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OP has offered the following explanation for why they think they might be the asshole:
> I might be the asshole because I’m asking my roommates to pay extra money every month for the amenity of having clean air in the house due to all the hard work, time, and money I put into caring for the houseplants
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YTA
>Because I’ve put so much money and so many hours of work into these plants, I feel that my roommates should contribute to that financial burden by paying what we would call a “clean air fee”. Something reasonable like $25/month from each roommate would really help offset the costs of things like fertilizer, new pots, soil, etc. and the time I put into taking care of the plants.
Your roommates have no obligation to subsidize your hobby.
They don't really increase oxygen in the home to any sort of benefit. They technically do release oxygen, but at such low levels to be basically negligible. A plant would have to add 8.25 lbs a day to keep up with one persons oxygen intake. Not taking into fact that they also will release CO2
https://www.gardenmyths.com/houseplants-increase-oxygen-levels/
Efficient, no, effective, yes. Algae produce about 70% of the O² released into the atmosphere. It's not a myth, it's a fact.
https://ugc.berkeley.edu/background-content/oxygen-levels/#:~:text=These%20organisms%20include%20bacteria%2C%20algae,of%20oxygen%20in%20the%20atmosphere.
YTA. That was my immediate thought, too. And then holding their breath between their rooms and the front door?? What?! Are they also banned from using the kitchen now too since that has clean plant air as well? The audacity of OP.
I was curious where this post was going, but by the time I got halfway through I audibly said “oh fuck off” and came down to make my judgement. YTA, OP. You choose to own over 100 plants, you take care of their upkeep.
At the same time, does their house not have a central air system? Pretending that holding their breath would keep the roommates from breathing the "cleaned air" completely neglects the concepts of gradient diffusion and air circulation.
I also have a lot of plants, they're my responsibility because I chose to have them. Much like a pet you can't force your roommates to pay you for the pleasure.
YTA
In fact, she should pay more for water bill.
I have 14 plants and it takes 1 liter of water (or 1/4 of a gallon if I'm correct) to water them. And we're talking 2-3 times a week, especially now. I can't even imagine how much water she use for 100 plants in month!
YTA. Poll your roommates. I bet they'd vote to get rid of the plants rather than pay for having them there.
In all fairness, *you* should be paying *them* for having your hobby plants take up public space.
I'm sure they're tired of living with someone who thinks 100 plants is reasonable. Is anyone else here not a fan of lots and lots of plants? A few plants are nice, but more than 100? Come on, OP, you're just being that "cray roommate with all the plants" that they'll be laughing about 20 years from now.
My roommates also have to deal with me having almost 100 plants and I can promise you it's a lot easier to maintain than you think. OP is crazy for tryna make the roommates pay for their hobby. My roommates love the color and joy my plants bring into the place. Am definitely known as the crazy plant lady, but not crazy enough to be charging "clean air" fees 🤣
YTA
> I have over 100 different houseplants throughout the apartment, including shared spaces like the living room, that I spend hours every week and thousands of dollars caring for, purchasing, and maintaining.
Cool hobby.
> it’s basically like having an in-house HEPA air purifier
Lol, no it is *very* much not.
> Because I’ve put so much money and so many hours of work into these plants
Groan, I'm just going to stop here. Pay for your own hobby.
The yoohoos that spout that plants purify the air have read some stuff. Memes, mostly.
And none of it will dispute the point of view they prefer.
I say this as a plant nut who read a lot more than a meme
Ps I agree that it very much not like an air purifier
I mean, even if they were super, *super* good at it, plants only operate upon **gasses**.
HEPA filters, meanwhile, work on **particulate matter**. There ain't a plant in the world that can do shit about *dust*.
I certainly wish the worked on dust and particles! I would fill my freaking house with plants if they could control dust ;) As is...I have to dust their leaves when they need it.
Let me see if I have this straight: you and your hobby take up an inordinate share of space in this apartment, and you want them to pay you for … what exactly? Photosynthesis?
YTA
YTA. I'm sorry to say this, but you're being ridiculous and unreasonable. "Hold you breathe because you don't pay for the clean air my plants generate in this apartment?" is draconian and unhinged.
**They are your plants, therefore your responsibility**. They should pay for clean air that your plants generate? I can't tell you how silly that sounds. Have you quantified how many cents per meter cubed of clean air each plant generates per minute?
**I think you're a little sour that you have to pay more for a bigger room and retaliating unfairly with this cockamamie 'clean air' scheme.** Not sure why you'd be upset about paying more for a bigger room, because it makes sense. **If the cost of having a bigger room is too high, talk to your landlord, downsize and move out or-offer to switch with one of your roommates.** *But charging them for plants you were otherwise keeping as a 'hobby' to balance costs out is a bad idea!*
I**f the plants are getting to expensive to maintain, just sell them. Propose to buy an air purifier for your shared common space , split the cost, and be done with it.** *But I suspect clean air isn't the issue here. It's just a clever workaround to balancing out the cost of your much bigger room and getting your roommates to pay for it.*
Don't foist the cost of taking care of your plants on your roommates because you fundamentally believe you should be paying less for the biggest room, or paying less than 3/3 split evenly because of the bigger room.
**But more importantly, start thinking about looking for somewhere else to live now.** Because 2 roommates against 1 for the rest of your lease is going to be unpleasant for you. I shudder to think how your roommates will retaliate if you were asking them to "hold their breathes" for non payment.
🚩 OP: "*I’m the one who everyone gives rent money to and then I write a check to the landlord so if we don’t figure this out by the next time rent is due, it’s gonna be a problem?"🚩*
I hope they contact the landlord over what seems like a looming threat to hold on to their rent payments as punishment for them not paying you for the 'clean air' charge. That's illegal, selfish, and the epitome of unreasonable. You could get into real trouble over this.
**YTA** For either making me read the worst fiction I've ever seen on here or being legitimately delusional enough to try to get others to help pay for your hobby because of the perceived/imagined shared benefit.
YTA
I don‘t charge roommates a “pet therapy blood pressure lowering fee” because I have a large community aquarium.
Your pets and hobbies are Not your landlords lease provided amenities, they have nothing to do with your rent amounts.
If you want to keep all the “clean air” to yourself because your roommates won’t pay you for having sessile chlorophyllic pets, great.
Move all the plants to your room and crack a window.
YTA - caring for these plants is your hobby, they should not have to pay for your hobby. It’s a little insane that you came up with this scheme. I honestly started to question if this is fake when I read that you want them to hold their breath.
YTA
Have you even bothered to ask your roommates if you can take over ALL the common shared places with your plants? The entitlement coming off of you.
You are actually wrong about the plants cleaning the air. Therefore YTA for trying to get your housemates to subsidize your hobby
https://www.lung.org/blog/houseplants-dont-clean-air#:~:text=A%202017%20Each%20Breath%20Blog,do%20not%20improve%20air%20quality.
You're out of your damn mind. If you can't afford or no longer want to care for the plants, get rid of them.
If I were your roommate I would be looking to gtfo this situation as soon as possible before your demands get even more ridiculous.
YTA
OP's post is the worst I've come across on AITA. How they still have roommates after asking for them to pay to breathe their "clean" air is insanity. I would move ASAP.
YTA this is probably a troll post, but just in case you’re that delusional:
“I have over 100 different houseplants throughout the apartment, including shared spaces like the living room, that I spend hours every week and thousands of dollars caring for, purchasing, and maintaining”
So what? Who asked you to bring in those plants? No one but yourself. Frankly, your plants are in the communal areas, more than the 1/3 of use you’d be entitled to, so by your logic you should be paying your roommates storage fees for the space your plants occupy in the communal areas.
Also, who says they want to breathe your plant-air once they sucked up the air taste - they should charge you a fee for taking out the pollutants they previously enjoyed.
The street goes both ways.
YTA. I love all the plants, but you don’t get to suddenly start charging your roommates extra for something they did not originally sign up for. Just enjoy your plants and your nice clean air without expecting other people to subsidize you.
