Avoiding Smoke in Chiang Mai

[joegreen]

Hello Forum,

 

Love Chiang Mai, but the smoke season last year killed my lungs. Looking for a (close) place to wait out this years smoky season. Anyone can recommend some nearby towns that have 0% smoke?

[mogandave]

There are no places with no smoke, except maybe a few massage shops...

[A1Str8]

If it's nearby it has smoke. You have to go further to avoid the smoke. 

[joegreen]

3 minutes ago, A1Str8 said:

If it's nearby it has smoke. You have to go further to avoid the smoke. 

what major cities don't have smoke? udon thani? chiang rai? mae sai? basically any north town with a tesco lotus.

[AlexRich]

I'm not sure that there are any areas in the north that are smoke free ... perhaps only option is the southern islands or pattaya. They burn in Laos and Myanmar and despite bans it's hard to avoid smoke.

 

I'll be interested to see the suggestions. I avoided Chiang Mai until April this year and still had to endure about three weeks of smoke. I like Chinag Mai but suspect that it is only really liveable 6-7 months of the year. Lung cancer rates are high there and I doubt that is down to just smoking. 

[keeniau96]

Phuket had some bad days of smoke from Indonesia in 2016, and it was considerably worse in 2015. Indonesia is supposedly trying to control this burning so hoping for improvement in 2017 but realistically cannot expect any better.

[Ace of Pop]

I'm not sure that there are any areas in the north that are smoke free ... perhaps only option is the southern islands or pattaya. They burn in Laos and Myanmar and despite bans it's hard to avoid smoke.
 
I'll be interested to see the suggestions. I avoided Chiang Mai until April this year and still had to endure about three weeks of smoke. I like Chinag Mai but suspect that it is only really liveable 6-7 months of the year. Lung cancer rates are high there and I doubt that is down to just smoking. 

Where did you get Lung Cancer report from?.We would like to read the details


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

[jaiyen]

Last year the smoke went right down to Nakhon Sawan

[arithai12]

Actually last year (2016) was relatively good in terms of haze.

[canuckamuck]

On 31/12/2016 at 4:14 PM, joegreen said:

what major cities don't have smoke? udon thani? chiang rai? mae sai? basically any north town with a tesco lotus.

No Lotus in Chiang Rai, well except for those mini mart ones. Plenty of smoke though.

[DGS1244]

I am planning to leave Chiang Mai for a few months and go down to Rayong/Chantaburi area to avoid the pollution. Nowhere in Chiang Mai is free from it.

[Mitker]

On 12/31/2016 at 4:23 PM, AlexRich said:

I'm not sure that there are any areas in the north that are smoke free ... perhaps only option is the southern islands or pattaya. They burn in Laos and Myanmar and despite bans it's hard to avoid smoke.

 

I'll be interested to see the suggestions. I avoided Chiang Mai until April this year and still had to endure about three weeks of smoke. I like Chinag Mai but suspect that it is only really liveable 6-7 months of the year. Lung cancer rates are high there and I doubt that is down to just smoking. 

Radon has to do with it too.

Saraphi district has the highest level in the country from a Uni research, published a few years ago, and would contribute explaining high lung cancer rates in that area. Well ventilated housing prevents that.

 

But back to the smoke, any satellite imagery of fires spread all over the region including the neighbor countries means there is no "close" escape.

Go to a place with (ocean) breeze but far from lawless burning activity (like Indonesia smoke poisoning Singapore)

[Mitker]

24 minutes ago, arithai12 said:

Actually last year (2016) was relatively good in terms of haze.

agree totally

[arithai12]

4 minutes ago, Mitker said:

Go to a place with (ocean) breeze but far from lawless burning activity (like Indonesia smoke poisoning Singapore)

The burning there occurs in the opposite season. So you'd be rather safe to escape the north of Thailand to southern destinations during Feb-Apr.

