Fire Pit vs Patio Heater
Backyard heat has three contenders and sellers quote none of them per hour. This calculator does: a wood bundle burned in a fire pit, a 20-lb propane tank drunk by a 40,000 Btu patio heater, and a 1500-watt electric infrared panel - enter your local prices and read the cost per hour of each, with every assumption written where you can argue with it.
Patio heater listings sell BTUs and fire pit blogs sell vibes; neither says what an evening costs. The answer flips the usual sales pitch: electric infrared is roughly twenty times cheaper per hour than wood - but it warms a person, not a party. Propane buys a 12-ft circle, wood buys the smell and the sparks. This page prices the heat and leaves the atmosphere to you.
How to use
- Enter wood bundle, propane refill and electricity prices.
- Read the per-hour cost of all three.
- Pick the heat that matches the evening you want.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a fire pit cost per hour to run?
A store bundle of wood (about 0.75 cubic feet) burns roughly 1.5 hours in a fire pit, so at $8 a bundle you are paying about $5 per hour - enter your local bundle price for your number.
How long does a 20-lb propane tank last on a patio heater?
About 10-11 hours: the tank holds roughly 430,000 Btu and a typical patio heater burns 40,000 Btu per hour. Divide your refill price by that to get the hourly cost.
Are electric patio heaters cheap to run?
Per hour, yes - a 1500-watt infrared panel costs about 15-35 cents depending on your rate, far under wood or propane. The catch is coverage: it heats the person in front of it, not the circle.
Which backyard heater should I buy?
Match the heater to the evening: cheap reading warmth is electric, a circle of guests is propane, and if you want crackle and smell, wood - now priced honestly per hour.