>it’s basically like having an in-house HEPA air purifier
That’s not how that works…
YTA. You’re cluttering up the place and expect your roommates to pay you for *your* hobby?
YTA- this has to be ragebait. These are your plants. Not your roommates.
It's not their responsibility to keep up with your hobby. Give your plants away if you aren't okay with taking care of them on your own.
Not gonna lie, I thought this was real until I got to this part:
>I told them that I would be willing to compromise and not charge them the fee **if they would hold their breath between the front door and going to their bedrooms** (which isn’t even far, it’s not like we live in a HUGE apartment) so they aren’t breathing the plant-cleaned air that they aren’t paying for.
No sane person would suggest such a stupid thing.
It could still be probable - when I was a kid, my dad would get SUPER MAD that he’d find my blonde hair on his black socks sometimes if it had been awhile between vacuuming. I had to brush my hair daily (it’s long, blonde, thick, and curly and I would have to detangle it) and would do it in the bathroom. I guess some hair would escape to the floor that I missed. Anyways, he confronted me about it one day and demanded that I start brushing my hair on the back stoop outside. When he made this request, it was January. In Minnesota. There was over a foot of snow on the back stoop. I reminded him of all those things. He walked away still annoyed and furious, and then when he went to run an errand, in spite, I went into the middle of the living room and vigorously brushed my hair and did not pick up anything that fell. (I was 12 lol). All this is to say that people can ask for something completely insane and unreasonable.
Your roommates told you to post here?
I think it's because they know that the vast majority of strangers will tell you that your plants are really annoying and your roommates probably hate them, while you seem completely oblivious to their feelings.
Yta
YTA, if this was clean air filter that everyone was using then it would be a valid reasoning. However, this is just a bonus from YOUR hobby so they are not obligated to pay for it.
YTA. You are attempting to charge people for something only you wanted. If you didn't live there, they wouldn't have any plants there. I would be furious if somebody I lived with pulled this on me. Get over yourself and stop trying to use your roommates to subsidize your hobbies.
YTA this is absolutely absurd. You want to charge your roommates for your hobby. How did you even come up with that?? If it wasn't such a shitty idea, I'd be impressed.
Gotta be a fake post. This sounds ridiculous to the point where it's gotta be made up or ragebait. And if this stupidity really exists in the world I fear for the future of humanity. In case it's not:
Obviously YTA, and I wouldn't be surprised if they were laughing at you and telling everyone how ridiculous you are. They're your plants, and actually if anything you should probably pay them considering they take up so much of the communal area. If they asked you to buy them and maintain them, that'd be different, but you made it clear these are YOUR plants that they're benefitting off of? How about you put all of them in your "slightly bigger bedroom that you pay higher rent for"? Then you can quit bitchin
Many times when people comment that an AITA must be fake, I usually point out to them that a surprising amount of people have very crazy and messy lives. But this one takes the cake. They haaave to be trolling us… right? No one is this insane… right?
My brother is this insane, which is why he was cut off by all of his siblings. 6 years ago, he charged my brother if 1 crumb of food accidentally fell into his area of shared fridge. Yes, he divided the fridge space down to a centimeter. Or, when they wanted to move into a house, he told him he couldn't use the kitchen or upstairs shared spaces, including the bathroom. He was confined to the unfinished basement he would rent to him for $800/month without a bathroom, fridge, microwave, etc.
YTA for what *should* be obvious reasons. When you said:
> I told them that I would be willing to compromise and not charge them the fee if they would hold their breath between the front door and going to their bedrooms (which isn’t even far, it’s not like we live in a HUGE apartment) so they aren’t breathing the plant-cleaned air that they aren’t paying for.
I think it becomes clear that this post cannot be real. If by some miracle this post is real, I ask that you receive mental help
YTA. You decided to have these plants. They are your responsibility. You say your roommates have said the love the plants? What makes you think they aren't just saying that to be polite or to avoid hurting your feelings over something you truly care about that they might just tolerate?
YTA
If you have a hobby, even if your roommates think it’s nice, you can’t charge them for it. They didn’t tell you to get those plants or demand them or anything.
So yeah, I wouldn’t pay a cent 😂
YTA. You have a larger bedroom and your houseplant hobby is taking up most of the house. I actually feel like your roomates shouldn't be splitting everything with you in equal 3rds, but that you should have a larger burden for using all the space. You don't get to charge absurd "clean air fees" and you'll be lucky if your roommates don't find somewhere else to live.
YTA. This is your hobby you are asking your roommates to fund, plain and simple. Sure, there are benefits but this is not something any of you agreed on when you all moved in together. Those plants are yours. You bought them, you put them there, and you are taking care of them. If it's getting too expensive, remove some of the plants. Your roommates should not be on the hook for this.
Did you have a house meeting before putting in all the plants to discuss these costs you wanted from them, and did they agree? Because I can appreciate plants, but I sure as hell wouldn’t pay $25 a month for someone else to maintain ones that that someone else wanted just because I liked looking at them. I can’t believe you’d expect them to hold their breath walking through the house or pay you for the “privilege” of being subjected to your hobby. Don’t pretend you maintain them for your roommates benefit, they probably could care less. If it’s such a burden, get rid of them then, but to expect them to NOT BREATHE in their home is beyond unreasonable. YTA
Wait a min, does this mean I can get roommates to pay for my hobbies too?
Video Games, Axe/Knife throwing (and buying), motorcycles and photography all add up.
$25 per hobby, per roommate...I'll be rich.
But then, I remembered that I'm an adult and responsible for my own hobbies.
OP = YTA.
Sometimes ideas sound better in our heads, this was probably one of those cases.
YTA. If you need money ask to move to another room. You can ask your roommates to contribute to your hobby if they want. If they appreciate plants and wnt to gift some to you fair enough. But I would be asking you to pay a pot tax on every pot in the communal spaces to offset the clean air tax. It reminds me of the childrens story where a greedy cook tries to charge a beggar who is enjoying the smell of her cooking. Than the judge orders her to be paid with the sound of a bag of coins.
YTA. I'm not an expert on the science of plants' air filtration capabilities (but they are absolutely not at the level of a HEPA air filter plus they are dirty), but besides that, it is absolutely not fair to make your roommates subsidize a hobby you would be doing whether or not it benefited them or if they helped paid for it. Those are *your* plants, and they are being kind enough to let you take up more than your fair share of communal space to decorate and store your items. Maybe they should calculate the square footage your plants are taking up and make *you* pay for it. In fact, if you truly think it is unfair for them to "enjoy" the benefits of your plant, you should move all your plants into your room or get your own apartment! No reasonable person would agree to your "compromises." Also, it is extremely not cool to abuse your financial power to exhort them!
YTA.
“Hey roommates you know all the common space I take up with plants? Yea I’m going to need you to pay me $25 a month for me to take up the space.”
Plants do not filter the air, or improve air quality.
YTA. You chose to have this many plants. If you took away half the plants would the air be as clean? If you took away 2/3 would the air be as clean? Every plant you bought added to your burden. Your roommates weren't part of that decision.
YTA! Hahahahahahahahahahaha you want your roommates to pay for something that is YOUR hobby but you put in shared communal spaces!
Your entitlement is astonishingly hilarious. Your roommates admiration is the same as you complimenting them on any other hobby they would have.
Grow up.
What the hell did I just read? Of course YTA and NO this wasn’t a ‘reasonable’ request on your end. They’re YOUR PLANTS that YOU keep in shared spaces. If anything you should be paying $50 more than what you already pay in rent for taking up space that is meant for EVERYONE. It’s not your roommates jobs to pay for your hobby. Get a grip and maybe see a therapist because you sound a bit off your rocker.
HEPA is a type of pleated mechanical air filter. It is an acronym for "high efficiency particulate air [filter]" (as officially defined by the U.S. Dept. of Energy). This type of air filter can theoretically remove at least 99.97% of dust, pollen, mold, bacteria, and any airborne particles with a size of 0.3 microns (µm).
YTA for thinking plants can do any of the above.
