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Sorry, Lily, I can’t help with the testing.
My wife (also a cancer survivor) and I had a similar problem – twice – once from tobacco smoke entering our bedroom from the neighbour’s bathroom/bedroom, and the second time from (we believe – no proof) a cannabis smoker below us. Our building is concrete, with steel studs and double gyprock between units; the heating system is hot water with perimeter radiators between the vertical rise and return piping. Since the building is a conversion, we have a riser in our bedroom which serves the adjoining apartment and was the entry point for smoke. I dealt with the problem with copious amounts of canned spray foam in the oversized hole between units, which resolved the issue. We now have new non-smoking neighbours. The other problem was also related to perforations between the units. The hot water risers and returns have gaps in the floor and a party wall; the latter is needed because of the location of shut-off valves. If the corporation had not dealt with the cannabis smell, I would have put spray foam barriers in the gap in the floor. Since the floor is supposed to be a fire stop, the gap should not have been there.
in a previous apartment in a different country, our neighbours had two unspayed tomcats. Their odour penetrated our apartment from a common void for utilities (water, sewer, electrical services and telephone wires) between the apartments. The owner sealed the voids and evicted the tenants (pets were not permitted anyway).
I can only suggest you look further at the possibility of infiltration from the neighbour’s unit, perhaps at the top and bottom of walls (behind baseboards or crown moulding), or putting insulation pads on electrical outlets under the plastic cover. Are there gaps in the bathrooms where pipes pass through walls? Perhaps they need to be better sealed.
Please let us know if you find a solution.
