Warm up your Poughkeepsie landscape design with an outdoor fireplace

Image from Cambridge Pavers showing outdoor fireplace kits perfect for the Hudson Valley.

When the colder weather starts to creep in our Hudson Valley communities like Fishkill, Wappingers Falls, and Pleasant Valley, homeowners get to experience the benefits of deciding to include that outdoor fireplace in their home’s landscape project design. Although features like these can certainly increase the cost of the landscape installation, they also greatly extend the months in which homeowners can use their outdoor living spaces. As only a small percentage of the overall cost of the space, outdoor fireplaces—or even smaller fire pits—pack a huge punch of added value. 

Outdoor fireplaces have certainly gotten red hot over the last few years (yes, pun intended), finding their way into small patio installation projects, as well as the complete backyard projects that we work on throughout the season. And part of the reason for this is the declining costs of installation. While their is certainly a place for large scale, custom outdoor masonry fireplaces, many homeowners and landscape contractors have started to look to prefab kits to drive down prices. 

Today, there are many prefab kits on the market for landscape contractors. Perhaps the first option, released quite a few years ago now, is a line of products called Elements offered by hardscape manufacturer, Unilock. While this product line has since been trimmed back and optimized a bit, the main modular outdoor fireplace unit is still available. Because this option comes fully assembled from the Unilock factory, it’s best used when the access to the property is clear and accessible by a machine. 

Cambridge Pavers launched a comprehensive line of prefab landscape solutions a few years ago that has truly revolutionized landscape design and construction in Dutchess County and Orange County, NY. Outdoor fireplaces, outdoor kitchens, water features, patio tables, pizza ovens, outdoor bars, pavilions, pergolas—you name it, they’ve got it. And because the design and fabrication is done in a controlled manufacturing environment, there are substantial cost savings to the homeowner. This option certainly decreases the design flexibility and personality of the project, but these prefab kits allow many more project designs to include awesome features that add beauty and function at an affordable price. 

Whether you decide to go custom of prefab with your outdoor fireplace project, one thing is for sure. You will extend the time that you and your friends and family can enjoy your outdoor living spaces. Relaxing by an open fire—perhaps roasting a few marshmallows with the kids—is one of the best ways to spend fall in the Hudson Valley.

Related: Creating Your Kind of Style Backyard: Farmhouse.

From Inspiration to Decision: 4 Tips for the Perfect Outdoor Space

There's a certain overwhelming joy when you feel your outdoor living space or backyard landscape coming together in your mind. After weeks or months of digging through websites like Houzz and Pinterest, you've narrowed down the overwhelming pool design options and maybe even decided on exactly what outdoor kitchen appliances you want featured in your outdoor kitchen. Depending on the timeline for your project, it's usually a great idea to involve a professional landscape design/build company early on in the design process before too much research and too many "decisions" have been made. We may be a bit biased here, but hopefully that company is Harmony Hill. 

Before you call in the pros and really get going on designing your home's new outdoor space, consider a few of these essential elements to shaping out a landscape. 

1. Get your kids involved.

Your kids, regardless of their age, are going to be using the outdoor living space quite a bit. Get them in on the project ideas early. What would they like to see or do? If they can't quite talk yet, consider how old they'll be by the time they' will be enjoying the space with you and what you can do to make it safe for them (or ask a pro to suggest safety tips).

2. Don't forget about the four-legged family members.

No one knows your pets better than you do. Is your dog a lover of water? Would he or she know to avoid the areas they'd be unhappy with or will you need a fence to protect them? Much better to get these details early in the planning process to make sure it all looks good together. 

3. Consider how you'll be using the space 90% of the time.

Sure, the space might accommodate your larger gatherings and finally give you the opportunity to host special events. But how about the smaller events, the daily ones. You know, coming home from work and enjoying a glass of wine or cooking up a meal on the grill. Maybe this all means that your grill should be a lot closer to the back door. Whatever the considerations, best to discover them now. 

4. Spend time to uncover your longer term plans.

Where are your expecting to be in 5, 10, or 15 years? Sure, things might change, but what are the plans? While you're not selecting all the details yet at this stage, it's good to think through this question to be ready when the time comes. It'll be handy for selecting the right material choices, budgeting your total investment, and maybe even towards design elements like built-in vs. moveable seating options.

Your New Patio or Retaining Wall: DIY or Hire a Pro?

Whenever embarking on a new home remodeling project, homeowners here in the Hudson Valley are often faced with the decision of whether to tackle the work themselves or to hire a professional. After all, there are many projects that don't require a whole heck of a lot of machinery, tools, experience, or expertise, and going the DIY patio route could mean saving a ton of money. 

The installation of a new patio or a retaining wall is somehow deceiving for homeowners. While these projects should be put in the same bucket as the 'do-not-touch-electrical-stystem upgrades,' homeowners sometimes give it a whirl. Unfortunately, I cannot remember a time when this courage paid off with great reward. For the DIYers we work with each season, I suggest something a little less involved like planting the plants or staining the existing deck. Here's a few things to consider before you dive in head first to landscape construction. 