[Graemej100]

I also love Chiang Mai but, also, had to leave because of the smoke. My Thai doctor in CM advised me to leave in Feb and stay away until late May or even June. I now live in Pattaya where the weather patterns are fantastic for asthma sufferers like me but, if I had the money I'd only live there for four months each year and CM for the rest.

[4MyEgo]

On 31/12/2016 at 8:14 PM, joegreen said:

what major cities don't have smoke? udon thani? chiang rai? mae sai? basically any north town with a tesco lotus.

 

I live between Udon Thani & Sakon Nakhon, and every morning I wake up and I see the smoke in the air sitting there waiting to be breathed in as soon as you go outside, it affects me and also irritates the crap out me, my sinuses, my throat, my chest, my wife tells me its the morning dew in winter, yep smells like smoke to me, you call it dew honey and I will call it smoke, suffice to say windows and doors shut till around 9.00am when its gone, and around 4.30pm I start closing up the place again.

 

For what its worth, I have a 2nd wife of late, she is an air purifier which has made the air in my domain so much more pleasant to breath, if you have a spare 60 odd thousand baht to depart with, they have her model in BKK, her name is IQAir HealthPro Plus 250 and she does an area of about 85 square metres, not cheap, but she has been the best product on the market for years, I also take her to bed and wake up feeling good, but not in that way....lol

 

If your interested PM me and I will provide you with the place to buy it from, I got it delivered with 24 hours from BKK.  Others have suggested getting HEPA filters placed on their air conditioning units which is a cheaper option and have to replace them every month, each to their own, this system comes with 3 replaceable filters, 1st filter replacement is 9-12 months @ (3,700 baht), 2nd is 2 years @ (6,500 baht), and last filter 3 years @ (9,700 baht), the filters can be replaced at a later stage depending on the use.

 

Like I said, not cheap, I researched for days on end, and had previously tried a superseded model from a friend years ago for a week and was very impressed, the way I see it is, I am here for the long haul, and if I am going to live here amongst the smoke, I have to protect my health, there is no way around it, that is unless I want to move down south.

 

I have not regretted the outlay, although it took me a lot of convincing that I needed to depart with the big outlay, but once I got it, I knew the outlay was worth it, a matter of fact, I got it on right now.  

 

Come March to May I will see if I will be tacking the family south for an extended holiday, or whether the 2nd wife will save me the cost.

Edited January 2, 2017 by 4MyEgo

[4MyEgo]

1 hour ago, Mitker said:

Radon has to do with it too.

Saraphi district has the highest level in the country from a Uni research, published a few years ago, and would contribute explaining high lung cancer rates in that area. Well ventilated housing prevents that.

 

But back to the smoke, any satellite imagery of fires spread all over the region including the neighbor countries means there is no "close" escape.

Go to a place with (ocean) breeze but far from lawless burning activity (like Indonesia smoke poisoning Singapore)

 

IQAir HealthPro Plus 250 is an option, no need to go anywhere IMO

[4MyEgo]

57 minutes ago, Graemej100 said:

I also love Chiang Mai but, also, had to leave because of the smoke. My Thai doctor in CM advised me to leave in Feb and stay away until late May or even June. I now live in Pattaya where the weather patterns are fantastic for asthma sufferers like me but, if I had the money I'd only live there for four months each year and CM for the rest.

 

IQAir HealthPro Plus 250 is an option, no need to go anywhere IMO

[masuk]

23 hours ago, Ace of Pop said:

Where did you get Lung Cancer report from?.We would like to read the details


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

 

http://www.chiangmaiexpatsclub.com/burning-season-chiang-mai-presentation/

[Kiwi1]

Smoke inhalation can be very dangerous to health. Suggest monitor  AQI on internet. When at unhealthy levels close up rooms, use air cleaner or run aircon. In airc leaner and aircon place Filtrete cloth (filters out micro particles) over inlet to aircon and over filter capsule in aircleaner.

Stay indoors, if you go out wear industrial quality mask. Cheap rag masks useless.

