How Do You Smoke In A Non-Smoking Apartment?

Last Updated on July 19, 2023 By Emma W. Thomas

There are some effective ways to avoid getting caught when smoking in apartments where this habit is prohibited. These methods include conforming to good practices like getting air purifiers, washing, and dusting your place regularly. Ensure to choose the right places to smoke. For instance, you could go to a well-ventilated room.

How Do You Smoke In A Non-Smoking Apartment?

Before exploring alternative ways to smoke in a non-smoking apartment, it’s important to consider the rules set by your landlord or building management. Respect their decision and understand that smoking indoors may pose health and safety risks to others, as well as cause damage to the property.

1. Find Smoke-Friendly Outdoor Spaces:
   • Look around your apartment building or nearby areas for designated smoking areas. These spaces may have proper ventilation and designated disposal methods to ensure a cleaner environment for all residents. Always follow local regulations regarding smoking in public spaces.
2. Utilize Balconies or Patios:
   • If your apartment has a balcony or patio, use this area as an outdoor smoking spot. Ensure that you respect your neighbors and avoid any potential conflicts by following the balcony guidelines and minimizing the smell and smoke that may enter neighboring apartments.
3. Invest in Air Purifiers:
   • Consider purchasing an air purifier specifically designed to capture smoke particles and neutralize odors. Look for models with activated carbon filters and high Clean Air Delivery Rates (CADR) to effectively combat smoke. Position the purifier near your designated smoking area to improve air quality.
4. Use Smokeless Alternatives:
   • Many smokers are turning to smokeless alternatives such as electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes or vapes), heat-not-burn devices, or smokeless tobacco products. While these alternatives still contain nicotine, they produce less smoke and odor, making them more suitable for indoor use. Always verify their permissibility with your landlord.
5. Open Windows and Use Exhaust Fans:
   • Increase ventilation in your apartment by opening windows or using exhaust fans during and after smoking. This helps to circulate fresh air and removes smoke particles and odors from space. Be mindful of neighbors and try to direct the smoke away from windows facing common areas.
6. Employ Odor Absorbing Techniques:
   • Combat lingering smoke odors by using odor-absorbing techniques. Place bowls of vinegar, baking soda, or activated charcoal in your smoking area to absorb odors. Additionally, lightly spritzing the area with air fresheners or using odor-eliminating sprays can help mask the smell.
7. Opt for Smokeless Methods:
   • Consider alternative methods that don’t involve combustion, such as using vaporizers, consuming edibles, or trying cannabis-infused oils. These methods decrease the amount of smoke emitted into the air and can minimize the impact on both your living space and neighbors.
8. Communicate with Your Neighbors:
   • Maintaining good relationships with your neighbors is essential when attempting to smoke in a non-smoking apartment. Communicate openly, apologize for any inconvenience caused, and ensure you address any concerns they may have. Be prepared to compromise or adapt your smoking routines to minimize disruption.
9. Quit Smoking or Seek Help:
   • Smoking indoors can still pose health risks, even with these alternatives. If you’re struggling to find a solution that works for everyone, consider quitting smoking altogether. Alternatively, seek support from smoking cessation programs, nicotine replacement therapies, or counseling services to help you overcome the habit.

How Can You Smoke In A Room Without Getting Caught?

It is usual for some landlords to prohibit smoking in their apartments. In most cases, it is due to never-ending complaints from other tenants. When a person smokes in their room, the neighbor will likely receive a secondary smell. It may be harmless for some people. But for others, it could be fatal, especially for individuals with smoke allergic reactions.

Few people ignore their landlord’s instructions and smoke in their apartments. They do it in a way that it is impossible to catch them unless you get someone in the act. You can smoke in an apartment without getting caught in the following ways;

Using A Vape

Vaping is a recent technology that smokers use in their apartments and hotel rooms. The vape is an affordable pen-like gadget that works by holding onto the cigarette and tobacco smoke using its stainless material. The device achieves this due to the nature of smoke, as it lingers longer in a room than vapor. Instead of getting released into the air, moisture holds the smoke; hence, it is not released into the air. No one can notice you smoking while using this item.

Prepare The Room Before Smoking.

Smokers are known to be innovators. Some apartments are small, with fewer windows and openings. They also lack balconies making it a problem for someone who needs to smoke. The first thing to do is place a wet towel below the apartment door. It could just be damp and not dripping wet. A wet towel helps to keep the smoke and smell from leaving the room, attracting attention from the outside.    

After that, you find a way to enhance airflow in the room. For instance, you could use a fan. Open the windows, if present, and make the fan blow in their direction. With such preparation, you can freely smoke in your apartment without fear of getting caught.

Using A Smoke Buddy Or A Sploof

Smoke buddy and spoof are air filters used to get rid of the odor and smoke smell. They let out clean and fresh air when you blow smelly air in them and are common lifesavers for smokers. These items are compact and convenient in apartments and hotel rooms, and you are traveling in smoking-restricted places. 

You can also make your version of the spoof if you cannot afford one. It involves a simple task using plastic bottles and dryer sheets. You cut off the bottle’s bottom leaving it open on both sides. Take the dryer sheets and pull them against both ends and secure the bottle ends with an elastic band, and that’s it. You have a homemade smoke buddy, and you can enjoy your cigar by blowing the smoke in the capped bottle which prevents it from escaping into the air.

