Are chimineas (spelling?) legal in Norfolk?

Those clay or wire firepits...you know what I mean? Are they legal? As long as you are cooking something on them? Anyone know?

Emergency Services Fire Chimineas
Open air burning is regulated by Norfolk County By-law 2003-98. For a full copy of the Burning By-law, please click here.
CAN I HAVE A CAMPFIRE IN MY BACK YARD?
Those who live in areas zoned Rural or Agricultural may have a campfire on privately owned land provide that:
the fire is for the provision of warmth or for cooking
that the area designated for the fire is not more than 66 centimeters (26 in) in any horizontal dimension
all materials to be burned are contained around the complete perimeter of the area by an barrier of metal, masonry, ceramic or stone
the pile of materials to be burned is not more than 66 centimeters in height
the fire is controlled such that flames and hot embers do not pose an undue risk of fire to nearby combustible materials
the fire is attended at all times by a responsible person
All residents of Norfolk County are permitted to have a "chiminea" at their home, cottage or trailer. A Chiminea is described in the bylaw as " a device largely made from pottery and which is equipped with a chimney and a substantially enclosed hearth; and in which a recreational fire may be set."
The following conditions apply to Chimineas:
no portion of the hearth shall be more than 61 centimeters (24 inches) in diameter
all openings in the Chiminea are completely covered at all times by a suitable metal wire mesh with a grid openings of not more than 6 mm (1/4") in diameter
only clean and dry wood or charcoal shall be burned
the Chiminea shall not be placed on any combustible surface
the fire is controlled such that flames and hot embers do not pose and undue risk of fire to nearby combustible materials
that the fire is attended at all times by a responsible person to supervise it

Thank you! I take that as a yes! Good!

Yes, my dad has one and he lives about 2 blocks from you cking.

They also stink up your house if you live down wind froom one and like to have windows open.

Are they any worse than a gas barbecue? Lots of those in our neighbourhood!
I would rather smell wood burning than propane any day!

Chimneas are a pleasant entertaining pastime, but they burn wood. Wood and propane produce totally different byproducts.

When propane burns....
Propane undergoes combustion reactions in a similar fashion to other alkanes. In the presence of excess oxygen, propane burns to form water and carbon dioxide.
C3H8 + 5 O2 → 3 CO2 + 4 H2O + heat

When wood burns....
According to the EPA, wood smoke contains hundreds of chemical compounds including nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, and some carcinogenic chemicals, and also dangerous particulate matter. These all go right into the outdoor air where they contribute to pollution, but they also go into our lungs as we breathe the air coming out of the fireplace. This smoke can be be harmful to our health, and particularly to children and folks with asthma and other heart & lung conditions. So, sadly, burning wood is not good for our air quality– both indoor and outside. (And please check with your local air quality board as many cities and states have implemented strict regulations on home fires in order to curb pollution.)

When on a clear, cold winter evening, I go out for a walk and all I smell is putrid wood smoke from stoves and fireplaces, ....that's pollution and contrary to the "green" environmental movement so popular today. During the summer, we have enough "smog days" already without compounding the problem with urban campfires. I'm with Retired2, ...I wouldn't want to be living downwind from one either. That's just my opinion.

cking wrote:

Are they any worse than a gas barbecue? Lots of those in our neighbourhood!
I would rather smell wood burning than propane any day!

Well said Jonas , smoke is bad for us and it STINKS

Here's my take on this. We do not barbecue. We do not own a barbecue and have no desire to barbecue.

If I toast one marshmallow a month on a stick over my glowing coals in my 22" fire pit, the health risks are far less to my lungs and my body than the neighbours all around me barbecuing their fatty beef steaks with all the corresponding carcinogens formed when the fat hits the fire. (Lots of studies done on that.)

The smoke (water and CO2?) pouring over my fence...with that awful chemical smell is very offensive to me. If the by-products of burning propane are as inocuous as Jonas states, well, the propane barbecue process sure does make a stink in the meantime while it is producing water and CO2!

Here's something else I just thought in terms of emissions.
You know how they always say that asthma worsens when kids go back to school in the fall? And that more and more kids are getting asthma?

Think about the rows of buses IDLING when they drop or pick up the kids! (Diesel fumes are KNOWN to irritate kids with asthma.) And the buses never turn off their engines. No one has ever spoken of that issue as far as I know!
Diesel fumes make me sick right away. Dizzy and headachy and breathing difficulties. I need a puffer right away.

Imagine the kids riding on the buses...getting off and on the buses. And imagine the fumes in the schoolyard that linger after the morning drop off!

Im over 70 nice steaks on the bar-be 3=4 times a summer are a treat

One final observation....Using the propane BBQ for cooking and grilling food is much different than someone burning their food/meat with high smoke/ carbon created. It's all on how you use the BBQ...and the chimnea for that matter. No big deal if used properly.
What I was responding to originally was your preference for wood smoke over burning propane. The point is if burned efficiently, propane gives off no smoke. If you burn stuff on this clean flame, of course it will give off smoke etc. I would actually prefer the smell of a grilled steak over a smokey wood fire. That's just my personal preference. Many things can be cooked on a BBQ without producing any smoke at all.

cking wrote:

Here's my take on this. We do not barbecue. We do not own a barbecue and have no desire to barbecue.

