It started just before 9am when car tyres stacked next to an incinerator caught fire and burnt a wooden fence at the back of the petrol station.
The Outram, Mosgiel and Lookout Point fire crews were called to the blaze, which was ''well involved'' when they arrived, Outram Chief Fire Officer John Eaton said.
Firefighters quickly had the situation under control and only a section of the fence was damaged, along with the tyres.
''It was lucky it didn't spread further along the fence and closer to property,'' Mr Eaton said.
The incinerator was too close to the wooden fence and car tyres should not have been stacked beside it, he said.
''Ideally, incinerators should be 50m from a property boundary, but that's virtually impossible in built-up areas. This is a lesson in where not to have an incinerator,'' he said.
Outram Garage manager Dean Warnock said the incinerator had been used in that location for at least 10 years without incident.
He wondered whether the stack of tyres had fallen over, or if some sparks had been blown out of the incinerator and ignited the fence.
Cardboard had been burning in the incinerator, which would be moved to a different location, he said.
