Fire pit permits, explained

Do you need a permit for a fire pit?

There is no single answer, because three different offices can be involved, and each looks at a different part of the project:

A wood-burning ring dropped on a lawn may need only the fire department's rules. A built-in gas fire pit on a new patio can need a building permit, a gas piping inspection and zoning setbacks at the same time. The examples below show how far apart cities are.

The 25-foot rule

The 25-foot distance comes from the International Fire Code (IFC), the model fire code many cities adopt. Price City, Utah, quotes the 2021 edition word for word^[1]:

• a recreational fire is an outdoor fire with a total fuel area of 3 feet or less in diameter and 2 feet or less in height, for pleasure, cooking, warmth or similar purposes;
• recreational fires shall not be conducted within 25 feet of a structure or combustible material, and conditions that could spread a fire within 25 feet of a structure must be eliminated before ignition (Section 307.4.2);
• the fire must be constantly attended until it is out, with a portable fire extinguisher rated at least 4-A or other on-site equipment such as dirt, sand, a water barrel or a garden hose (Section 307.5).

Twenty-five feet is a long way on a city lot. Measured from the edge of the pit, it reaches your house, your garage, your shed, your neighbor's garage and a wood fence. That single number decides where a wood-burning pit can go before any permit question comes up.

Cities can adjust it. Wheeling, Illinois, keeps 25 feet from any structure or combustible material for permanently constructed fire pits, but allows portable manufactured fire pits at 15 feet from all structures, including buildings, decks and fences^[4].

Real city rules, side by side

Two homes with the same fire pit kit, one in Murray and one in Wheeling, face completely different paperwork. That is the whole reason to check your own city before you buy materials.

Gas fire pits

A gas fire pit changes the question. The burner is an appliance and the pipe feeding it is gas piping, which building codes regulate everywhere they apply.

• In Broomfield, Colorado, a building permit is required for all outdoor appliances that use natural gas supplied from the building gas meter, and separate permits are required if different contractors do the piping and the appliance^[6].
• In Prince William County, Virginia, a fire pit needs no construction permit when it burns wood, but it does when it is fueled by natural gas or liquefied propane^[5].
• In Yorba Linda, California, fire pits with gas fire rings are regulated by the mechanical code and need a listed burner assembly, with a specification sheet that states the maximum BTUs and the testing agency^[7].

Broomfield explains why it wants a piping drawing: to determine the correct pipe size for the new appliance without starving the gas appliances you already have^[6]. That is a calculation, not a guess, and it is the part of a gas fire pit permit most homeowners have never done.

What the city asks for

When a building permit is required, the application is short but specific. Wheeling, Illinois, lists what it wants^[4]:

1. the permit application and a copy of the signed contract;
2. the manufacturer's specification sheets, for a manufactured unit;
3. a plat of survey showing the fire pit's location and size (diameter and height), its distance from the house and all other structures, and the side and rear setbacks;
4. construction plans for a pit that is not a manufactured unit;
5. a gas line diagram, when there is gas.

Yorba Linda asks for two complete sets of plans with a plot plan that shows dimensions to all property lines and structures, and, for any new gas line, its location, size, burial depth and length of run^[7]. Broomfield asks for a fully dimensioned site plan plus a schematic of the gas piping that lists every gas appliance in the home with its BTU input rating, and the length, size and material of every pipe between the meter and the new appliance^[6].

The inspections

Expect at least a final inspection when a building permit is issued. Wheeling lists underground gas piping (when there is gas), the footing, pier or slab, and a final inspection, each with at least 24 hours' notice^[4]. Broomfield requires a gas pipe inspection before any piping is buried or concealed, with the new piping pressure tested at 10 psi for at least 10 minutes under IRC Section G2417^[6]. Fill the trench before that inspection and you may have to dig it up again.

Even with no building permit, a fire department can inspect. Portage issues its recreational fire permit only after an inspection of the site of the proposed fire^[2], and Williamsport requires homemade fire pits to be inspected before their first use^[8].

What it costs

Fire pit fees are small next to most permits, and they are published:

Where a building permit is needed, as in Wheeling, the fee follows the city's building fee schedule. Your permit file quotes the line that applies to your address, with the link.

Burning without the right permit

Fire codes are enforced on the spot. In Portage, breaking the rules can get your fire extinguished and a civil citation issued under the adopted fire code^[2]. In Williamsport, the same violations can bring citations from $75 to $300, and a fire that firefighters judge to be a public nuisance after a complaint is put out^[8]. In Murray, violators may be prosecuted with a Class A, B or C misdemeanor^[3].

A permanent pit built without a required building permit has a second problem: it is a structure, and it stays on the property when you sell.

Get it right the first time

For a simple ring on a lawn, the answer may fit in one phone call to your fire department. For a built-in pit with seat walls and a gas line, the answer spans three offices and a site plan with real distances. The All-in, until approved offer ($399) covers the whole file for your address: the rules that apply, the site plan, the drawings, the forms, a review before you file and our follow-up on every city comment until the permit is issued.

Common questions