I've always had to deny requests with an non-smoking household RC attached because my mother has been a smoker for years. Though my books go nowhere near her, I respected the RCs and denied the swap because I know some people can be really sensitive to smoke. But now my mother has finally decide to quit smoking with the help of one of those new water-vapor, odor-less ciggarettes. And she seems to be sticking with it, unlike other quiting techniques she's tried in the past.

So my question is when, if ever, do you think it will be safe to start accepting non-smoking RCs?

The smoke smell can stick to books for a long time. A really long time.  If she no longer smokes, then for books you obtain from now on, I would say are OK to for the RC. The ones that you already own, I am not sure about.

If you have a good sense of smell, and you don't think they smell like smoke, then they might be OK to send. However, you might be very desensitized to the smell, since you have lived with a smoker. So, maybe its best to only accept the RC for new books and not for your old ones.

The books can pick up the smell of smoke that is *embedded* in the surroundings.  (walls, carpets, etc.)

I would wait until at least one season of where you have aired the house out i.e, windows open for a few months.

I say this because my mom used to smoke, and right after she quit she sent me a few things that seemed to still smell like smoke that perhaps were picking it up from stuff in the closet?

Congrats to your mom Erin, hope her success continues!

Unfortunately, tobacco smoke is like glue.  It clings to everything and will remain for many months, even when you air the house out.  When my uncle finally gave up smoking after a heart attack, he spent some time in the hospital.  When he came home he found that he had to give away a lot of his furniture,  take up the carpets and even get a new set of friends.  At least, he was able to wash the clothes.

For those of us who are sensitive to it, even a faint aroma is bothersome.  I can tell when a smoker walks past me in stores, even when they are three to four feet away.  It is all over their clothes and spreads out like a plume behind them.

I suspect, if you have been living in this environment, that even after a few months you will not realize the smell is there.  If you then ship books to members who have this RC, you will likely have problems.

Meanwhile, good luck to your mother and you, a recent report from the Center for Disease Control states that tobacco smoking, and second hand smoke, is still the #1 preventable cause of ill-health and death in the U.S.

I'm a former smoker (11 years smoke free!).  Some of my older books still had a bit of smoky/musty smell to them when I became a member here.  Since then, I've sold anything I had posted at that time to Halfpricebooks, so it's no longer an issue for me.  

Congrats to your mom - encourage her in whatever way you can - quitting is SO worth it!

MaryF

 Sadly the smell sticks, as others have said.

 I have had company for the past month, they both smoke and they only smoke outside. However things tink because of them, where they sit even and it lingers. They don't go near by books but chances are I will consider this a smoking house hold for the next dang year. My husband the other day noted MY HAIR smelled like smoke. What the heck!  :(   I had not noticed so I am clearly becoming desensitised to it and am worried I will not be a good judge of smell because of it. So I am waiting a year after they leave before considering this a non-smoking home.  -sigh-

 (Congrats to your mother! I know many people who have quit using those!)

Thanks for the advice everyone. I'll continue to hold off on non-smoking home RCs, just easier that way.

And thanks for the encouragement for my mom! Truth be told, it took a real spot-on-her-lungs cancer scare (which turned out not to be cancer, thank God!) to finally make her decide to quit, but I'm just glad she's finally doing it! And even my father took up her example and is giving the water vapor stuff a try too!