neighbours bilging back chimney smoke

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gearoid

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Hi,
I live in a suburban house where during the winter our neighbours have an almost premanently smoking chimney. The prevailing winds more often than not blow this directly into our garden making it unpleasant for us, smoking out clothes on the line etc.

I am unsure as to whether this is due to coal, or as been suggested to us, wood and other waste products supplied to them by another neighbour with a carpentry, joinery business.

We are very unhappy with the situation but do we have any redress?

My understanding was that smokeless fuels have to be used in urban areas since Mary Harney was a minister in the 1989 coalition with FF. It may just be smokeless coal though as I can't remember the exact legalities.

The first step is to reason with them but is this the only tool in my armoury to dissuade them of what they are doing?

Thanks in advance,
Gearoid
 
You have a right to clean air . Your neighbour has propably no permission to run a waste incinerator . Smoke that is comming down instead of going up is a clear sign of an illegal operation, no matter what reason is behind it (defect fireplace/stove/chimney) . The EU has decided only this month to put environmental legislations into the hands of the EU because many authoritys are simply not doing their job i.e. protecting their citizens . Threaten the local authorities with Brussel/Strassbourgh if they are not willing to help you .

Check the EU's web pages for this decision.
 
My understanding was that smokeless fuels have to be used in urban areas since Mary Harney was a minister in the 1989 coalition with FF.
Click to expand...
Just for the sake of pedantry, the 1989 legislation banned the sale of smoky fuels in urban areas, not their use.
 
We have also had to put up with the same problem from a couple that live 3 doors down the street from us, whenever we see the smoke it's a dash to get the washing or close the windows, recently the missus had had enough and rang the council they asked what would we like done and she asked that they be written to outlining that it is an offence to burn waste and that smokeless fuel must be the only fuel burned according to the law.
Like your problem the smoke is thick, smells awful and just drops down into us instead of rising.
Hopefully the caution will have done the trick will keep you posted.
No pun intended.
Good Luck ;)
 
I always understood that the law only regulates the sale of smokeless/smoking fuel but not the actual use of it. Ie it is illegal to sell/deliver smoking fuel in certain areas but it is not actually illegal to out of town, buy it there, bring it back into town and burn it. ? Am I totally barmy or is this true ?

Either way, what I would do is try and get to know your neighbours really well at first and gain their trust/friendship. Then I'd find a way to mention it to them that it really bothers you. Im sure that if they are reasonable people they will switch to the smokeless stuff to be nice.!!! They probably don't even realise it's happening.

I have a similar problem in that I have two fireplaces back to back in two different rooms. The result is that the chimney pots are right next to each other. On occasions when the wind blows a certain way, the smoke from the room where the fire is lighting blows back down into the other one. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to fix this ?
 
Hi Gearoid,

Black bilging smoke from a domestic dwelling can have several causes.

1) Fuel.
I had a neighbour who insisted in burning old tires in his fireplace. Inappropriate fuel will lead to black bilging smoke.

Its not clear from your post whether you are in a smoke control zone but the other contributers are correct when they stat that it is the 'marketing and Sale' of Bitiminous Coal (Smokey Coal) that is banned and not the burning of it. In any case Polish Coal (the most common sort of smokey coal) does not normally result in black bilging smoke. If the weather is any way windy at all so called 'smokey' coal does not present a problem. Smokey coal is however a problem during periods of thermal invertion in urban areas where a critical mass of people are burning smokey fuels.

2)Appliance
If your neighbour is operating a defective appliance such as a range or solid fuel cooker then this could result in black smoke.

3)Chimney / Flue
If your neighbour's chimney or flue is defective then this also could lead to problems with smoke.

4)Firing Practice
If your neighbour engages in poor firing practices (such as putting potato skins and other wet organic waste into the fire) then this also migh contribute to the problem. In the past the practice of "banking the fire" with wet slack was widespread. This reduces the temperature of the fire and could lead to excessive smoke.

Having said all that, I reckon that your neighbour is burning rubbish and as such is in breach of the air pollution regulations.

With the high price of heating oil I predict a slight swing back to solid fuels and increasing problems such as this.

Binomial
(Disclaimer: I worked in the solid fuel industry for a time in the late 1980's and early 1990s)
 
Hi Lilia,
You can get cowls to fit over the pots which prevent downdrafts, these are a little more complex than the standard ones that keep birds and/or rain out. I know Woodies do them, think they're around €80 each though, and you'd need one for each pot!
Leo
 
Thanks everyone for your helpful contributions!
I will try to reason with our neighbour and will hopefully find some resolution.
Otherwise I will get on to South Dublin County Council for advice.
The neighbours are aware of the issue already as they never leave out their own washing when their chimney is spewing smoke. Mentioning this may well mortify them into redressing the issue, if nothing else.
Thanks & Regards,
Gearoid
PS: They would be likely to be burning MDF so this concerns me...
 
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