[guymandude]

Hi all,

A month ago I moved into a two bedroom apartment with a friend. It's the top floor of a two-storey house, with two other tenants (a couple) who live on the main floor, and one guy who lives in the basement.

As I live in Toronto, our winters are cold and the heat is pumping. The house is furnace heated. The issue is that I'm constantly smelling everything my neighbours do, but mainly cooking. The smell is strongest in my bedroom, and it's noticeable in the hallway and the kitchen, but my roommate's bedroom and the living room doesn't seem to be affected. I talked to my landlord this morning and he's coming by tomorrow, but I'm not sure what can be done.

Is there anything I can do? My vent even has a grill that can be closed, but it does not limit the smells in any noticeable way (even with the windows open) plus, obviously, I lose heat. Also, I'm not 100% sure of my rights, but could the duct work in the house not be up to code? Surely this shouldn't be happening in "seperate" units.

Thanks

 

[gma2rjc]

My brother had the same issue in an apartment building he lived in. He doesn't smoke, but he was smelling cigarette smoke in his apartment all the time. They ended up moving him into another one of their apartment buildings. The other thing he was thinking about was, if someone else's smoke was coming into his apartment, what if they have the flu or some other illness? Would those germs make their way into his apartment too?

 

[jmon]

I agree with you. I really don't know what your rights are in Toronto or what you personally can do as a tenant because you do not own it.

You did the right thing by contacting your landlord first. Hopefully after you explain what's going on here and explaining the issue to him/her they may be able to help you out.

Hope everything works out for you.

 

[Nik333]

There are small air filters ( machines) that have both charcoal and ozone options. It really does decrease/rid smells. But can't have very small animals.

 

[jimn]

One forced air heating system for the building ?

 

[beee]

Ask the landlord to solve this problem for you,if it can't be solved then rent another house instead,cooking smell is really hard to stand especially when you are hungry.

 

[Nik333]

My brother had the same issue in an apartment building he lived in. He doesn't smoke, but he was smelling cigarette smoke in his apartment all the time. They ended up moving him into another one of their apartment buildings. The other thing he was thinking about was, if someone else's smoke was coming into his apartment, what if they have the flu or some other illness? Would those germs make their way into his apartment too?

Gma2rjc - Taking your question seriously . . . light and air kill a lot of germs, like HIV. Most of our infections are by contact or droplet. Only airborne diseases might get in like TB, certain meningitis, chickenpox, measles, as an example, but they would be so watered down; it would be a rare disease that can infect you with just a few viruses. You need to be exposed for awhile & usually in their living space.

Smoke is airborne. I think it comes from the intake of a heater. Sometimes it's someone outside trying to keep the smoke out of their room.

Although, if someone kept coughing, appeared ill ( not fr. smoking) & I could smell their cooking thru a shared heater vent ... I would move lain: But, me being me, I would talk to them about their cough, first. Hope that all makes sense.

 

[melissadavis]

Did you try talking to them

 

[jimn]

Is he cooking something really strong smelling or just conventional cooking? If it's conventional cooking I would find another place to live. You can't prevent the guy from cooking his dinner. If you are renting a room as part of a house you may not have much choice. Sounds like someone may have divided up a single family and not separated out the heating system .

If is cooking lamb vindaloo, corned beef and cabbage or Thai green curry then maybe you can talk to them and suggest they use the exhaust fan or perhaps open a window.

Any apartment I have ever lived in has an isolated heating systems in each apartment. Either it was forced water or steam radiators or an air exchanger for my apartment only. Sometime you could smell something good or not so good in the hallway but never in the apartment.

 

[guymandude]

Update: My landlord just showed up and basically said there's nothing he can do, and that he's owned the house for 30-40 years and nobody has ever complained (which I find hard to believe). It's pretty clear the heating is set up single family-style despite being converted to separate units. Also, it's not just cooking smells, but I regularly smell cleaning products, air fresheners, etc. as well.

I guess I'm going to consider moving, although since I signed a 12 month lease with my friend, I'll have to find someone to take over my half. Is there any safe way I can block off the vent in the meantime?

 

[guymandude]

Picture of the vent for reference -- roughly 11''x5'':

 

[IslandGuy]

You can't block off the vent without blocking off the heat. Your claim that cooking smells don't permeate the entire space is simply perception, the same central heating system serves the entire house, so the same smells will have to go everywhere the environmental air does.

As you've realized, if the situation is unbearable to you, move. Whether or not others before you have complained is irrelevant. Tenants always complain, it's what they do. There are a whole string of apartments available to rent and they range in price from below market value to well above and beyond market value based on location, convenience, quality of construction, available amenities, etc. Choose the best apartment that you can comfortably afford. But realize that there is no such thing as a perfect place to live with absolutely no flaws, and you're not entitled to perfection, nor is your landlord obligated to fix everything that is wrong in your life.

 

[Nik333]

You can't block off the vent without blocking off the heat...But realize that there is no such thing as a perfect place to live with absolutely no flaws, and you're not entitled to perfection, nor is your landlord obligated to fix everything that is wrong in your life.

Possibly a landlord?

It's not easy to move and not good to have the fact you broke your lease on your record.

