Buying cheap firepits

Does that fire pit look too good to be true? It's a question that you may have found that you're asking yourself, especially if you've been browsing online.

So what's the answer? Although it's tricky to give a definitive response, there are some indicators that may help to guide you. Let's take a look at some key factors that you might want to look out for.

Where have you seen it?

This should probably be the first thing that you ask yourself. If you're looking in a well-known shop, or you're visiting the website of an established brand, then this might give you more confidence.

There may be particular stores that you tend to trust - the likes of John Lewis and Marks & Spencer, for example, currently seem to score highly when UK consumers are asked about trustworthy brands.

So you can often make a judgement depending upon the quality of the retailer. At the opposite end of the spectrum, there are some stores that are maybe known for offering lower quality products, but at cheaper prices. I won't name them here, but I'm sure that you could have a pretty good guess at the type of shops that we're talking about!

Then there's the question of shops and retailers who may be completely new to you. If you don't have any previous experience of dealing with them (as in the case of an Ebay seller, for instance) then this can make things more difficult. You'll need to take a closer look at the product.

Is it a new fire pit?

Maybe an obvious question, but one that you may not have asked yourself yet. If it looks really cheap then there's a chance that you're looking at a second-hand fire pit. You would hope that this would be clearly stated by the seller.

Your initial view may be that this does not matter too much, but you do need to think about the implications.

An older pit is likely to have spent some time exposed to the elements. What sort of state is it in? Are there any signs of rust?

Who's it made by?

This is a question that it's always worth asking. There are a number of leading manufacturers. If something is made by one of these companies then you can be pretty sure that it's of a high quality.

Leading brands in the UK include:

• Designer Holdings
• Essentials
• Gardeco
• La Hacienda
• Landmann
• Lifestyle
• Plum

One of the advantages of looking at brand name products is that you'll be able to compare prices quickly and easily online too.

How's it made?

But a custom-made fire pit can also be of a good quality. Just because it's not been manufactured by a leading brand, that doesn't mean that it couldn't last you for years to come.

Take a look at the materials used in production. If it's been well-made then there's no reason why it shouldn't make a great purchase.

There's also a final question that you may want to ponder...

Does it matter?

If you're buying a cheap fire pit then you may not be expecting it to last for many years. In fact, the main reason for looking at something that's cheap could be to get something that you are perfectly happy to throw away within a couple of years.

If this is the case, then choosing the cheapest may actually be the best option for you. The question of quality could be for another day.