# Attention smokers: everything in your house is ruined. **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [April 19, 2014, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471 "2014-04-19T04:43:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![thirdname](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d07c76/32.png) [@thirdname](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thirdname)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/1 "2014-04-19T04:43:08Z")
This is a public service announcement for smokers. Please be aware that everything in your house is ruined. It is all saturated with a stench that is obvious and offensive to anyone who doesn’t suck on cancer sticks every day. Please do not sell any of your possessions on eBay, Craigslist or anywhere else without telling potential buyers that they are ruined. They are not in mint, excellent, good, or like-new condition. They are in poor condition because you ruined them. This applies to everything in your house. You might think only your clothes and upholstery are ruined, and it is fine to sell anything else. This is incorrect. Everything is ruined including your computers, stereo, and any other electronics, and many other non-porous items. That is all. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/2 "2014-04-19T04:47:29Z")
I agree with this rant completely - if it comes from a smokey environment, it will REEK of smoke. And your house itself - don’t forget that. We’re going to be looking for a new house this summer, and so many of the candidates are going to be off the list because people have been smoking in them. You can reclaim a house that’s been smoked in, but it’s almost a gut job. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/3 "2014-04-19T05:44:28Z")
I agree with this rant. Years ago I lent a VCR to my father. It was ruined by tobacco-residue buildup: the internal works became sticky and uncleanable; it ate tapes; and I was never able to use it again. ---
**Author:** ![Qwisp](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qwisp/32/397_2.png) [@Qwisp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qwisp)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/4 "2014-04-19T05:48:39Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > I agree with this rant completely - if it comes from a smokey environment, it will REEK of smoke. > > And your house itself - don’t forget that. We’re going to be looking for a new house this summer, and so many of the candidates are going to be off the list because people have been smoking in them. You can reclaim a house that’s been smoked in, but it’s almost a gut job. No,if this were the case a lot of old homes would not be livable. I’m a former smoker. I quit two years ago. I quit smoking in my home about five years ago. The house was smoked in for 12 years. Since we stopped smoking the house has been repainted inside and there are new curtains and furniture. That’s it. Believe me I can smell cigarette smoke. I disliked it even when I was smoking. You can get rid of the smell but you need to clean good. Not gut the house :rolleyes: The carpets were cleaned, we did have to do more prep work painting. We washed the walls and and used a good primer and paint combo. The furniture was replaced just because it was old. Some homes with chain smokers are probably awful, but believe me there are homes you would not know used to belong to smokers. ---
**Author:** ![RoboticDreams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7ba0ec/32.png) [@RoboticDreams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RoboticDreams)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/5 "2014-04-19T05:54:23Z")
> [@thirdname](#): > > This is a public service announcement for smokers. > > Please be aware that everything in your house is ruined. It is all saturated with a stench that is obvious and offensive to anyone who doesn’t suck on cancer sticks every day. > > Please do not sell any of your possessions on eBay, Craigslist or anywhere else without telling potential buyers that they are ruined. They are not in mint, excellent, good, or like-new condition. They are in poor condition because you ruined them. This applies to everything in your house. You might think only your clothes and upholstery are ruined, and it is fine to sell anything else. This is incorrect. Everything is ruined including your computers, stereo, and any other electronics, and many other non-porous items. > > That is all. Or you could stop being ultra weak and man up. If you are concerned about it to this extent; what you need to do is inquire about it when purchasing something used from an individual. The world stop’s for no man. Signed - Non smoker ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/6 "2014-04-19T06:14:01Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > I agree with this rant. Years ago I lent a VCR to my father. It was ruined by tobacco-residue buildup: the internal works became sticky and uncleanable; it ate tapes; and I was never able to use it again. There’s a poster on the SDMB ( **MacTech** I think?) who fixes computers and who at one point posted pictures of the insides of computers from the homes of smokers. They were _disgusting;_ full of this horrible looking yellow-brown gunk. Like someone had repeatedly thrown up inside the casing and let it dry out. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 6:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/7 "2014-04-19T06:22:59Z")
> [@thirdname](#): > > This is a public service announcement for smokers. > > Please be aware that everything in your house is ruined. It is all saturated with a stench that is obvious and offensive to anyone who doesn’t suck on cancer sticks every day. > > Please do not sell any of your possessions on eBay, Craigslist or anywhere else without telling potential buyers that they are ruined. They are not in mint, excellent, good, or like-new condition. They are in poor condition because you ruined them. This applies to everything in your house. You might think only your clothes and upholstery are ruined, and it is fine to sell anything else. This is incorrect. Everything is ruined including your computers, stereo, and any other electronics, and many other non-porous items. > > That is all. So, you bought something on eBay from a smoker, eh? ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/8 "2014-04-19T06:24:40Z")
The 40 unit building I live in has matching off-white blinds (maybe eggshell) in all the windows. There are two apartments with weird tan colored ones. Smokers. They were much closer to white when I moved in 4 years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Club\_33](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@Club\_33](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Club_33)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/9 "2014-04-19T07:15:24Z")
