Idaho Falls, ID Outdoor Cooking: Smoker Rules (2026)

Idaho Falls adopts the 2018 International Fire Code (City Code 7-10-1). A charcoal or wood-pellet/wood smoker is an open-flame cooking device under IFC Section 308, so the same balcony and clearance limits as grills apply: charcoal/solid-fuel and large-cylinder LP-gas devices shall not be operated on combustible balconies or within 10 feet of combustible construction at apartments, condos and townhomes, except where the building is fully sprinklered or at one- and two-family dwellings. Importantly, cooking is an approved use of fire under the Idaho Falls Fire Department's outdoor-fire guidance - recreational/cooking fires (which include smoking food) are allowed for cooking and warmth, while burning leaves, trash, construction debris and yard waste remains illegal and burn barrels are strictly prohibited. A backyard smoker should be kept clear of structures and combustibles (the Fire Department's 25-foot setback applies to open recreational fires; an enclosed commercial smoker is a contained cooking appliance). Smokers must be attended while in use, and a properly managed cooking fire that produces excessive smoke can still be ordered extinguished if it creates a hazard or nuisance. No Idaho Falls ordinance specifically bans residential backyard food smokers.