base of your grill with a carpenter's crayon. Mix refractory mortar in your wheelbarrow. Follow the manufacturer's instructions to get the proper ratio of mortar to water. Apply a bed of mortar on top of your outline with your trowel.

Press bricks into the mortar covering the entire outline. Lay your level on top of the bricks and tap the level with the handle of your trowel to align the layout. Scrape away excess mortar with the blade of your trowel. Take your time and line up the bricks to ensure a proper base for your grill.

Place a bed of refractory mortar on top your first layer of bricks. Push mortar into the holes of each brick and the gaps between the bricks. Lay a brick tie on top of the mortar every 24 inches. Press a second layer of bricks into the mortar, align the new layer with your level and scrape away the excess mortar. Stagger the breaks between the bricks on the second layer so that none line up with those on the first layer.

Continue stacking bricks using the same method. Fill every gap and hole with mortar. Stagger the breaks in the layers from one to the next. Add brick ties on top of each layer of bricks. Scrape away the excess mortar after placing each layer. Cut bricks as necessary by striking each with the blade of your trowel, so that the ends of your assembly are flush.

Smooth the vertical mortar joints between the bricks with your thumb joiner. Smooth the horizontal mortar joints between the layers with your thumb joiner. Let the mortar cure for 1 hour, repeat the joint smoothing (vertical first, then horizontal) and leave the assembly alone for 72 hours to let the mortar cure completely before continuing.

Cut the top of each post with a reciprocating saw. Make the angled cuts at a 20 degree angle with the taller side in the front and the lower side in the back. Attach a 2 inch by 4 inch board to the top of each upright post so that it runs horizontally at a 20 degree angle from the front to the back of your grill base. Attach each end of a piece of corrugated tin to one of the boards with 1-inch roofing nails (drill the holes in the tin first) to complete the cover.