Oh! I’ve been checking out all the Halloween pins on Pinterest! I love Halloween! Well, I came across skulls that you can put in your fire pit! Isn’t that so cool? Since this year’s Halloween decorations all center around skulls and skeletons, fire pit skulls seemed the perfect addition to our Halloween party.
- Check out our ►Chic Spooky Skeleton Wreath
- ►Elegant Halloween Tablescape
- ►Chic Spooky Halloween Mantel
My First Attempt at Fire Pit Skulls
Caution! Don’t use regular cement for a fire pit skull!
As I said, I saw this on Pinterest. The post I read said to use fireproof cement. Dave went to the big box store and asked the guy if this QuikCrete cement is fireproof. It didn’t say it on the bag. Well, he looked it up on the computer and told him the information indicated it is.
I bought some skulls and funnels at the dollar store.
First, I drilled holes in three of the skulls at the top of the forehead. Excited to get this going, Aidan, my grandson, and I stirred up some of the QuikCrete with some water. Well, the pebbles in the QuikCrete kept clogging the funnel.
Okay, we’re in the middle of this with wet cement and didn’t want it to harden. Aidan stirred the cement as I tried to figure out how to cut this hard plastic. My garden shears would not work. Didn’t think there would be enough time to get out a saw, so, I grabbed the loppers and cut off the lower inch of the funnel.
Then, the funnel wouldn’t fit in the hole! So, I cut four slits, one on the top, bottom, and each side of the hole. It gave just enough for the funnel to fit. We finished filling two skulls with cement.
Although we filled it all the way to the top, I guess quite a bit of water rises to the top, resulting in a space between the cement and the top of the plastic skull. The skulls ended up having a flat area. Even at that, they looked pretty cool. It’s hard to believe they come out as detailed as they are!
See the knobs on the head? Well, when I saw the water rising to the top, I started spooning more cement into the hole. Yep, don’t do that! I tried to scrape these off as soon as they came out of the plastic skull.
Casting Refractory Cement for Fire Pit Skulls
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Preparing for this post, I started doing a little more research. To my dismay, I came across a pin that indicated that you need to use casting refractory cement
for making fire pit skulls. It seems that if you use regular cement, the cement might explode in the fire! Yikes! Definitely not something you want to subject your family and trick-or-treaters to, right?
Let me tell you, this is not that incredibly easy to come by locally. I checked the websites, Lowe’s, and Home Depot didn’t have any, not even available on their website. Ah, but Menard’s had 5 – 25-pound buckets in stock. Even though a storm was coming up, I grabbed the umbrella and headed to Menard’s. That place is quite big. Let me just say that after walking all over the store, with some help, I found out that their website is not up to date. Not one bucket is in the store!
There is a refractory mortar. Mortar is not the same thing! Mortar is a mixture of sand, cement, lime, and water. When these are mixed together, a paste-like mixture is formed, and it can be used for building purposes. It’s usually used to fill cracks around bricks, etc.
Returning home undaunted, I check Amazon. Then, ordered this 25-pound bucket of casting refractory cement and it was delivered the next day. It was a little bit pricier than Menard’s, but Amazon has it!
There is also 'refractory cement', which has to be heat cured. No heat cure is required with the 'castable refractory cement' making your project much easier.
For This Project, You’ll Need
- Castable Refractory Cement
- Water
- Small Plastic Bucket
- Paint Paddle
- Plastic Dollar Store Skulls
- Drill with 3/4″ spade drill bit
- Disposable Gloves
- Nippers or Mat Knife
- Small hammer
Making The Castable Refractory Cement Skulls
Prepare The Skulls
First, you need to prepare the skulls. I did get some tips from my youngest son, Will, who works with cement. That little hole in the chin needs to be covered with tape. I used painter’s tape, which worked well. He suggested I make the holes in the back of the head to prevent “the flat forehead.” Another tip is tapping the filled skull with a small hammer to release air bubbles.
So, drill a hole in the back of the skull. Tape the little hole in the chin. You will need to support the skull in some way to keep it upright after it is filled. You can see I used a cut-down box and the corners supported and kept the skulls upright.
Mix The Cement
You need to mix the cement in a plastic container. I used a paint paddle to stir the mixture. I mixed enough for one skull at a time.
You’ll notice that the castable refractory cement is a lot finer than regular QuikCrete. To make each of these, it took 6 cups of dry cement and 1 – 1/2 cups of water. You don’t want it to be too fluid.
Put six cups of dry cement in the bucket. I measured 2 cups of water, and then, stirred 1 cup into the mix, adding more as needed. Ultimately, it took 1 – 1/2 cups of water.
Fill The Skulls with The Cement
Place the funnel in the hole. Slowly, pour the cement mixture into the funnel. Completely fill the skull with cement. Set the skull aside to dry. Originally, I had intended to set the skulls in the dirt of a flowerpot. Fortunately, the corners of the cardboard box worked well.
Once the skull is filled and the water begins to seep upward, don’t fill in with more cement. You get a knob! Oh yes, I did it again on these! It’s on the back, so, no big deal but it’s just stupid… I used the little hammer to gently chip most of the knob away. Fortunately, the back won’t be seen in the fire pit.
Let The Skulls Set
Then, just let the skulls set overnight. Allow them to set up for 24 hours. Then, I used little nippers to cut the plastic away, but others have used sharp knives. Next time, I’ll use a sharp knife. The nippers probably take longer but they did work. Just keep your tools away from the front of the face.
Do your cutting on the back. You don’t want to chip any of the skull’s facial features. Once you cut enough of the plastic, it will just slip off the skull.
My plan was to make more of these, but the dollar store didn’t have any left. So, there’s next year. Isn’t it cool? When they first come out of the mold, the surface is a dark shiny gray color. Then, the gray lightens as they dry.
Remember that I drilled a hole in three of the skulls and only made two initially? A little tape over that hole kept the cement inside but you can see it left a bit of a raised area. (I drilled a hole in the back after taping the hole. You can see the round area on the third one in the picture.)
I made these on Monday, five days before Halloween. Each day, the skulls turned a lighter gray as they dried.
Halloween evening, they are placed in the fire pit along with some split logs. Check out the video to see the skulls in the fire pit! Aren’t they cool?
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I’m trying to figure out how much cement mix I need. Did you still have mix left after making those 4 and just needed more molds to make more?
Yes, Tara. The first year, I made 4 of the skulls. Then, the next year, two more. There was enough cement mix for 6 in total. You need one of the skulls for each pour. In order to release the cement skull, you’ll destroy the plastic mold.
Good luck! This is one of my favorite projects!
How long do these last? Are they strong enough to get more than one party worth of entertainment? Do they last a few burns worth? I’m trying to decide if they are worth the time and effort? Thank you for sharing this… way cool
Andrea, these will last forever! We use the skulls every year on Halloween. I loaned mine to my daughter for a Viking party this year. Just be sure you use the casting refractory cement! There’s a link in the post. I store them in a Rubbermaid bin in the garage. They are way cool! This is one of my favorite projects. Thanks for visiting the website!
Wow. Wish I had came across this years ago. I love them.
I know, Joni! They make an interesting addition to the fire pit on Halloween. My daughter borrowed them for a Viking party. You can imagine that they would also be great for a pirate party! Thanks for visiting and commenting!
Love them!!!!! Question did you ever try to make the eyes hollow so the flames would come through the eyes? Would it work to put rolled up cardboard from the eye holes through the skull from the base of it, the cardboard would burn off leaving holes for the flames? I’ve never worked with that cement but I was just curious?
Wow, Nora! That’s an idea! I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. My son works with concrete. I will run this past him and let you know. Thank you!