Slumlords will always slum. Probably not a verb If I had a penny for every slumlord I've had. . . work on buying a house eventually.

You can block off the vent and use an electric heater. I'm a very honest person but if someone lies and cheats me, I'm less likely to worry about ethics, especially when heat is an essential aspect of a habitable home. It's easy to hide the heater - like when you go out. Make sure it's cool. Ovens can also heat the house, he can't keep ypu from "cooking"; electric blankets are wonderful. Make sure you have a CO & smoke detector. Before you move, contact whatever govt. organization deals with landlord-tenant issues and have pro-bono lawyers. Make a written report by certified mail or the equivalent in Canada. People lose e-mails. If you smell air-fresheners, or strong spices, you could easily develop an allergy to what is coming thru the vent. That is possibly considered a Disability. Read your habitable home rights.

I had a tenant who a landlord tried to kick out because the area is rent controlled and he had been there 14 yrs at a low rent. He stayed and went thru the legal system and won. Got a settlement & then moved to my rental. Takes a determined person. He never complained or sued me. Great tenant.

If you move, make sure the landlord agrees to the new tenant, puts them on the lease and releases you in writing.

Some people just have an enhanced sense of smell. I think it's genetic and if you care for your health; smokers can't understand.

Good luck!

 

[Nik333]

Check with Toronto's or the county's version of "building code" to see if he is even allowed to rent a converted house like this.

 

[IslandGuy]

Possibly a landlord?

Guilty as charged.

It's not easy to move and not good to have the fact you broke your lease on your record.

Well that's one of the drawbacks to renting, but it's not the LL's fault.

Which is why one enters into a lease only after careful inspection of the apartment. Being an obvious converted home, and it being obvious the heating is via a ducted system, it's not too big a stretch there's only one heating system throughout the house, especially when under such a situation heat is included.

Slumlords will always slum. Probably not a verb If I had a penny for every slumlord I've had. . . work on buying a house eventually.

Like it or not, rental properties are not always the best of places to live. If you don't like it, buy your own house. If a common heating system makes the LL a slumlord, what does that make the tenant, poor trash?

Perhaps the LL could have reworked the heating system into individual units- but that expense would have been worked into the rent. Because it would be a better place to live. And then a different tenant would be renting it - one who could afford more, and then they'd have a different set of complaints.

You can block off the vent and use an electric heater. I'm a very honest person but if someone lies and cheats me, I'm less likely to worry about ethics, especially when heat is an essential aspect of a habitable home. It's easy to hide the heater - like when you go out. Make sure it's cool. Ovens can also heat the house, he can't keep ypu from "cooking"; electric blankets are wonderful. Make sure you have a CO & smoke detector. Before you move, contact whatever govt. organization deals with landlord-tenant issues and have pro-bono lawyers. Make a written report by certified mail or the equivalent in Canada. People lose e-mails. If you smell air-fresheners, or strong spices, you could easily develop an allergy to what is coming thru the vent. That is possibly considered a Disability. Read your habitable home rights.

I had a tenant who a landlord tried to kick out because the area is rent controlled and he had been there 14 yrs at a low rent. He stayed and went thru the legal system and won. Got a settlement & then moved to my rental. Takes a determined person. He never complained or sued me. Great tenant.

If you move, make sure the landlord agrees to the new tenant, puts them on the lease and releases you in writing.

Some people just have an enhanced sense of smell. I think it's genetic and if you care for your health; smokers can't understand.

Good luck!

 

[Nik333]

Which is why one enters into a lease only after careful inspection of the apartment. Being an obvious converted home, and it being obvious the heating is via a ducted system, it's not too big a stretch there's only one heating system throughout the house, especially when under such a situation heat is included.



Like it or not, rental properties are not always the best of places to live. If you don't like it, buy your own house.

Remember this isn't the CBR. Surely you're kidding about every renter knowing all that a Building Contractor would. Also, to tell them to buy a house. Were you born rich? Give the guy a chance. Were you trying to help?

 

[Nik333]

guymandude- Sorry about that. There's a Controversial Board Room on the chatroom & people forget where they are. Good Luck! Nowadays with Internet, it's pretty easy to look up building codes.

 

[Nik333]

One more thing, guymandude, you forgot "brah"!

 

[ChuckF.]

You must have a thermostat in your apartment. That means you have either separate heating systems or one system with zoning. If you set your thermostat to shut off all air flow during typical evening cooking hours, that may reduce any sharing of cooking smells.

If that makes no difference at all, it would tend to suggest you have separate systems and the leaks are by another path.

You could also try opening windows on your floor. If you don't pay for heat the cost will not impact you.

 

[beenthere]

You must have a thermostat in your apartment. That means you have either separate heating systems or one system with zoning. If you set your thermostat to shut off all air flow during typical evening cooking hours, that may reduce any sharing of cooking smells.

If that makes no difference at all, it would tend to suggest you have separate systems and the leaks are by another path.

You could also try opening windows on your floor. If you don't pay for heat the cost will not impact you.

Very common for a home converted to a multi tenant rental to only have 1 thermostat(locked and unadjustable by the tenants), and heat all apartments. So the OP may not have a thermostat in the apartment.