Avoiding Smoke in Chiang Mai

[4MyEgo]

9 hours ago, Hutch68 said:

I'm gonna get one, it sounds great.

 

If you want the details of the company I purchased it through and the rep, let me know, the guy provided me with outstanding service, was honest in answering my questions and provided zero pressure to me.

[4MyEgo]

22 hours ago, Kiwi1 said:

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. 

 

I personally looked into the M3 Filtrete cloth and I am of the personal opinion that they do not stop smoke particles, whereas the IQAir HealthPro 250 Air Purifiers system does.

 

I am also looking further into the Filtrete cloth as finding one which has the same benefit as the IQAir's HEPA filtration system would be perfect for air conditioning units acting as a smoke filter, but I don't think they exist. 

 

https://learn.allergyandair.com/hepa-filters/

[4MyEgo]

10 hours ago, Hutch68 said:

I'm gonna get one, it sounds great.

 

Forgot to mention, don't buy it off Amazon or other websites as the warranty is nul and void, it has to be purchased through one of IQAir's distributors, like I said, I research every part of it and the warranty which is 3 years

[4MyEgo]

On 02/01/2017 at 2:01 PM, masuk said:

 

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

 

That was a great documentary, lets hope Thailand can benefit from the solutions and rid the smoke EVERYWHERE, until then its the IQAir and N95 for me

[masuk]

On 02/01/2017 at 10:01 AM, masuk said:

 

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

One of the doctors in this interview (blue shirt) is a cardiac specialist at Sriphat hospital.

[masuk]

2 hours ago, canopy said:

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.

 

The documentary I attached (Chiang Mai expats) backs up what you've said.  Someone, somewhere, increased the safe AQI from 50 to 120.  

So much for concern of public health.

[DividendGuy]

Reading this forum and watching the videos, my family and I have decided to cancel our trip to Chiang Mai in March. Such a shame because we love it there and would like to buy an apartment there as well, but in all honesty our health is more important. Whenever the conditions change then maybe we will give it another try. I feel sorry for the retired people who are living there and have to suffer through the smoke year after year, but we don't want to become part of the suffering. Thanks for this forum and we wish you all good health.

[daveAustin]

Op, close won't help,  but a quick flight can get you 1000k away. 

 

Someone mentioned Pai. Although out of the CM bowl, it is the same or worse since much of the burning is in the hills around and also from Burma. Been there, done that. 

[AlexRich]

On 1/4/2017 at 11:02 AM, DividendGuy said:

Reading this forum and watching the videos, my family and I have decided to cancel our trip to Chiang Mai in March. Such a shame because we love it there and would like to buy an apartment there as well, but in all honesty our health is more important. Whenever the conditions change then maybe we will give it another try. I feel sorry for the retired people who are living there and have to suffer through the smoke year after year, but we don't want to become part of the suffering. Thanks for this forum and we wish you all good health.

 

Good decision. I was there early May 2016 and still had to suffer a bit of it ... I love Chiang Mai too and would happily live there but for this ... I came to the conclusion that it is a June until November destination. I love Chiang Rai too, but came to the same conclusion.

[AlexRich]

On 1/1/2017 at 3:47 AM, 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

 

Apologies, I haven't been following this and missed your question. There are articles that you can find via the search engines ... one of which is below:

 

https://www.stickmanbangkok.com/readers-submissions/2007/03/chiang-mai-air-quality/

[JimmyJ]

22 minutes ago, AlexRich said:

 

Good decision. I was there early May 2016 and still had to suffer a bit of it ... I love Chiang Mai too and would happily live there but for this ... I came to the conclusion that it is a June until November destination. I love Chiang Rai too, but came to the same conclusion.

 

" I came to the conclusion that it is a June until November destination."

 

 

In planning my first trip to Thailand I felt that Chang Mai would very likely be the place I would end up settling in, until I read about the smoke.

 

June until November - The problem with that is not being able to rent for a year, so that one can only stay at apartments which rent by the month at a more expensive price, then move elsewhere for another 6 months.

So the hassles of moving, finding and renting elsewhere, etc.

