Illinois installation guides.
An Illinois EPA booklet says woodstoves are not prohibited in Illinois, but fuels and operation are limited to what the stove’s manufacturer specifies, and local governments may adopt stricter rules. The booklet was last revised in April 2011.
Illinois EPA ‘Burning Question’ booklet (rev. April 2011, PDF)Choose your city.
Addison
DuPage County / West suburbsAddison’s building code sets a fireplace inspection for prefab units after the firebox, chimney and fire stopping are installed but before anything is concealed.
Read the guideAlgonquin
McHenry and Kane counties / Fox RiverAlgonquin’s 2026 fee schedule prices a fireplace permit at a flat $45.00, and in the Old Town District the Historic Commission must approve before plan review starts.
Read the guideArlington Heights
Cook County / northwest suburbsArlington Heights’ fee code lists a separate $40 chimney fee, and village law requires anyone selling or delivering firewood in the village to hold a solid fuel dealer’s license.
Read the guideAurora
Kane, DuPage, Kendall and Will counties / Fox ValleyAurora’s building code registers fireplace installation contractors as their own category, citing National Fireplace Institute certification as an example qualification.
Read the guideBartlett
Cook, DuPage and Kane counties / Northwest suburbsBartlett’s building code requires mechanical flues that extend above the roofline to be covered with decorative flue housing or the same material used on the house’s exterior walls.
Read the guideBloomington
McLean County / Bloomington-NormalBloomington requires HVAC contractors to register with the city, show an ICC test certificate and carry a $2,000 permit bond before pulling permits.
Read the guideBolingbrook
Will and DuPage counties / southwest suburbsBolingbrook’s code bars anyone but a registered contractor, backed by a surety bond of at least $20,000, from installing heat-producing equipment, though owners may do their own work with a permit.
Read the guideBuffalo Grove
Lake and Cook counties / Northwest suburbsBuffalo Grove publishes its own fireplace and chimney permit page: installing or replacing a fireplace is a $400 residential remodel permit, and structural chimney repair is $200.
Read the guideCarol Stream
DuPage County / West suburbsCarol Stream’s 2026 residential fee schedule lists a $96 permit for a prefab fireplace and $128 for a masonry fireplace, and raises the fee by 50% (at least $150) when work starts before the permit.
Read the guideCarpentersville
Kane County / Fox RiverCarpentersville lets an owner who lives in the home skip the contractor license for work on it, but only after signing a notarized permit certification form, and relatives who live elsewhere can’t use the exception.
Read the guideChampaign
Champaign County / Champaign-UrbanaIn Champaign’s landmarks and historic districts, exterior changes need a Certificate of Appropriateness even when no building permit is required.
Read the guideChicago
Cook County / ChicagolandChicago’s mechanical code requires wood-burning stoves and room heaters to draw outdoor combustion air through a UL-listed outside air kit.
Read the guideCicero
Cook County / near west suburbsCicero’s town code lists fireplaces among work that needs a permit and must be installed by a contractor licensed and bonded to work in the town.
Read the guideCrystal Lake
McHenry County / Northwest suburbsCrystal Lake files fireplace work as a Residential Alteration in its ez APP system, and the 2026 fee schedule adds a charge equal to 100% of the permit fee if work starts without a permit.
Read the guideDes Plaines
Cook County / Northwest suburbsDes Plaines’s air pollution code bars home heating equipment in single-family houses from ever emitting smoke darker than No. 1 on the Ringelmann chart, a stricter limit than for other sources.
Read the guideDowners Grove
DuPage County / Western suburbsDowners Grove’s preservation code requires a certificate of appropriateness only for permitted work affecting a landmark’s street-facing façade, so rear chimney work not visible from the street can be exempt.
Read the guideElgin
Kane and Cook counties / Fox River ValleyElgin’s historic design guidelines say original chimneys should not be removed or altered, and metal chimney caps are acceptable only if minimally visible.
Read the guideElk Grove Village
Cook and DuPage counties / Northwest suburbsElk Grove Village has adopted the 2024 International Residential and Mechanical Codes, and its residential permit checklists don’t include stoves, so staff decide what a stove project needs.
Read the guideElmhurst
DuPage County / Western suburbsElmhurst lists fireplaces as their own permit type, and its 2026–27 fee schedule charges $356 for a masonry fireplace permit, about double the $177 direct-vent or ventless fireplace fee.
Read the guideEvanston
Cook County / North ShoreIn Evanston’s historic districts, the city won’t act on a building permit for exterior work until the Preservation Commission issues a certificate of appropriateness.
