The smell of animals in the neighboring apartment, cigarette smoke on the stairs or wafting from the neighbor's balcony when your neighbor smokes, debauched cooking orgies with unpleasant odors, the foul-smelling organic waste garbage can, or the vapors from nearby industrial or fattening facilities: If you live in a rented apartment or the neighboring house is close to your property line, you are exposed to the smells of your fellow human beings from time to time. Some of these scents are certainly nuisance. What exactly you can do against odor nuisance and how the air-Q air measuring device can help you, we will now take a detailed look at.
Our guidebook covers these topics:
- What is odor nuisance?
- What are the types of odor nuisance?
- Are there reasonable odors?
- What odors are unacceptable odors?
- Which substances are responsible for unpleasant odors?
- Is a rent reduction possible in case of odor nuisance?
- Can the measurement results of the air-Q be used as evidence in court or with a lawyer?
- How can the air-Q air meter help to combat odor nuisance?
What is odor nuisance?
An odor nuisance occurs when a person feels affected or disturbed by odors. The cause of the nuisance can be caused by various sources. The problem here is that everyone perceives and classifies odors differently. While one person classifies the odor as hardly disturbing, it can strongly affect another person and even trigger physical complaints such as dizziness, nausea or lack of concentration. In neighbor law, therefore, the individual case is always looked at. The individual sensitivity of the person affected is of secondary importance here. Rather, factors such as the intensity and the nature of the aroma are considered.
What are the types of odor nuisance?
From smelly garbage cans to smoking chimneys and cigarette smoke to industrial exhaust fumes: Odor nuisance is versatile.
Cooking odors
If you are considerably affected by your neighbors' cooking odors, you can take action against them. According to a court decision of the Higher Regional Court of Cologne, it is irrelevant whether the odor nuisance is permanent or only occurs occasionally.
Smoke & Steam
When cooking with an extractor hood that works with exhaust air, cooking odors are transported to the outside. However, in a ruling, the Meldorf District Court considers the use of an extractor hood to be only an insignificant nuisance. You can avoid a neighbor dispute if you use a cooker hood without exhaust air.
But heating fossil fuels such as coal, wood or oil can also release foul-smelling smoke and steam. Especially if your neighbor frequently fires up the fireplace or stove and fires it improperly.
Barbecue on the balcony
If you live in an apartment building, you have to be considerate of your fellow residents. Whether you are allowed to barbecue on the balcony or in the garden is usually regulated by the house rules. In the case of a barbecue ban, it does not matter whether your neighbor is barbecuing with a charcoal or an electric grill. Failure to comply with the barbecue ban on the balcony will result in a warning, followed by the threat of termination without notice.
Cigarette smoke
If your neighbor smokes many cigarettes a day or if there is a shisha bar in your apartment building and the odor nuisance is therefore strong, you can demand smoke-free periods. This was decided by the Federal Court of Justice in a ruling. However, you can also defend yourself as a non-smoker if the nuisance is insignificant. Measure the cigarette smoke that is emitted and document the impending health hazards from the rising smoke particles by means of a particulates- and health report.
Industrial fumes & vapors from fattening farms
Animal odors from fattening plants or the industrial exhaust fumes can cause a significant nuisance of foul odors. Provided they are located in the countryside, however, you must tolerate a higher level of stench than if you live in an urban settlement. This was at least the verdict of the OVG Münster. According to the judges, animal odors have a different tradition in the countryside than in cities. Therefore, the limits for odor nuisance in rural areas are significantly higher than the reasonable odor hours per year in cities. Depending on the individual case, these exceed the comparative value by 15 % to 25 %.
Are there reasonable odors?
Common household odors are considered reasonable. These include:
- everyday cooking smells in moderation
- Short-lived odors, e.g. when the trash cans are pushed through the stairwell for garbage disposal
- Cigarette smoke in moderation
- Odors from adjacent restaurants, businesses or parking lots: However, this only applies if these were already present when the rental agreement was concluded
What odors are unacceptable odors?
However, if the use of one's own home is restricted or even made impossible by the odor nuisance, these are unacceptable odors. These include:
- Frequent and strong cigarette smoke
- Permanent garbage smell
- Permanent stench due to animal excrement
- Intense stench due to renovation work
- Building-related odor, e.g. if the apartment was poorly sealed against the penetration of odors from the outside.
Which substances are responsible for unpleasant odors?
A variety of sources can be considered for an odor nuisance. However, many unpleasant odors can be traced back to particulates (PM₁ - PM₂,₅ - PM₁₀) and carbon dioxide (CO₂). If your neighbor smokes or fires up his fireplace or stove, carbon monoxide rises more during these incomplete combustion processes. Nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) is produced when fossil fuels are burned, such as when your neighbor heats with an oil heater or at a nearby incinerator that emits industrial fumes. Smoking e-shishas, on the other hand, primarily emits Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). Of course, there are other air components that cause bad odors and odor nuisance. Depending on the model, our air-Q air meter can monitor up to 14 measured values simultaneously.
Is a rent reduction possible in case of odor nuisance?
An unacceptable odor can justify a rent reduction. In order for you to reduce your rent due to an odor nuisance, the unpleasant odor must be intense and frequent. If this is the case, you as the tenant have the burden of proof. You must immediately report the facts to the landlord as a defect. The burden of proof also lies with you; you must record the odor nuisance. In order to prove the impairment and the accumulation of bad odors, you should keep a log of recurring odors. This work is done for you by the air-Q, it logs the evolution of all the readings from its sensors. The tables and infographics provide you with a reliable representation of the development of all sensors and measured values over time.
Can the measurement results of the air-Q be used as evidence in court or with a lawyer?
In a dispute concerning a possible odor nuisance, the recordings of the air-Q can only represent a first step in a legal process, since even recorded values can only ever represent circumstantial evidence. As a rule, a special expert is necessary. Please seek legal advice from a lawyer for your case. However, the chances of getting an expert are much better with an accurate air log, such as the air-Q can provide.
How can the air-Q air meter help to combat odor nuisance?
The measurement results of the air-Q can help to take action against unwanted and unauthorized odor nuisances. This is because the air-Q logs many different air components very closely. This makes it easy to detect and record odors as well as noxious fumes from, for example, cigarette smoke, shisha bars, heavy-smoking fireplaces and other industrial fumes. With the help of this protocol, you can determine the intensity and duration of the stench and have a valid indication with which you have your chance of a court-ordered odor protocol or an odor expert opinion. This will then be used to determine whether the emissions are permissible or whether measures against the unpleasant odors are necessary.
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