8 rules for unincorporated Seminole County, Florida.
Verified from official government sources
Small recreational fire pits for cooking or warmth are generally allowed on your own residential property, but during a countywide burn ban all campfires and bonfires are prohibited. Above-ground charcoal, gas, and electric grills stay legal even during a ban.
Florida law lets residents use consumer fireworks on just three days a year: New Year's Day, July 4, and New Year's Eve. On every other day only sparklers and novelties are legal. Seminole County cannot ban use on those three holidays.
FS 791.08
This chapter does not prohibit the use of fireworks solely and exclusively during a designated holiday.
Seminole County has no ordinance mandating a fixed cleared width, but the county strongly recommends a defensible space of at least 30 feet around each home in this wildfire-prone area. Overgrown lots may still be cited under separate nuisance and weed ordinances.
Seminole County Wildfire Preparedness
create and maintain a defensible space of at least 30 feet around their homes by regularly mowing grass, removing dead vegetation, and trimming back combustible landscaping materials
You may burn yard debris on residential property only when no county burn ban is active and you follow Florida Forest Service setbacks. Piles over 8 feet across need a state burn authorization. During a burn ban, all outdoor burning not permitted by the Forest Service is prohibited.
FAC 5I-2.006
Residential, and Agricultural/Silvicultural pile burning must be set back three hundred (300') feet or more away from any occupied building other than that of the landowner and fifty (50') feet from any wildlands, brush or combustible structure.
Seminole County sits in Florida's wildland-urban interface and faces real spring wildfire risk. There is no formal 'wildfire zone' overlay, but the county issues automatic burn bans in drought and urges Firewise defensible space around homes.
Florida law requires working smoke alarms in dwellings. New or replacement battery smoke alarms must use a 10-year nonremovable, nonreplaceable battery. This is a statewide Building Code standard applied through Seminole County's permitting and inspections.
FS 553.883
One-family and two-family dwellings and townhomes undergoing a repair, or a level 1 alteration as defined in the Florida Building Code, may use smoke alarms powered by 10-year nonremovable, nonreplaceable batteries.
Small attended backyard fires for cooking or recreation are allowed in normal conditions, kept away from structures and combustibles. During a county burn ban, campfires and bonfires are prohibited; above-ground grills remain legal.
Residential propane storage follows the Florida Fire Prevention Code, which adopts NFPA 58 (LP-Gas Code) and NFPA 1. In multifamily buildings, LP-gas cylinders over one pound are prohibited above the first floor, so gas grills and tanks cannot be kept on apartment or condo balconies.
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