Second Hand Smoke Solution?

[sms]

I have a rental unit in a townhouse complex. The tenants are complaining that the people across the sidewalk from them are smoking out on their deck and the smoke is drifting into my unit through one sliding glass door that the tenants like to keep open for ventilation. There is no rule about smoking on the property. I talked to the owner of the other unit but I don't think she'll do anything.

I'm trying to think of a solution involving fans or blowers, perhaps combined with a cigarette smoke detector to automatically activate fans that blow the smoke back towards the offenders. It's probably a 10 foot distance between the decks.

This shows a similar pair of townhouse units and the problem: <

I'm thinking about this unit: <

model 9040 connected to a large fan, i.e . I'd need to shield it all from weather somehow though the tenants could bring it in if it's raining hard so just an outdoor umbrella would suffice.

Any other ideas for blowing the smoke back?

[hrhofmann]

that the people across the sidewalk from them are smoking out on their deck and the smoke is drifting into my unit through one sliding glass door that the tenants like to keep open for ventilation. There is no rule about smok ing on the property. I talked to the owner of the other unit but I don't th ink she'll do anything. I'm trying to think of a solution involving fans or blowers, perhaps combined with a cigarette smoke detector to automatically activate fans that blow the smoke back towards the offenders. It's probabl y a 10 foot distance between the decks. This shows a similar pair of townho use units and the problem: <

I'm think ing about this unit: <

0.htm> model 9040 connected to a large fan, i.e . I'd need to shield it all from w eather somehow though the tenants could bring it in if it's raining hard so just an outdoor umbrella would suffice. Any other ideas for blowing the sm oke back?

A fan anywhere in a window/door of your unit blowing in so that there is ou tgoing pressure on the window on your deck. Any association rules about sm oke?

[sms]

the tenants could bring it in if it's raining hard so just an outdoor umbrella would suffice. Any other ideas for blowing the smoke back?

The CC&R were written in the 1980's so nothing specific about smoke. Just a general "nuisance" provision.

[gregz]

If there were a noisy air conditioner unit next to the fence, it's going to push the air up. A unit with no compressor ?

Greg

[DerbyDad03]

You know those really gross No Smoking commercials, the ones where they show the smokers with the holes in their throats? Project them on a screen so the smokers have to watch them when they are smoking on the deck.

Just tell them the screen is there to block the smoke.

[nestork]

SMS:

I can't see a good solution to this one except by telling YOUR tenants to close the sliding door when their neighbors are smoking. That'll keep the second hand smoke out of their unit.

If there's no rules about smoking in your condo, then they're not breaking any rules. If your tenants are complaining about the second hand smoke getting into their unit, it's up to them to close that sliding door and maybe open a window or two on the other side of the unit for ventilation.

In a situation like this, I think your tenants are being unreasonable. Why CAN'T they close the sliding door? If it provides ventilation, why can't a window or ceiling fan provide similar ventilation while the sliding door is closed? They seem to be putting you in a situation where you can't close their sliding door, and their neighbor's second hand smoke is annoying them, and they want you to solve their problem.

Tell them to close the sliding door.

[dadiOH]

Your renters should insist that you install central air conditioning so that they can close the door and have their anticipated and paid for quiet enjoyment of the premises. I am amazed that you require them to live under these horrendous circumstances. What happens if the next door neighbors also fire up their charcoal broiler and start it with starter fluid? Yes, you must immediately install central air.

[Moe DeLoughan]

I would provide them a weatherproof outdoor fan to leave on their deck, plus an outdoor remote control.With a weatherproof fan you don't have to bring it in during the rain or fool around with an umbrella.

Lasko #4305 50" Outdoor Fan ($215)

Woods 32555 Outdoor Remote Control Outlet Converter Kit ($10)

When they smell smoke, click the remote to turn on the fan. If they need more recourse than that, they need to find a new place to live.

[DerbyDad03]

If the tenants are physically able to bring the fan in, then I assume that they are physically able to go out and away from the townhouse. If they are out and away from the townhouse when it rains hard, they won't be there to bring it in.

In addition, umbrella's don't hold up very well in strong winds.

I think that particular solution is doomed to fail.

[dennisgauge]

Again with the cockamaimie, unrealistic, overcomplicated, nonexistent, ridi culous solutions to a simple non-problem.

Automatic fan that senses second hand smoke and turns on to blow it away... my ass!

