neighbour's cigarette smoke +cooking smells

Ireh

I hope someone can help me...
We get cigarette smoke and cooking smells from next door. It's horrible, especially when the neighbour chain smokes. It's like someone lighting up in our house. The neighbours don't believe us :mad:(even though we don't smoke and don't cook whatever it is they do and the smells come through when the windows are shut).
We think the smells are coming through the cavity walls. We're pretty sure that their extension was a botch job and that the cavity walls from their extension are now directly connected to ours. The cooking smells we might be able to cope with, eventhough they're feral, but not the cigarette smoke smells.
A plumber had a look but wasn't any help.
We blocked up some holes we could see with expandable foam, which did help a little in one room but hasn't solved to problem and it's getting really stressful and depressing
Does anyone have any idea who we could get to have a look for us and advise us as to what to do?
Thanks....

gsxr1

Are the exterior vents of both houses near each other?

Sparkpea

I feel your pain. I had exactly the same problem in my last house. 4 chain smokers living next door, our bedroom would stink of it - was fine most of the time as they smoked outside until winter then it was indoors. We could smell what they where cooking no problem, it was like it was sitting infront of you, and they seemed to burn toast everyday.

My partner and I had smoked on and off in our younger years but never while in that house and the smell was horrible. I hate the stuff with a passion because my old man smokes like a train and I work with him so its always in my face and his house stinks! Anyway because we had a baby I got environment health involved and they pretty much said that unless it was smoke from their fire (which we also got at some stages) then they couldn't do much about it - they kept calling round when the fire wasn't lit. Anyway they said it was probably to do with the way the joists where positioned so it was getting into their upstairs floors and travelling into ours. I found it very strange indeed and in the end - moved house.

I hope you get something sorted out as nobody should have to live like that in their own home. Let me know how you get on!

antiskeptic

Ireh wrote: »

I hope someone can help me...
We get cigarette smoke and cooking smells from next door. It's horrible, especially when the neighbour chain smokes. It's like someone lighting up in our house. The neighbours don't believe us :mad:(even though we don't smoke and don't cook whatever it is they do and the smells come through when the windows are shut).
We think the smells are coming through the cavity walls. We're pretty sure that their extension was a botch job and that the cavity walls from their extension are now directly connected to ours. The cooking smells we might be able to cope with, eventhough they're feral, but not the cigarette smoke smells.
A plumber had a look but wasn't any help.
We blocked up some holes we could see with expandable foam, which did help a little in one room but hasn't solved to problem and it's getting really stressful and depressing
Does anyone have any idea who we could get to have a look for us and advise us as to what to do?
Thanks....

I don't imagine the smoke is coming through the walls (in the sense of transporting through the concrete itself). It's more likely to be gaps - in my case, there are ventilation gaps in the party wall underfloor board level through which cooking smells come (or better said, came)

You could ask over at the construction forum for contacts in the "air tightness" game. In modern passive house construction, houses are tested for air tightness for insulation purposes - but the technique involved could be used in your situation.

What they'd do is close all the windows/doors/vents/chimneys in your neighbours house, produce (harmless) smoke inside and then pressurize the house by pumping air into it. Smoke will pour out through leaks - visibly indicating perhaps where the route is into your house. I'd imagine it would be best to do a room by room test in their house - say sealing off their extension from the rest of the house (taping up gaps in the connecting doors to other rooms) and testing that first, etc.

You'd obviously need assistance from your neighbours.

_


The alternative is to seal up your own house, pressurize it in the same way, let off a stink bomb then exit quickly and go for a pint. Gaps allows smells to go both ways afterall

ART6

Another approach that might be more acceptable to the neighbours is the use of an ultrasonic leak detector. These are electronic devices that respond to the 40.5 KHz sound that all leaks generate and they pinpoint the source. Generally they come in kits that also include a 40.5 KHz sound generator and are used for detecting air paths between solids where there is not an actual leak. The way they work is by placing the sound generator in, say, one closed room and standing outside with the detector. It then pinpoints and pathways through which the sound can pass. The sound generated is not harmful and is too high a pitch to be heard clearly. It won't pass through solids.

Google "Ultrasonic leak detectors" to see more about them. There will be companies out there who offer a detection service I imagine.

Ireh

gsxr1 wrote: »

Are the exterior vents of both houses near each other?

No, the vents aren't near each other...

Ireh

Thanks everyone for your replies! Unfortunately, the neighbours aren't particularly co-operative as they don't believe us, but you've given me some things to look into, which I really appreciate.

brendankelly

If the wall was plastered the smell could not get through??????

Antiquo

Ireh if the smells from the extension next door are coming through this easily it leads to a more worrying issue of fire safety. Should your neighbour have a fire the fumes and smoke will enter your dwelling.

Did the extension get planning? Maybe was under 25m2?

I'd get a building engineer in to asses/report what has been done and more importantly what hasn't been done. Sealing the wall with some expanding foam or a bit of plaster might resolve the odour issue for a while but sounds like they have broken thruogh into your building and as such broken your fire barrier from their premises.

Irrespective of your neighbours demeanour they have altered your structure in the act of building their extension and they will have to rectify this but could prove to be a headache.

Ireh

Antiquo wrote: »

Ireh if the smells from the extension next door are coming through this easily it leads to a more worrying issue of fire safety. Should your neighbour have a fire the fumes and smoke will enter your dwelling.

Hi Antiquo, thanks for that, you're right about the fire safety. We hadn't even considered that. I don't know for sure, but I very much doubt that the neighbours got planning permission - probably would be under 25m2. You can see at the back of our house, that the wall of their extension is actually on our 'side' but I assume they had an agreement with the owners of our house at the time they built.
Thanks again though, we'll get a building engineer in to have a look. Whatever the cost, it'll be on us but I really don't care anymore - just want their smells out! and the fire safety issue resolved as well....