How Can You Tell If Someone Smokes In A Non-Smoking Apartment?

Following state laws on landlords and tenants, it can be hard to prove smoking habits in an apartment. Most state laws are against landlords going inside the rented apartment without notice. Even with one, they must provide legal reasons to enter. In case you gain entry, the following are signs to look out for;

Stains On Walls And Surfaces 

Cigarettes and marijuana tend to leave marks on curtains, lamps, and counters. The nature of the blemish depends on the period the surfaces were exposed to smoke. You can easily see cigar smoke on wallpapers, especially those painted in recent times. Other than affecting fellow tenants, nicotine, and marijuana sweat the walls’ paint. It makes them faint and unpleasant. The damage to wall paint is among the main reason many apartments are barn smokers.

Even after tenants use incense, candles, and diffusers to get rid of cigarette and marijuana smell, the smell is still notable. They tend to stick around the room for some time, especially in apartments with poor ventilation. Burning candles are the first red flag for people smoking in their apartment. It is normal to light just one, but they are most likely covering up for some smell if they do it regularly. You can detect the smell from the couches, carpet, curtains, and rugs when inside the room. The problem is getting rid of the odor once the tenant leaves the apartment, which is costly.

Ash Residue

Ash residue is another simple sign you cannot miss. You will see ash and cigarette butts in tenant trash cans. If not on the trash can, they will be on shelves, window sills, and electrical items. A smoker can rarely forget and dispose of their marijuana and cigarette remainders on these surfaces. Ash is their biggest betrayal as it gets blown away by the wing and fan moving to areas they cannot suspect. These are some things a typical and keen landlord notices when they want to prove whether a tenant is smoking in their apartments.

Burns On Surfaces

Above all other signs, it is impossible to hide a burn from a cigarette joint. You find such burns on carpets, stands, and couches. In this case, tenants cannot completely fix it. They tend to throw rugs or blankets over the burnt surfaces to conceal them. These burns cost the tenant a lot to repair or replace the damaged items. Marijuana and cigar burns are easy to notice as they have a unique pattern.

Does Cigarette Smoke Travel Through Apartments?

A tenant smoking in their apartment can affect others living in the same building. Some people prefer places that prohibit smoking due to health issues or a dislike of the smell. In most cases, smoke travels through openings in shred walls. For example, there are shared switches, plumbing outlets, electrical doors, and sometimes under the sinks. It also travels through exhaust ducts shared among several tenants. 

Smoke is gaseous and moves in any direction. The best way to prevent it from entering your apartment through shared openings is by covering them with a damp cloth. It helps to prevent smoke from infiltrating your apartment.

Another way in which second-hand smoke travels through apartments is through building pressurization. It affects how air circulates in different units within a building and it is common knowledge that air moves from a high-pressure zone to a low-pressure location. Kitchen furnaces and exhaust fans tend to affect this law negatively. In such a case, if the tenant smoking lives below a non-smoker, the one above them will be affected by secondary smoke. 

As a non-smoking tenant, you should ensure to cover all openings that could serve as entry points to avoid being a secondary smoker. If there are no policies against smoking, you can talk to the landlord to enact them. 

How Can You Avoid Smokers In An Apartment?

 It is better to prevent approving apartments for smoking tenants. This way, you will avoid dealing with angry tenants from receiving secondary smoke. To avoid such a scenario, landlords should do the following;

Go Through The State Laws Of Smoking Tenants.

Most US states have included smoking as a private nuisance and it is illegal if second-hand smoke finds its way to a private residence. For instance, in California law, if a tenant was caught smoking and their neighbor complained of secondary smoke, they could face legal charges. The reason is mainly that secondary smoke is more toxic and hazardous to your health. 

Enforcing Non-Smoking Leases

The best way landlords can protect their tenants from secondary smoke is by enforcing a non-smoking lease as it is easy to ensure there are no smokers in the building. They should be sued and face legal charges since the lease prohibits smoking if one is doing it secretly. With a no-smoking clause in the agreement, the landlord should evict the nuisance tenant to protect others. 

How Landlords Can Make Their Buildings Smoke Free

Method	Implementation
Educating apartment residents	Explain to them the benefits of the non-smoking rule, the policy details, and the resources they need to quit smoking
Enforce the rules	Ensure anyone caught breaking the rule does not go unpunished. Smokers should face the law to serve as an example.
Decide on the policy.	Decide on places to restrict smoking. You can provide tenants with a smoking zone for those who wish to smoke
Add the rule to the agreement.	Ensure the rule is well stated in the lease for any new tenants

Conclusion

Smokers are known to be inventors of finding their way out to smoke. You can see them in the act, even in non-smoking apartments. They do this by using items such as smoke vape. They also tend to set their rooms to prevent smoke from going out to the pathway or through the windows. Some go to the extent of covering their door bottoms with a damp cloth to avoid getting caught. They do this to avoid charges involving inflicting secondary smoke on neighbors in their private residences.

References:

https://www.housereal.net/how-to-smoke-in-a-non-smoking-apartment/
https://apartmentabc.com/smoke-in-apartment/