Santa Ana, CA Fire Regulations: Fire Pits & Backyard Fires (2026)

2, added to the adopted California Fire Code by Santa Ana Municipal Code § 14-18 (Ord. No. NS-3088, § 18, adopted January 20, 2026), governs devices burning wood or solid fuel other than natural gas or LP gas at Group R (residential) occupancies. Permanent outdoor fireplaces must be built to California Building Code clearance standards, with fires contained in a firebox connected to an attached chimney, and the firebox opening must have an installed, maintained spark-arresting device. As a general rule, burning wood or solid fuel is not allowed within 25 feet of combustible structures unless it's inside an approved permanent fireplace, and any condition that could let fire spread within 25 feet of a structure or to vegetation must be eliminated before ignition.

Portable fireplaces and fire rings or pits get a narrower exception if equipped with a spark-arresting device: 3 feet from combustible construction at R-3 (single-family) occupancies, or 15 feet at other residential occupancies such as apartments or condos. 1, bars burning wood or solid fuel entirely within a fuel modification zone, a designated Wildfire Risk Area, or a Wildland-Urban Interface Area, or anywhere fire could spread into one of those zones, except for permanent fireplaces located outside a fuel modification zone, or where the fire code official determines the device's location or design reasonably prevents a wildfire start.