Read the guideGlen Ellyn
DuPage County / Western suburbsGlen Ellyn’s historic preservation guidelines ask owners to keep original brick chimneys, uncoated, and to restore them to their original design where it is documented.
Read the guideGlendale Heights
DuPage County / West suburbsGlendale Heights accepts residential permit applications only when signed by the owner of record or the contractor doing the work, and requires an HOA approval letter where an association exists.
Read the guideGlenview
Cook County / North Shore suburbsGlenview’s residential code amendments adopt NFPA 211, the national standard for chimneys, fireplaces, vents and solid fuel-burning appliances, by reference.
Read the guideGurnee
Lake County / Northern suburbsGurnee moved to the 2024 international building, residential, mechanical and fire codes on March 1, 2026, replacing the 2012 editions it had used until then.
Read the guideHanover Park
Cook and DuPage counties / Northwest suburbsHanover Park won’t issue a building permit until every contractor on the job is registered and bonded with the village, with a $10,000 permit bond for most trades.
Read the guideHighland Park
Lake County / North ShoreHighland Park regulates more than 130 historic structures, and its Certificate of Appropriateness rule covers exterior changes even where they can’t be seen from the street.
Read the guideHoffman Estates
Cook County / Northwest suburbsHoffman Estates amends its residential code so that a fuel-burning appliance inside a bedroom or its attached bath requires a carbon monoxide alarm in that bedroom.
Read the guideHuntley
McHenry and Kane counties / Northwest suburbsHuntley’s 2026 fee schedule prices an indoor fireplace permit at $83.00, and starting without a permit adds a penalty of at least $100 or 100% of the permit fee.
Read the guideJoliet
Will County / southwest suburbsFor Joliet local landmarks, even interior construction that affects structural members needs a Certificate of Appropriateness, and no other city permit can issue first.
Read the guideLake in the Hills
McHenry County / Randall RoadLake in the Hills’ fireplace handout says a wood-burning fireplace must have a tight-fitting flue damper or gasketed doors, and a prefab chase needs 5/8-inch drywall on walls shared with the house.
Read the guideLombard
DuPage County / Western suburbsLombard requires every contractor doing permitted work to hold a $100 yearly village registration, and heating contractors must file a certificate of insurance with at least $300,000 in liability coverage.
Read the guideMcHenry
McHenry County / Fox RiverMcHenry’s residential fee schedule lists a fireplace permit at $50.00, and for homes in the floodplain the city adds up improvement costs over five years under its 50% Rule.
Read the guideMoline
Rock Island County / Quad Cities (Illinois side)Moline requires every trade subcontractor to register with the city, and a mechanical registration needs a master mechanical exam or another Illinois city’s license, five years’ experience and a $5,000 bond.
Read the guideMount Prospect
Cook County / Northwest suburbsMount Prospect’s flat residential fee table puts chimney repair and HVAC work in a $200 tier that includes a $100 refundable bond, and the village says fireplace work needs a building permit.
Read the guideMundelein
Lake County / Northwest suburbsMundelein’s building code names “Fireplace, new” as a standard permit, a flat $125 under the village fee schedule, while a furnace replacement is a $75 minor permit.
Read the guideNaperville
DuPage and Will counties / western suburbsNaperville’s historic district rules exempt work on rear or interior-side façades not visible from the street from Certificate of Appropriateness review.
Read the guideNew Lenox
Will County / Southwest suburbsNew Lenox’s mechanical code adopts Appendix A of the 2018 International Mechanical Code, which sets out how a chimney connector may pass through a combustible wall.
Read the guideNiles
Cook County / North and Northwest suburbsEvery contractor working in Niles must register with the village, usually for $40, and all registrations expire each year on April 30.
Read the guideNormal
McLean County / Bloomington-NormalThe Town of Normal’s homeowner HVAC permit lists ‘Fireplace’ as its own installation type, and fees start at $30 for jobs up to $2,000.
Read the guideNorth Chicago
Lake County / North Shore lakefrontAbout two-thirds of North Chicago homes are rented, and the city requires every residential landlord to hold an annual license, so most stove projects start with the owner.
Read the guideNorthbrook
Cook County / North Shore suburbsNorthbrook’s residential code makes permitted alterations bring a home’s smoke alarms up to new-construction standards, but exempts mechanical work, so how a stove is classed matters.