1. The various materials needed are very heavy

Patio and retaining wall projects are construction projects—no doubt about it. Whether built from natural stone or concrete pavers, these materials are heavy, large, and difficult to handle. And thats just the pavers! Because we live in a freeze/thaw climate in Dutchess County, there is a lot more crushed stone and sand that needs to be installed underneath the pavers. 

2. The heavy equipment needed is really expensive and not easy to use

Unless you plan on excavating the earth, moving pallets of stone that weigh 3k pounds or more, and shoveling gravel all by hand, you are going to need some equipment. Most of what you need is rentable for a daily fee, but you will need to know how to operate things like excavators, skid steers, plate compactors, an large demo cutting saws. A patio installation project requires a lot of machinery including a dump truck to haul all your material around. 

3. There are many tips and tricks that you only know if you do it all day. 

Landscape construction is a niche skill. There are a large number of tricks that come from doing patio, walkway, and retaining wall designs and installations all day, everyday. And while many of these aren't 100% necessary for a DIY patio project, many of them are necessary for a professional looking end product. There are literally hundreds of paver patterns alone! There's nothing worse than spending a huge amount of time and money on a home remodeling project only to be unsatisfied with the results. 

4. Redos and repairs are very expensive

If you choose to go the DIY route for your new patio or landscape project and for some reason it doesn't result in a success, it is not easy to fix. Choosing the wrong paint color for your master bedroom is really terrible. But it is easily fixed. Incorrectly installing a patio, retaining wall, or paver walkway is not. Often times when we are brought in to repair a project it is considerably more expensive than if we started from scratch.  Many times there is stone or paver material that is unsalvageable. Sometimes there is water damage as a result of an  incorrectly pitched patio. Whatever the case may be, just know that mistakes can be costly to repair. 

Proper installation of concrete pavers for your patios and walkways

Like many things in life, it's what's under the surface that counts. And when it comes to landscape design and construction, patios, pool decks, and walkways are no different. 

Most of the truly important techniques that result in a long-lasting patio that your family can enjoy for generations are executed during the phase of installation known as "base preparation." As boring and technical as this phase of patio installation may be—especially when compared with the fun of choosing the sizes, shapes, textures, and colors of the pavers themselves— it is truly critical.  In fact, it's a great idea to ask a landscape contractor that you are thinking of hiring to walk you through how they will excavate and install the base for your project. Many of the times in which pricing estimates for an outdoor living project vary greatly between landscape contractors, the plan varying plans for this phase of the project is the cause. 

There's only one right way to install a patio

Here in Dutchess County, we experience the beauty of 4 seasons throughout the year. But with those beautiful seasons also comes what is known as "freeze/thaw."  As the ground cools down in autumn and eventually freezes in winter, extra stress and pressure is put on patios, walkways, and foundations. This is the reason you often see cracked and shifting poured concrete walkways. 

Because of this freezing and thawing of the ground that occurs each year, choosing interlocking concrete pavers is a very smart choice for our Northeast climate. When installed properly, pavers are part of a flexible system that is able to "move" ever so slightly during freeze/thaw. This system is made up of a few main components. 

1. Geotextile Underlayment

After excavation of the native ground to allow for the different layers of the base system—usually 8"-10"—a layer of synthetic fabric referred to as geotextile underlayment is installed. This barrier stabilizes the ground during our Hudson Valley freeze/thaw cycles and prevents the next layer of gravel from migrating into the soil. It is a very cheap investment for the huge return it provides. 

2. Aggregate Base

For everyday pedestrian traffic, the Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute recommends 4"-6" of compacted aggregate base material underneath pavers for elements like patios and walkways. This layer is installed on top of the geotextile underlayment and is compacted in increments of every 2" of so. 

3. Bedding Sand

Next up is a layer of bedding sand. Directly underneath the pavers is a layer of course sand that is 1" or less in thickness. This sand layer is screeded out and is not compacted prior to paver installation. 

4. Pavers

It's time for the part that is most exciting and rewarding for most homeowners—the actual pavers! With the many manufacturers of concrete pavers out there today, the choices here are extremely vast. It's important to select a concrete paver from a manufacturer that offers a lifetime warranty and that stands behind the products they produce.

At Harmony Hill Landscaping, we are certified installers for many manufacturers including Unilock, Cambridge, and Techo-Bloc. We are also certified installers through the Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute.  

Learn more about hiring the right landscape contractor for your Hudson Valley project here. 

Bringing new life to existing outdoor kitchen in Hopewell Junction, NY

Outdoor living spaces are no different than the living spaces on the inside of your home. As your family grows, sometimes what you need from your living spaces changes. As so was the case with this outdoor kitchen design in Hopewell Junction, NY.

The Harmony Hill team was brought in to expand the existing grill island, bringing a more complete functionality to the space. Working to ensure that the new materials mingle with the old cohesively, the team designed a new "U"-shaped outdoor kitchen to accommodate the new features these Dutchess County homeowners were after.

This remodel includes the addition of two new "legs", one on each side of the existing central grill island. The new design includes an outdoor sink, pull-out stainless drawers and trash can, and low voltage landscape lighting. In addition to all of the design and construction, the electric work is also being handled by Harmony Hill Landscaping.

To pull the entire outdoor kitchen project together, a new overhead pergola will sit atop the space, offering shade and style for the grillmaster and guests. 

We can't wait to see this one come together! Stay tuned.