8 county-level rules, plus city-specific rules for 3 cities in Rock County, Wisconsin.
Verified from official government sources
Rock County has no county-wide fire-pit code; rules are set by your town, city or village. In the unincorporated towns, small recreational fires must be confined in a ring, barrel or pit, constantly attended, and follow town burn-permit rules and Wisconsin DNR burn restrictions.
Town of Fulton, Rock County WI, Ch. 231 (Open Burning)
Outdoor campfires and small bonfires for cooking, ceremonies or recreation are allowed, provided that the fire is confined by a control device or structure such as a barrel, fire ring, or fire pit... Open burning shall be constantly attended and supervised by a competent person of at least 18 years of age until the fire is extinguished and is cold.
Wisconsin is restrictive: sparklers, snakes, caps and small novelties are legal, but anything that leaves the ground or explodes is legally 'fireworks' and needs a local user's permit. No county-wide fireworks code; your city, village or town issues permits.
Wis. Stat. 167.10(1)
"Fireworks" means anything manufactured, processed or packaged for exploding, emitting sparks or combustion which does not have another common use, but does not include... a sparkler on a wire or wood stick not exceeding 36 inches in length... [or] a toy snake which contains no mercury.
Wisconsin has no defensible-space wildfire law, but Wis. Stat. 66.0407 requires every landowner to destroy noxious weeds (Canada thistle, leafy spurge, field bindweed and locally designated weeds) on their land. Removal by open burning must still follow DNR NR 429 rules.
Wis. Stat. 66.0407(3)
A person owning, occupying or controlling land shall destroy all noxious weeds on the land. The person having immediate charge of any public lands shall destroy all noxious weeds on the lands.
Wisconsin DNR generally prohibits open burning except for narrow exceptions in NR 429.04, and you must burn under safe weather, hold any required DNR/town burn permit, and never burn garbage, plastics, rubber or oily material. Rock County towns add their own permit rules.
Wis. Admin. Code NR 429.04
Open burning is prohibited with the following exceptions... All open burning shall be conducted in a safe pollution free manner under favorable weather conditions... No person may cause, allow or permit the open burning of wet combustible rubbish, garbage, oily substances, asphalt, plastic or rubber products.
Rock County is not in a designated wildfire hazard zone and Wisconsin has no defensible-space law, but the DNR sets daily fire-danger ratings and burn restrictions. Southern Wisconsin grasslands can reach very high fire danger in spring, when burn permits are suspended.
Statewide, Wis. Stat. 101.145 requires working smoke detectors in the basement, at each stairway head on every floor, and in or near each sleeping area of every home and rental unit. Owners install them; occupants maintain them and must report failures in writing.
Wis. Stat. 101.145(4)
[The owner shall] install and maintain a functional smoke detector in the basement and at the head of any stairway on each floor level of the building and shall install a functional smoke detector either in each sleeping area of each unit or elsewhere in the unit within 6 feet of each sleeping area and not in a kitchen.
Small backyard cooking, ceremony and recreational fires are generally allowed in Rock County towns if contained in a ring, barrel or pit and constantly attended, but open burning of yard debris is otherwise prohibited under DNR NR 429 without a permit and safe weather.
Town of Fulton, Rock County WI, Ch. 231 (Open Burning)
Except for campfires and permitted bonfires, open burning shall only be conducted from the hours of 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Rock County sets no separate propane ordinance; storage follows Wisconsin's gas-systems code (SPS 340) and NFPA 58. Typical rules place a 125-to-500-gallon above-ground tank at least 10 feet from any building and property line, with larger tanks set back farther.
3 cities in Rock County have their own fire regulations rules. Each link goes to that city's dedicated page with code citations.
See every category we cover for Rock County — parking, noise, fences, fires, animals, pools, and more.
Rock County Ordinance Hub →