Kane County has no ordinance governing backyard smokers or wood/charcoal cooking. Smoking meat is outdoor cooking, not open burning, so no county permit is needed. Persistent heavy smoke could still draw a nuisance complaint, and multi-family fire-code balcony limits apply.
The Kane County burning regulations apply to burning landscape waste and brush, not to cooking food. A residential smoker fueled by charcoal, wood chips or pellets is outdoor cooking and is not "open burning," so there is no county permit, size limit or seasonal restriction on smokers at single-family homes in unincorporated areas. There is no county smoke-emission limit for cooking. However, smoke or odor that unreasonably interferes with neighbors' use of their property could be addressed under the county's general nuisance provisions, and — as with grills — the state-adopted fire code restricts using solid-fuel and LP-gas cooking devices on or under combustible balconies of apartment and condominium buildings. HOA and lease rules may add limits.
No county smoker penalty. A genuine smoke/odor nuisance is handled under general nuisance rules; balcony fire-code violations are enforced by the local fire district.
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