Are Bioethanol Fire Pits Safe?

Are Bioethanol Fire Pits Safe?

The growing popularity of bioethanol fire pits has probably piqued your interest, but there’s a niggling little question in the back of your head that you really want to answer – are bioethanol fire pits safe?

That is exactly what we are going to explore in this article.  Spoiler, the answer is yes!

Let’s dig into exactly why the answer is yes, and what additional considerations you should keep in mind.

What is Bioethanol?

First, let’s get to grips with what bioethanol actually is.

Bioethanol is a natural by-product from the agricultural industry that occurs when vegetables are fermented.  This fermentation converts the sugars into alcohol.  To create bioethanol fuel from this you then need to distil it and dry it.  

What you end up with is Bioethanol, a sustainable, clean burning fuel that is both better for the environment and safe to use.

How safe?  Let’s dive deeper…

How safe is it?

While the reality of working with fire comes with its own safety precautions that should always be considered, for the purposes of this we are going to assume that you know and follow the usual safety precautions for working with fire and instead look at the specific safety benefits of bioethanol.

The Fire

As we’ve mentioned above, bioethanol is a clean burning fuel.  What does this mean?

It means that when you burn bioethanol you don’t get any harmful toxins or carcinogens released into the air.  You get no bad smell and pretty much no smoke either.  All you get when you burn bioethanol is heat, water, and carbon dioxide (and it’s only trace amounts of that!)

This means that bioethanol is a very safe fuel to burn from a health point of view and makes bioethanol fire pits some of the safest fires to be around.

It can turn off instantly

The other benefit of bioethanol fire pits is that you can turn them off and on instantly.  This might sound obvious, but the reality is in the event of a fire getting out of hand if you can turn off the fuel source instantly this makes a big difference in how bad things can get.

Cools Quickly

Bioethanol fires give off a good amount of heat, which is what you want in most instances.  The great thing about bioethanol fire pits, however, is that the building materials used to make them generally don’t retain heat, which means when you turn off your fire the fire pit itself won’t stay hot for very long making it much safer to be around.

Outdoor or Indoor Uses

The next question that often springs to mind is whether bioethanol fire pits are safe to use indoors as well as outdoors.

We cover this in a lot more detail in our article on indoor bioethanol fire pits, but simply put because it burns so cleanly it is the ideal fire pit to have indoors.

We are big fans of our sister company, ecofire.co.uk, indoor bioethanol fire pits, and we highly recommend you check them out.

What Standards does Bioethanol Adhere to?

We are incredibly lucky to live in a country that follows very strict standards when it comes to fuels for fires and for fire pits themselves, and we at firepit.co.uk will always make sure that the products we offer adhere to the strictest standards.

There are both UK and European standards that flammable fuels have to adhere to including the BSI (British Standards Institution) and the EN 16647 (European Standard fireplaces for liquid fuels).

There’s also the UL1370 which is the Standard for Unvented Alcohol Fuel Burning Decorative Appliances.

You should look out for all of these standards when looking for your bioethanol fire pit.

What to Consider for Safety?

With all of that in mind, however, there are still a couple of things you should consider to ensure your bioethanol fire pit experience is as safe as it can be.

Choosing the right Fire Pit

As with anything, choosing the right fire pit will make a big difference in how safe it is.

We pride ourselves on only offering the highest quality products in our shop, and to that end, we highly recommend the EcoSmart bioethanol fire pits.

Their burners have a five-point safety system that ensures that no part of the burner touches the outside edge of the fire pit at any point which keeps the heat generated to the burner itself.

Their burners are also suction moulded unlike any other burners on the market, and so they don’t have any welds.  This means that there are no weak points on the burner and removes the risk of any fuel leaking out.

Ecosmart fire pits are also the only bioethanol firebrand that is compliant with the BSI standards and with EN 16647, UL1370, and are ACCC accredited.  They are the safest and most tested bioethanol fire pit on the market.

Replacing the fuel correctly

One thing you must be careful of with bioethanol is coming into contact with it, especially your eyes.  The most likely time this could happen is when refilling the fuel in your fire pit.  Making sure you take your time is very important.

You also don’t want to overfill your fire pit for the risk of it overflowing.  Always remember, bioethanol is still a flammable substance that needs to be treated with care.

Also, never refill your fire pit when the fire is turned on, and never pour your bioethanol fuel over an open flame.

Storage

Again, bioethanol is a highly flammable substance and should be stored in the same way you would any other.  In a fireproof, airtight, container kept ideally outside in a locked garage or shed.

You shouldn’t keep it in your house (your insurers will have a field day!).

Final Thoughts

So, are bioethanol fire pits safe?  They are arguably the safest fire pits on the market.

You can use them indoors and out, you don’t have to worry about breathing in any nasty chemicals when the fire is burning, and they have to comply with some very strict standards.

When it comes to safety, bioethanol fire pits are our go-to, and Ecosmart fire pits in particular are the safest on the market.