April 25, 2025 0 Comments

Whether at work, in a restaurant or on the train – vaping indoors in public places is often associated with many regulations. What about e-cigarettes and smoke detectors? Does every vape set off a smoke alarm? Find out here how smoke detectors work and in which cases you need to pay attention when vaping.

Will vaping set off a smoke detector?

Smoking indoors or strong cooking vapours can quickly cause the smoke alarm to sound. This is a good thing for general safety. Although there is no legal obligation to install smoke detectors in private households in Switzerland, numerous fire protection organisations, like the Advice centre for fire prevention (BFB), strongly recommend the use of smoke alarms in bedrooms, children's rooms and hallways.¹ In individual cantons or by landlords or property managers, individual requirements may apply, for example as part of rental agreements or safety concepts.²

As a vaper, you are right to ask yourself: Can my vape activate smoke detectors? E-Cigarettes do not produce smoke, but an aerosol.  The e-liquids consist of water, propylene glycol and flavourings. Theoretically, it is possible for vaping to activate smoke detectors – especially with vapes that produce large, dense clouds of vapour. There are sensitive smoke detectors that react to strong vapour in a similar way to smoke. To prevent your Vuse e-cigarette from activating smoke detectors, you should know which model you are dealing with.

Which smoke detectors are there

Basically, a smoke detector works by detecting smoke particles in the air. Depending on the model, they trigger an alarm at different speeds. If you are using your vape indoors, you should take a closer look – there are alarms that you should be careful with. These are the most common types of smoke alarms:

• Optical smoke detectors work with a light beam that runs inside a smoke chamber. If smoke enters the device and interferes with this beam, an alarm is triggered.³
• Heat detectors primarily register a sudden rise in temperature and hardly react to smoke or vapour.³ It is therefore unlikely that they are triggered by e-cigarettes.
• Combined smoke and heat detectors (dual detectors) combine the functions of optical and thermal sensors. They detect both smoke particles and changes in temperature³, making false alarms – such as those triggered by vaping – less likely.
• Carbon monoxide detectors (CO detectors) sound an alarm when dangerous concentrations of toxic gases like carbon monoxide are in the air.³ Since there is no combustion with vaping, these smoke detectors do not react to e-cigarettes.

In most rental flats, optical smoke detectors are used.³ Vapes trigger these smoke detectors when particularly dense vapour clouds form directly near the device. In kitchens or bathrooms, heat detectors are often installed instead, as they respond to rises in temperature and are much less sensitive to water vapour.³ In such rooms, a false alarm caused by e-cigarettes is highly unlikely.

Regardless of whether a smoke detector is installed or not, vaping indoors is only permitted if the tenancy agreement does not contain any other specific provisions.⁴ Moreover, consideration should always be given to flat mates, family members or guests.

Vapes and smoke detectors in public buildings

In larger public buildings, highly sensitive devices that combine different detection methods are often used. This increases security and reduces the likelihood of false alarms. As there is usually a general smoking ban, vaping e-cigarettes is also not permitted.⁵ It is therefore advisable to only vape in designated areas or outdoors. In general, you should always be considerate of other people.

The same applies to vaping on trains and other public transport: Like smoking cigarettes, vaping e-cigarettes is also prohibited on airplanes, trains or buses as you can read in our blog article on the subject of Smoking-E-Cigarettes in Switzerland – Some Dos and Don’ts. It does not matter whether you could activate the smoke detector. Using vapes on public transport is considered an offence against the smoking ban and you could be fined.⁵

What about vapes and smoke alarms in hotels? Most hotels also have a smoking ban, which means that vaping is generally not permitted in the rooms. More sensitive warning alarms are installed there. There is a risk that the e-cigarette triggers the smoke detector with the vapour and could cause an evacuation. Therefore, go outside for a relaxing vapour break.

E-Cigarettes and smoke detectors: tips from Vuse

To use your e-cigarette safely indoors, you should be aware of the risk of accidentally triggering an alarm. Here are some helpful tips:

• Do not vape directly under or near a smoke detector, but keep a safe distance of at least a few metres.
• Open the windows or use fans when vaping. Smoke detectors are more likely to be triggered in poorly ventilated rooms, as the vapour remains in the air for longer.
• Avoid vaping in hotels, airports or office buildings where sensitive smoke detectors are installed. Pay attention to corresponding notices or enquire about permitted vaping zones.
• Choose a device that produces very little vapour. Vuse devices such as the Vuse GO 1000, Vuse PRO, Vuse GO Reload Box and Vuse GO Reload Pen are compact and ideal for discreet vaping – and still offer a full flavour experience.

¹ 2024 Rauchmelder Factsheet LGVS.pdf

² https://www.vkg.ch/de/publikationen/positionen/rauchwarnmelder

³ https://www.ofri.ch/leistungen/rauchmelder-montieren

⁴ https://www.mieterverband.ch/mv/mietrecht-beratung/ratgeber-mietrecht/fallbeispiele/q-u/rauchverbot.html

⁵ Gesetzgebung Tabak und elektronische Zigaretten (BAG)