PSA for everyone: Don't forget to put together a Corsi-Rosenthal filter box for your home. I used it last year during the smoke plumes from Canadian wildfires and it really helped keep the air...
PSA for everyone:
Don't forget to put together a Corsi-Rosenthal filter box for your home. I used it last year during the smoke plumes from Canadian wildfires and it really helped keep the air clean and safe in our home.
Even with how common the materials are, I'd advise getting the box fan and 20 inch furnace filters sooner rather than later. Especially if you're in the US, what with the ever-changing tariff issues, supply chains aren't so reliable right now. Don't wait until you need it - by then you might not be able to get it. Should cost you less than $100.
Strongly advise getting 3M filters as they are reliably high quality and also reliable in meeting their advertised specs.
Oh, and also be aware of the fire and smoke map website fire.airnow.gov - you can click on 'Legend' at the bottom right, then click on settings and turn on 'NOAA Smoke Plumes' to get a map of the current smoke plume coverage. The map also gives local air quality readings in real-time which is useful.
https://firesmoke.ca is also a handy resource for seeing smoke/wind forecasts from BlueSky (not the twitter alternative). Covers most of the US and Canada. Each province also hosts a fire page...
https://firesmoke.ca is also a handy resource for seeing smoke/wind forecasts from BlueSky (not the twitter alternative). Covers most of the US and Canada. Each province also hosts a fire page with fire size, borders, and usually updates. Here's some links (omitting northern territories and maritimes as they aren't on fire. yet...)-
I'm relatively near some of the fires (hundreds of km vs thousands, for a sense of scale) Edit: while assembling the above information, realized the closest one is under control so yay! Definitely a bit scary because this is just the start of the season, last time it was this bad it was early August after an extremely dry summer (no measurable rain for the entire month of July and two days of rain in June).
Also, interesting idea on the air purifier. We used to dry herbs in a similar way except instead of a cube, we did them in a stack with herbs in between each filter, then ran the fan for 12-24 hours. So I guess you could still do the same and purify the air (and make it smell nice. But probably don't do that since it would obstruct air flow...)
It would smell so nice, though! I use both maps. The smoke plumes are easier to see on the Canadian map, the US map tells you about each fire when you click on it.
It would smell so nice, though!
I use both maps. The smoke plumes are easier to see on the Canadian map, the US map tells you about each fire when you click on it.
I feel that in much of North America landlords should now be required to provide air filtration. It’s not a huge cost so I feel this is a reasonable ask.
I feel that in much of North America landlords should now be required to provide air filtration. It’s not a huge cost so I feel this is a reasonable ask.
As soon as I am in control of the weather I will be providing that for my tenants. I'm not trying to be too rude, but yesterday I had a long discussion with someone about how they think I should...
As soon as I am in control of the weather I will be providing that for my tenants.
I'm not trying to be too rude, but yesterday I had a long discussion with someone about how they think I should provide air conditioning for my tenant and it kind of set me off. I dont even have AC in my own home.
I already provide and maintain a washer, dryer, dishwasher, furnace, water heater plus maintain all the other things that typically malfunction like sinks, toilets, lights... how about, if you want something to give yourself greater comfort that you go buy it, instead of expecting the LL to provide and maintain even more breakable things? Im a landlord, not a nanny.
You're being paid to provide and maintain a home and its essential amenities for someone else. You quite literally signed up for it. Fulfilling your end of that contract doesn't make you a...
You're being paid to provide and maintain a home and its essential amenities for someone else. You quite literally signed up for it. Fulfilling your end of that contract doesn't make you a "nanny."
We're seeing record-setting heat waves and wildfires nearly every year. As climate change progresses, air conditioning will no longer be "greater comfort." For many, including me, it already isn't. Where I live, the heat can be deadly for weeks at a time each year.
If that's not yet the case where you live, then good for you. But I don't think it's at all unreasonable to expect landlords to provide air conditioning--even by law.
Yes, this will depend on where you live. I can’t imagine anyone going without air conditioning in Florida or Arizona, but in the San Francisco bay area it’s quite common. Most of the apartments I...
