House smells of smoke from next door

sm1971

Title says it all really; our neighbours are heavy smokers and we can smell it in our house. It's got worse recently and we have an almost constant smoke smell in our bathroom and hall although it's now spreading to rooms further away from where our house joins theirs.

We're ardent non-smokers and hate the smell. I don't like using air fresheners (OH is asthmatic) so want to stop the smell getting in in the first place, rather than masking it once it's here.

Any ideas?

babyshoes

We've had a similar problem with the flat downstairs. In our situation, we know it gets in through their poorly insulated ceiling and our floorboards which have gaps in them (especially under the bath) and there is no underlay under the carpet. As both flats are rented and have different landlords, there's not really much to be done. Luckily for us, the downstairs landlord seems to be a bit unpleasant and his tenants seldom last long so the most recent smokers are gone, while our landlord is pretty good and we've been here nearly 10 years!

In your case, I'd try to figure out where the smell is getting in through tiny gaps in floorboards, walls, ventilation bricks etc and do what you can to fill them in. It may also be that the smell is coming in through a window - for example if they are smoking out of their window and yours is close by it could come in through that.

To reduce the smell, try spraying vinegar into the air instead of air freshner. It smells like vinegar for a while, but once the chip shop smell goes it takes other smells with it. A bowl of bicarb in the worst rooms will also help to absorb a bit of the smell.

If you feel you could speak to the neighbours, perhaps you could explain the problem nicely and ask if it might be possible for them to smoke less in the rooms that directly adjoin your house. Not all neighbours are approachable though so it may not be possible.

If it gets to a point where your OH's asthma is affected by the smoke and/or if it stops you being able to enjoy your own home, you could probably get your local environmental health team involved - they deal with issues such as noise, air quality etc. Look at your local council website to find out how to contact them. They will probably ask if you have spoken to the neighbour before they get involved - though if you have a valid reason for not speaking to them they shouldn't insist that you do.

lily117

I sympathise with you, we have the same, added to that we have the smell of curry twice every day, it goes on our clothes too. Not much we can do, I just open the windows when possible and burn a lot of perfumed candles to try and mask it. Hope you find a solution.

Valley's_girl

This happened to me this morning went in my bathroom half past four, and my bathroom was stinking of cannabis. Woman next door is a user she must of had a party out her back. I don't have a window only a skylight in the bathroom. The smell was coming through my extractor fan it was disgusting.

I used vinegar in a dish and placed this on top of the toilet cistern and left the extractor fan on for a good while glad to say the smell has gone.

rising_from_the_ashes

babyshoes wrote: »

If you feel you could speak to the neighbours, perhaps you could explain the problem nicely and ask if it might be possible for them to smoke less in the rooms that directly adjoin your house. Not all neighbours are approachable though so it may not be possible.

I have to say that I get on really well with my neighbours on both sides of me and know them pretty well - but I'd be absolutely livid if either of them said anything like that ...... sorry but it's their house and they're entitled to smoke anywhere they want to! (one of the few places left now!)

Seakay

To be honest I wouldn't approach your neighbours except from the point of view that there must be something wrong with the fabric and/or construction of the wall between your properties. Do either of you own the house you live in? How thick is the wall between you and what is it made of? Unless you have a wattle and daub and lime plaster construction (seems unlikely) then the wall should not be air permeable; even the attic should have a firewall between properties. If fumes are circulating between your properties then you both have a serious problem and I think that you need to get ideas from someone with building and/or construction experience because covering the smell - even if you could - is not going to resolve the issue. Maybe someone on the In My Home thread would have some ideas?

lily117

rising_from_the_ashes wrote: »

I have to say that I get on really well with my neighbours on both sides of me and know them pretty well - but I'd be absolutely livid if either of them said anything like that ...... sorry but it's their house and they're entitled to smoke anywhere they want to! (one of the few places left now!)

You have a point but then people are entitled to live in a smoke-free environment in their own homes too. We now know the dangers of passive smoking.

terryw

Oh dear. There is a problem with YOUR dwelling that allows fumes to enter YOUR dwelling and you wish someone else to fix this or alter their lifestyle to suit you?

lily117

The OP has come to ask for advice, not to start a for/against smoking argument. The problem could be in either property. As for the person who could smell cannabis, well that's awful.

sweetilemon

We get this now and again from the flat downstairs, not much we can do but vent' the flat and use room reeds and candles. Never used the vinegar thing though...does it soak up the smell or just mask it?

kittycatface

hi op that sounds awful, although i smoke occasionally still i much prefer to do it out of doors as the smell of stale smoke is truly hideous. there are some cleaning solutions similar to the poster before on this link, involving vinegar and bicarb:http://ask.yahoo.com/20021212.html
although all that seems quite labour intensive. another solution would be to work out where the smell is coming in: do your neighbours empty ashtrays into a bin thats v close to your house, or are they putting butts out either in your garden or leaving them for long periods in a pot out of doors? (also worth checking your own bin: found out some cheeky person had been putting butts out all over the yard and chucking them our wheelie bin: detective says it wasn't me as I only smoke rollies.!) The type of cigarettes smoked really does contribute to the smell also, if you happen to have a casual conversation with them at some point, subtly suggest rolling tobacco: cheaper and less pervasive smell! definitely block up the bathroom extractor fan if you can, mine chucks IN all kinds of stuff when its windy!