Pretty Bird vs. Nasty Soot

4/25/2022 (Permalink)

What Are Puff Backs?

Have you ever seen a cute little bird, the black-backed puff back, often found in wooded habitats? These birds are innocent and wonderful. They fly gracefully into the open air causing no trouble to anyone. On the other hand, have you ever seen an escape of nasty, soot-filled air into your home? This type of puff back is not innocent and wonderful. In fact, it causes massive black stains and bad odors in your home. This kind of puff back mostly occurs from oil-fueled furnaces if they are not properly maintained. 

Why Do They Happen?

Puff backs are small explosions in a furnace that cause soot to be pushed back into the home instead of through the ventilation system. They are usually caused by build-ups of dirt and soot in the ventilation, failing fans, and clogged filters.

How to Prevent Puff Backs

The only ways to prevent puff backs are to replace filters often and have a professional look at your furnace. As previously stated the largest cause of puff backs is the lack of maintenance on furnaces. It is good practice to have all of your heavily-used appliances routinely checked.

In this Waterloo, IL basement, a puff back left a significant amount of damage on the floor joist system. Our SERVPRO technicians arrived quickly and started the cleaning and deodorization process to return them back to normal. The incident provided an awakening for the residents, and they decided to have their furnace checked often.