Condominium Associations often get smoke complaints relating to either a fireplace or wood burning stove. Ignoring the problem may very well be costly, and an overall bad idea.
Smoke can penetrate units and affect neighboring unit owners. Some people are more sensitive to smoke than others. For those people, definitely a minority, this problem will never go away. And nether will their objections.
The "offender" will invariably take the position that he or she is not breaking the law and has the right to burn. Many Board members seem inclined to take similar positions.
However this "legal burning" may give rise to a private nuisance complaint in the Superior Court (here in New Jersey.) The focus will then turn on the reasonableness of the burning, combined with the knowledge that the burning is making some one ill.
The fact that the burning may be cosmetic or aesthetic (the burner likes the crackle or the visual) and not for heat, may suggest that the burning is not reasonable in light of the health problems it is causing.
The victim unit owner may be able to prove through air testing that his or her air has a large volume of soot coming directly from the offending, burner unit..
The burner may be found liable as may also the Association. Why the Association? Because the smoke is passing through a common element to pass from one unit to another.
So igoring burning complaints may be a bad idea. Amicable resolutions, including agreements as to time and duration of burning, as well as payment for electric heaters and maybe even higher electric bills --all of these things may very well be a better idea than looking the other way.
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