Ames, IA Fire Regulations: Fire Pits & Backyard Fires (2026)

Ames Municipal Code Sec. 8.202(2) rewrites Section 307.4.3 of the adopted 2015 International Fire Code, the provision covering portable outdoor fireplaces, to set the city's own recreational-fire rule. The ordinance permits residents to burn in approved containers, such as chimineas, contained fire pit or ring, or screened devices, without a separate open-burning permit, but only if the fire sits more than 15 feet from any structure, including decks, porches, roofs, garages, sheds and fences. The code also requires the 15-foot zone around the fire to stay clear of combustible material such as weeds, shrubs and furniture, so a fire pit tucked against a wood fence or stacked firewood violates the setback even if the flame itself is contained.

This rule sits inside Division II, Amendments, of Chapter 8, Fire Code, distinguishing it from the separate open-burning prohibition in Sec. 8.401, which covers leaves, landscape waste and other yard debris rather than recreational fires in a fixed container. Because Section 307.4.3 is amended rather than deleted, the underlying International Fire Code framework, including the fire chief's authority to order a fire extinguished if it becomes hazardous, still applies. The Ames Fire Department enforces the setback during complaint response and routine inspection, and the Fire Chief can grant a Section 104.8 modification if strict compliance creates a practical difficulty, provided the modification does not lessen life-safety protection. Any violation of Chapter 8 is charged as a municipal infraction under Sec. 8.601.