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

The City of Twin Falls handles outdoor cooking fires through the open burning section of its garbage and sanitary disposal chapter. Section 7-3-7 declares it unlawful for any person to suffer, cause or permit open burning within the city if the burning is not in conformance with a permit from the Twin Falls fire department. The permit requirement carries a food exception: permits are not required for open fires used for the preparation of food, campfires and fires for recreational purposes, under control of a responsible person.

Cooking fires therefore need no permit, but the exemption depends on the fire being supervised. The words suffer, cause or permit mean a property owner who lets someone else burn is covered, not only the person lighting the fire. Other sections still apply to a cooking fire. In city parks, § 8-3-7(D) bars building or attempting to build a fire except in fireplaces provided for that purpose, and bars dropping, throwing or scattering burning material in any park area or on an abutting road. Section 7-1-21 declares excessive smoke a health hazard and public nuisance and makes it unlawful to allow excessive quantities of smoke emitted by appliances or fireplaces that disturbs, injures or endangers the comfort, repose, health, peace, safety and welfare of others; subsection (B) sets an opacity limit of twenty percent (20%) after thirty (30) minutes from initial start up, measured by a certified visual emissions evaluator.

Ash disposal is covered by § 6-2-12(A): ashes must be kept in a receptacle of galvanized iron or other noncombustible material not less than two inches (2") from any woodwork or structure, or deposited on the ground not less than ten feet (10') from any wood building or structure.