Tempe, AZ Outdoor Cooking: Smoker Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Core rule
- No open-flame cooking within 10 feet of any structure
- Balconies
- Charcoal burners and open-flame cookers banned outright
- Exemption
- One- and two-family dwellings fully exempt
- Enforcement
- Community Risk Reduction Division, Fire Medical Rescue Dept.
- Penalty
- Up to $2,500 fine or 6 months jail, or both
- Appeal
- To Fire Chief within 30 days, Section 112.1
- Source
- Added by Ord. No. O2026.24, effective June 4, 2026
Summary
Tempe's Fire Code bans operating charcoal burners and other open-flame cooking devices on balconies or within 10 feet of any structure, under Fire Code Section 308.5 of City Code Chapter 14. The rule targets multi-family buildings; one- and two-family dwellings are fully exempt, so a house with a yard can run a charcoal smoker against the exterior wall. The Fire Medical Rescue Department enforces it.
Section 308.5 is hereby added as follows:
308.5 Open-flame cooking devices. Charcoal burners and other open-flame cooking devices shall not be operated on balconies or within 10 feet (3048 mm) of any structure.
Exceptions:
1.One- and two-family dwellings.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: City Code: Supplement 33 Update 4 | Zoning and Development Code: Supplement 11 Update 2).
Full Breakdown
5 to Chapter 14 of the Tempe City Code (Division 2, Fire Code Amendments, most recently reflecting Ord. No. 24, Section 13, Exhibit B, adopted June 4, 2026). The added text is direct: charcoal burners and other open-flame cooking devices, which covers charcoal smokers, hibachis and similar solid-fuel or open-flame equipment, cannot be run on a balcony or within 10 feet (3048 mm) of any structure. Section 14-41 makes this and the rest of Division 2 both a part of the Tempe City Code and a part of the International Fire Code itself, so a citation carries the weight of the adopted fire code, not just a local add-on.
The 10-foot clearance and balcony ban exist to keep radiant heat, sparks and grease flare-ups away from siding, eaves and neighboring units, the exact hazard behind balcony fires in apartment and condo buildings. 5; the clearance and balcony rules bind occupants of apartments, townhomes and other multi-family complexes instead. 1, with inspection and administration authority under Section 14-17. 1, which was added to replace the prior means-of-appeals sections.
Violations & Fines
Chapter 14 sets no stand-alone fine for Section 308.5, so it falls under the Tempe City Code's general penalty, Section 1-7: a violation is punishable by a fine up to $2,500 plus applicable surcharges, imprisonment up to six months, or both, at the Tempe Municipal Court's discretion, with probation up to three years available in the judge's discretion. Every day the open-flame device keeps operating on a balcony or inside the 10-foot clearance counts as a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Sources & Official References
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