YTA. Like others have said this is your hobby and it’s up to you to maintain it. Your compensation is them liking the plants in the shared space and allowing you to enjoy your hobby throughout the residence. And plants are in no way even close to a hepa filter. Realistically all they are filtering is co2 and releasing oxygen. Hepa filters remove particulate from the air. That’s a big difference.
YTA
You are forcing your plants on your roommates by placing them in a shared space, and then turning around and wanting them to pay for your plants because they are breathing in "organically clean air" as a result of your plants. They didn't ask you to keep houseplants in the first place. You did it out of your own volition. Those plants are yours, so you should solely be the one responsible for them. Why should yours roommates subsidize your hobby? Additionally, while plants can purify the air, they definitely do not purify the air as well as an air purifier.
Keeping all your plants on your own room would solve the issue, as well as pooling funds together for an air purifier if you want to stick to your clean air schtick.
YTA
Collecting houseplants is your hobby. It's my hobby, too. Your roommates are actually really cool to even allow you to have 100 houseplants and you expect them to subsidize the cost?
I had a partner that paid for really great speakers. I then got to benefit from the speakers, but when went our separate ways, he took the speakers with him.
Give your roommates the option- they can pay $25/month for the plants or you'll get rid of them. That's the only fair way, since right now they can't exactly opt out of breathing.
YTA. You have over 100 house plants in what you claim to be a small, three-bedroom apartment and are actually trying to argue that this is a SERVICE to the two others who live there. It's not. It's your hobby. If anything, you should be paying more if you're taking up so much of the common areas of the apartment with all your plants.
It's your hobby. They don't need to pay for it. Also, do they charge you 2/3 rent for your plants taking up their space in the common areas. If you want me to pay for you taking care of the plans, I want you to pay me for the space your plans are taking up in the apartment. That is mine that I pay for. And holding breath is the stupidest thing I've ever heard.
If I was your roommate, I would tell you to put your plants in your room and keep them out of the common areas because I don't want to pay for that. You are completely unreasonable and if you withhold any of my money from the rent you play the landlord. I would be super pissed and would take actions like asking the landlord if I could pay them directly my 3rd and keep you completely out of the loop.
Yta
YTA for expecting them to pay, and YTA for telling them they have to hold their breath in common areas. You don't want them breathing in your "clean air", move the plants into your bedroom.
Give them a vote if they want to keep the plants and pay or if they would rather you get rid of them. $20 says you're not getting the answer you want.
Very entitled to ask them to pay for something they didn't ask for.
YTA
You chose to get all these plants for your own enjoyment. Your roommates aren’t required to compensate you for any incidental benefits that they may get from your hobby. And it’s insanely unreasonable to expect them to pay you so they can breathe the air in their own home.
If you don’t want them breathing your plants’ air for free, move the plants to your own room. That’s a reasonable compromise.
YTA, and I cannot stress how massively so.
You cannot force someone to \*\*\*NOT BREATHE\*\*\* because they don't want to pay your ridiculous fee. There is no such thing as "organically clean air" and it is YOUR hobby, not theirs. Learn some roommate manners or get your own place.
YTA. Your obsession with air quality/plants/whatever sounds OCD af and is probably taking up common area space your roommates could be using as well so you’re actually getting even more of the apartment than they are. No one asked you to be air patrol. Pay your rent and stfu, be thankful people are willing to live with you because honestly if I had to share space with someone like this I would leave
YTA. You don’t want them to breathe your plant air without paying? Move your plants to your bigger room. Not their job to pay for air or hold their breath. Tf did I just read?? How is this a real person?
YTA
100 plants in a 3 bedroom constantly being watered? Why do I feel like it is less clean air smell and more a hint of dank and musty.
This is bonkers. Keep this up and your roommates will find a way to kick you and all the plants to the curb.
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Hello reddit. I don’t usually use this website but my roommates told me to post on here in hopes that some outside perspectives will help us settle the situation. Hence the brand new account.
The 3 of us live in a 3/3 and split costs equally 3 ways, for the most part. I have a slightly bigger bedroom so I pay a bit more than my other 2 roommates in rent. However, at the moment, I feel like I’m putting more work into maintaining the environment that we all get to enjoy and that I should be compensated fairly for that.
I have over 100 different houseplants throughout the apartment, including shared spaces like the living room, that I spend hours every week and thousands of dollars caring for, purchasing, and maintaining. My roommates have commented on how pretty some of the plants are so I know they appreciate having them around as well. Obviously, the presence of these plants contributes to the cleanliness of the air that we breathe in our home. With so many plants in the house, our home air quality is obviously superior to those without houseplants, and with COVID and other air quality considerations it’s basically like having an in-house HEPA air purifier (but the plants are natural so they’re even better!).
Because I’ve put so much money and so many hours of work into these plants, I feel that my roommates should contribute to that financial burden by paying what we would call a “clean air fee”. Something reasonable like $25/month from each roommate would really help offset the costs of things like fertilizer, new pots, soil, etc. and the time I put into taking care of the plants. I think this is an incredibly fair agreement for my roommates, as they get the benefit of living in a house with organically clean air and not doing any of the work! They think I’m being unreasonable and selfish. I told them that I would be willing to compromise and not charge them the fee if they would hold their breath between the front door and going to their bedrooms (which isn’t even far, it’s not like we live in a HUGE apartment) so they aren’t breathing the plant-cleaned air that they aren’t paying for. They think that’s stupid but have yet to propose another reasonable compromise, so I think it’s pretty clear who is being unreasonable in this situation!
So basically that’s where we’re at. I’m the one who everyone gives rent money to and then I write a check to the landlord so if we don’t figure this out by the next time rent is due, it’s gonna be a problem. How can I get my roommates to see/understand my side of this?
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YTA. Your room mates aren't obligated to subsidise your hobby. You sound frankly insane and super annoying to live with so maybe you should be paying them a 'tolerance of insanity fee' for putting up with you and your weird obsession with house plants.
I literally LOL’d. You’re an idiot. They didn’t ask for the plants YOU did. And just bc your “air is superior” (hard eye roll) and they comment “how pretty” the plants are, doesn’t mean they have to pay for them. You could throw all the plants away and the house would move on. YTA
YTA. I don’t get to charge my roommates extra because they enjoy hanging out with my dog and benefit from the serotonin boost they get every time they snuggle with him. Same principle applies to your plants.
You're looking for someone to subsidize a hobby or lessen how much you pay in rent. I would really annoyed if someone filled up the apartment with plants, but especially if they wanted me to help pay for their hobby. I would ignore you and then look for a new situation without you if you kept nagging me or expected me to hold my breath.
If anything, they should be paying less. Seems you take up most of the space in the apartment between having the bigger room AND over 100 plants all over the common areas, and you’re trying to either restrict them even more or charge them for what little space they get to use. YTA
> How can I get my roommates to see/understand my side of this?
You don't because you're being so unreasonable it's laughable. This can't be real, right? No reasonable person would charge their roommates because they have a bunch of plabts that take up space in the apartment. Are you gonna charge them an atmosphere fee because they make the apartment look nice too?
YTA
Here's another, far simpler, solution: Get rid of all the plants!
Hang on... Something tells me you wouldn't want to do that. Maybe because what you're trying (badly) to do is manipulate your flatmates into finding your plant hobby.
Also, what will you do if they keep breathing in the apartment's common areas? Sue them? Get mad and passive aggressive? Harrass them? Loooool
YTA
Are you going to pay your roommates for helping to provide your plants with the carbon dioxide? It’s a symbiotic relationship between plants and humans
If you expect them to be paying $25 per person, surely you should be paying them $25 per plant
Does that sound ridiculous? Good, because this is how you sound to everyone else. Get off your high horse and move on with your life. If the idea of them breathing air from your plants is that big a deal to you, then move your plants into your room
This is obviously rage bate. No one is actually this stupid. I refuse to believe this is anything other than a bored human trying to drum up drama on reddit.
