How to Build a Brick Barbecue

If you enjoy cooking outdoors and having outdoor parties to entertain guests, a great feature to have is a brick barbecue. These can be built to any size you wish and customized to have a specific look as well as functionality. Instead of hiring and paying a professional carpenter or specialized outdoor builder, you can build a beautiful and functional brick barbecue yourself over the course of a weekend.

Things You'll Need

• Shovel
• Wood stakes
• String
• String level
• Wheelbarrow
• Cement
• Sand
• Hose
• Mortar hoe
• Trowel
• Bricks
• Fuel tray
• Cooking grate

Instructions

1. Excavate a "U"-shape, rectangle or square shape in the ground using a shovel. Make the trench about 4 inches deep and 4 inches wide.

2. Insert wood stakes the ground along the sides of the trench. Connect the wood stake with string.

3. Hang a line level on the string to ensure it is level. If not level, adjust the strings and stakes as necessary to make the string level all the way around.

4. Roll a wheelbarrow near the excavated trench. Combine 1 part cement with 4 parts sand and wet with a hose. Mix thoroughly with a mortar hoe until it reaches a pancake batter-type consistency.

5. Scoop some mortar out of the wheelbarrow with a trowel and place in one corner of the trench. Sit the first brick into the mortar, making it even with the level string.

6. Put more mortar in the trench and lay the second brick. Use the trowel to put mortar between the two bricks. Ensure the second brick is also level.

7. Continue around the trench, laying bricks in mortar, making sure they are all level. Let the first row set for 24 hours, then mix more mortar and lay the next few rows, staggering the bricks on each row to make the barbecue stronger.

8. Build the brick layers up to about 3 feet, then leave a gap in the row to insert the fuel tray. Build up another few rows to about 4 feet off the ground, then leave another gap for the cooking grate.

9. Lay at least one more staggered layer of mortar and brick to finish. Allow the brick barbecue to set for a 48 hour period before putting charcoal on the fuel tray and cooking food.

References

• "The Black & Decker Complete Outdoor Builder"; Nancy Baldrica; 2006
• "Brick Projects for the Landscape: 16 Easy-to-Build Designs"; Alan Bridgewater, Gill Bridgewater; 2004