Yes, this will depend on where you live. I can’t imagine anyone going without air conditioning in Florida or Arizona, but in the San Francisco bay area it’s quite common. Most of the apartments I had when I used to rent had no air conditioning.
We have a portable air conditioner that we keep in a closet and move into the bedroom when there’s a heat wave. It’s a bit awkward, but in the San Francisco bay area, it’s not needed every often. Usually the ceiling fans are enough.
It seems like what’s provided with an unfurnished apartment is a matter of custom. You have to provide your own bed, and that seems more essential than air conditioning.
Countries in tropical climates like Mexico and Brazil have less than 20% air conditioning and I expect it will soon become an absolute necessity, so that’s going to require a lot of growth in energy usage.
I’d argue that it’s a matter of law in many jurisdictions. There are a number of legal requirements that must be met in order to operate a legal suite as a rental business (ie. being a landlord);...
It seems like what’s provided with an unfurnished apartment is a matter of custom.
I’d argue that it’s a matter of law in many jurisdictions. There are a number of legal requirements that must be met in order to operate a legal suite as a rental business (ie. being a landlord); normally this includes hot water, plumbing, and some temperature controls. It seems like it takes a heat wave killing a few hundred local old folks before maximum temperature requirements are floated as law, but we’ll all get there eventually.
For some grander context, in some places, kitchen facilities are required by law. In others, you’re expected to furnish the kitchen yourself. Laws change over time; it’s part of the legislative risk of operating a business.
It is indeed not the case where I live - which is northern Canada. There are days where its uncomfortably hot, but those rarely last. As a landlord I signed up for providing the things that are...
It is indeed not the case where I live - which is northern Canada. There are days where its uncomfortably hot, but those rarely last.
As a landlord I signed up for providing the things that are standard in a home, as you said "essential" - thus all the major appliances, fridge, stove, washer, dryer - although I note that in some jurisdictions its customary for tenants to have their own washer and dryer and move it to their new dwelling. AC and air filter units are not standard nor essential and I definitely do not feel obligated to provide them. They are personal comfort choices and where I live, considered luxuries.
There's no reason a tenant cant go buy their own. Used window AC units are as little as 100 on Marketplace and air filter units on Amazon for as little as 72 brand new. I dont provide toasters, kettles, coffee makers, electric grills or other appliances that can easily cost that much, why would I provide those?
I think you might get less pushback if you framed it as lack of demand (which you did in other responses) versus "yeah well ain't my problem if you're too soft to live in my units." baseline, you...
I think you might get less pushback if you framed it as lack of demand (which you did in other responses) versus "yeah well ain't my problem if you're too soft to live in my units."
baseline, you are a landlord extracting wealth from your tenants. No one wants to side with a landlord who belittles concerns for renter's safety.
Its not a 'safety' issue, its a comfort issue. Safety is the railings I put on the staircases - because the chances of getting hurt or dying from a fall are 100x greater than heat stroke. And I...
Its not a 'safety' issue, its a comfort issue. Safety is the railings I put on the staircases - because the chances of getting hurt or dying from a fall are 100x greater than heat stroke.
And I obviously dont care about pushback - Im a landlord and here's a fun fact - no one on the interwebs supports landlords except other landlords and we are few and far between. Most people wont even mention it because they know it only draws criticism for "extracting wealth". Or in landlords words, providing clean, decent housing for people who cant afford a 50,000 downpayment or aren't going to be living in a place for more than a year or two so it makes no sense to buy. My renters are: university students, recently separated and about to divorce, disabled vets, people on a 1 yr job contract, couples moving in together after a few months of dating, single moms with low income jobs, guys who strongly prefer to buy 'toys' rather than housing, people with bad credit and young married couples saving up for their first home. NONE of them can or want to buy a house so Im here to "extract wealth" from them. See why we dont mention it?
I mean there's an economic reason to at least offer the option to rent these kind of appliances (air conditioners, etc) to your tenants. In the end, most tenants probably don't want to haul around...
