Chemical sensitivity – tobacco smoke from neighbors
I live in an attached row house (2-family) that is over 100 years old. Recently,, the neighbors on either side of me have rented apartments to smokers. Previously, there was one smoker but, now there are four. It has made our lives unbearable. There is cigarette smoke everywhere. It’s on our linen, on our walls, even on my hands. Having stated that, I figure our only two options are to move from a home we have lived in for thirty years or to try and resolve the issue some other way and stay at home. I have come up with the idea that if we tear down walls and put up insulation that that may solve our problem as per being inundated with cigarette smoke fumes that waft through our walls, etc; Will this solve the issue or will we ultimately need to move? I have started taking allergy medications prescribed by my doctor as I am terribly affected by the concentrated amount of smoke fumes. Please help.
Thank you,
Ana
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Replies
Ana,
Installing insulation is probably a good idea, especially if your walls and ceilings are uninsulated. However, insulation will not solve your problem.
If tobacco smoke is entering your house through the common walls, what you need is air sealing work, not insulation. In addition, your house may benefit from a supply ventilation fan to pressurize your house.
Air sealing work is performed by a home performance contractor. The work usually requires a blower door. The blower door is used to depressurize your home; this depressurization allows the air sealing workers to locate and plug leaks.
Once the air sealing work has been completed, you'll probably want to install a supply ventilation system. A supply fan will keep your house at positive pressure with respect to your neighbors; this will prevent tobacco smoke from entering. It's important that the intake grille for your supply ventilation fan be located somewhere where tobacco smoke is unlikely to be mixed with the outdoor air.