Blue Hill, NE Fire Regulations: Fire Pits & Backyard Fires (2026)

Section 8-305 defines outdoor fireplaces to include fire pits, portable fire pits, and chimineas: wood-fueled devices used for recreational fires at a private residence, expressly separate from propane or charcoal barbeque grills used primarily for cooking. Every outdoor fireplace must keep a minimum ten-foot clearance from combustible structures or materials, including walls, roofs, fences, decks, and wood piles. Construction must use concrete or approved non-combustible material, with the fuel area and openings enclosed by steel screening with openings no larger than one-half inch square; barrels, half-barrels, and drums are specifically not permitted.

The fuel area of a fire pit cannot exceed three feet in diameter or three feet in height. Fire pits must sit on a stable, non-combustible surface at grade level, never on or under a combustible deck, balcony, or overhang. Only untreated wood or approved fireplace starter logs may be burned; petroleum products, rubbish, plastics, and rubber are barred. A responsible adult (18 or older) must supervise the fire from ignition until it is fully extinguished, and a garden hose or other extinguishing equipment must be on hand.

Fires cannot be run in winds over 12 mph blowing toward a building, or in extremely dry conditions, and smoke that becomes a nuisance to neighbors must be extinguished on complaint. For a built-in fire pit, the owner must submit a site plan and construction drawing to the building inspector and obtain a building permit; commercially manufactured, independently tested portable fire pits and chimineas do not need one. m.