Outdoor Cooking in Michigan (2026)
24 rules on the books across Michigan, 16 cities and counties. Select a rule to read the full details.
Severity: Few Restrictions · Light Restrictions · Some Restrictions · Significant Restrictions · Heavy Restrictions
BBQ & Propane Rules
When you can use a propane or charcoal grill on a balcony, deck, or patio. Many fire codes prohibit propane on multi-family balconies; some cities ban charcoal anywhere within 10 feet of a building.
Royal Oak
Heavy RestrictionsIn the City of Royal Oak, the local amendments to the 2015 International Fire Code at § 340-2 add IFC § 6104.5…
Read full rule →Farmington Hills
Significant RestrictionsFarmington Hills lets apartment, townhouse and condo residents keep charcoal or gas grills only on the ground level, at…
Read full rule →Warren
Significant RestrictionsWarren prohibits using any open-flame cooking device, including charcoal and propane burners and grills, inside a…
Read full rule →Battle Creek
Some RestrictionsIn the City of Battle Creek, Michigan, charcoal burners and other open-flame cooking devices cannot be operated on…
Read full rule →Clinton Township
Some RestrictionsClinton Township lets residents grill with gas, propane, charcoal or wood barbecues, but not on a balcony or open area…
Read full rule →Dearborn Heights
Some RestrictionsDearborn Heights' Fire Code, at Section 307.4, allows barbeque grills, charcoal burners, LP-gas and natural gas burners…
Read full rule →Detroit
Some RestrictionsDetroit requires outdoor cooking units, grills, barbecues, smokers, ovens not attached to a building, to sit in the…
Read full rule →Genesee County
Some RestrictionsBackyard grilling is generally allowed. The main restriction is the state fire code limit on using or storing LP-gas or…
Read full rule →Sterling Heights
Some RestrictionsSterling Heights bans charcoal burners and other open-flame cooking devices, including propane and gas grills, from…
Read full rule →Dearborn
Light RestrictionsDearborn exempts grilling with charcoal, propane, or natural gas grills, braziers, hibachis, and gas-fired stoves from…
Read full rule →Smoker Rules
Rules for backyard smokers, pellet grills, and wood-fired ovens including smoke-nuisance enforcement, time-of-day limits, and HOA restrictions.
Battle Creek
Some RestrictionsThe City of Battle Creek, Michigan, does not name smokers, but Section 1610.05(c) allows wood fires for food…
Read full rule →Clinton Township
Some RestrictionsA charcoal or wood-fired smoker qualifies as a 'barbeque' under Clinton Township's fire code, so the same setback rules…
Read full rule →Kalamazoo
Some RestrictionsIn the City of Kalamazoo, charcoal burners, smokers, and other open-flame cooking devices cannot be operated on a…
Read full rule →Royal Oak
Some RestrictionsIn the City of Royal Oak, § 340-5C of the Fire Prevention chapter restricts residential outdoor fires, including…
Read full rule →Royal Oak Township
Some RestrictionsRoyal Oak Township bans open burning of fuel, garbage and yard waste, but § 10-45 exempts fires of charcoal or…
Read full rule →Troy
Some RestrictionsTroy's fire code lets residents burn a small fire to cook food outdoors, but only within strict limits. Chapter 93…
Read full rule →Warren
Some RestrictionsWarren bars charcoal burners and other open-flame cooking devices from operating on or under combustible balconies or…
Read full rule →West Bloomfield
Some RestrictionsWest Bloomfield Township requires a building permit before installing an outdoor fireplace or outdoor stove, and…
Read full rule →Wyoming
Some RestrictionsWyoming, Michigan's outdoor cooker ordinance requires every outdoor cooker and smoker to carry a spark arrestor on its…
Read full rule →Detroit
Light RestrictionsDetroit lets you run a smoker, grill, or barbecue in your own rear or side yard without a permit, as long as it stays…
Read full rule →Rochester Hills
Light RestrictionsRochester Hills allows portable, solid-fuel outdoor fireplaces, the kind of steel or clay fire bowl many residents use…
Read full rule →Sterling Heights
Light RestrictionsCommercially-built barbecues and smokers can run in Sterling Heights without a permit, as long as they burn only…
Read full rule →Dearborn
Few RestrictionsDearborn's open burning ban doesn't cover charcoal, propane, or natural gas grills, smokers, and outdoor fireplaces…
Read full rule →Outdoor Kitchen Permits
Building permits for built-in outdoor kitchens, including gas line installation, electrical, plumbing, structural permits, and setback rules from the main house.