Wynd Sentry Smoking Detector - Does it work??

[Shane548]

Has anyone used the Wynd Sentry smoking detector? It's supposed to detect cigarette, cigar, and marijuana smoke. I'm interested to know if anybody's actually tried to use it, and if it works.

Equally important, if a detector like this detects smoking, and you have on No Smoking policy with a fine, will Airbnb accept the detector's data and support the host in collecting the fine?

[Julie1409]

Hi, one would think so since you do have hard data and it's stated in your house rules "no smoking", BUT if there is a 1% error of margin with these machines, then I think Airbnb will error with the guest.  I have found Airbnb wants to give guests a second chance or maybe a third.  Are you guests not using vaping devices and are actually using the old standard way of smoking? 

[Ashlee81]

I have one and can attest it works. It’s picked up vape so far from a guest. I also personally tested it with a single puff of cigar smoke and it picked it up within 5 minutes of the puff. Then again it also picked up a burning paper test as “smoke detected” 

I’ve had to file a claim for a smoker who toked up with weed once and I just sent air bnb supporting evidence of their blunt ends and they paid out my cleaning fee. They wil accept any type of supporting evidence you give them. 

[Greg2672]

@Shane548 Sorry to have to revive and old thread but I'm having this problem right now and am getting conflicting statements about how effective these Wynd devices are. Did you go ahead and try it out? How did it work? I actually contacted Wynd myself for a demo but they never got back to me so that's not a great sign but if the device works I may give them a second look. Thanks in advance!

[Elegant-Homes-Retreat0]

@Shane548 Great question—and one that more and more hosts are asking as smoking/vaping continues to be an issue in no-smoking properties.

@Ashlee81’s experience is really valuable—it’s good to know the Wynd Sentry device can detect smoke (including vape and even burning paper), which shows it’s fairly sensitive. That said, it's worth noting that these devices can sometimes produce false positives, so while they can be helpful as supporting evidence, they may not be definitive on their own.

As for enforcement through Airbnb:
✅ If you have a clear no-smoking policy in your house rules
✅ And you provide multiple pieces of evidence—such as detector logs, photos (like ash, ends of blunts, lingering odors), and cleaner reports
—Airbnb can and often does support hosts in claims for cleaning fees or damage.

However, as @Julie1409 mentioned, Airbnb tends to err on the side of guests unless the evidence is strong. So it’s best to treat the detector data as part of a larger evidence package, not the sole basis for a claim.

💡 Tip: Be sure to clearly state in your house rules that smoking is not allowed, that violations may incur a fee, and that monitoring devices may be used in accordance with Airbnb’s policy on approved detectors.

Thanks for raising this—it's a topic many hosts are navigating right now!