Read the guideOak Park
Cook County / Near west suburbsOak Park’s three local historic districts cover about a third of the village, and every building permit inside them is reviewed against the preservation ordinance and design guidelines.
Read the guideOrland Park
Cook County / Southwest suburbsOrland Park requires a Certificate of Appropriateness before any construction or alteration to a property in the Old Orland Historic District or to a village landmark.
Read the guidePalatine
Cook County / Northwest suburbsPalatine’s permit list names ‘adding a fireplace’ as work that needs a building permit, and village code makes dense smoke from any chimney that annoys residents unlawful.
Read the guidePark Ridge
Cook County / Northwest suburbsPark Ridge’s mechanical code requires any chimney serving a wood or solid fuel burning appliance to extend at least three feet above any structure within 20 feet.
Read the guidePeoria
Peoria County / Greater PeoriaPeoria’s building safety permit list names wood stoves outright: adding a fireplace, wood stove or unit heater requires a permit from Community Development.
Read the guidePlainfield
Will and Kendall counties / Southwest suburbsIn Plainfield’s East Side and Downtown historic districts, a certificate of appropriateness is required before the village issues a permit for major work that may change a building’s exterior.
Read the guideQuincy
Adams County / Mississippi River (Illinois side)Quincy requires building permits not only inside the city but in the area up to one and a half miles beyond its corporate limits.
Read the guideRock Island
Rock Island County / Quad Cities (Illinois side)Rock Island’s mechanical contractor registration lists Wood/Gas Fireplaces as its own license-holder class, and the city’s mechanical permit application has a separate Chimney Liner line.
Read the guideRockford
Winnebago County / Rock River ValleyRockford’s property standards say a fireplace or wood-burning appliance cannot be a building’s primary heat source, while owners must keep habitable rooms at 68°F from October 1 to April 1.
Read the guideRomeoville
Will County / Southwest suburbsRomeoville’s residential code amendments require any chimney passing through living space or closets to be enclosed in 5/8-inch Type X gypsum board, and they ban unvented fuel-fired room heaters and fireplaces.
Read the guideSchaumburg
Cook County / northwest suburbsSchaumburg’s Fireplace Resource Guide says a permit is required to install a wood burning stove and lists three inspections, from the hearth base to a final.
Read the guideSkokie
Cook County / North Shore suburbsSkokie’s code sets a $75 base mechanical permit fee plus $50 for heating equipment, and requires heating contractors to register with the village every 12 months.
Read the guideSpringfield
Sangamon County / Central IllinoisSpringfield’s mechanical permit application lists ‘solid fuel appliance’ as its own line item, and the city keeps a separate Solid Fuel/Vented Decorative Appliance contractor license backed by a $5,000 surety bond.
Read the guideSt. Charles
Kane and DuPage counties / Fox ValleyIn St. Charles’ historic districts, staff can approve a like-for-like rebuild of a plain brick chimney, but adding corbelling or decorative chimney caps goes to the Historic Preservation Commission.
Read the guideStreamwood
Cook County / Northwest suburbsStreamwood’s residential code requires an approved spark arrestor on all fireplace chimneys and does not allow unvented fireplaces to be installed under any circumstances.
Read the guideTinley Park
Cook and Will counties / Southwest suburbsTinley Park adopted the Cook County Environmental Control Ordinance as its own, so the county’s air rules apply across the village, including its Will County side.
Read the guideUrbana
Champaign County / Champaign-UrbanaUrbana has 20 local historic landmarks and three local historic districts, and exterior changes to them need a Certificate of Appropriateness.
Read the guideWaukegan
Lake County / North Shore lakefrontWaukegan’s November 2021 permit report lists a permit to install a wood stove in an existing fireplace with an insulated stainless steel chimney liner.
Read the guideWheaton
DuPage County / Western suburbsWheaton’s fireplace permit guideline requires plans signed and sealed by an Illinois-licensed professional for fireplaces installed inside a home, and the city fee schedule lists a $175 fireplace permit.
Read the guideWheeling
Cook and Lake counties / North suburbsWheeling lists fireplaces among its common building permits, and its fee schedule sets $57.25 for a residential prefab fireplace and $73.50 for a masonry one.
Read the guideWoodridge
DuPage and Will counties / West suburbsWoodridge’s mechanical code adopts Appendix A of the International Mechanical Code, on chimney connector pass-throughs, in its entirety, so stovepipe routed through a combustible wall must follow it.
Read the guide
We add guides as local research is completed. Rules and business coverage vary by address. Explore national planning guides for areas not yet covered.