Outside Ashtrays

Wall-mounted where there is a wall at the point people gather: it keeps the footpath clear, cannot be knocked over and cannot walk away. Freestanding where there is no wall, or where the smoking area is away from the building — the trade-off is that it needs enough base weight to stay put.

Bin-top units combine general waste and an ashtray in one body, which suits an entry where you want one object rather than two. The downside is that staff empty both at once, so the whole unit has to be handled. General waste on its own is in commercial kitchen rubbish bins.

Where the smokers already are, because people will not walk to an ashtray. That is usually the doorway, the end of the outdoor seating, or whichever corner is out of the wind.

How far that has to be from entrances, windows and dining areas is a matter for state law and your local council, and the rules differ between states and between a footpath and private land. Confirm with them before you fix anything to a wall. Keep the ashtray clear of cafe tables where people are eating.

By letting the contents go cold first and then emptying into a metal container, never straight into a bagged bin. Butts hold heat for longer than people expect, and a bin fire started by a swept-up ashtray is the usual way this goes wrong.

Buy a unit with a removable inner liner or a hinged body for this reason — if emptying involves tipping a fixed bowl, it gets done badly. The emptying method is described on each product page.

Stainless steel is the first choice in a coastal or wet location and the easiest to clean. Powder-coated steel is more common and holds up well, provided the coating is not chipped down to bare metal. Cast or painted cheaper units chalk and rust within a season on an exposed frontage.

The hood or lid matters as much as the body. A unit that fills with rain turns into a container of wet ash that stains the footpath when it is emptied.

Choose a hooded or enclosed unit rather than an open bowl, and site it out of the prevailing wind. An open-top ashtray in an exposed position scatters its contents and makes the problem it was bought to solve worse.

Then empty it often enough that it is not full. Most complaints about butts on the footpath outside a venue come from a full ashtray, not a missing one.

One at each place people congregate, which is usually more than one. A single ashtray at the main door does not help the group standing at the far end of the outdoor area, and they will use the planter box instead.

Walk the frontage at the busiest time and note where people stand. If the outdoor area is heated or shaded, that is also where people will stop — see outdoor portable heaters and commercial outdoor umbrellas.

Pubs, clubs, hotels and anywhere with a dedicated outdoor smoking area, because the volume is constant and the units get treated roughly. Those are the places where a larger capacity and a lockable body pay for themselves in labour and in replacements.

A small cafe with occasional smokers at the kerb is at the other end of the range and does not need a club-sized unit. The rest of what goes outside a venue is in hotel furniture and outdoor heaters.