Neighbours cigarette and bbq smoke

huntcliff

Does anyone have any advice on how to deal with my chain smoking bbq munching neighbours.

I live in a detatched house and our neighbours to one side are chain smokers. They do not smoke in their house but in their garden. They have their patio area right next to the garden wall and whenever we are in the garden we share their cigarette smoke, which is constant. Unfortunatly the wind always blows our way so there is no let up.

They also have constant bbqs which means that for a good hour we cannot go in our garden as the smoke billows into ours. We have told them about the bbq smoke, politely but it continues to be a problem.

Its a tricky one as they are fully aware of the issue but not doing anything about it.

I have had friends round who smoke and even they say our garden smells really bad.

Does anyone have any ideas to help screen or counteract the smoke.

It is getting so frustraiting especially as we cannot enjoy our garden anymore.

tersus_slate

punch them in the face

DVardysShadow

tersus_slate wrote: »

punch them in the face

This is a DIY forum. When it comes to punching people in the face, it is better to get someone else to do it.

amersall

How does your garden smell of cigarette smoke? the wind blows it away, its not like it is contained in your garden.If it was in your house then yes thats not nice, but i dont see how its a problem outside.How can your friends say "your garden smells really bad" maybe it is the bbq smoke they can smell?.I am a smoker and i dont infringe on any body with my smoke, i live in a semi and smoke in my garage, if you are detached then they must be a longer distance away from you than they would be if they were in a semi? if i have a cig outside i make sure i am not near my neighbours fence, although i am lucky as my other neighbours fence is at the side of my garage, and they have greenhouses and sheds before the actual garden. Dont see a way around this to be honest.

aliasojo

amersall wrote: »

How does your garden smell of cigarette smoke? the wind blows it away, its not like it is contained in your garden.

I agree with the OP, this is a problem simply because the smoke doesn't just vanish instantly or get blown upwards and away. Unless it's blowing a gale (in which case it wouldn't be a problem because no-one would be out in their gardens then ), the smoke will not disperse instantly.

The old chap next to me was a nightmare for us, small gardens meant that he was beside the fence puffing away and we couldn't use half our garden because of the smell. We also couldn't even have our living room window open because it would waft in. He's passed away now and the difference in our enjoyment of our garden is greater. I never actually complained as I realised he only really had his cigs as his one last enjoyment and I didn't want to make things harder for him, but it really was annoying.

I think smokers should be made to wear 'head bubbles'. These would be attractive clear 'fish bowl shaped' head wear which will contain the smoke thus avoiding annoying others and ensuring others are free to breath the good clean air nature supplied us with. They would also save the smoker money in the long run as the effects of the cigs will be inside the bubble and can be breathed in for longer. A small 'non-return' valve would be inset at mouth level and the cig can be inhaled at this point but the smoke would not automatically pass back through. A small hatch could be placed at the top of the bubble to manually allow the smoke to escape upwards, whenever the smoker is about to pass out with the fumes.

Have I just come up with an excellent new invention? Any takers? :rotfl:

huntcliff

Love your reply Aliasojo

Made us laugh. Look forward to seeing you on dragons den.

I just dont think that smokers realise how anti social they really are. We do have to close our back windows as the house gets the smoke too.

If they dont think smoke is so bad why dont they smoke in their own homes.

I have tried incence sticks but that makes me feel equally sick. Was thinking of planting bamboo to shield the smoke.

fluffpot

Difficult one, not sure there'e much you can do really.
My husband is a smoker but I'm not and I really think that smokers are not aware of how much smell they create for non smokers - it's not that they don't care, it's just that I guess being in the thick of it so to speak, they can't tell the difference. So I don't think your neighbours are being malicious, just going about their normal daily life I'm afraid...

Soubrette

amersall wrote: »

How does your garden smell of cigarette smoke? the wind blows it away, its not like it is contained in your garden.If it was in your house then yes thats not nice, but i dont see how its a problem outside.How can your friends say "your garden smells really bad" maybe it is the bbq smoke they can smell?.I am a smoker and i dont infringe on any body with my smoke, i live in a semi and smoke in my garage, if you are detached then they must be a longer distance away from you than they would be if they were in a semi? if i have a cig outside i make sure i am not near my neighbours fence, although i am lucky as my other neighbours fence is at the side of my garage, and they have greenhouses and sheds before the actual garden. Dont see a way around this to be honest.

I used to live next door to smokers - the smell came through the fire and if both of us had our bedroom windows open, the smell would come into our room I never complained because they are entitled to the enjoyment of their living space as we are, they weren't doing anything wrong and I honestly don't think it's a health risk - just annoying.

As to another posters question about why smokers don't smoke inside, a lot smokers live with non smokers or children so don't smoke around them. Other smokers don't like the yellow staining that smoking leaves on white ceilings etc so prefer to smoke outside.

broonbear

we had a similar problem years ago with a young couple so my father in law planted a row of leylandii next to the fence and now the hedge blocks out their smoke doesn't block any sunlight gives me more privacy and lets me smile on the other side of my face when they ask me if i could trim some height off of the top of the hedge..like thats ever going to happen:):):):)

dander

amersall wrote: »

How does your garden smell of cigarette smoke? the wind blows it away, its not like it is contained in your garden.

There's something about the body's reaction to smoking that dulls the sense of smell, so smokers are usually unaware of quite how strongly they smell to others, and how much the smell can linger. It's also one of the reasons why ex-smokers can be more anti-smoking than people who have never smoked, because once they stop and their sense of smell improves, they become much more aware of the lingering smells.

If you've already asked them to at least smoke/bbq further from your house, then it's tricky. I would say plants are going to be your best method of screening because they'll absorb the smell more than something harder. Also, although there are rules about how high you can build a wall or fence, plants/hedges are unrestricted. This could be a place for some fast-growing leylandii, which you could get to a decent height quite quickly - you would have to keep on top of the maintenance though, if you let them get out of control, they could be more trouble than they're worth.

Oh, and I had a bbq last night with one of those mini-tin disposal jobbies you buy from supermarkets - the amount of smoke was astonishing. Maybe you could get a few of those and just light them every time the wind's in the right direction to give them a taste of their own medicine.

chelms38

Personally I would borrow/or buy an incinerator to burn rubbish at the same time they light up their cigarettes so they get smoke in their garden.