Your "second hand smoke detector" won't start the fan without some custom-h acked electronic doohickeys.

Then you're going to trust your tenants to protect and maintain this expens ive, complicated, fragile piece of gadgetry. You're going to trust them to bring it in out of the rain. You'll be lucky if they don't haul it off to t he pawn shop 5 minutes after you leave!

This isn't your problem to begin with. It's theirs. Recommend that they eit her close the door or put a fan in the door if they find it so offensive.

Odds are they just caught a mere whiff of smoke once, and had a conniption fit over it.

[JoeBro]

sms wrote in news:ks4o96$rv5$ [e-mail]:

I would encourage your tenants to move. They are whiners and criers and they will never allow you peace. They are just looking for attention and the more you give them they more they will demand.

[sms]

You're right, and the automatic solution would not work anyway because once the smoke was blown away the detector would turn off the fan and then the smoke would start again. I'd need to build in some hysteresis.

The long term solution is to ban smoking in the entire complex which has been done in other multi-unit housing areas. A document from the CDC states "Apartment owners, managers, condominium associations, and public housing authority boards may all adopt policies eliminating or restricting smoking in multiunit housing facilities under their control." .

Some cities in California have also enacted smoking bans in multi-unit housing: "Thirteen cities and counties have banned smoking in all existing and new multi-unit housing, with five more doing so in 2012, according to the center. Thirteen of the cities listed in the report have placed a smoking ban on 100 percent of new and existing multi-unit housing." .

It's too bad that the lack of common courtesy necessitates these sorts of rules.

[Vic Smith]

You should have your city do the same instead of coming here and acting like a crybaby. See if you can get BBQ, automobile exhaust, cussing, farting and body odor outlawed while you're at it. All are probably more dangerous than your tenants detecting a whiff of cig smoke.

[bob haller]

Frankly smoking should be illegal if anyone complains. Smoking around any child under 18 shopuld be called what it is CHILD ABUSE, and the abusers should be proscuted....

nationwide smokng is now under 20% of the population and a large hospital chain in pittsburgh UPMC so moving to make smoking during working hours a fireable offense, many companies refuse to hire smokers. they waste work time and run up health expenses....

smokng needs to die just like its killed many of its users.

[gregz]

I know there are room air cleaners that measure pollutants and adjust fan speed. The automatic system could work with a time delay for shutoff.

Greg

[gregz]

I used to work in one UPMC area, mixed with Pitt university. Actually UPMC is not part of Pitt university, so deciding who is who in that part of town is impossible. Some say stopping everybody from smoking, will run up medical expenses in the long run. Pa can't afford to loose 1 billion dollars in smoke taxes. Some are complaining of loosing 100k dollars from pa going to private booze stores. Smoking is bad for you.

Greg

[sms]

I talked to the owner of the unit with the problem tenants. She didn't realize they were smokers when she rented the unit, all she said was "no smoking in the unit." Next time she'll include "no smoking anywhere on the property" _and_ rent only to non-smokers.

It's almost impossible for smokers to rent an apartment in a large complex anymore, at least in California, but these townhouse units are individually owned, and the ones that are rented out are almost always owned by an owner that originally lived in the unit but that moved to a single family home.

Unfortunately, the rental market is very tight in this area so renters stay put unless they are buying a house, and since housing prices have skyrocketed not many renters are buying. So the problem smokers are unlikely to move on.

I don't think this particular city is likely to pass a law against smoking in multi-family units. I may go to the next city council meeting and suggest that they look into it.

[sms]

The decrease in smokers will have other side effects as well. Social Security and Medicare were set up when smoking was much more common and the average life expectancy was lower as a result. If not for the explosion in obesity life expectancies would be even higher, resulting in even more problems for Social Security and Medicare. I just read that soda consumption is way down so perhaps there is some hope in a reduction in obesity.

[nestork]

Oh, no. Let's not go there.

Then we're going to get into a great big heated debate about when a cat's FIRST life actually begins.

[Guv Bob]

complaining

1. This is a nuisance -- the tenants have to deal directly with the neighbors unless there is something specific about this in their lease.
2. I know that if rain water drains from a neighbor's roof and flows into your basement, the neighbor can usually be held responsible for damages. Could be the same for smoke but the tenants.
3. Housing authority or local air pollution district probably has dealt with this kind of thing before.
4. Eat 1/2 pound of raw peanuts. Wait 15 minutes. Go around to the smokers' door or window upwind and let 'er rip.