DIY Home Improvement Forum banner

Cigarette smoke coming in from outside through HVAC return?

24K views 50 replies 7 participants last post by  biggles 
#1 ·
My neighbors are smokers who smoke right outside our building, and in front of my townhouse. The condo association tells me that the venting systems are all separate, and the only way my vents are shooting out air that reeks of smoke, is by someone smoking in front of the return, and the air getting sucked in. Does this sound like it could be the case? I'm so sick of the smoke smell, but I'll be so glad if I found the cause and can fix it, and rid my house of it. Thanks!
 
#6 ·
the only way i see 4 u to b getting any odor from outside is if you have a system that brings in air from outside. some systems have a "fresh air intake" connected to your return air plenum. there would b a 6" or 8" pipe running from your furnace to the outside. they r normally controlled by a timer. if u have 1 turn it off and you shouold no longer bring in outside air. if u don't have 1 then u have a different problem.
 
#2 ·
Makes sense.

If your outdoor air intake is near their smoking spot it will certainly suck it in, or at least enough that'll you'll smell it.

You may look to see if there are any exhaust vents from their house in close proximity to your air intake. There should be at least 10' of difference between the exhaust and intake.
 
#7 ·
This isn't my unit, but here are what they look like. My unit and my neighbor's unit both look like the one on the left. However, I don't think they smoke inside their house. I know my neighbor on the other side does smoke inside, but his unit is more than 10 feet from mine.
 

Attachments

#8 ·
put some towels tightly on the bottom of your door. I have lived in lots of apartments and most of these bldgs have a negative pressure coming into your unit and bring in odors and smoke. if it stops then you know you have a draft entering your unit.
 
#11 ·
What about starting to smoke. You will stop to see your neighbor :thumbup::whistling2::thumbsup::laughing:
 
#15 ·
Actually I have started to like curry and spicier different foods ever since my sister married into an East Indian family. They eat their samosas like us Ukrainians eat perogies. Big on garlic us Slavs are.:yes:
There may be a fresh air intake into your furnace return duct but usually the smoke concentration gets diluted enough to not be a problem unless they stand within a foot of it. More of a problem in Commercial bldgs and hospitals where large groups of smokers stand in front of the air intake outside. Get a Bionaire or Oreck air purifier/ionizer if you cannot solve the problem.
 
#16 ·
Smoke smell is shooting out of my vents from somewhere... I'm not sure where else it could be coming from. Ugh, I'll never understand why people smoke anymore! I've got air purifiers running, but apparently that just makes the problem worse when dealing with smoke. What I need to do is determine the source, and then eliminate it. >.<

I *love* Indian food - just not curry itself. ;)
 
#17 ·
is the furnace/air handler in the closet ducted to that small vent in the picture:important...is the ceiling in the furnace closet solid or open in anyway.basically is the closet the return to the furnace with the door closed and does that door have louvers on it for the return air from your living space.question:huh: do you smell any cooking going on from the other tennents into yours?
 
#18 ·
Yes, that small vent is ducted to the return in the closet. The ceiling in the closet is closed, it looks just like the ceiling in the rest of the house. The return is located inside the closet (that's where the filter is changed, etc). The door just closes to keep it hidden. I've never smelled any cooking from my neighbors.

I did some research on some really good filters, and I've decided upon this one. I hope it makes a big difference. Once I have that problem narrowed down and fixed, I can scrub my condo top to bottom. Have I mentioned that I hate cigarettes? >.<
 
#19 ·
I would NOT use that filter. It is highly restrictive to airflow and the lack of airflow may freeze the AC coil and shut down your unit. Those filters require an extra powerful furnace fan, usually a variable speed ECM type and larger ductwork.
 
#24 ·
still too tight/restrictive. there is NO air filter like those that will take out smoke. that is "creative advertising". An electronic air cleaner will but it is no different than the electrostatic room air purifiers. an eac has ionizing wires in it the same as those room jobs. they attach to the return duct. flip side is they give off an ozone smell (like smog or fresh rain smell) which a small per cent of people can smell and don't like. they also sound like a bug zapper. we use eacs in bars and bingo halls etc. there is no other method that I know of.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top