8 rules for unincorporated Spartanburg County, South Carolina.
Verified from official government sources
Permanent fire pits, chimineas and portable fireplaces are allowed and are exempt from the Forestry Commission burn-notification requirement. County fire code keeps recreational fires at least 25 feet from structures with a small, contained fuel area.
S.C. Code Section 48-35-55
fires burned in portable outdoor fireplaces, chimineas, or permanent fire pits
Consumer fireworks are legal statewide in South Carolina, including unincorporated Spartanburg County. State law bars sales to anyone under 18. The City of Spartanburg bans fireworks inside city limits, and property owners may post Fireworks Prohibited Zones.
S.C. Code Section 23-35-170
No sale shall be made to a person under the age of eighteen or a person who has been convicted of a felony.
South Carolina has no California-style defensible-space law, and Spartanburg County sets no mandatory brush-clearance distance around homes. You may clear and burn vegetative debris under the open-burning rules, with Forestry Commission notification.
You may burn yard debris (leaves, limbs, branches) in unincorporated areas, but state law requires notifying the SC Forestry Commission first (1-800-517-9640). Burning household trash, plastics, tires and other rubbish is illegal.
S.C. Code Title 48, Ch. 35 (SC Forestry Commission)
State law requires that citizens notify the Forestry Commission before burning outdoors. This requirement applies only to unincorporated areas of the state (outside of city/town limits).
Spartanburg County is not in a state-mapped fire-hazard-severity zone, and there is no wildfire building overlay like California's. Wildfire risk is managed through SC Forestry Commission burn bans and Firewise guidance during dry conditions.
Smoke alarms are required in dwellings through the building and fire codes Spartanburg County has adopted (the International Residential and Fire Codes), not a county-specific ordinance. Alarms are required in each bedroom, outside sleeping areas, and on every level.
Small backyard recreational fires are allowed. State law requires clearing a firebreak, keeping equipment ready and staying with the fire until it is safe. County code keeps recreational fires 25 feet from structures and 50 feet for larger bonfires.
S.C. Forestry Commission (S.C. Code Title 48, Ch. 35)
Citizens burning residential yard debris must 1) limit their fires to vegetative material like leaves, limbs and branches; 2) clear a firebreak around the burning site; 3) have the right equipment available to keep the fire under control; and 4) stay with the fire until it is completely safe.
Propane storage is governed by the International Fire Code (and NFPA 58) that Spartanburg County adopts, not a separate county ordinance. Small grill cylinders are unrestricted; larger tanks require code-compliant siting and, for big installations, fire-marshal review.
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