 

Best strategy to head for the coast. As well as Thailand there are nice spots in Cambodia. Will keep my favourite place secret, do not want it over run!

 

If you feel ill get medical check ASAP. The particles are very fine and can penetrate cell walls, leading to blood poisoning. You can be very ill, even die from smoke inhalation without normal respiratory distress signs like coughing or shortness of breath. 

[Laza 45]

No problem over here in Isaan.. Kalasin is smoke free..

 

[Grubster]

On 12/31/2016 at 4:14 PM, joegreen said:

what major cities don't have smoke? udon thani? chiang rai? mae sai? basically any north town with a tesco lotus.

I won't say "NO" smoke but very little in Nakon Phanom, or Sakon Nakhon. Sakon has a Robonson's, Tesco, and dirty Makro.  Nakon has new Big C, Tesco, and real nice Makro.

[ujayujay]

No Change in the nothern Provinces:Sugarcane and Ricefields all over.As more South,as less Smoke. Bangkok south/Westcoast down to Phan nga is mainly smokefree. Bangkok up North from Ayutthaya up, smoke dramatically rise.

[puukao]

 

[lungnorm]

On 12/31/2016 at 5:14 PM, joegreen said:

what major cities don't have smoke? udon thani? chiang rai? mae sai? basically any north town with a tesco lotus.

Chiang Rai is worse than Chiang Mai, hard to dodge the smoke anywhere

[ammagic]

Hua Hin - wonderful air quality but not cheap to live here. Lived in C M for a decade but was developing asthma - no choice but to leave

[Badboldie]

What about Pai over the mountains from Chang Mai. Due to the terrain  I think there is less farming. 

I went there 8yrs ago and liked it, did not have any smoke, but it may have been out of the smoke season. I don't remember what month i went.  I sure you experts would know? 

[Gold Star]

I have been fighting forest fires in a remote part of Saskatchewan in Northern Canada during the fire season, and we take refuge in a log cabin that we keep as airtight as possible during our stay. The smoke outside is so thick sometimes that planes cannot land, and we have to take care of ourselves on our island as the fire rages around us. Although outdoors is unmanageable, we have found that you can minimize and reduce the smoke inside if you use any sort of fans to blow air through a filter cloth like a furnace filter or similar suitable material. White material shows how much particulate matter is trapped, and you can reuse it after a quick wash. You don't need expensive filtration equipment to make the air clear, as the particulates from smoke are quite large and are easy to remove. Don't wait to research and procure the ultimate hepa filter to get some relief, just blow some air through your filter cloth and recirculate in your closed-in area.

[Hutch68]

13 hours ago, 4MyEgo said:

 

IQAir HealthPro Plus 250 is an option, no need to go anywhere IMO

I'm gonna get one, it sounds great.

[canopy]

I enjoyed the video presentation posted earlier in this topic:

 

Air in Thailand that is twice as bad as other countries is being called good. An AQI of below 120 is classified as safe air in Thailand. In other countries it must be below 50 because over 50 impacts people's health. The medical community in Thailand is not happy about this discrepancy because there is absolutely no reason Thailand should be any different than anywhere else. So what that means right now in January is Chiang Mai has lots of burning, the AQI is 70 and visibility is down and yet no one is talking about unhealthy air even though it's already been unhealthy for a long time.

 

The unhealthy air is less than a half century old. From the beginning of time everyone in the countryside in Thailand had great, pure air to breathe year round generation after generation until now.  Solutions are easy and available, but the people prefer burning things and the others accept this.

 

Anyone visiting the north should avoid the unhealthy times (i.e. when there are no rains roughly October-May) and living there should be a last resort. A half million people can end up in the hospital for respiratory problems linked to air pollution in a given year. If one is there during the unhealthy part of the year, the only solution is the boy in the plastic bubble approach: confinement to the inside of a filtered house with doors and windows tightly shut, when venturing outside always wear a high quality mask (the cheap ones the government hands out have been proven useless), and avoid exercise.

 

Edited January 3, 2017 by canopy