Can I have a fire pit in my backyard in Nashville?

Yes, if it sits at least 25 feet from the house, other structures and anything combustible, with a 2A-10BC extinguisher and water nearby. That is Metro Code 10.64.017, adopted with the 2024 fire code in October 2025. A burn ban can still prohibit open flames on a given day.

Do you need a permit for an outdoor fireplace in Nashville?

Metro has no standing backyard burn permit; the Fire Marshal’s Office answers “No” on residential burn permits for brush. Section 10.64.017 does require any permit the fire marshal or health director calls for, and a masonry fireplace on a poured footing is worth asking Metro Codes about with the plan in hand.

Is a gas fire pit considered an open fire?

Ask the fire marshal before you count on it. Metro’s 10.64.017 is written for recreational fires, and a gas fire pit listed to ANSI Z21.97 is a manufactured appliance with clearances in its own manual. During a burn ban, check whether the order covers gas appliances before lighting one.

Where should a fire pit go in the backyard?

Measure 25 feet from the house, the deck, the fence, sheds and overhanging branches, and put the pit where all of them fall outside that circle. Then check which way the evening breeze blows so the smoke drifts away from the windows, and leave room for chairs on every side.

Should I get a gas or a wood fire pit?

Wood gives real flame and smoke and needs only a liner and a level base. Gas lights with a switch, burns clean and leaves no ash, but it needs a line trenched from the meter or a tank, a shutoff and a listed burner, so it costs more to build.

How much does an outdoor fireplace cost?

More than a fire pit, because it is a bigger build: a poured footing, a firebox, a hearth and a chimney, laid in brick or stone. The stone, the height of the chimney and whether gas runs to it move the number most. The price comes after the site is measured.

Fire Pit Builders in Nashville | Nashville Outdoor Works Co.

Can you have a fire pit in your backyard in Nashville?

Yes, with room around it. Metro Council adopted the 2024 International Fire Code with local amendments in October 2025 (BL2025-1004), and its new section 10.64.017 sets the terms for a recreational fire: 25 feet or more from any structure or combustible material, a 2A-10BC extinguisher and a water supply at hand, and any permit the fire marshal or the health director requires taken out first.

Outdoor fireplaces and grills get a shorter number, 15 feet, measured from combustible material and from buildings with more than two dwelling units. The same ordinance lets the fire official prohibit open flames outright, which is how a burn ban reaches a backyard.

Where should the fire pit go?

Draw the 25-foot circle first. On a lot of city yards that rules out the corner against the deck and points to the far side of the patio, or a gravel pad of its own at the end of a short path. A wood fence, a shed and low branches all count as combustible. Then watch which way the evening breeze runs, so the smoke drifts away from the windows.

Wood, gas or a fireplace?

A wood pit is a ring of block or stone around a steel liner, set on the patio or on its own pad. A gas pit adds a burner, a line from the meter or a tank, and a shutoff; outdoor decorative gas appliances are listed to ANSI Z21.97/CSA 2.41, and the burner should carry that listing. A masonry fireplace is the larger build, with a poured footing, a firebox, a hearth and a chimney, and it gives a patio a wall on one side.

What changes the cost

Size, fuel and the stone. A round pit in split stone needs little more than a level base. A gas line has to be trenched from the house, and a fireplace climbs in courses from a footing to the top of its flue. Tennessee fieldstone, cut limestone and brick matched to the house each change the labor as much as the material.

Sources

Metro Nashville ordinance BL2025-1004 — 2024 IFC adoption, Metro Code 10.64.017 recreational fires
Nashville Fire Marshal’s Office, frequently asked questions — residential burn permits
ANSI Z21.97 / CSA 2.41 — outdoor decorative gas appliances

Fire pits and outdoor fireplaces in Nashville