I mean there's an economic reason to at least offer the option to rent these kind of appliances (air conditioners, etc) to your tenants. In the end, most tenants probably don't want to haul around air conditioner units when they leave.
So it's a win-win: you get more money, as a flat purchase turns into recurring revenue, and the tenant doesn't have to worry about the hassle of taking or disposing of the air conditioning unit when they leave.
It probably has a lot to do with where my rentals are located (Canada) but in 40 years Ive never once been asked about AC in a rental. Tenants might ask about a dishwasher and they want to see the...
It probably has a lot to do with where my rentals are located (Canada) but in 40 years Ive never once been asked about AC in a rental. Tenants might ask about a dishwasher and they want to see the washer and dryer aren't 60 years old, but Ive never been asked about AC.
Seems fine, then. A lot of Americans are AC addicts, so online reactions are probably projecting their own weather and circumstances. If the tenants are happy, is what it is.
Seems fine, then. A lot of Americans are AC addicts, so online reactions are probably projecting their own weather and circumstances. If the tenants are happy, is what it is.
Depends on where you are. In some regions of the country AC is life and death - literally. People died from the heat during the PNW heatwave that killed the power grid a few years ago. Where I am...
Depends on where you are. In some regions of the country AC is life and death - literally. People died from the heat during the PNW heatwave that killed the power grid a few years ago. Where I am (San Francisco) I don’t have AC and most buildings don’t offer it. But 99% of the time the temperature outside is between 50F and 70F.
It’s not for comfort. It’s health and safety. I understand the customer bares the cost in the end. But it’s relatively cheap when spread across months of rent. My filter that can handle 800 sqft was around $150 and I only need a new cartridge every couple of years. By requiring landlords to provide it we’d make sure that tenants already have the equipment when they need it.
I also use the filter to clean up the air after cooking because I have limited access to fresh air through my tiny window. That’s probably not an issue for your tenants. But maybe some readers here will buy a filter for that purpose. PM2.5 levels get really high when cooking and I can see it making a difference over your lifespan to run an air filter when cooking.
Demand for air conditioning is only going to increase. Eventually you will have to compete with properties that offer better amenities. Would it be better to suffer the install costs sooner? Or...
Demand for air conditioning is only going to increase. Eventually you will have to compete with properties that offer better amenities. Would it be better to suffer the install costs sooner?
Or maybe you're not planning on being responsible for the properties for much longer 🤷
Tenants care about some basic things: Is the place safe? Is it clean? Is it not too dated? Is it well maintained? And most importantly, is it priced reasonably for the neighborhood and my budget?...
Tenants care about some basic things: Is the place safe? Is it clean? Is it not too dated? Is it well maintained? And most importantly, is it priced reasonably for the neighborhood and my budget? I never have a problem filling a place - just by comparing all the other rentals around mine and undercutting their price by 50 to 100 a month. They can go buy their own AC with all the money they're saving :)
I don’t think we need to get into this. I appreciate that they aren’t completely in line with the rest of the site although I do disagree with many of their comments. If you think someone is wrong...
I dislike you for a lot of reasons
I don’t think we need to get into this. I appreciate that they aren’t completely in line with the rest of the site although I do disagree with many of their comments. If you think someone is wrong you need to keep your cool. Someone being different online, perhaps even in a way offensive to you, isn’t cause for alarm.
Yeah that smoke is no joke, either. I was in Chicago for a business trip summer of 2023 when a lot of the smoke from the wildfires up north was over the region. At the time, Chicago had the worst...
Yeah that smoke is no joke, either. I was in Chicago for a business trip summer of 2023 when a lot of the smoke from the wildfires up north was over the region. At the time, Chicago had the worst air quality in the world. My coworkers and I went to a Cubs game one evening and it was especially obvious at night with the flood lights over the field. That's not fog, unfortunately.
A few of us got sick once we got back home. I imagine the poor air quality was a big contributor.
Hoping our Canadian friends are safe and escaping the fires without too much stress. It's terrifying how frequent and widespread these devastating forest fires have gotten. It should be clear to...