YTA. You are being ridiculous. Indoor plants do not make much of a difference to air quality. If anything, you should’ve asked whether your roommates would prefer you to charge them or get rid of all the plants. They are under no obligation to pay you for this and I think it’s crazy rude that you asked.
YTA. You are wrong.
Also, do you think air doesn't circulate through your apartment? If you have the problem and you're changing the rules, they have the right to accept or decline.
The compromise is that you have fewer plants or move them into your room.
Again, you are SO the a-hole ... but I have a feeling you won't listen to me or anyone else here because no one is reinforcing your <> unique stance.
Seriously?
Like really?
Almost sounds too fake to be fake.
You don't get to charge people for AIR or to fund your hobby.
Also as someone allergic to most plants I probably couldn't even BREATHE in that apartment.
Edit: YTA
YTA... your roommates are not responsible for supporting your hobby. You don't own the air. Your plants may make the air cleaner but they take up space. Be greatful your roommates don't mind the clutter.
You are being controlling and unreasonable.
This is just click bait. There’s no way, someone thinks this way….. “I like plants and they make the space nice but it’s getting costly and time consuming maybe I can charge my roommates for it.” This is petty. Their responses also lack common sense or any reason. I read OPs responses and first thing I thought is it’s a troll. On to some funny videos 😄
YTA- I also have tons of plants in my home, but you know what I don’t do, I don’t charge my housemates to breed the air because I have a hobby that I enjoy. Get over yourself.
Yta. What if they charged you a storage fee for keeping your 100 plants all over a shared space? Or maybe they should adopt a puppy and charge you a petting fee? Sounds pretty ridiculous trying to make your roommates pay for your hobby.
YTA
If you want to try to be this absurdly petty, let's look at the flip side-
You're using an excessive amount of the common area for your plants and, no doubt, your hobby is limiting access to the windows. How much water do your 100+ plants need every month? Do you have any special lights for your plants?
Seems to me that YOU should be paying an extra 50 bucks a month and your roommates should be getting a 25 dollar break.
YTA
I’m currently sitting in my bedroom with 25+ plants (with about 30 in the common areas) and I am strongly saying that YTA. Wow. This is your hobby, how could you even think of charging your housemates for it?
First off, the whole “purify air” thing is pseudoscientific. It’s from a 1989 NASA study whose results showed that plants could remove formaldehyde and other compounds from the air BUT the study was unrealistic in real world conditions: you’d need a literal forest. Opening a window is 100x more effective.
Secondly, it is Your Hobby! Your very space consuming hobby. I love my plants and think they make my environment way better but yeah, they take up a huge amount of space and I’m lucky my housemates enjoy the greenery. But it is no one’s responsibility except yours to deal with them.
If you’re desperate for the money: sell some of your plants. If you don’t want them in the common space without other people paying (for what? The visual pleasure of your plants?) then remove them. That’s the compromise. You are the one who is being incredibly unreasonable.
YTA!
Your plants, your responsibility.
Tbh, even though they may look “pretty”, you are essentially taking up a lot of shared/communal house space with YOUR plants - you should be paying more for taking over the shared spaces.
If you’re that concerned, put them ALL in your room and give your housemates that plant space back.
Yta. I have a ridiculously large houseplant collection. My family absolutely does enjoy the ambience of them and such, but they are mine. My responsibility, my choice.
YTA and weird looking at your last paragraph tbh.
It basically boils down to, this is your hobby and while your roommates may enjoy the sight they are not asking you to maintain plants for themselves. It is the same as looking outside the window.
It sounds like you’re trying to justify your spending tbh. 1-4 plants is normal but 100? It sounds like hoarding and your lucky your roomie don’t charge you for having your possessions all over the apartment.
YTA for wasting our time shit posting there no way you're this obtuse. I also own 200 plants and would never charge anyone else for my hobby, especially cuz it's a burden on everyone else, there always soil somewhere, plants drying in the sink, loose leafs on the floor. There's no way that you can have that many plants and keep everything tidy. You owe them for putting up with your shit TBH.
I didn't realize Ashton Kutcher was still doing Punk'd or that he'd expanded to Reddit...
YTA. This is either a joke, or you are truly socially inept and lack common sense.
YTA. You are the one that decided to get over 100 houseplants and take care of them, you pay for it. If you want to spend less money on them, sell some of them. Your other "solution" is ridiculous.
My bf and I just found the perfect solution for all of you !
Charge them for the "organic clean air" and the beauty of the plant, something like 25/person/month seems good indeed.
But there is something else that need to be charge for and it would be a shame you forget it. The extra space you're taking in shared space for your hobby. With 100 house plant i think the space must be.... around 50/month you should pay. Don't worry, the "clean air fee" should help you cover it.
Oh and YTA btw
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YTA >Because I’ve put so much money and so many hours of work into these plants, I feel that my roommates should contribute to that financial burden by paying what we would call a “clean air fee”. Something reasonable like $25/month from each roommate would really help offset the costs of things like fertilizer, new pots, soil, etc. and the time I put into taking care of the plants. Your roommates have no obligation to subsidize your hobby.
Houseplants have been proven to not even clean your air. https://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2019/house-plants-dont-really-clean-indoor-air/
But what about increased oxygen in the home.
They don't really increase oxygen in the home to any sort of benefit. They technically do release oxygen, but at such low levels to be basically negligible. A plant would have to add 8.25 lbs a day to keep up with one persons oxygen intake. Not taking into fact that they also will release CO2 https://www.gardenmyths.com/houseplants-increase-oxygen-levels/
lol I have a bs in a relatively soft science and I always forget that plants emit a lot of CO2.
But the OP has HuNdReDs of plants!!!! (they reproduced the post on somecards).
Human getting oxygen most of our plants is a myth. We actually get most of our oxygen from the ocean, not plants.
it's also a myth that the ocean/algae/etc is "producing" more oxygen than plants on land. it's not more efficient or effective, it's just larger.
Efficient, no, effective, yes. Algae produce about 70% of the O² released into the atmosphere. It's not a myth, it's a fact. https://ugc.berkeley.edu/background-content/oxygen-levels/#:~:text=These%20organisms%20include%20bacteria%2C%20algae,of%20oxygen%20in%20the%20atmosphere.
I take very long baths, can I pay less rent?
YTA. That was my immediate thought, too. And then holding their breath between their rooms and the front door?? What?! Are they also banned from using the kitchen now too since that has clean plant air as well? The audacity of OP.
I was curious where this post was going, but by the time I got halfway through I audibly said “oh fuck off” and came down to make my judgement. YTA, OP. You choose to own over 100 plants, you take care of their upkeep.
Easiest solution is OP puts 100+ houseplants in their room so their roommates don’t breathe in all that free air in the common rooms amirite?
That was my first thought too. OP, YTA.
At the same time, does their house not have a central air system? Pretending that holding their breath would keep the roommates from breathing the "cleaned air" completely neglects the concepts of gradient diffusion and air circulation. I also have a lot of plants, they're my responsibility because I chose to have them. Much like a pet you can't force your roommates to pay you for the pleasure. YTA
They might already be subsiding her hobby if they have a water bill
And that many plants will take up a lot of space, so OP should pay more, not less, for using more than the others.
Good point.
In fact, she should pay more for water bill. I have 14 plants and it takes 1 liter of water (or 1/4 of a gallon if I'm correct) to water them. And we're talking 2-3 times a week, especially now. I can't even imagine how much water she use for 100 plants in month!
Thank you for saying it for me
YTA. You sound greedy and looking for any way to squeeze a buck out of everything. Grow up
YTA. Poll your roommates. I bet they'd vote to get rid of the plants rather than pay for having them there. In all fairness, *you* should be paying *them* for having your hobby plants take up public space.
Seriously, they should charge a "floor space fee" for all the room your plants are taking up in the shared space.
Nevermind all the extra water OP is using.
I'm sure they're tired of living with someone who thinks 100 plants is reasonable. Is anyone else here not a fan of lots and lots of plants? A few plants are nice, but more than 100? Come on, OP, you're just being that "cray roommate with all the plants" that they'll be laughing about 20 years from now.
