The type of seating area installed around your fire pit of your Whitehall, PA residence will play a huge role in the overall comfort and experience of your backyard. Aside from its design aspects, this feature should provide enough space to accommodate the number of people usually invited to your gatherings, with a little bit of room left over just in case. Enhance the visual effect and functionality of your fire pit with these seating wall ideas:
Concrete Wall Units
Matching the appearance of your seating wall with your fire pit in terms of color, texture, and style will create an aesthetically pleasing focal point that is harmonious with the rest of your design. Concrete blocks offer versatility in style and design, and can be used for creating excellent combinations of fire pits and built-in seating. Among the biggest perks of built-in seating is that it provides comfort and seating space without crowding the outdoor area with furniture. In addition, if constructed from high-quality materials, a built-in seating area is a permanent solution to seating space issues. Not all types of furniture or material are suitable for outdoor use. However, concrete blocks offer extreme durability. They are weather resistant, and won’t crack or fade.
Related: 5 Unilock Concrete Wallstones for a Stunning PA Backyard Fire Pit
Banding
Concrete wall units also provide the option of introducing accents and banding into your design. This entails adding strips of wall units of different colors or textures along the length of your permanent seating to create an interesting visual effect. High contrast, or details that match the surrounding hardscape, or the architecture of your home, can be added in this way.
Reliable coping is another must for permanent seating areas. Concrete coping options abound. Remember to choose one that will provide smooth edges and comfort. For additional comfort and a pop of color, soft pillows can be added.
Natural Stone and Natural Stone Veneer
Natural stone is an attractive option for many homeowners, and can be used to build seat walls rich with rustic character. Natural stone veneer can also be used to achieve this aesthetic at a lower cost. One of the biggest advantages of natural stone seating areas is the weathered appearance and the timeless elegance that they add to the fire pit area. Natural stone’s ability to outlast concrete, however, will depend on the type of stone and the style of the construction.
Related: Making a Fire Pit the Centerpiece of your Berks County Backyard
Dry-stack methods are typically not as stable as wet=laid stone, however the mortar used in wet-laid stone structures does tend to erode, and may need to be replaced over time. This definitely makes interlocking concrete units, which are designed to lock in place without the use of mortar, a more viable option in terms of durability of the structure itself.
Natural stone veneer, can prove to be a reliable alternative, given that the thin pieces of stone are used to cover the structure and do not affect its overall integrity. One option is to have your seating wall built using traditional methods, clad with natural stone veneer and then topped with natural stone or concrete coping for comfort.
Image courtesy of Unilock.
