Stanislaus County, CA Fire Regulations: Fire Pits & Backyard Fires (2026)

55), makes it unlawful to leave any outdoor or open fire, including a recreational backyard fire pit, unattended by an adult, or by the person named on a permit issued by the county fire warden. The tender must thoroughly extinguish the fire before walking away, either by completely covering it with dirt, saturating it with water, or otherwise treating it so it cannot rekindle. The code does not carry a separate numeric setback distance for a residential fire pit; the governing obligation is active supervision and complete extinguishment, not a minimum-feet-from-structure rule.

160, separately bars letting any kindled fire escape the tender's control or spread onto a neighbor's land, so a fire pit that throws embers past the yard line is a second, independent violation. 55 for the unincorporated area (the rule does not reach Modesto, Turlock, Ceres, Riverbank, Oakdale, Patterson, Newman, Waterford or Hughson, which enforce their own city fire codes). 270 lets them issue a written notice to appear for a misdemeanor committed in their presence. 2 of the adopted fire code separately requires an air-district burn permit for agricultural burning of grass or trimmings, that permit track is distinct from ordinary backyard recreational fires, which fall under the attendance-and-extinguishment rule instead.