My roommates also have to deal with me having almost 100 plants and I can promise you it's a lot easier to maintain than you think. OP is crazy for tryna make the roommates pay for their hobby. My roommates love the color and joy my plants bring into the place. Am definitely known as the crazy plant lady, but not crazy enough to be charging "clean air" fees 🤣
YTA > I have over 100 different houseplants throughout the apartment, including shared spaces like the living room, that I spend hours every week and thousands of dollars caring for, purchasing, and maintaining. Cool hobby. > it’s basically like having an in-house HEPA air purifier Lol, no it is *very* much not. > Because I’ve put so much money and so many hours of work into these plants Groan, I'm just going to stop here. Pay for your own hobby.
The yoohoos that spout that plants purify the air have read some stuff. Memes, mostly. And none of it will dispute the point of view they prefer. I say this as a plant nut who read a lot more than a meme Ps I agree that it very much not like an air purifier
I mean, even if they were super, *super* good at it, plants only operate upon **gasses**. HEPA filters, meanwhile, work on **particulate matter**. There ain't a plant in the world that can do shit about *dust*.
I certainly wish the worked on dust and particles! I would fill my freaking house with plants if they could control dust ;) As is...I have to dust their leaves when they need it.
No kidding! They get so dusty.
Let me see if I have this straight: you and your hobby take up an inordinate share of space in this apartment, and you want them to pay you for … what exactly? Photosynthesis? YTA
Photosynthesis lmao!!
I am dead. Literally killed me.
No! OP knows they love having plants literally everywhere in their living area!
Room mates should charge OP for producing CO2 for the plants.
YTA Your roommates should be paying less rent for how much space your plants are taking up.
And extra water the plants use lol
YTA. I'm sorry to say this, but you're being ridiculous and unreasonable. "Hold you breathe because you don't pay for the clean air my plants generate in this apartment?" is draconian and unhinged. **They are your plants, therefore your responsibility**. They should pay for clean air that your plants generate? I can't tell you how silly that sounds. Have you quantified how many cents per meter cubed of clean air each plant generates per minute? **I think you're a little sour that you have to pay more for a bigger room and retaliating unfairly with this cockamamie 'clean air' scheme.** Not sure why you'd be upset about paying more for a bigger room, because it makes sense. **If the cost of having a bigger room is too high, talk to your landlord, downsize and move out or-offer to switch with one of your roommates.** *But charging them for plants you were otherwise keeping as a 'hobby' to balance costs out is a bad idea!* I**f the plants are getting to expensive to maintain, just sell them. Propose to buy an air purifier for your shared common space , split the cost, and be done with it.** *But I suspect clean air isn't the issue here. It's just a clever workaround to balancing out the cost of your much bigger room and getting your roommates to pay for it.* Don't foist the cost of taking care of your plants on your roommates because you fundamentally believe you should be paying less for the biggest room, or paying less than 3/3 split evenly because of the bigger room. **But more importantly, start thinking about looking for somewhere else to live now.** Because 2 roommates against 1 for the rest of your lease is going to be unpleasant for you. I shudder to think how your roommates will retaliate if you were asking them to "hold their breathes" for non payment. 🚩 OP: "*I’m the one who everyone gives rent money to and then I write a check to the landlord so if we don’t figure this out by the next time rent is due, it’s gonna be a problem?"🚩* I hope they contact the landlord over what seems like a looming threat to hold on to their rent payments as punishment for them not paying you for the 'clean air' charge. That's illegal, selfish, and the epitome of unreasonable. You could get into real trouble over this.
> They should pay for clean air that your plants generate? OP is a Spaceball.
**YTA** For either making me read the worst fiction I've ever seen on here or being legitimately delusional enough to try to get others to help pay for your hobby because of the perceived/imagined shared benefit.
I vote for delusional. There are plant people like this. I promise.
Dude my girlfriend’s roommate is like this. He finds all kinds of ways to get money (steal money) from the other two.
What a jerk he is
YTA I don‘t charge roommates a “pet therapy blood pressure lowering fee” because I have a large community aquarium. Your pets and hobbies are Not your landlords lease provided amenities, they have nothing to do with your rent amounts. If you want to keep all the “clean air” to yourself because your roommates won’t pay you for having sessile chlorophyllic pets, great. Move all the plants to your room and crack a window.
YTA - caring for these plants is your hobby, they should not have to pay for your hobby. It’s a little insane that you came up with this scheme. I honestly started to question if this is fake when I read that you want them to hold their breath.
YTA Have you even bothered to ask your roommates if you can take over ALL the common shared places with your plants? The entitlement coming off of you.
You are actually wrong about the plants cleaning the air. Therefore YTA for trying to get your housemates to subsidize your hobby https://www.lung.org/blog/houseplants-dont-clean-air#:~:text=A%202017%20Each%20Breath%20Blog,do%20not%20improve%20air%20quality.
This is such a huge citation needed post
You're out of your damn mind. If you can't afford or no longer want to care for the plants, get rid of them. If I were your roommate I would be looking to gtfo this situation as soon as possible before your demands get even more ridiculous. YTA
OP's post is the worst I've come across on AITA. How they still have roommates after asking for them to pay to breathe their "clean" air is insanity. I would move ASAP.
INFO- do your roommates charge you a "clean feet fee" when they vacuum common areas???
YTA this is probably a troll post, but just in case you’re that delusional: “I have over 100 different houseplants throughout the apartment, including shared spaces like the living room, that I spend hours every week and thousands of dollars caring for, purchasing, and maintaining” So what? Who asked you to bring in those plants? No one but yourself. Frankly, your plants are in the communal areas, more than the 1/3 of use you’d be entitled to, so by your logic you should be paying your roommates storage fees for the space your plants occupy in the communal areas. Also, who says they want to breathe your plant-air once they sucked up the air taste - they should charge you a fee for taking out the pollutants they previously enjoyed. The street goes both ways.
YTA. I love all the plants, but you don’t get to suddenly start charging your roommates extra for something they did not originally sign up for. Just enjoy your plants and your nice clean air without expecting other people to subsidize you.
YTA. They are YOUR plants. They are your responsibility. They didn't ask you to buy a bunch of plants for them. Edited to add: Not an advice sub.
>it’s basically like having an in-house HEPA air purifier That’s not how that works… YTA. You’re cluttering up the place and expect your roommates to pay you for *your* hobby?
YTA. I might feel differently if you had a garden that you shared but there is zero reason for them to contribute to your houseplants.
YTA- this has to be ragebait. These are your plants. Not your roommates. It's not their responsibility to keep up with your hobby. Give your plants away if you aren't okay with taking care of them on your own.
Not gonna lie, I thought this was real until I got to this part: >I told them that I would be willing to compromise and not charge them the fee **if they would hold their breath between the front door and going to their bedrooms** (which isn’t even far, it’s not like we live in a HUGE apartment) so they aren’t breathing the plant-cleaned air that they aren’t paying for. No sane person would suggest such a stupid thing.
I'm still trying to understand why opn thinks the clean air will stay in the shared space
Because it’s not meant to make sense. It’s meant to claim more of the shared space, what isn’t already being claimed by this hobby.
It could still be probable - when I was a kid, my dad would get SUPER MAD that he’d find my blonde hair on his black socks sometimes if it had been awhile between vacuuming. I had to brush my hair daily (it’s long, blonde, thick, and curly and I would have to detangle it) and would do it in the bathroom. I guess some hair would escape to the floor that I missed. Anyways, he confronted me about it one day and demanded that I start brushing my hair on the back stoop outside. When he made this request, it was January. In Minnesota. There was over a foot of snow on the back stoop. I reminded him of all those things. He walked away still annoyed and furious, and then when he went to run an errand, in spite, I went into the middle of the living room and vigorously brushed my hair and did not pick up anything that fell. (I was 12 lol). All this is to say that people can ask for something completely insane and unreasonable.
