Bradenton, FL Outdoor Cooking: BBQ & Propane Rules (2026)

Section 42-45 of the City of Bradenton fire prevention chapter, titled storage and use of propane, heating, and cooking appliances, contains the grill rule. Subsection (b) says no person shall store or use any charcoal, gas, or wood-fired heaters, grills, barbecues, or smokers on porches, balconies, or breezeways of any multi-unit or multi-story buildings. The rule covers both storing and using, so a cold grill parked on an apartment balcony is as much a violation as a lit one, and it reaches charcoal, gas, and wood-fired equipment alike. Subsection (c) adds a second rule: no person shall store or use any heat-producing device or appliance which is determined by the AHJ, the authority having jurisdiction, to be unsafe due to its application or use.

Subsection (a) of the same section covers the fuel side: no person shall place or maintain gas or propane cylinders on porches, breezeways, balconies, or attached garages in multi-unit or multi-story buildings. A gas grill on a balcony is therefore caught twice, once as an appliance under (b) and once through its cylinder under (a).

The Bradenton Fire Department administers the chapter. The bureau of fire prevention, inspection, and investigation operates under the fire marshal, who is responsible for direct administration and enforcement of the fire prevention code. The fire marshal or designees inspect premises on a periodic basis, and Section 42-26 treats a permit application as consent to entry at any reasonable time to conduct inspections. The Code cross-references Section 42-57 for the penalty. The wording of Section 42-45 names porches, balconies, and breezeways of multi-unit or multi-story buildings and says nothing about ground-level patios or yards.