 

Then I was hoping other locations in the north would be a substitute, but read in this thread that Pai suffers the same smoke problem.

 

I suppose Loei as well?

 

Edited January 5, 2017 by JimmyJ

[AlexRich]

5 minutes ago, JimmyJ said:

" I came to the conclusion that it is a June until November destination."

 

In planning my first trip to Thailand I felt that Chang Mai would very likely be the place I would end up settling in, until I read about the smoke.

 

June until November - The problem with that is not being able to rent for a year, so that one can only stay at apartments which rent by the month at a more expensive price, then move elsewhere for another 6 months.

So the hassles of moving, finding and renting elsewhere, etc.

 

Then I was hoping other locations in the north would be a substitute, but read in this thread that Pai suffers the same smoke problem.

I suppose Loei as well?

 

 

I went through the same thought process - two six month rentals, one in the north and the other in the south. More expensive and more restricting in terms of choice.  

[Ace of Pop]

On 02/01/2017 at 10:01 AM, masuk said:

 

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

Very Good, but we wanted to see Alex Riches report, as per his post.

[JimmyJ]

2 minutes ago, Ace of Pop said:

Very Good, but we wanted to see Alex Riches report, as per his post.

 

That video imo not only very good but devastating.

It's a shame, was looking forward to probably settling in CM, now feel I can't take a 1 year lease there.

 

For people looking for alternatives,  perhaps this thread will help:

 

 

[Ace of Pop]

Not saying C.M isnt smokey sometimes, ,but i, and no doubt others would like to see a report in Laymans Terms conducted by someone without a bias, or agenda, comparing it with say Bradford where millions live too. Asama must be one of the most awfull things to have .

[Ace of Pop]

I lived there 20 years ago and never seen anything like that Vid, no wonder you moan now.!!..Is it relay that bad now.?.

[AlexRich]

Just now, Ace of Pop said:

Not saying C.M isnt smokey sometimes, ,but i, and no doubt others would like to see a report in Laymans Terms conducted by someone without a bias, or agenda, comparing it with say Bradford where millions live too. Asama must be one of the most awfull things to have .

 

I don't think anybody has an agenda to be frank. Most people who visit Chiang Mai like it, as I do. But the forum is here as an information source and it is fair to say that living in a smoke filled environment is detrimental to your health ... and for older people with breathing issues it is particularly damaging. Some people smoke all of their adult lives and die of old age ... but many are taken prematurely by lung cancer.

 

it's a decision for the individual, but we should not be in denial about the smoke situation in northern Thailand.

[canopy]

I too went through this decision. I would have loved to live around Chiang Rai, but very very fortunately I visited there one time during the smokey time of year which was all it took to understand there would be just no way. It was like a volcano had erupted nearby and ash was clouding everything, everywhere you went. That night in the hotel i was with my dad and even though the room was air conditioned the smoke smell was sickening. We tried using blankets as masks to help get to sleep. The next day we agreed it might have been the most difficult night of sleep we ever had. We couldn't help but notice even the hotel was burning a giant garbage heap with lots of plastic. We could not wait to get to Bangkok to get out of that. It's terrible to me that it never used to be like this and of course doesn't have to be like this today. We talked to a nice, well educated Thai girl we met on the plane about it and she just shrugged, accepting that this is just how things are.

 

[joeyg]

On 1/2/2017 at 8:26 AM, DGS1244 said:

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.

The air in Rayong is extremely bad.  Google it.

 

[JimmyJ]

I just installed a free app called "Air Quality" on my phone.

 

Perhaps it's inaccurate, but it shows right now for AQI (Air Quality Index):

 

Ayutthaya 114

 

Bangkok  198

Bodindecha Sing Singhaseni School, Bangkok 102 (huge difference from the overall - ???. Perhaps located on the outskirts of city?)

 

 

Chiang Mai overall 55

City Hall, Chiangmai 65

 

Mueang Chiang Rai 33

 

Nonthaburi 80

 

Pathum Thani 102

 

Rayong overall 32

Agricultural office, Rayong 23

Government Center, Rayong 32

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 6, 2017 by JimmyJ

[opalred]

put a plastic bag over head

but don't let wife tie it around neck