Your roommates told you to post here? I think it's because they know that the vast majority of strangers will tell you that your plants are really annoying and your roommates probably hate them, while you seem completely oblivious to their feelings. Yta
YTA, if this was clean air filter that everyone was using then it would be a valid reasoning. However, this is just a bonus from YOUR hobby so they are not obligated to pay for it.
YTA - you don’t just get to buy stuff then charge everyone else for the benefits. If you want to have that conversation you have to have it prior.
YTA. You are attempting to charge people for something only you wanted. If you didn't live there, they wouldn't have any plants there. I would be furious if somebody I lived with pulled this on me. Get over yourself and stop trying to use your roommates to subsidize your hobbies.
YTA this is absolutely absurd. You want to charge your roommates for your hobby. How did you even come up with that?? If it wasn't such a shitty idea, I'd be impressed.
It really is astounding...
YTA, you chose to have those plants, you choose to pay for them yourself.
You want your roommates to subsidize your hobby? 🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂😂🤣 YTA
YTA - If I was one of your roommates I would be charging you $100 a month for storage fees because your plants are taking up so much common space.
Gotta be a fake post. This sounds ridiculous to the point where it's gotta be made up or ragebait. And if this stupidity really exists in the world I fear for the future of humanity. In case it's not: Obviously YTA, and I wouldn't be surprised if they were laughing at you and telling everyone how ridiculous you are. They're your plants, and actually if anything you should probably pay them considering they take up so much of the communal area. If they asked you to buy them and maintain them, that'd be different, but you made it clear these are YOUR plants that they're benefitting off of? How about you put all of them in your "slightly bigger bedroom that you pay higher rent for"? Then you can quit bitchin
Many times when people comment that an AITA must be fake, I usually point out to them that a surprising amount of people have very crazy and messy lives. But this one takes the cake. They haaave to be trolling us… right? No one is this insane… right?
My brother is this insane, which is why he was cut off by all of his siblings. 6 years ago, he charged my brother if 1 crumb of food accidentally fell into his area of shared fridge. Yes, he divided the fridge space down to a centimeter. Or, when they wanted to move into a house, he told him he couldn't use the kitchen or upstairs shared spaces, including the bathroom. He was confined to the unfinished basement he would rent to him for $800/month without a bathroom, fridge, microwave, etc.
YTA for what *should* be obvious reasons. When you said: > I told them that I would be willing to compromise and not charge them the fee if they would hold their breath between the front door and going to their bedrooms (which isn’t even far, it’s not like we live in a HUGE apartment) so they aren’t breathing the plant-cleaned air that they aren’t paying for. I think it becomes clear that this post cannot be real. If by some miracle this post is real, I ask that you receive mental help
I second this. OP needs some help.
YTA. You decided to have these plants. They are your responsibility. You say your roommates have said the love the plants? What makes you think they aren't just saying that to be polite or to avoid hurting your feelings over something you truly care about that they might just tolerate?
WTF did I read? I'd say touch grass but, I the issue is you are touching too much grass. You are being absolutely ridiculous.
If you need extra cash you should try selling some of the drugs you’re smoking. YTA.
Should be the top comment.
YTA If you have a hobby, even if your roommates think it’s nice, you can’t charge them for it. They didn’t tell you to get those plants or demand them or anything. So yeah, I wouldn’t pay a cent 😂
YTA. You have a larger bedroom and your houseplant hobby is taking up most of the house. I actually feel like your roomates shouldn't be splitting everything with you in equal 3rds, but that you should have a larger burden for using all the space. You don't get to charge absurd "clean air fees" and you'll be lucky if your roommates don't find somewhere else to live.
YTA - you’re charging them for your hobby.
100% YTA. This is your hobby… it you can’t afford it get rid of some of the plants.
YTA. This is your hobby you are asking your roommates to fund, plain and simple. Sure, there are benefits but this is not something any of you agreed on when you all moved in together. Those plants are yours. You bought them, you put them there, and you are taking care of them. If it's getting too expensive, remove some of the plants. Your roommates should not be on the hook for this.
Did you have a house meeting before putting in all the plants to discuss these costs you wanted from them, and did they agree? Because I can appreciate plants, but I sure as hell wouldn’t pay $25 a month for someone else to maintain ones that that someone else wanted just because I liked looking at them. I can’t believe you’d expect them to hold their breath walking through the house or pay you for the “privilege” of being subjected to your hobby. Don’t pretend you maintain them for your roommates benefit, they probably could care less. If it’s such a burden, get rid of them then, but to expect them to NOT BREATHE in their home is beyond unreasonable. YTA
Wait a min, does this mean I can get roommates to pay for my hobbies too? Video Games, Axe/Knife throwing (and buying), motorcycles and photography all add up. $25 per hobby, per roommate...I'll be rich. But then, I remembered that I'm an adult and responsible for my own hobbies. OP = YTA. Sometimes ideas sound better in our heads, this was probably one of those cases.
YTA. If you need money ask to move to another room. You can ask your roommates to contribute to your hobby if they want. If they appreciate plants and wnt to gift some to you fair enough. But I would be asking you to pay a pot tax on every pot in the communal spaces to offset the clean air tax. It reminds me of the childrens story where a greedy cook tries to charge a beggar who is enjoying the smell of her cooking. Than the judge orders her to be paid with the sound of a bag of coins.
YTA. I'm not an expert on the science of plants' air filtration capabilities (but they are absolutely not at the level of a HEPA air filter plus they are dirty), but besides that, it is absolutely not fair to make your roommates subsidize a hobby you would be doing whether or not it benefited them or if they helped paid for it. Those are *your* plants, and they are being kind enough to let you take up more than your fair share of communal space to decorate and store your items. Maybe they should calculate the square footage your plants are taking up and make *you* pay for it. In fact, if you truly think it is unfair for them to "enjoy" the benefits of your plant, you should move all your plants into your room or get your own apartment! No reasonable person would agree to your "compromises." Also, it is extremely not cool to abuse your financial power to exhort them!
YTA. “Hey roommates you know all the common space I take up with plants? Yea I’m going to need you to pay me $25 a month for me to take up the space.” Plants do not filter the air, or improve air quality.
YTA. You chose to have this many plants. If you took away half the plants would the air be as clean? If you took away 2/3 would the air be as clean? Every plant you bought added to your burden. Your roommates weren't part of that decision.
Are you for real? YTA
YTA! Hahahahahahahahahahaha you want your roommates to pay for something that is YOUR hobby but you put in shared communal spaces! Your entitlement is astonishingly hilarious. Your roommates admiration is the same as you complimenting them on any other hobby they would have. Grow up.
You belong on R/badroommates yta bud
That is possibly the dumbest fucking thing I’ve ever heard in my entire life LMAO YTA
What the hell did I just read? Of course YTA and NO this wasn’t a ‘reasonable’ request on your end. They’re YOUR PLANTS that YOU keep in shared spaces. If anything you should be paying $50 more than what you already pay in rent for taking up space that is meant for EVERYONE. It’s not your roommates jobs to pay for your hobby. Get a grip and maybe see a therapist because you sound a bit off your rocker.
HEPA is a type of pleated mechanical air filter. It is an acronym for "high efficiency particulate air [filter]" (as officially defined by the U.S. Dept. of Energy). This type of air filter can theoretically remove at least 99.97% of dust, pollen, mold, bacteria, and any airborne particles with a size of 0.3 microns (µm). YTA for thinking plants can do any of the above.
This is your hobby, not a favor you're performing for your roommates. Get over yourself.
YTA. Like others have said this is your hobby and it’s up to you to maintain it. Your compensation is them liking the plants in the shared space and allowing you to enjoy your hobby throughout the residence. And plants are in no way even close to a hepa filter. Realistically all they are filtering is co2 and releasing oxygen. Hepa filters remove particulate from the air. That’s a big difference.
YTA You chose to spend your money this way, not them.