Hoping our Canadian friends are safe and escaping the fires without too much stress. It's terrifying how frequent and widespread these devastating forest fires have gotten.
It should be clear to everyone at this point that we're well into the upward curve of the climate change hockey stick graph. Ancient carbon sink forests are going up in flames, dumping still more CO2 at an accelerating rate.
Not looking forward to living with the smoke plume this weekend. The last time around, it was hazardous to breathe outdoors in the Midwestern U.S. for weeks.
It seems like there's no way to control these fires once started, other than letting them consume all the burnables for thousands of hectares and hoping for rain.
I was shocked and dismayed to be alerted today that a remote area in my neck of the woods, the Canadian Atlantic Maritimes, is up in flames. The Maritimes for goodness sake, and yesterday was our...
I was shocked and dismayed to be alerted today that a remote area in my neck of the woods, the Canadian Atlantic Maritimes, is up in flames. The Maritimes for goodness sake, and yesterday was our FIRST warm (above 20) day and we had frost last week! (No evacs, no smoke visible, it's misty rainy today I'm guessing it's under control almost immediately. But is the principal of it!)
We're in the up part of the hockey stick now for sure. -..-
To tell you the truth, I'm worried about Northern Michigan, too. Even though we're surrounded by lakes and drought is rare, there's a huge amount of combustible material in the woods from recently...
To tell you the truth, I'm worried about Northern Michigan, too. Even though we're surrounded by lakes and drought is rare, there's a huge amount of combustible material in the woods from recently dead ash and hemlock trees. We have had major fires in the past, and it's looking like there isn't going to be Federal funding for controlled burns in the big tracts of National Park forest.
PSA for everyone:
Don't forget to put together a Corsi-Rosenthal filter box for your home. I used it last year during the smoke plumes from Canadian wildfires and it really helped keep the air clean and safe in our home.
Even with how common the materials are, I'd advise getting the box fan and 20 inch furnace filters sooner rather than later. Especially if you're in the US, what with the ever-changing tariff issues, supply chains aren't so reliable right now. Don't wait until you need it - by then you might not be able to get it. Should cost you less than $100.
Strongly advise getting 3M filters as they are reliably high quality and also reliable in meeting their advertised specs.
Oh, and also be aware of the fire and smoke map website fire.airnow.gov - you can click on 'Legend' at the bottom right, then click on settings and turn on 'NOAA Smoke Plumes' to get a map of the current smoke plume coverage. The map also gives local air quality readings in real-time which is useful.
https://firesmoke.ca is also a handy resource for seeing smoke/wind forecasts from BlueSky (not the twitter alternative). Covers most of the US and Canada. Each province also hosts a fire page with fire size, borders, and usually updates. Here's some links (omitting northern territories and maritimes as they aren't on fire. yet...)-
I'm relatively near some of the fires (hundreds of km vs thousands, for a sense of scale) Edit: while assembling the above information, realized the closest one is under control so yay! Definitely a bit scary because this is just the start of the season, last time it was this bad it was early August after an extremely dry summer (no measurable rain for the entire month of July and two days of rain in June).
Also, interesting idea on the air purifier. We used to dry herbs in a similar way except instead of a cube, we did them in a stack with herbs in between each filter, then ran the fan for 12-24 hours. So I guess you could still do the same and purify the air (and make it smell nice. But probably don't do that since it would obstruct air flow...)
Thanks for the firesmoke.ca site! The plume flow-direction forecast is really useful.
It would smell so nice, though!
I use both maps. The smoke plumes are easier to see on the Canadian map, the US map tells you about each fire when you click on it.
I feel that in much of North America landlords should now be required to provide air filtration. It’s not a huge cost so I feel this is a reasonable ask.
As soon as I am in control of the weather I will be providing that for my tenants.
I'm not trying to be too rude, but yesterday I had a long discussion with someone about how they think I should provide air conditioning for my tenant and it kind of set me off. I dont even have AC in my own home.
