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Is there a way to rid cigarette smoke smell from back yards

Posted: Apr 4, 2010

We have a new neighbor who moved next door within the past couple weeks. Our backyards are ajoining, and only within 5-10 feet of each other. She smokes quite heavily and we can't enjoy our back yard because it smells like cigarettes out back. Is there a product or anything I can do to get rid of the smell. You would think that being out in the open the smell would dissipate but it doesn't. It lingers and it stinks really bad. It's getting to a point where I don't want to go outside. My DH is a gardner and he set up a small area so when I take breaks I can go out and enjoy the nice weather and sun, but it stinks so bad I don't want to go outside and he's having a hard time breathing because she is always outside smoking. Don't get me wrong - I used to smoke, my mom smokes, and my MIL smokes and a couple siblings smoke, so I have nothing against smokers, I just want to enjoy my backyard without cigarette smell and wonder if there is something that can help to get our back yard smelling better.

;

smoke smell - mt

[ In Reply To ..]
My first thought was to get a few of those citronella torches. We have 3 in our backyard, and we fill them with citronella oil. They keep the bugs away too. You could also use candles, but I think the oil torches put off a greater amount of smell.

Point a big fan back towards their yard and maybe some scented candles - or diffuser?..smoke is better than barn smell...nm

[ In Reply To ..]
..

tell her to take a walk - lol

[ In Reply To ..]
nm

Yeah, I'd like to tell her to take a hike :-) - I cannot breath

[ In Reply To ..]
Well she's always out in the backyard screaming on the phone to someone that she never has any money. Smokes like a chimney - from what I understand cigarettes are not cheap, so if she has no money, where is she getting the money for cigarettes?... Hmmmm? Does make one wonder.

We have a big fan here and we've been thinking of just setting it on the edge of the property and turning it towards her yard so maybe it will blow the smell back into her place.

That and maybe putting out some really nasty smelling stuff that she wouldn't like. I also thought of pureeing some raw chicken and squirting it into the back yard so it would stink so bad she wouldn't want to go outside, but then we'd be smelling it too. LOL

I've thought about coughing a storm and screaming really loud inside the house loud enough for her to hear that I can't breath because someone is smoking, but DH gives me a dirty look.

There is nothing more than I would like to see is the tobacco industry go out of business. Make people who do smoke change to something that they can still handle, but it allows people around them to be able to breath. I smoked for 11 years. I quit 23 years ago and now my lungs constrict or something and I just cannot breath. Wish there was something better for everyone all around.

I will try the candles though as someone suggested.

it's amazing how stinky cigarettes are and how fast and vast - stinky

[ In Reply To ..]
the stinky smoke spreads, just everywhere.

I don't think fan, even a big one, will help much. The wind will blow it wherever it goes.

I think you should talk to her. One poster's idea that it might be a bucket full of butts left outside or maybe she throws the butts into the grass and they accumulate and just sit there, yuk!

Talk to her and tell her really scary things about lung cancer and all the horrible diseases cigarettes can bring on.
And make sure that SHE and YOU have smoke detectors installed.

Good luck!

How about talking to her about it? - I know it may not be easy,

[ In Reply To ..]
but you might get results, and if that doesn't work THEN you could try some of your other ideas. If the smell is lingering when she isn't even out there, I would think it might be because she has an ashtray or "butt bucket" outside that is smelling.

But I would think if you explained your situation, proximity, and the fact that you and your husband are having trouble breathing, that maybe she could smoke in front or on the side of her house...worth a try, right? I'm sure she doesn't know it's bothering you like it is, and if you try some of the other tactics first, she may just dig her heels in and not budge.

You are neighbors - sm

[ In Reply To ..]
Have a chat about it before pulling out the Hatfield and McCoy strategies. If she shuts you down... then you can go to Plan B, C, etc.

I would skip any informational commentary on how bad cigs are for her and all the diseases and health hazards linked to smoking. She already knows, has made her choice, and it will just come across as finger-wagging and lecturing .. and then you really will get nowhere.

Try honey before vinegar.

might be the better strategy for a start...sm - stinky

[ In Reply To ..]
but she endangers also the health of her neighbors with second-hand smoke.

Since she hehaves in such an irresponsible way, she might be uneducated about many facts.

She is not uneducated about the facts - EveryoneNose

[ In Reply To ..]
The OP didn't say the smoke was coming over the fence and getting into her lungs. She only complained about the smell.

Neighbor lady is engaging in a legal activity on her private property. Be careful with the offended, I must show you the way or teach you a lesson, attitude. As a previous poster said, they are neighbors and it is best to start with a friendly, neighborly approach. Even Judge Judy advises that as a first-line strategy.

to EveryoneNose: You certainly cannot - stinky

[ In Reply To ..]
comprehend.
Didn't you see that I started my post with

"...might be the better strategy for a start...sm - stinky

What "stinks" is the smoke that is coming into her garden.

Smoking neighbors has become a very controversial issue. A LOT of landlords refuse to take in smokers as tenants because it causes many problems.

I wished smoking would be forbidden, everywhere. It's a pest and it is only allowed because of levying taxes.

You certainly are a smoker yourself.

You have the comprehension problem - re-read the original complaint

[ In Reply To ..]
She complains about the smell, not the smoke. There is a difference. Smoke. Smell. Look it up.

The "stink" could be coming from old butts, or the lingering aroma. The smell is what is bothering her.

To the Original Poster: "Stinky" is exactly the kind of neighbor you do NOT want to be.

And no, I am not a smoker. Just someone with an open mind who recognizes that certain things are still legal regardless of what I might think of them... and one who knows how to get along with her neighbors.

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