I am also thinking of the hundreds of times I've been in a hotel vaping and never had this happen in nearly 5 years. Even favoring Marriott properties for a time, earlier on.
The irony is that, as a smoker, I always booked non-smoking rooms and would walk outside to enjoy my habit. The room would still have a smoky odor about it from my clothes, albeit not as saturated as it might be, had I been smoking inside. I never had any issue with that, either. There was one time that I turned in a neighbor, as the smoke was wafting through the bathroom vents (larger hotels use a common "fart fan" system) and I feared I might get blamed or fined for it. The hotel staff understood, dealt with the neighbor who actually was smoking in their room, and nothing more came of it.
On the other hand, technology marches on. So it's not a surprise to me that "smoke" detectors would now be sensitive to liquid aerosols and become problematic for people that vape in a closed room. I'm glad to see this thread, as I am an occasional visitor here and this is the first I've seen of topic. I'll definitely be more mindful of this the next time I am vaping somewhere indoors, especially a hotel room.
On the topic of police/fire and whatnot, I'd have lied like a rug. I was just laying in bed watching tv and it went off. Having done nothing that would harm the hotel or any other guests, I'd have dummied up and maybe even demanded some comps for the inconvenience caused by their malfunctioning smoke alarm. Especially since it would be absolutely clear there was no evidence of smoke or fire in the room. Vapor? What's that?
