What is A Puff Back and Why does it happen? Simply put, a puff back is a small furnace explosion that could create a huge mess in your home. When the furnace misfires, it sends soot everywhere. The soot will cover your drapes, cabinets, walls, furniture, and bedding. The entire room will also have that nasty smell that you can definitely do without. Think of a furnace puff back like a car backfiring on you.
Why does it occur?
Puff back explosions happen when the oil burner fails to ignite immediately. The unburned fuel lying at the bottom of the combustion chamber ignites as oil fumes build up around it. Puff backs don’t occur in furnaces and oil-fired boilers alone, but in water heaters as well.
These instances are caused by a malfunctioning heating system. Under normal conditions, the heating unit combines fuel and oxygen in balanced quantities to produce a controlled combustion process. The correct process produces a steady flame that burns fuel, which heats up homes nicely. However, once the balance is disrupted, a puff back occurs. When the rate of combustion in the furnace slows down and the fuel injected into the system gets higher, the explosion happens.
Such explosion damages the boiler itself. The reaction disconnects the flue vent connector, which is the reason why soot blows throughout the building. The strength of puff back explosions may vary. In the same way, the damage it creates to your home may vary.
Why Puff Backs are Hard to Clean
The residues from a puff back are oily, sticky petroleum films. The force of explosion causes the soot to seep into the walls and everything else it gets in contact with. The stronger the explosion, the more difficult it is to remove the soot from the wall. Sometimes, it can get even behind doors and inside drawers. It can get into your closets and damage your clothes.
Since the soot is petroleum-based, it can’t be removed by the usual home cleaning methods. Oftentimes, household cleansers and detergents even make the problem worse. The only way to remove them is to use alkaline degreasers.
The best way to remove soot caused by puff backs is to call a fire damage remediation team. They employ wet cleaning methods and use the right cleaning compounds to effectively remove soot from your home. They may also apply sealants to prevent recontamination. However, heavily damaged furniture and carpets have to be replaced.
How to Prevent a Puff Back
The best way to prevent puff backs is to do a regular maintenance check on your heating system. A common factor to heater explosions is the buildup of debris. Clean your system periodically. Instances of puff backs happen during the winter season, when the heaters are used for an extended period of time. Have a professional check your heating system before the winter season begins.
Come winter season, always look for the tell-tale signs of heating system wear and tear. Are there visible oil drips and leaks? If you see them, call an HVAC technician immediately. It is very likely that your heating system is failing and you will experience a puff back soon. See to it that the problem is corrected before everything goes out of hand.
If it takes a longer time to turn on your heating system than it used to, don’t use it anymore. High are the chances that the combustion process inside the unit has been compromised. The same is true if the heater encounters shutdown problems. Have an expert do a thorough repair on it right away.
Provide proper care for your heating system. Make sure that it is free from dust and other debris. Be wary of any uncommon noises that you may hear during its operation. If you see a small amount of soot anywhere near the system, call a technician right away. It is very likely that the soot will compound over time. Stop it before an actual puff back happens.
What to Do When Puff Back Occurs
If a puff back occurred and your home is suddenly covered with soot, the first thing to do is to assess the situation. How much damage has been done? Is the smell too prominent? There are cases when an extreme smoke damage forces families out of their homes. The soot, smoke, and smell have to be thoroughly removed before the house can be habitable again.
If the damage is not too severe, hire a professional cleaning team to clear up everything right away. Do not attempt to clean the soot on your own. Doing so may just frustrate you because you might just spread the oil instead of containing it. To save you from all the trouble, let the professionals handle the job.
If you have food exposed during the time of the puff back, throw them away. High are the chances that the food was already contaminated. Same goes for utensils and other items that are used to administer food, liquids, or medicine into the body. Better get a replacement for all of them instead.
Puff Back Prevention Vs. Cleanup
Homeowners need not be reminded that prevention is always better than cure. Watch out for the signs of trouble in your heating equipment. Then have them repaired immediately. Doing so will save you a lot of money in the long run. Remediating a puff back situation is more expensive and time-consuming compared to investing on regular maintenance checks.
Get adequate insurance coverage for soot damages. Be sure that all the damages in your home that are caused by a puff back situation are covered. It would be more ideal if your insurance also covers the repair of the furnace. You’ll have peace of mind knowing that somebody else will take care of your home restoration bill.
Have the contact numbers of your heating company and professional fire remediation team handy. It pays to receive professional advice on any problem that you encounter with your heating system. Always remember that it is better to be safe than sorry.
