San Mateo, CA Outdoor Cooking: Smoker Rules (2026)

Smokers and wood-fired or charcoal barbecues are treated as cooking devices, not open burning, under the California Fire Code (section 307.6), so they do not require a burn permit at a residence in unincorporated San Mateo County. They are enforced by CAL FIRE / San Mateo County Fire under the California Fire Code. The key distinction is fuel: smokers burn wood, wood pellets, or charcoal, which produce particulate smoke. While BAAQMD's mandatory wood-burning ban (Regulation 6, Rule 3) is aimed at fireplaces, woodstoves, fire pits, and recreational fires rather than cooking, the Air District strongly encourages residents to avoid wood and charcoal smoke and to be considerate of neighbors on Spare the Air days; persistent smoke that creates a public nuisance can draw an enforcement response. Operationally, smokers must be kept away from structures and combustible materials and never left unattended near dry vegetation. Commercial solid-fuel cooking operations are separately regulated under California Fire Code section 609 and Chapter 6 (commercial kitchen exhaust and solid-fuel appliances). In Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones (the Santa Cruz Mountains and coastal hills), CAL FIRE may restrict charcoal and open-flame/solid-fuel cooking during red-flag and high fire danger conditions. Electric and gas smokers/pellet grills with spark arrestors are the lowest-risk options during fire season. No San Mateo County ordinance specifically targets residential smokers; rules derive from the state fire code, air-district guidance, and nuisance law.