Unless you live in a mild climate, you will need to winterize your gas fire pit or fire table to get them ready for winter. Failing to prepare could cause severe damage to your fire feature, or at the very least, it could take a few years off its life.
Disconnect the Gas Supply
The first thing to do to winterize gas fire pits is to disconnect the gas supply lines. If your fuel source is natural gas, turn off the gas supply that feeds your fire pit or fire table.
On the other hand, if your fire feature is fueled by a propane tank, turn the gas off at the tank (if you haven’t already) and then unscrew the propane tank from the gas fire pit hose. If you have another outdoor area to store the tank that is more sheltered – but is not inside a garage or the house – you might consider moving the tank there.
Remove Batteries from the System
Fire pit owners typically use batteries with spark igniters. If you have any batteries in use as part of your fire pit system, remove them. This will prevent the batteries from freezing and leaking over the winter.
Also, if you have a Celestial Remote Control fire pit, you’ll want to remove the two D-sized batteries from the control box.
Cover Your Fire Pit
Debris, snow, and ice are the enemy so cover your fire pit. Even if you don’t get a lot of snow, if you aren’t actively using your fire pit for months at a time, putting a cover over it ensures that it will be protected from the weather and the harsh rays of the winter sun.
At a minimum, cover the top of the fire pit burner pan with a hard cover such as a stainless-steel cover or something similar, which will keep moisture from entering the burner pan. If this is going to be the only protection, you may want to consider wiping down the stainless-steel components with a product such as WD-40 Specialist Corrosion Inhibitor to ward off rust.
A stainless-steel cover provides a quick and attractive way to protect your burner pan during the fire pit season, but a waterproof vinyl cover that encloses the entire fire pit is ideal for overwintering.
The vinyl cover protects the whole structure. Not only will a cover of this type keep the moisture out of your burner pan and off the top of your stainless-steel cover, but it will also protect the surfaces on the outside of the fire pit structure.
Ready for the Season
Properly preparing for the winter will pay off in the spring. If you’ve been successful at keeping the debris and snow from your fire pit, it will be an easy process to get things going again.
So, you’ll be protecting your investment from winter’s worst, and preparing yourself for a quick launch as soon as the weather warms up. It’s a win-win!
