Fire Regulations in Chino Hills, CA (2026)
7 verified fire regulations for Chino Hills, California, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Fire Pits & Backyard Fires
Chino Hills allows non-wood-burning outdoor fire pits under Municipal Code § 16.06.070, but bars them entirely from the required front setback and requires at least five feet of clearance from rear, interior side, and street side property lines, with a maximum height of six feet. Wood-burning pits do not qualify as a permitted fire pit at all.
Chino Hills Outdoor Fire Pit Setback Rules
Some RestrictionsChino Hills Municipal Code §§ 16.02.180, 16.06.070
"Fire pit" means any permanent or portable structure or appliance intended to contain fire, excluding a barbecue or pizza oven. Fire pits shall be non-wood burning. ... 16.06.070 - Features permitted within required setbacks. All required setback areas shall be open and unobstructed from finished grade to the sky, except that the following features are permitted within the setback areas subject...
Fireworks
Chino Hills bans all fireworks outright. Municipal Code § 8.30.020 prohibits manufacturing, possessing, selling, storing, displaying, discharging, or setting off any firework within city limits, including safe and sane, dangerous, and exempt types, and bars public fireworks displays entirely; violation is a misdemeanor under § 8.30.030.
Chino Hills Fireworks Ban
Heavy RestrictionsChino Hills Municipal Code § 8.30.020
8.30.020 - Fireworks prohibited. No person shall manufacture, possess, sell, offer for sale, store, display, dispose of, give away, keep stock, discharge, explode, fire or set off any fireworks within the City of Chino Hills, including but not limited to, safe and sane, dangerous, and exempt fireworks. No public displays of fireworks shall be permitted. 8.30.030 - Penalty for violations. Any pe...
Brush Clearance
Development inside Chino Hills' Fire Hazard Overlay District must maintain a permanent fuel modification area at least 100 feet wide around the project perimeter under CHMC 16.22.040(A). Chino Valley Fire District can require more based on slope, fuel load, and access, and the buffer must be in place before the first certificate of occupancy on phased projects.
Chino Hills Fuel Modification Area Rules
Significant RestrictionsChino Hills Municipal Code § 16.22.040(A), (B), (D)
A. A permanent fuel modification area is required around development projects or portions of such projects for the purpose of fire protection. The required width of the fuel modification area shall be determined by the Chino Valley Fire District as deemed necessary to mitigate fire hazards, but in no case shall it be less than one hundred (100) feet in width as measured from the development per...
Outdoor Burning
Chino Hills prohibits open burning and recreational fires whenever atmospheric or local conditions make them hazardous, including any time the National Weather Service issues a red-flag warning or fire weather watch for the area.
Chino Hills Open Burning Ban
Significant RestrictionsChino Hills Municipal Code § 8.16.040 (Fire Code §§ 307.1, 307.1.1)
307.1 General. A person shall not kindle or maintain or authorize to be kindled or maintained any open burning or recreational fires unless conducted and approved in accordance with Sections 307.1.1 through 307.5. 307.1.1 Prohibited open burning. Opening burning and recreational fires shall be prohibited when atmospheric conditions or local circumstances make such fire hazardous. This shall inc...
Wildfire Zones
New construction and any addition of 50 percent or more within Chino Hills' Fire Hazard Overlay District must meet Section 7A of the Building Code plus CHMC 16.22.030's mandatory 30-foot building separation between structures on adjoining lots. Cal Fire and Chino Valley Fire District data set the overlay boundary, shown in the General Plan Safety Element.
Chino Hills Fire Hazard Overlay District Rules
Significant RestrictionsChino Hills Municipal Code §§ 16.22.010(A), 16.22.020(A), 16.22.030(B)
A. The Fire Hazard Overlay District is established to mitigate against the threat of wildland fires. The standards set forth in this chapter provide additional opportunity for firefighting vehicles to have access into wildland interface areas. An additional intent of these standards is to prevent structures from becoming a barrier between firefighting equipment/personnel and wildland areas. [16...
Smoke Detectors
Chino Hills does not have a stand-alone citywide smoke-alarm ordinance separate from the state-adopted Building Code, but its Development Code imposes its own smoke-detector mandate on multi-family ownership and condominium-conversion projects. Municipal Code section 16.11.040(L) requires smoke detectors per the California Building Code in every converted unit, alongside a fire-rated separation wall between units and an upgraded water-delivery system meeting the fire district's current fire-flow standards.
Chino Hills Smoke Detector Rule for Condo Conversions
Some RestrictionsChino Hills Municipal Code § 16.11.040(K)-(M)
K.Maintenance of Fire Protection Systems. The developer and/or owner of the project shall upgrade the project's water delivery system to comply with the City's current fire flow requirements.L.Smoke Detectors. Smoke detectors shall be provided per the California Building Code.M.Fire Wall. A fire rated separation wall shall be required between units in accordance with the California Building Code.
Propane Storage
Chino Hills' local Fire Code amendment at Municipal Code § 8.10.050(D) restricts liquefied petroleum gas storage under CFC § 6104.2, capping any single LP-gas installation at 2,000 gallons of water capacity in heavily populated or congested areas, and lets the fire code official apply the same 2,000-gallon cap anywhere the storage location would otherwise create a hazard.
Chino Hills Propane / LP-Gas Storage Limits
Some RestrictionsChino Hills Municipal Code § 8.10.050(D)
D. Establishment of geographical limits of districts in which storage of liquefied petroleum gas is to be restricted. The limits referred to in Section 6104.2 of the 2025 California Fire Code in which storage is restricted are established as: 1. Heavily populated or congested areas, the aggregate capacity of any one installation shall not exceed a water capacity of 2,000 gallons (7570 L). 2. Al...
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