If I toast one marshmallow a month on a stick over my glowing coals in my 22" fire pit, the health risks are far less to my lungs and my body than the neighbours all around me barbecuing their fatty beef steaks with all the corresponding carcinogens formed when the fat hits the fire. (Lots of studies done on that.)

The smoke (water and CO2?) pouring over my fence...with that awful chemical smell is very offensive to me. If the by-products of burning propane are as inocuous as Jonas states, well, the propane barbecue process sure does make a stink in the meantime while it is producing water and CO2!

Here's something else I just thought in terms of emissions.
You know how they always say that asthma worsens when kids go back to school in the fall? And that more and more kids are getting asthma?

Think about the rows of buses IDLING when they drop or pick up the kids! (Diesel fumes are KNOWN to irritate kids with asthma.) And the buses never turn off their engines. No one has ever spoken of that issue as far as I know!
Diesel fumes make me sick right away. Dizzy and headachy and breathing difficulties. I need a puffer right away.

Imagine the kids riding on the buses...getting off and on the buses. And imagine the fumes in the schoolyard that linger after the morning drop off!

Go live in Hamilton for a month. I guarantee that will stop ALL your complaints about pollution out here....

It's absolutlely DISGUSTING there..... a black film will form on your patio overnight if you live near any of the steel factories...and you can literally see a yellow/brown fog over Hamilton from the Escarpment.......blegh!

I would go for a bus spewing diesel fumes for 10 minutes ANY day over living near Hamilton again!




Oh, and who eats ONE toasted marshmallow a month anyway?

"Many things can be cooked on a BBQ without producing any smoke at all."

HAHAHAHA! Tell my neighbours that! I think they are having SMOKED steaks! Or smoked sausages and smoked baked potatoes!

My lungs react to diesel and propane and lawn mower fumes. But not to wood smoke. Figure that!

"nice steaks on the bar-be 3=4 times a summer are a treat

I was thinking the other day at Sobey's...WHO is buying these $12 to $22 Tbone steaks? I find that outrageous. The size of my outstretched hand!

When you talk about RARE steaks these days..it means you can RARELY afford them!

We buy our steaks when there on sale $4.99 a lb never in the summer

I enjoy my BBQ and my chiminea quite frequently. If you don't like the smell of something .. then please hold your breath, or go inside your home and shut your windows. Why should I sacrifice my enjoyment because you don't like the smell?

I couldn't tell you the number of times that I have had to hold my breath because someone's perfume/cologne is offensive to me! I just hold my breath and walk away.

Enjoy it all you want as long as you keep the smell on your property. If you like the smell of the chiminea soo much why not put it in your living room.

Retired2 wrote:

Enjoy it all you want as long as you keep the smell on your property. If you like the smell of the chiminea soo much why not put it in your living room.

A lot of people DO have wood burning stoves / fireplaces in their homes still and love them.

rye wrote:

Retired2 wrote:

Enjoy it all you want as long as you keep the smell on your property. If you like the smell of the chiminea soo much why not put it in your living room.

A lot of people DO have wood burning stoves / fireplaces in their homes still and love them.

Right and it doesn't stink up my house.

farmersdaughter wrote:

I enjoy my BBQ and my chiminea quite frequently. If you don't like the smell of something .. then please hold your breath, or go inside your home and shut your windows. Why should I sacrifice my enjoyment because you don't like the smell?

I couldn't tell you the number of times that I have had to hold my breath because someone's perfume/cologne is offensive to me! I just hold my breath and walk away.

I assume you smoke in elevators also????

Retired2 wrote:

rye wrote:

Retired2 wrote:

Enjoy it all you want as long as you keep the smell on your property. If you like the smell of the chiminea soo much why not put it in your living room.

A lot of people DO have wood burning stoves / fireplaces in their homes still and love them.

Right and it doesn't stink up my house.

Unless someones burning plastic or having a huge bon-fire in their backyard, I don't see it being something to get your panties in a bunch over....there are bigger things to worry about.

ummm....no I don't smoke ... at all! That was a stupid comment to begin with!

the point is ... its the outdoors and wood burning is a smell for the outdoors. I suppose you complain about the farmer too!!

What about the fumes from lawn mowers?? I think that is the worst smell of all! And motorcycles. And one farmer has sulphur water when he irrigates ...and someone in the vicinity uses pig manure on the fields. We have ALL of these in our neighbourhood. You cannot stop people from making smells! You cannot control every little thing in the world!

farmersdaughter wrote:

ummm....no I don't smoke ... at all! That was a stupid comment to begin with!

the point is ... its the outdoors and wood burning is a smell for the outdoors. I suppose you complain about the farmer too!!

About as stupid as the comment about holding your breath!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Retired2 wrote:

farmersdaughter wrote:

ummm....no I don't smoke ... at all! That was a stupid comment to begin with!

the point is ... its the outdoors and wood burning is a smell for the outdoors. I suppose you complain about the farmer too!!

About as stupid as the comment about holding your breath!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not really....there are LOTS of people with bad perfume, or bad body odour...and what CAN you do but hold your breath?