Posted by CarolFL/UT on April 02, 2010 at 08:06:09:
I haven’t been on the site in months and here I see a thread w/ authors from days long gone by! My best and greetings to all of you. Bill, sorry about the odors, but glad it gave you a reason to post on Ray’s board!
Carol Kostic
Shopping Center ODORS! - Posted by Bill Taylor
Posted by Bill Taylor on February 15, 2010 at 21:13:16:
I have a bar on one side of my Anytime Fitness center and they are smelling smoke and are not very happy.I had somone make sure we were fire caulked and a furnace guy came out to check the ventilation system.
I also have a music store in the same center with a Mexican Resturant on one side and are getting odors there as well.
This is a real problem and I cannot afford to lose any more tenants in this economy. Please give me some ideas.
Re: Shopping Center ODORS! - Posted by Jim Rayner
Posted by Jim Rayner on February 22, 2010 at 20:03:00:
Bill
It’s been way too long since I have the opportunity to speak with you.
Ray has given you good advice …thats the HVAC engineer in me speaking which what I have returned to having retired so to speak from my investing activities.
i would offer to more very inexpensive measures that you should consider.
both locations would be excellent locations for odor ban pleated media type air filters that can be substituted for the the standard filters most likely in use. if you email mail me off the board i will give detailed links to the type of product i am suggesting. These filters contain a media impregnated with activated charcoal which absorbs a variety chemical and odors that is ad long as my arm so i won’t try to list them here. I have installed these in many locations in my 30 plus years in the HVAC trade and as long as they are changed at the proper intervals i have never had a complaint from a customer.
the other thing that may be happening here especially with the mexican restaurant is the question of where does his kitchen hoods exhaust to relative to the fresh air intake to the system in the adjoining locatiom. If the the fresh air intake is down wind of the exhaust discharge point the will be little you can do to rectify the exhaust from being drawn into fresh air intake of adjacent equipment. Since the filter in a unit are normally after the fresh air intake the odor ban filters should correct that problem as well. relocation of the exhaust fan equipment or adjacent equipment can be very costly. the next best mechanical fix would be to raise the point of discharge from the exhaust fan to a point 8-10 feet above the roof level. this will disperse the exhaust air stream typically 30-40 away before it reaches roof level this depends a number of factors.
Hope this helps
Jim
Re: Shopping Center ODORS! - Posted by ray@lcorn
Posted by ray@lcorn on February 16, 2010 at 11:42:07:
Hi Bill,
I’ve dealt with this issue more than once. There is no one solution, but there are several possible cures. I’ll list the ones I’ve used in ascending order of cost (i.e cheapest first).
You said you had a “furnace guy” come out. Depends on whether he’s up to speed on air handling issues. The HVAC system may be adjustable for balance. Adjustable systems can be set to create a negative pressure in the bar space which will reverse the air flow from adjacent spaces. If there is negative pressure (relative to the bar/restaurant space) in the adjacent space the extra caulking can actually make it worse due to the venturi effect of smaller openings. There is a certification organization for air balancing, so make sure you get someone who already has the education. See the National Environmental Balancing Bureau at http://nebb.org for a list of certified firms. (I checked Indy and there are six firms listed.)
If the balance is not adjustable or doesn’t completely solve the problem you can try air scrubbing units. We used to use these in two bowling alleys we owned and had good results. One was a 32-lane house and the scrubbers worked well enough that we were able to make half of the house non-smoking. In hot weather we had to also use floor fans because the HVAC systems were old and not balanced. The units ran anywhere from $2000 to $5000, though that’s dated info.
Most expensive solution is replacing or converting the HVAC system to one that can handle the load. This is a call for the certified firm in #1, so you have to be careful. Anytime you get advice from someone who supplies equipment there can be a tendency to over prescribe. I’d talk to all the firms on that list from NEBB and ask about a stopgap measure like #2 before considering new equipment.
ray
Excellent advice from an Expert - Posted by ray@lcorn
Posted by ray@lcorn on February 23, 2010 at 11:08:48:
Hey Jim!
Is it a coincidence that I was on your website last night? 
No kidding, in looking for an old message I ran across your thanksgiving email in my inbox and clicked trough to the site to see the latest of what you’re up to. You’ve got a good tracking system! Glad to hear from you and hope all is well.
To Bill-- I’ve known Jim for ten years or more (that dates us, eh?), and he knows what he’s talking about. Those are excellent suggestions that I didn’t think about, and while you’ve got his attention send Jim an email and I know he’ll steer you in the right direction.
Thanks Jim for dropping in. For those new to the group, Jim was a regular contributer for many years, and one of the most pragmatic investors I know. I truly appreciate you sharing your expertise.
All my best,
ray
Re: Shopping Center ODORS! - Posted by Bill Taylor
Posted by Bill Taylor on February 19, 2010 at 19:31:48:
Boy what great information in a real world situation. Ray after your post I went into my fitness center and talked to the manager, he said there were some gaps between the spaces that probably could be sealed. I sent someone who I trust and know how thorough he is to go take care of closing up the gaps with some firecaulk. I still have to wait for the results to see if it worked but it is a good thing to do first. I had another guy go down and look and told me it was filled but I think he was a bit negligent in the matter. I hope this works but if it does not then on to the HVAC balancing as the next option. I appreciate you here on this board and being there when there is a true need.
Re: Excellent advice from an Expert - Posted by Jim Rayner
Posted by Jim Rayner on February 23, 2010 at 14:27:26:
Hi Ray…thanks for complements
I’m sure are anticipating this response so here goes…there are no such things as coincidences …the correct term is sychronicities. Actually I felt someone had visited the site that I hadn’t connected with in a while and my ears were burning too so I checked my site logs and there was Blacksburg. That prompted me to check in to see what was happening in my old world.
Hopefully the last steps of the disolution with my former partner will occur in december 2010 and I will finally have found my total freedom. In the mean time I am still here in Maryland just north of the DC beltway along the 95 corridor. The third wife never arrived here and just disappeared while on her overseas trip to the middle east though i know she at least returned to Juno, Alaska before her disappearance.
I’m always willing to talk real estate in between service calls and my artwork.