What You Need to Know About Puff Backs:

What is a Puff Back?

A Puff Back is a premature explosion inside of an oil furnace where the smoke, fumes, chemicals, and oil are being carried out through the heating ducts and pipes instead of actual heat.

How does it happen?

          Puff Back’s happen from a variety of things, a couple of the main reasons are:

-a gradual buildup of oil within the chambers of the furnace

-one of the components of the furnace is malfunctioning

What damage does a Puff Back cause?

          –The smoke, fumes, and oil that are running through your heating ducts usually cause the connected rooms to become covered in soot and stains. Since these furnaces are oil based, the soot will have oil in it, making it extremely difficult to remove.

            -Chemicals and foul odor spread around the house that are hazardous and have been linked to: Heart Disease, Cancer, Chronic Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Bronchitis & others.

How to avoid a Puff Back?

          -Proper maintenance and attention to your heating system regularly greatly reduces the risk of having a puff back.

What to do if your furnace does Puff Back?

          –Remove yourself from the house

            -Contact your insurance agent with what happened

            -Call Disaster Restoration Services for emergency services. DRS will remove the soot, chemicals, and will restore anything that can be saved from clothing to furniture.

            -Call a repairman to repair the furnace