question about smoke and apt buildings

[SkinnyJoe]

I read about people who notice cigarette smoke in their apartments, coming from other apartments, and it got me thinking.

My 2-story apartment building has 8 units, 4 facing one side and 4 facing the other. I live on the 2nd floor. On my side, the people next to me smoke, inside their apt. People below me also smoke, not sure if inside though. On the other side, I don't know anything about them.

The building was built in 2006, and I am wondering, is it by design (totally separate vents?) or by luck alone that I have not noticed any cigarette smoke inside my unit? I'm assuming if I can't smell it that there isn't enough to worry about?

Thanks.

 

[Gollnick]

Ventilation is a good place to start looking, yes. Separate systems and also just careful location of intakes and exhausts. You don't want one unit's air intake near another's exhaust.

A lot will have to do with the quality of construction. Better appartment buildings are built to isolate sound between units; those same construction precautions will also tend to keep odors (smoking, cooking, etc.) from migrating between units too.

Fire codes will also enter into the cause. Again, this has to do with construction. In most cities, recently-constructed appartment buildings will have fire walls between units. Again, the same construction features that help keep fires from spreading also help keep odors from spreading.

Finally, there is the overall design of the building. Buildings with enclosed common hallways will tend to trap and spread odors more than those in which all units have separate outside entrances. But, on the other hand, if your building has the common center hall that means you've got one less wall shared with another unit so if the common hall is either open or well-ventilated itself, then that could be a bonus.