Got hit with a $350 fee for a tiny balcony fire pit in Sacramento

I bought one of those little solo stoves for my apartment balcony, the small one. Thought it was fine since it was raised off the wood deck. After three uses my downstairs neighbor complained about smoke getting in her window. Landlord sent a warning, then the city fire inspector showed up and slapped me with a $350 citation for violating the open flame rule in multi-unit buildings. I even called the fire department beforehand and they said it was okay, but the written code says something different. Has anyone else dealt with conflicting info from city officials on stuff like this?

2 comments

2 Comments

norab218d ago

The code is the code, sorry. Calling a random fire department employee doesn’t override what’s written in the municipal regulations, and that $350 fee is exactly why you verify with the actual written rules first. You took a risk by using a fire pit on a wood deck in a multi-unit building and got caught, so this one’s on you.

the_holly8d ago

One call to a random FD employee is just that though @norab21, a random opinion from someone who might've been having a bad day or not even know the exact rules for that specific complex. I get the code is written down, but tons of people have used fire pits on decks for years without issue, it's not like he was cooking inside an elevator. The $350 fee feels more like a money grab than some huge safety violation, and the real problem is the building being poorly designed for something that common.