We let the fires burn down to ash so we could determine how easy clean-up was after the blaze. Keep in mind, not all smokeless fire pits are safe to use on decks or other combustible surfaces, so consider buying a heat shield or fire pit mat. We ultimately settled on a testing pool of six models that were recommended by experts and well reviewed, and that included the features testers told us they wanted. Personally, I’m a science writer with more than a decade of experience interviewing experts in countless fields, including parenting, environmental science, and child development.
Several Wirecutter staffers have owned the Coleman chair for years, using it on camping trips, in backyards, and at sporting events. For the most part, it’s held up well, but one common quibble is that the seat bottom begins to sag after several years of use. If you’re looking for highly specialized or ultra-lightweight chairs for backpacking, our recommendations are probably not for you. We also don’t have suggestions for couch-style or loveseat chairs (we’d like to look at those someday, though).
I also took them to the beach, rolling them down the beach path and testing them on the sand. Additionally, I tested each wagon (filled with soccer equipment) on grass and bumpy, broken concrete surfaces, paying attention to how the suspension and wheels performed under different conditions. In spring 2021, I tested four additional beach-friendly wagons during several trips from my home in Santa Monica to the beach (10 blocks away) and back. I hauled both of my sons along with beach gear like boogie boards, coolers, chairs, and endless amounts of sand toys. Moon Lence released a new generation of its Portable Camping Chair; this new version has a redesigned base and more mesh ventilation than its predecessor.
She has personally tested a dozen tents and an equal number of hair dryers. In testing, the Y-series lit up fairly quickly using dry firewood and kindling, reaching smokeless operation between five and ten minutes. It fits logs of up to 16 inches but can also burn wood pellets and charcoal.
The Helinox Chair One is the best chair for anyone who needs a lightweight, portable chair. We ended up selecting smaller chunks of wood to fit in the bottom, adding longer pieces as we stacked wood in. If you’re getting firewood in uniform lengths, you might want to chop a few pieces to fit in the bottom of the pit. It seemed to radiate a lot of heat out at an angle thanks to the bowl shape and created a warm zone in the shape of an inverted, squat cone, even when the flames weren’t reaching out of the fire pit.
This wasn’t too problematic when the wagon was carrying an average load (beach chairs, towels, drinks, and snacks). But with a kid or two added to the mix, this wagon’s wheels started to drag deeper. We think the Mac Sports wagon is fine for occasional beach use, especially if your gear is more bulky than heavy and you don’t have ozark trail canopy to travel too far to your spot. But if you’re looking for a folding wagon to primarily use at the beach, we recommend paying more for the Mac Sports Heavy Duty Collapsible Folding All Terrain Utility Cart. Most of our testers found the REI Co-op Skyward Chair to be one of the least comfortable chairs in our testing pool.
Once we had the fire going, there was nothing but an occasional wisp of smoke. Breeo’s Y-Series are made by hand in Lancaster Pennsylvania, from thicker, more durable materials than other options from Breeo, and come with a lifetime warranty. We found the firebox to be a little shallow at eight inches, but we were able to get two layers of logs loaded in. This meant re-loading a little more frequently, but that had no bearing on its smoke-free performance. We tested the X Series 24, but it’s also available in both a larger and a smaller size to suit your needs or space. We also found that, even when fully open, the wagon bed doesn’t lie flat.
Tiki’s patio fire pit features a slightly tapered, cylindrical design that sets it apart from others while still allowing it to blend in with almost any décor. One of the first things we noted when unpacking was the openings around the rim that act as hand-holds for lifting and moving the fire pit—something few models account for. The REI Co-op chair’s polyester seat material feels both more forgiving and more durable than the thinner material on many other kids’ chairs.