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Fire & Water - Cleanup & Restoration


Furnace Puff-back Explosion

Furnace puff back is a messy and potentially dangerous event in which smoke and soot are released into the house. Most puffbacks occur in oil-fired heating systems. In a furnace or boiler fueled with gas, the explosion is usually bigger and more damaging.

A faulty oil-fueled furnace causes a small uncontrolled explosion - a puffback - and a sudden dispersion of black smoke and soot throughout the house.

Puffback can also be caused by a partly clogged or cracked nozzle, improper nozzle angle, cracked electrodes, poor adjustment of the air-fuel mixture, a defective spark transformer, shorted ignition cables or dirty or low-grade fuel.

The aftermath is usually the main problem. Walls, ceilings, carpets, furniture and curtains are coated with a fine film of soot and smoky streaks. As a rule, the damage is worse with a forced-air heating system or central air-conditioning, because the duct work provides a path through the house.

SERVPRO of Dane County West Professionals use special cleaning techniques and materials. For example, attempts to wash soot off a flat-painted wall or ceiling usually leave greasy smears. SERVPRO of Dane County West Professional cleaners use waterless rubber sponges that work like an eraser and absorb the soot without spreading it.