8 rules for unincorporated Henrico County, Virginia.
Verified from official government sources
A patio fire pit, chiminea, or outdoor fireplace needs no county permit but must be attended and kept clear of combustibles. Open recreational fires must stay under 3 feet wide and 2 feet high and sit 25 feet from structures.
Henrico Fire Marshal, Open Burning FAQ (SFPC § 307.3.2)
These devices do not constitute the type of burning intended to be regulated by the Statewide Fire Prevention Code... Stoves, incinerators or other controlled burning devices, which would include patio fireplaces, do not fall under the open-burning regulations.
Henrico bans possessing, selling, storing, or using any fireworks, including 'permissible' fountains and sparklers. Only supervised public displays under a fire marshal permit are legal. This is stricter than state law and applies to every resident countywide.
Henrico County Code § 11-20(b)
No person may store, possess, offer for sale, expose for sale, sell at retail or use or explode any fireworks, as that term is defined in the Virginia Statewide Fire Prevention Code, except that a person may conduct a supervised public display of fireworks pursuant to a permit granted by the fire marshal.
Before burning brush, grass, or debris, Henrico requires you to cut and pile it or clear the ground around it and control the fire until fully out. For a recreational fire, all combustibles within 25 feet of a structure must be removed first.
Henrico Fire Marshal, Open Burning FAQ (SFPC § 307.4)
Recreational fires shall not be conducted within 25 feet of a structure or in combustible material conditions that could cause a fire to spread. All unsafe combustible material and vegetation conditions within 25 feet of a structure shall be eliminated prior to recreational fire ignition.
Open burning of anything other than leaves requires a burn permit from the Henrico Fire Marshal. Leaf burning is allowed only in areas without county leaf pickup, on set dates and hours. No burn permits are issued in June, July, or August.
Henrico County Code § 11-18
It is unlawful for any person to burn, or to procure another to burn, brush, grass, leaves, debris or other inflammable material unless the person has either cut and piled the material to be burned or has carefully cleared around the material to be burned... No one may burn any materials without obtaining all permits required by state law.
Henrico County maps no wildfire hazard or WUI zones. Instead, Virginia's '4 PM Burning Law' bars outdoor fires within 300 feet of woodland before 4 p.m. during Feb 15-Apr 30, and the fire chief can declare countywide drought burn bans.
Code of Virginia § 10.1-1142(B)
During the period February 15 through April 30... it shall be unlawful... for any person to set fire to... any brush, leaves, grass, debris or field containing dry grass or other inflammable material located in or within 300 feet of any woodland, brushland, or field containing dry grass or other inflammable material, except between the hours of 4:00 p.m. and 12:00 midnight.
Henrico requires smoke alarms in every building with a dwelling unit, plus hotels, motels, and roominghouses. Owners must inspect alarms annually; landlords must certify working alarms to tenants no more than once every 12 months.
Henrico County Code § 6-56
Smoke alarms must be installed in the following structures or buildings if smoke alarms have not been installed in accordance with the building code: (1) Any building containing one or more dwelling units; (2) Any hotel or motel...; and (3) Any roominghouses regularly used, offered for, or intended to be used to provide overnight sleeping accommodations.
Backyard campfires and recreational fires are allowed without a permit if under 3 feet wide and 2 feet high, kept 25 feet from structures, constantly attended with a hose or extinguisher, and not lit during air-quality or drought burn bans.
Henrico Fire Marshal, Open Burning FAQ (SFPC § 307)
These fires must not be larger than 3 feet in diameter and 2 feet in height... Recreational fires shall be constantly attended and supervised by a person knowledgeable in the use of extinguishing tools like shovels, garden hoses, or a fire extinguisher with a minimum 4-A rating on site, and available for immediate use.
Henrico sets no separate propane-storage ordinance. LP-gas storage is governed by the Virginia Statewide Fire Prevention Code, which the county adopts and enforces. Container limits and separation distances come from that state code, not a local rule.
Henrico County Code § 11-1
the current edition of the Virginia Statewide Fire Prevention Code setting forth regulations for the prevention of, and protection from, fire is administered and enforced in the county by the fire division.
See every category we cover for Henrico County — parking, noise, fences, fires, animals, pools, and more.
Henrico County Ordinance Hub →