From tobacco smoke to cooking smells, the transfer of objectionable odours is a 

common problem experienced by people who live in apartment buildings. But there 

are a number of simple and practical steps you can take in consultation with the 

property management to eliminate, or at least reduce, odour problems in your 

apartment.

To help you clear the air, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) offers 

a range of tips on what you can do about odours and how to stop them from 

wafting into your home, including:

- First, understand how air flows in your building. For odours to transfer 

  between apartments, there must be a hole or pathway for the odour to pass 

  through, as well as a driving force to push air through the hole. The most 

  common locations for these leakage pathways are: under the entry door from 

  the corridor; behind electrical outlets and switches; at wiring and 

  plumbing penetrations; through ducts; at joints between walls and floors 

  at your apartment's boundaries; and through dropped ceilings.

- Next, work with the property management to identify and eliminate the 

  source of the odour. While this is not always possible, it can be the most 

  effective and inexpensive solution to odour transfer problems.

- If the odour is coming into your home from other areas of your building, 

  try sealing the gap around the door to the corridor with weather 

  stripping; seal plumbing penetrations in kitchen and bathroom walls and 

  floors with low-odour, water-based caulking or spray-in foam; install air-

  sealing gaskets behind the cover plates of light switches and electrical 

  receptacles; caulk the bathtub and its surrounding enclosure with silicone 

  caulking; and remove the grille from bathroom exhaust fans and caulk the 

  gap between the fan and ceiling or wall, or seal it with foil-duct tape. 

  As a last resort, you can also remove your baseboards, and caulk the 

  floor-wall joint around the perimeter of your apartment on both the inside 

  and outside walls. 

- To reduce the leakage of air from your apartment through outside walls, 

  ensure your window and door gaskets are in good condition; seal joints 

  around through-wall air conditioners with caulking or spray-in foam; hire 

  a contractor (with the building management's approval) to seal wiring 

  penetrations behind electric baseboard heaters; install air-sealing 

  gaskets behind the cover plates of light switches and electrical 

  receptacles and consider caulking the wall-floor joint behind baseboards.

- To increase the air change in your apartment to dilute and remove odours, 

  try using your kitchen and bathroom fans more frequently.

Once you take these measures, if your home's air becomes stuffy, odours linger 

or condensation on your windows increase, you may have to unseal the corridor 

door or try operating your kitchen and bathroom fans more frequently. Also, make 

sure the odour isn't coming from inside your apartment. If it is, consult CMHC's 

Clean Air Guide for ideas on how to improve your indoor air quality.

Remember to discuss any action you want to take with the building management, 

and get their approval before making any changes. Plus, if your apartment has a 

fireplace, hot water heater, furnace or other combustion appliance, consult with 

a qualified professional before taking any measures.

For more information or a free electronic copy of the "About Your House" fact 

sheet Solving Odour Transfer Problems in Your Apartment or other fact sheets on 

virtually every facet of owning, maintaining or renovating your home, visit our 

Web site at www.cmhc.ca  or ask CMHC at 1-800-668-2642. CMHC is Canada's 

national housing agency and a source of objective, reliable housing expertise.