expanding foam

Gale_10

Hello,

I have a flat, first floor, and my downstairs neighbour smokes like a chimney, and the cigarette smell rises up into my house, probably up the pipes which go from downstairs to my flat.

I am considering getting expanding foam, going round all the holes I can find, round all the pipes, and sealing everything.

I am definitely no DIY hero, but I do like to have a go, and I am a bit worried about the pipes expanding and contracting, obviously they wont be able to do this much if everything has been *foamed*. If I put the heating and water on so all the pipes are fully expanded before I do it, then will that be enough? Although the pipes will leave small gaps when they contract, I am sure foaming everything will help.

Any advice or thoughts are welcome.

Gale

weekendwarrior

It should be fine around heating pipes, but never near electrical wires- read this thread- http://www.ultimatehandyman.co.uk/forum1/expanding-foam-around-cables-t5063.html

And never around plastic pipes that carry potable (drinking ) water as the chemical in the foam can effect the plastic and make the water taste bad- and it's probably not that good for your health either!

Make sure you do not go mad with it as it expands like crazy!

ariba10

I would get a mastic gun and a few tubes of mastic. It should not cost a lot or take long to do.

HugoSP

Why not politely discuss this with your neighbour? You haven't mentioned whether or not you get on with him, so I can only assume you are on good terms. Explain to him that you don't see that he shouldn't feel able to smoke in his own flat, but you would like to discuss ways of stopping the smoke finding its way into your flat.

If I were your neighbour I would be more concerned about fire risks, and you should be as well. If one flat has a fire, how well protected is the other flat from poiseness smoke?

A good source of information may be available from your local fire safety officer, or building regs department at your local council. I suspect neither will be able to do anything as it is an existing conversion but I there are good sources of information on accepted building practices.

It's not an area I am up on but IIRC there are specialist lagging products to deal with this sort of thing.

vansboy

If it's a rented flat, in a house conversion, there may even be restrictions on the lease for non-smoking rules.

VB

Gale_10

Thanks everyone for your advice. I am going to mastic round the pipes if they are plastic and for drinking water.

Actually my neighbour and I loathe one another. She moans all the time about my children, in particular my five year old who, she claims, makes loads of noise running around the flat. She feels that since she owns her flat and I rent from the council (as she did previously) she has the right to tell me what to do.

When she complained to the council we had to go to mediation where I explained about the cigarette smoke, and she denied smoking in the kitchen and bathroom which is where the biggest problem is. At the meeting we agreed certain things - ie I wouldn't put my washing machine on too early because it made her doors shake. No problem. But we stuck to our side of the bargain and she made sure she smoked in the kitchen and bathroom, because the smell went up dramatically. It was only when I started to smell her cigarettes on my clean clothes that I got furious, and then I started to do my washing early in the morning, before she got up. She bad-mouths us to all and sundry, and well, as you can see, things are not good.

I am sure there are lots of people who are thinking why not complain to the council - we have. We tell them we smell smoke. They say ok we can come over and check. They send someone round five or six hours later - they can't smell smoke. They have even given us equipment to track the smell, but although they say its been to the lab, we have never had a result. They say they must have someone smell the smell before they can do anything. But they never send anyone round quickly enough.

Anyway, that is why I am insisting on sealing our flat.
Then she can keep her smelly smoke where it belongs. She did say she has had lowered ceilings, so I don't know if she will even see any deposits of expandable foam. Perhaps I would be better off with mastic. Just so long as we don't smell it. I worry about the children, breathing it in.

Thanks again for all the advice,

Gale

ormus

unless you have access to both sides of a void, i would not use expanding foam. too unpredictable.
use summat like mastic instead. stuff some wadding in first if u need to. (ie fibreglass) even newspaper at a pinch.

HugoSP

If she has lowered ceilings then the expanding foam would work OK

When it goes off it stops being a threat to plastic pipes etc. I use stuff that takes one hour to cure - ie that is the time it takes to be able to hold a upvc window in place! If it was going to affect the plastic then UPVC frames would be suffering up and down the country.

Unfortunately you will need to buy a gun to use it. If you can find a friendly upvc fitter or outlet they may be able to sell you both. My suppliers can supply a gun from around £10 and the cans for around £4. If you're using a gun you will also need a gun cleaner in a can, again around £4.

Otherwise you can go and get smaller cans with a built in dispenser from DIY stores for around £8 but you don't get as much and they can be problematic - ie they carry on despensing after you've released the trigger.

Saying this may be a red rag to a bull but she does have every right to smoke in her flat, the fact that the smell is coming upstairs is unfortunate and the council really need to take action, mainly for safety concerns, but at the same time you have a right to take preventative measures to stop the smoke coming into your property.

Also, have you thought of putting your washing machine on a rubber mat to dampen vibrations?