You’ve seen it on one of your friend’s backyard and you instantly fell in love with it. It’s has certain relaxing aura and it does effectively heat up the entire area. You thought to yourself you got to have one as well.

The Chiminea outdoor fireplace is a free standing and front loading outdoor fireplace with a unique bulbous body. It usually has a vertical chimney or smoke vent. Originating in Mexico, the original chiminea outdoor fireplace was traditionally made out of clay. Some say that chiminea outdoor fireplaces were already used by Mexican tribesmen hundreds, if not thousands, of years ago. These tribesmen developed the chimineas so they can provide heat for their families and have a vessel for their cooking and baking as well. The original chiminea was effectively designed to keep the fire continuously burning in spite of rains.

Unfortunately, owners of Chiminea outdoor fireplaces encountered frequent problems that include flaking glaze, cracking, and crumbling of the clay which prompted several fireplace manufacturers to come up with an alternative.

Nowadays, chiminea outdoor fireplaces that are made from aluminum or cast iron are available for those who don’t like the original clay version. These wonderful chiminea alternatives can also be of traditional shape or it may come in several different designs that are equally fabulous.

Most chiminea outdoor fireplaces are about five feet tall and about two feet across. Other metal chiminea models often have spark arrestor and a grated door to seal fireplace opening shut. Most chiminea outdoor fireplace owners claim that the metal chimineas, albeit a bit pricey, are more beautiful and durable that their clay counterparts.

Here are some chiminea outdoor fireplace models that you might love to see standing in your own backyards:

1. For those who love the classic clay chiminea outdoor fireplace, Garden for Less features a traditional Jumbo one that has a Mexican design of an attractive beach scene in Cancun. The design is embossed and painted on the bowl and the flue of the clay chiminea outdoor fireplace. Its bright colors and glossy finish surely makes this model a standout. This particular chiminea comes with a lid, barbeque grill, lava stones and protective dust and rain cover.

2. The Garden Style chiminea outdoor fireplace from the Blue Rooster Company is made from durable and thick cast aluminium. With a unique triangle top design, this versatile medium sized chiminea is lightweight that you can even move it around with ease or bring it with you during outdoor The Garden Style model features a beautiful hummingbird that is hovering over a rose. Designed to be used as an outdoor fireplace, this chiminea can also be used as a grill and an oven.

Special care must be taken with the chiminea outdoor fireplaces for it to last you years of service. Clay chiminea models could crack and crumble if subjected to hasty change in temperature like an unexpected downpour of rain on the unit when a fire is starting. Cast iron and other metal chimineas tend to rust quickly if not given the proper protection.