I don't know if they will explode of not but if a few sites are saying that, I would not take a chance. I bought some cheap lava rocks from a large department store one time and those rocks started exploding out of the fire pit. It was a scary site because they were flying out of there fast and hot.

I think they would be fine (as would cheap lava rock) in a gas fire pit. These do not build up to the same temperatures as a wood fire. For a wood fire they might. We usually use either fractured basalt or decomposed granite for the bottom of wood burning fire pits.

Ross it was a gas fire pit that this happened on. I would just make sure that these rocks will work. Once they heat up and start popping it could be too late. They fly out of the fire pit.

Thanks for that VizX- I have never had that issue with our gas fire pits, which we build quite a few of.

It was that one time for us too. We have designed a lot of fire pits and just this one batch of lava rocks went crazy. It happen right in front of the client too. It was also scary as heck because we didn't know when the next one was going blow and where it was going to land. So I make sure we have the right grade of rocks now. It's cheaper to get it right.

Thanks for the heads up on both rocks, Ross and VizX. I use wood in mine! :)

Hubby says dont use river pebbles as they will explode.

OK- VizX got me curious so I did a little research. It appears that some river rock is ok, some will explode. Most lava rock is ok, but some will explode- either because of moisture in the cells or closed cells. It seems that open cell lava rock that is very dry is not likely to explode. I don't see any way for the OP to know without a little test.

I've built a few with Mexican Pebbles with gas fire rings beneath. Usually about 15% of the pebbles will crack with a few exploding a bit more violently. I would stay away from them unless they are directly out of the heat. Lava rock is a better choice and fire glass is probably the best.

We used the pebble rock and some have exploded. You could put a metal grate over the top and keep them, but...

I used stonedecoratives fire rocks which are basalt with only a few cracking but none of them popped hard enough to jump out of the pit. I then used mexican pebble which looks identical and are basalt as well but they popped like popcorn and were flying every where hitting people and the house only a few minutes after turning on the fire pit for the first time. So long story short, NO, you can not use landscaping mexican pebble even though they look identical and are both made of basalt.

Anything in the fire pit other than lava or glass is a big no no! If the river rock get's hot enough it will explode. If you don't like the look of lava rock, use it as the base and then add 2" of glass on top of the lava. This will save money as glass is expensive. BTW, some glass will turn black when heated up, i.e. red, then return to normal color when it cools down. Good luck and have fun with your fire pit.

I know this is an old thread, but we use something called lava stones. They're rounded to look like beach pebbles, but being made of lava rock they won't explode on you.

Are the round polished colored stones you put in a vase with a candle or used for crafts acceptable for a propane fire pit? I saw a propane fire pit on display today with pebbles that look just like the craft ones?