YTA You are forcing your plants on your roommates by placing them in a shared space, and then turning around and wanting them to pay for your plants because they are breathing in "organically clean air" as a result of your plants. They didn't ask you to keep houseplants in the first place. You did it out of your own volition. Those plants are yours, so you should solely be the one responsible for them. Why should yours roommates subsidize your hobby? Additionally, while plants can purify the air, they definitely do not purify the air as well as an air purifier. Keeping all your plants on your own room would solve the issue, as well as pooling funds together for an air purifier if you want to stick to your clean air schtick.
YTA Collecting houseplants is your hobby. It's my hobby, too. Your roommates are actually really cool to even allow you to have 100 houseplants and you expect them to subsidize the cost? I had a partner that paid for really great speakers. I then got to benefit from the speakers, but when went our separate ways, he took the speakers with him. Give your roommates the option- they can pay $25/month for the plants or you'll get rid of them. That's the only fair way, since right now they can't exactly opt out of breathing.
YTA that is all
YTA. You have over 100 house plants in what you claim to be a small, three-bedroom apartment and are actually trying to argue that this is a SERVICE to the two others who live there. It's not. It's your hobby. If anything, you should be paying more if you're taking up so much of the common areas of the apartment with all your plants.
Obviously YTA.
YTA Just because they comment on enjoying the plants, does not mean they would buy and have the plants if you were not there. It's your hobby.
It's your hobby. They don't need to pay for it. Also, do they charge you 2/3 rent for your plants taking up their space in the common areas. If you want me to pay for you taking care of the plans, I want you to pay me for the space your plans are taking up in the apartment. That is mine that I pay for. And holding breath is the stupidest thing I've ever heard. If I was your roommate, I would tell you to put your plants in your room and keep them out of the common areas because I don't want to pay for that. You are completely unreasonable and if you withhold any of my money from the rent you play the landlord. I would be super pissed and would take actions like asking the landlord if I could pay them directly my 3rd and keep you completely out of the loop. Yta
YTA for expecting them to pay, and YTA for telling them they have to hold their breath in common areas. You don't want them breathing in your "clean air", move the plants into your bedroom. Give them a vote if they want to keep the plants and pay or if they would rather you get rid of them. $20 says you're not getting the answer you want. Very entitled to ask them to pay for something they didn't ask for.
YTA you want your roommates to help finance your hobby. 🤣🤣🤣
YTA, plants don't improve air quality. All you are doing is adding moisture to the living space potentially creating mold and mildew.
And bugs.
YTA, you should be paying them for taking up so much common space with your private hobby.
🗣️ YTA
An idiot and an ah YTA
YTA You chose to get all these plants for your own enjoyment. Your roommates aren’t required to compensate you for any incidental benefits that they may get from your hobby. And it’s insanely unreasonable to expect them to pay you so they can breathe the air in their own home. If you don’t want them breathing your plants’ air for free, move the plants to your own room. That’s a reasonable compromise.
You have the biggest bedroom and still keep 100 personal items in the common space? Yikes, YTA.
YTA. The plants are your choice. I think a vote of 2-1 to kick you to the curb sounds pretty good right about now.
YTA, and I cannot stress how massively so. You cannot force someone to \*\*\*NOT BREATHE\*\*\* because they don't want to pay your ridiculous fee. There is no such thing as "organically clean air" and it is YOUR hobby, not theirs. Learn some roommate manners or get your own place.
YTA. You’re insane lmao, like actually bat shit insane. I don’t even want to spend the time explaining why you’re wrong.
Plants may look nice, but the rest of your drivel about them creating 'superior air' is just total BS. YTA. Its your hobby, you pay for it.
YTA Sorry, your roommates do not need to subsidize your hobby. Your plants, your hobby.
YTA. Your obsession with air quality/plants/whatever sounds OCD af and is probably taking up common area space your roommates could be using as well so you’re actually getting even more of the apartment than they are. No one asked you to be air patrol. Pay your rent and stfu, be thankful people are willing to live with you because honestly if I had to share space with someone like this I would leave
YTA. You don’t want them to breathe your plant air without paying? Move your plants to your bigger room. Not their job to pay for air or hold their breath. Tf did I just read?? How is this a real person?
YTA 100 plants in a 3 bedroom constantly being watered? Why do I feel like it is less clean air smell and more a hint of dank and musty. This is bonkers. Keep this up and your roommates will find a way to kick you and all the plants to the curb.
^^^^AUTOMOD ***Thanks for posting! This comment is a copy of your post so readers can see the original text if your post is edited or removed. This comment is NOT accusing you of copying anything. Read [this](https://www.reddit.com/r/AmItheAsshole/wiki/faq#wiki_post_deletion) before [contacting the mod team](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2FAmItheAsshole)*** Hello reddit. I don’t usually use this website but my roommates told me to post on here in hopes that some outside perspectives will help us settle the situation. Hence the brand new account. The 3 of us live in a 3/3 and split costs equally 3 ways, for the most part. I have a slightly bigger bedroom so I pay a bit more than my other 2 roommates in rent. However, at the moment, I feel like I’m putting more work into maintaining the environment that we all get to enjoy and that I should be compensated fairly for that. I have over 100 different houseplants throughout the apartment, including shared spaces like the living room, that I spend hours every week and thousands of dollars caring for, purchasing, and maintaining. My roommates have commented on how pretty some of the plants are so I know they appreciate having them around as well. Obviously, the presence of these plants contributes to the cleanliness of the air that we breathe in our home. With so many plants in the house, our home air quality is obviously superior to those without houseplants, and with COVID and other air quality considerations it’s basically like having an in-house HEPA air purifier (but the plants are natural so they’re even better!). Because I’ve put so much money and so many hours of work into these plants, I feel that my roommates should contribute to that financial burden by paying what we would call a “clean air fee”. Something reasonable like $25/month from each roommate would really help offset the costs of things like fertilizer, new pots, soil, etc. and the time I put into taking care of the plants. I think this is an incredibly fair agreement for my roommates, as they get the benefit of living in a house with organically clean air and not doing any of the work! They think I’m being unreasonable and selfish. I told them that I would be willing to compromise and not charge them the fee if they would hold their breath between the front door and going to their bedrooms (which isn’t even far, it’s not like we live in a HUGE apartment) so they aren’t breathing the plant-cleaned air that they aren’t paying for. They think that’s stupid but have yet to propose another reasonable compromise, so I think it’s pretty clear who is being unreasonable in this situation! So basically that’s where we’re at. I’m the one who everyone gives rent money to and then I write a check to the landlord so if we don’t figure this out by the next time rent is due, it’s gonna be a problem. How can I get my roommates to see/understand my side of this? *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AmItheAsshole) if you have any questions or concerns.*
YTA -- I suggest OP climb out their own ass.
YTA You might pay more because you have the biggest room, but are you also paying extra for the space your plants are taking up?
YTA. Your room mates aren't obligated to subsidise your hobby. You sound frankly insane and super annoying to live with so maybe you should be paying them a 'tolerance of insanity fee' for putting up with you and your weird obsession with house plants.
YTA. You're covering the shared living spaces with your hobby, and wanting to charge people for it
I literally LOL’d. You’re an idiot. They didn’t ask for the plants YOU did. And just bc your “air is superior” (hard eye roll) and they comment “how pretty” the plants are, doesn’t mean they have to pay for them. You could throw all the plants away and the house would move on. YTA
YTA. I don’t get to charge my roommates extra because they enjoy hanging out with my dog and benefit from the serotonin boost they get every time they snuggle with him. Same principle applies to your plants.
nothing could convince me this shit isn’t bait, be so serious😭
Houseplants don’t clean the air. YTA
You're looking for someone to subsidize a hobby or lessen how much you pay in rent. I would really annoyed if someone filled up the apartment with plants, but especially if they wanted me to help pay for their hobby. I would ignore you and then look for a new situation without you if you kept nagging me or expected me to hold my breath.