I no longer smoke in the house, haven’t for years. We have this thing called a patio. For many years though, I did smoke in the the various apartments I lived in and I never saw a landlord have any problem whatsoever renting any of them when I moved out. And come to think of it, I’ve never had any item that I sold on Ebay returned because of evil smoking residue. Me thinks the OP a tad sanctimonious. ---
**Author:** ![Bo\_Pai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@Bo\_Pai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bo_Pai)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/10 "2014-04-19T07:24:00Z")
Not only can you fix it, but you could probably get smoke-damaged items for free, fix them, sell them and make a pretty good living at it. I hadn’t actually considered electronics…it’s entirely possible that the smoke residue itself would protect them…now that I think about it. Brings to mind some very interesting ideas… Finding this particular topic in this particular forum…that’s just some \*\*\*extremely \*\*\*wild colliding and coinciding. And here I sit, with all of this free time on my hands…ah, the awsomeness of knowing a little something about how this universe works and using it to your advantage! \*\*\*Never \*\*\*a dull moment! ---
**Author:** ![Bo\_Pai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@Bo\_Pai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bo_Pai)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 7:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/11 "2014-04-19T07:26:30Z")
Forgot to ask, what is the item and have you sent it back? ---
**Author:** ![Bo\_Pai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@Bo\_Pai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bo_Pai)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 7:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/12 "2014-04-19T07:48:16Z")
People knock smokers all the time but here’s a little something to consider: In an instance of airborne toxins or contaminants, everybody pretty much “drops” at about the same time and “the last man standing” is probably going to be the heaviest smoker. Non-smoking, tofu-eating purists are actually cranking up their own fragility. It’s a dirty world out there people! And the dirt is moving faster than ever - far too fast to build immunity, naturally. Contaminants no longer float and drift slowly into your environment, in microscopic amounts, on the wind and in the water. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/13 "2014-04-19T08:01:04Z")
> [@RoboticDreams](#): > > The world stop’s for no man. Attention Apostrophe abusers: everything in your post is ruined. ---
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/14 "2014-04-19T08:02:26Z")
I smoke outside. For the OP: I think your message is actually meant for _buyers_ of second hand furniture and other stuff. Why should smokers have to disclose their status when selling something? If someone is interested in buying said goods, they can always ask upon the initial enquiry if the stuff came from a smoking or non-smoking household For everyone else: _caveat emptor._😉 ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 8:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/15 "2014-04-19T08:07:56Z")
> [@kambuckta](#): > > I smoke outside. > > For the OP: I think your message is actually meant for _buyers_ of second hand furniture and other stuff. Why should smokers have to disclose their status when selling something? If someone is interested in buying said goods, they can always ask upon the initial enquiry if the stuff came from a smoking or non-smoking household > > For everyone else: _caveat emptor._😉 I would say that if you always smoke outside, yours is a non-smoking household. Your own clothes might smell of smoke, but it’s pretty unlikely that your household goods do. ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 8:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/16 "2014-04-19T08:30:54Z")
> [@Bo\_Pai](#): > > People knock smokers all the time but here’s a little something to consider: In an instance of airborne toxins or contaminants, everybody pretty much “drops” at about the same time and “the last man standing” is probably going to be the heaviest smoker. > > Non-smoking, tofu-eating purists are actually cranking up their own fragility. It’s a dirty world out there people! And the dirt is moving faster than ever - far too fast to build immunity, naturally. Contaminants no longer float and drift slowly into your environment, in microscopic amounts, on the wind and in the water. Rubbish. Rubbish of the pure, unadulterated, self-serving, self-deceiving type. ---
**Author:** ![Bo\_Pai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/f19dbf/32.png) [@Bo\_Pai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bo_Pai)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 9:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/17 "2014-04-19T09:01:57Z")
> [@Monty](#): > > Rubbish. Rubbish of the pure, unadulterated, self-serving, self-deceiving type. Annoying, isn’t it? Are you an immunologist? The sheer obviousness of it is seldom this irritating to anyone else. Actually, I’ll take that back. I hadn’t considered the effect it might have on health nuts or militant anti-smoker people. You can delete it if you want. ---
**Author:** ![RoboticDreams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7ba0ec/32.png) [@RoboticDreams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RoboticDreams)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 9:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/18 "2014-04-19T09:23:29Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Attention Apostrophe abusers: everything in your post is ruined. Yes because the thought of an iPhone auto correct never entered the mind. It never does for the simple minded among us. Do you otherwise disagree with my post or is there something more profound you’d like to add? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 9:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/19 "2014-04-19T09:37:34Z")
Sense of humour failure. And that was an autocorrect error? Really? You’re right that it never occurred to me. ---
**Author:** ![RoboticDreams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/7ba0ec/32.png) [@RoboticDreams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RoboticDreams)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2014, 9:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471/20 "2014-04-19T09:59:12Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Sense of humour failure. > > And that was an autocorrect error? Really? You’re right that it never occurred to me. I’m new here and the sarcasm font wasn’t apparent. I’m sure in time I will detect sarcasm much better. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/attention-smokers-everything-in-your-house-is-ruined/686471.md?page=2)