I already provide and maintain a washer, dryer, dishwasher, furnace, water heater plus maintain all the other things that typically malfunction like sinks, toilets, lights... how about, if you want something to give yourself greater comfort that you go buy it, instead of expecting the LL to provide and maintain even more breakable things? Im a landlord, not a nanny.
You're being paid to provide and maintain a home and its essential amenities for someone else. You quite literally signed up for it. Fulfilling your end of that contract doesn't make you a "nanny."
We're seeing record-setting heat waves and wildfires nearly every year. As climate change progresses, air conditioning will no longer be "greater comfort." For many, including me, it already isn't. Where I live, the heat can be deadly for weeks at a time each year.
If that's not yet the case where you live, then good for you. But I don't think it's at all unreasonable to expect landlords to provide air conditioning--even by law.
Yes, this will depend on where you live. I can’t imagine anyone going without air conditioning in Florida or Arizona, but in the San Francisco bay area it’s quite common. Most of the apartments I had when I used to rent had no air conditioning.
We have a portable air conditioner that we keep in a closet and move into the bedroom when there’s a heat wave. It’s a bit awkward, but in the San Francisco bay area, it’s not needed every often. Usually the ceiling fans are enough.
It seems like what’s provided with an unfurnished apartment is a matter of custom. You have to provide your own bed, and that seems more essential than air conditioning.
Countries in tropical climates like Mexico and Brazil have less than 20% air conditioning and I expect it will soon become an absolute necessity, so that’s going to require a lot of growth in energy usage.
I’d argue that it’s a matter of law in many jurisdictions. There are a number of legal requirements that must be met in order to operate a legal suite as a rental business (ie. being a landlord); normally this includes hot water, plumbing, and some temperature controls. It seems like it takes a heat wave killing a few hundred local old folks before maximum temperature requirements are floated as law, but we’ll all get there eventually.
For some grander context, in some places, kitchen facilities are required by law. In others, you’re expected to furnish the kitchen yourself. Laws change over time; it’s part of the legislative risk of operating a business.
Apparently this is also true in Montreal. They also have a weird custom of having most leases expire on July 1.
It is indeed not the case where I live - which is northern Canada. There are days where its uncomfortably hot, but those rarely last.
As a landlord I signed up for providing the things that are standard in a home, as you said "essential" - thus all the major appliances, fridge, stove, washer, dryer - although I note that in some jurisdictions its customary for tenants to have their own washer and dryer and move it to their new dwelling. AC and air filter units are not standard nor essential and I definitely do not feel obligated to provide them. They are personal comfort choices and where I live, considered luxuries.
There's no reason a tenant cant go buy their own. Used window AC units are as little as 100 on Marketplace and air filter units on Amazon for as little as 72 brand new. I dont provide toasters, kettles, coffee makers, electric grills or other appliances that can easily cost that much, why would I provide those?
I think you might get less pushback if you framed it as lack of demand (which you did in other responses) versus "yeah well ain't my problem if you're too soft to live in my units."
baseline, you are a landlord extracting wealth from your tenants. No one wants to side with a landlord who belittles concerns for renter's safety.
Its not a 'safety' issue, its a comfort issue. Safety is the railings I put on the staircases - because the chances of getting hurt or dying from a fall are 100x greater than heat stroke.
And I obviously dont care about pushback - Im a landlord and here's a fun fact - no one on the interwebs supports landlords except other landlords and we are few and far between. Most people wont even mention it because they know it only draws criticism for "extracting wealth". Or in landlords words, providing clean, decent housing for people who cant afford a 50,000 downpayment or aren't going to be living in a place for more than a year or two so it makes no sense to buy. My renters are: university students, recently separated and about to divorce, disabled vets, people on a 1 yr job contract, couples moving in together after a few months of dating, single moms with low income jobs, guys who strongly prefer to buy 'toys' rather than housing, people with bad credit and young married couples saving up for their first home. NONE of them can or want to buy a house so Im here to "extract wealth" from them. See why we dont mention it?
I mean there's an economic reason to at least offer the option to rent these kind of appliances (air conditioners, etc) to your tenants. In the end, most tenants probably don't want to haul around air conditioner units when they leave.