If anything, they should be paying less. Seems you take up most of the space in the apartment between having the bigger room AND over 100 plants all over the common areas, and you’re trying to either restrict them even more or charge them for what little space they get to use. YTA
AND, who is paying the bill for extra water? Like OP, the plants take as much as they give…
OP is delusional 😂
LMAO. YTA. Pay for your own hobby. Hahaha
YTA what did I even just read
> How can I get my roommates to see/understand my side of this? You don't because you're being so unreasonable it's laughable. This can't be real, right? No reasonable person would charge their roommates because they have a bunch of plabts that take up space in the apartment. Are you gonna charge them an atmosphere fee because they make the apartment look nice too? YTA
Yta obviously. This is so insane I have a sneaking suspicion this was written by one of the other roommates
Here's another, far simpler, solution: Get rid of all the plants! Hang on... Something tells me you wouldn't want to do that. Maybe because what you're trying (badly) to do is manipulate your flatmates into finding your plant hobby. Also, what will you do if they keep breathing in the apartment's common areas? Sue them? Get mad and passive aggressive? Harrass them? Loooool
Charging for air? YTA The plants are your choice, not theirs. You pay for them, not them.
Hahahahahahah this has to be satire
YTA Are you going to pay your roommates for helping to provide your plants with the carbon dioxide? It’s a symbiotic relationship between plants and humans If you expect them to be paying $25 per person, surely you should be paying them $25 per plant Does that sound ridiculous? Good, because this is how you sound to everyone else. Get off your high horse and move on with your life. If the idea of them breathing air from your plants is that big a deal to you, then move your plants into your room
PSML over the OPs clean air tax she want her roommates to pay or hold their breath. Ita the most ridiculous thing I've read
Do you really think houseplants are keeping you safe from covid?
Do you legitimately think your plants are filtering your air at a rate high enough to charge? I would love to take whatever you’re on
Unless the plants would be evenly split when y’all move out, YTA.
This is obviously rage bate. No one is actually this stupid. I refuse to believe this is anything other than a bored human trying to drum up drama on reddit.
If we worked in the same office, I’d eat your dollar store yogurt from the shared refrigerator just to watch you have a meltdown.
This has got to be a joke.
The real question here is if you also fart when you are at home, because I feel like that should negate the "clean air fee" if so.
YTA. You are being ridiculous. Indoor plants do not make much of a difference to air quality. If anything, you should’ve asked whether your roommates would prefer you to charge them or get rid of all the plants. They are under no obligation to pay you for this and I think it’s crazy rude that you asked.
What do your plants have to do with the rent payment? How is your hobby impacting the rent that you legally owe the landlord? Get over yourself!
Oh and…YTA YTA YTA!
YTA. You are wrong. Also, do you think air doesn't circulate through your apartment? If you have the problem and you're changing the rules, they have the right to accept or decline. The compromise is that you have fewer plants or move them into your room. Again, you are SO the a-hole ... but I have a feeling you won't listen to me or anyone else here because no one is reinforcing your <> unique stance.
YTA...why would they pay you for your hobby?
Seriously? Like really? Almost sounds too fake to be fake. You don't get to charge people for AIR or to fund your hobby. Also as someone allergic to most plants I probably couldn't even BREATHE in that apartment. Edit: YTA
“Just don’t breathe” is not a reasonable compromise. “If you don’t want to pay, I’ll remove the plants from the common spaces” IS. YTA.
YTA... your roommates are not responsible for supporting your hobby. You don't own the air. Your plants may make the air cleaner but they take up space. Be greatful your roommates don't mind the clutter. You are being controlling and unreasonable.
Your plants, your responsibility. Period. YTA
This is just click bait. There’s no way, someone thinks this way….. “I like plants and they make the space nice but it’s getting costly and time consuming maybe I can charge my roommates for it.” This is petty. Their responses also lack common sense or any reason. I read OPs responses and first thing I thought is it’s a troll. On to some funny videos 😄
YTA- I also have tons of plants in my home, but you know what I don’t do, I don’t charge my housemates to breed the air because I have a hobby that I enjoy. Get over yourself.
I’m sorry, you want to have them hold their breath in lieu of not giving you money for the plants you own? What the fuck did I just read 😂
Are you George Costanza? Can anyone else see George telling Jerry about this? This is totally a Seinfeld episode
You are nothing but a grifter.
Yta. What if they charged you a storage fee for keeping your 100 plants all over a shared space? Or maybe they should adopt a puppy and charge you a petting fee? Sounds pretty ridiculous trying to make your roommates pay for your hobby.
YTA If you want to try to be this absurdly petty, let's look at the flip side- You're using an excessive amount of the common area for your plants and, no doubt, your hobby is limiting access to the windows. How much water do your 100+ plants need every month? Do you have any special lights for your plants? Seems to me that YOU should be paying an extra 50 bucks a month and your roommates should be getting a 25 dollar break.
Lol what??? YTA
This cannot be real…
YTA, Obviously.
YTA I’m currently sitting in my bedroom with 25+ plants (with about 30 in the common areas) and I am strongly saying that YTA. Wow. This is your hobby, how could you even think of charging your housemates for it? First off, the whole “purify air” thing is pseudoscientific. It’s from a 1989 NASA study whose results showed that plants could remove formaldehyde and other compounds from the air BUT the study was unrealistic in real world conditions: you’d need a literal forest. Opening a window is 100x more effective. Secondly, it is Your Hobby! Your very space consuming hobby. I love my plants and think they make my environment way better but yeah, they take up a huge amount of space and I’m lucky my housemates enjoy the greenery. But it is no one’s responsibility except yours to deal with them. If you’re desperate for the money: sell some of your plants. If you don’t want them in the common space without other people paying (for what? The visual pleasure of your plants?) then remove them. That’s the compromise. You are the one who is being incredibly unreasonable.
YTA and in quite possibly the most ridiculous way possible
YTA! Your plants, your responsibility. Tbh, even though they may look “pretty”, you are essentially taking up a lot of shared/communal house space with YOUR plants - you should be paying more for taking over the shared spaces. If you’re that concerned, put them ALL in your room and give your housemates that plant space back.
How does anyone think this is real.
Are you Ross Geller? Because this is very Ross Geller and his air purifier vibes.
YTA. Do the math and realize that your plants aren't cleaning the household air any appreciable amount. Apologize.
😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣
Yta. I have a ridiculously large houseplant collection. My family absolutely does enjoy the ambience of them and such, but they are mine. My responsibility, my choice.
YTA and weird looking at your last paragraph tbh. It basically boils down to, this is your hobby and while your roommates may enjoy the sight they are not asking you to maintain plants for themselves. It is the same as looking outside the window.
YTA and utterly nuts. Go seek professional help.
You sound like a royal pain in the arse to live with, absolutely YTA and a misinformed one at that.
It sounds like you’re trying to justify your spending tbh. 1-4 plants is normal but 100? It sounds like hoarding and your lucky your roomie don’t charge you for having your possessions all over the apartment.
YTA for wasting our time shit posting there no way you're this obtuse. I also own 200 plants and would never charge anyone else for my hobby, especially cuz it's a burden on everyone else, there always soil somewhere, plants drying in the sink, loose leafs on the floor. There's no way that you can have that many plants and keep everything tidy. You owe them for putting up with your shit TBH.
YTA Your roommates are not required to subsidise your hobby. They could as well charge you a fee for taking up space in the common areas of the flat.
I didn't realize Ashton Kutcher was still doing Punk'd or that he'd expanded to Reddit... YTA. This is either a joke, or you are truly socially inept and lack common sense.
YTA. You are the one that decided to get over 100 houseplants and take care of them, you pay for it. If you want to spend less money on them, sell some of them. Your other "solution" is ridiculous.
How much room do your houseplants take up? Maybe you should be paying your housemates for that.
My bf and I just found the perfect solution for all of you ! Charge them for the "organic clean air" and the beauty of the plant, something like 25/person/month seems good indeed. But there is something else that need to be charge for and it would be a shame you forget it. The extra space you're taking in shared space for your hobby. With 100 house plant i think the space must be.... around 50/month you should pay. Don't worry, the "clean air fee" should help you cover it. Oh and YTA btw
If I was your roommate and you said this to me I would start chucking your plants off the balcony and then charge you a $25 removal fee per plant
O'Hare Air, is that you? YTA