So it's a win-win: you get more money, as a flat purchase turns into recurring revenue, and the tenant doesn't have to worry about the hassle of taking or disposing of the air conditioning unit when they leave.
It probably has a lot to do with where my rentals are located (Canada) but in 40 years Ive never once been asked about AC in a rental. Tenants might ask about a dishwasher and they want to see the washer and dryer aren't 60 years old, but Ive never been asked about AC.
Seems fine, then. A lot of Americans are AC addicts, so online reactions are probably projecting their own weather and circumstances. If the tenants are happy, is what it is.
Depends on where you are. In some regions of the country AC is life and death - literally. People died from the heat during the PNW heatwave that killed the power grid a few years ago. Where I am (San Francisco) I don’t have AC and most buildings don’t offer it. But 99% of the time the temperature outside is between 50F and 70F.
It’s not for comfort. It’s health and safety. I understand the customer bares the cost in the end. But it’s relatively cheap when spread across months of rent. My filter that can handle 800 sqft was around $150 and I only need a new cartridge every couple of years. By requiring landlords to provide it we’d make sure that tenants already have the equipment when they need it.
I also use the filter to clean up the air after cooking because I have limited access to fresh air through my tiny window. That’s probably not an issue for your tenants. But maybe some readers here will buy a filter for that purpose. PM2.5 levels get really high when cooking and I can see it making a difference over your lifespan to run an air filter when cooking.
Demand for air conditioning is only going to increase. Eventually you will have to compete with properties that offer better amenities. Would it be better to suffer the install costs sooner?
Or maybe you're not planning on being responsible for the properties for much longer 🤷
Tenants care about some basic things: Is the place safe? Is it clean? Is it not too dated? Is it well maintained? And most importantly, is it priced reasonably for the neighborhood and my budget? I never have a problem filling a place - just by comparing all the other rentals around mine and undercutting their price by 50 to 100 a month. They can go buy their own AC with all the money they're saving :)
I don’t think we need to get into this. I appreciate that they aren’t completely in line with the rest of the site although I do disagree with many of their comments. If you think someone is wrong you need to keep your cool. Someone being different online, perhaps even in a way offensive to you, isn’t cause for alarm.
I didn't know the box fan filters had a formal name! They saved our lives when the smoke was so bad in Sept 2020..
Yeah that smoke is no joke, either. I was in Chicago for a business trip summer of 2023 when a lot of the smoke from the wildfires up north was over the region. At the time, Chicago had the worst air quality in the world. My coworkers and I went to a Cubs game one evening and it was especially obvious at night with the flood lights over the field. That's not fog, unfortunately.
A few of us got sick once we got back home. I imagine the poor air quality was a big contributor.
Good point.
Hoping our Canadian friends are safe and escaping the fires without too much stress. It's terrifying how frequent and widespread these devastating forest fires have gotten.
It should be clear to everyone at this point that we're well into the upward curve of the climate change hockey stick graph. Ancient carbon sink forests are going up in flames, dumping still more CO2 at an accelerating rate.
Not looking forward to living with the smoke plume this weekend. The last time around, it was hazardous to breathe outdoors in the Midwestern U.S. for weeks.
It seems like there's no way to control these fires once started, other than letting them consume all the burnables for thousands of hectares and hoping for rain.
I was shocked and dismayed to be alerted today that a remote area in my neck of the woods, the Canadian Atlantic Maritimes, is up in flames. The Maritimes for goodness sake, and yesterday was our FIRST warm (above 20) day and we had frost last week! (No evacs, no smoke visible, it's misty rainy today I'm guessing it's under control almost immediately. But is the principal of it!)
We're in the up part of the hockey stick now for sure. -..-
To tell you the truth, I'm worried about Northern Michigan, too. Even though we're surrounded by lakes and drought is rare, there's a huge amount of combustible material in the woods from recently dead ash and hemlock trees. We have had major fires in the past, and it's looking like there isn't going to be Federal funding for controlled burns in the big tracts of National Park forest.
I hope Northern Michigan, and other areas / forests being underfunded, will survive.