Fire Restoration

Have you winterized your home yet? It is never too late to start. Harsh Upstate New York winters can wreck havoc on your home. Ice, snow and low temperatures can cause serious damage if your home isn’t properly protected.

Here are 10 tips to help winterize your home and lesson the risk of disaster.

1. Prevent frozen pipes

One of the most destructive water damage accidents that can happen in a home or commercial building is a frozen pipe that bursts. Burst pipes often ruin floors, drywall and anything in the path of the water. Although your home insurance will often cover most of the bill, it can be an extremely disrupting event. Insulate all exposed pipes, know where your main water valve is located in the event you need to shut it off and be sure to set your thermostat to 60 degrees or above.

2. Clean gutters

Frozen debris and water can add extra weight to your gutters, causing them to sag and pull away from your roof. Clogged gutters can also contribute to ice dams. The debris may prevent drainage, which forces the melting ice and snow underneath the shingles on your roof and into your home resulting in water damage.

3. Waterproof your basement / check foundation

Don’t wait until the spring to waterproof your basement. It’s very common for basements to flood when snow and ice melts. Water damage in basements can be expensive and it also promotes mold damage. Have a professional check your basement foundation and windows as well for cracks as water will seep into any entry point.

4. Have your oil fired heating system inspected

It’s essential to have any oil burning heating system including furnaces, boilers and water heaters inspected and cleaned yearly. Failure to do so, can result in puff backs which expel soot throughout your heating system and home. Removing the oily soot from walls, floors, ceiling and your possessions is extremely difficult and often requires a professional soot cleanup company.

5. Fireplace

It’s always a good idea to clean the fireplace flue and the chimney as a whole before starting a fire in the beginning of the season. This will help prevent a puff back or carbon monoxide build up.

6. Avoid Sewage Backups

Sewage backups, also known as black water overflow, is the most destructive and contaminated of the water damage types due to the bacteria and viruses present in sewage. In order to keep you sewer vent from freezing, make sure your attic is properly insulated. Also keep the sewer vents clear of snow. Snow can create a blockage, which can release sewer gases into your home.

7. Carbon monoxide detector

You should always have a functional carbon monoxide detector in your home, but it becomes particularly critical in the cold months. Furnaces and other oil burning appliances can produce carbon monoxide if they aren’t functioning properly. Check to see that they are operational and that you have extra batteries on hand.

8. Have your roof inspected

In the Northeast your roof will bear the brunt of winter weather and should be inspected in the fall to clear debris and to make sure that there are no broken shingles. It’s also essential that all your flashing is in place. Flashing adds protection to areas where two opposing roof surfaces meet, which are more vulnerable to leaks. In the spring check for damage caused by the ice, snow and sleet.

9. Prevent attic mold

Attic mold thrives during the winter due to warm air from heating systems rising up into the attic. Ice dams on your roof indicate that your attic could be vulnerable to mold issues. In order to prevent attic mold insulate the bottom flooring of your attic. Installing a dehumidifier may be necessary in some cases.

10. Keep emergency numbers saved in your phone

Despite your best efforts, sometimes failures or accidents do happen. When it comes to mold, fire or water damage, time is of the essence. So it’s best to call a restoration company as soon as you recognize the problem in order to limit the damage.

For home and business owners in Upstate New York, you can count on KPM Restoration for 24/7 emergency service at 518-859-9769

What are Puff Backs?

A puff back occurs when an oil burner doesn’t ignite right away and as a consequence fumes build up in the furnace. The fumes cause an explosion inside the burner chamber, which vaporizes and expels soot throughout a home or business, covering walls, baseboards, furniture and floors in oily toxic soot.

Puff backs can manifest as small frequent events, where each ignition sends a small amount of soot out through the heating vents or single explosion that can send lots of soot through the heating system. These events often require an extensive cleanup and restoration in addition to repairs on your heating system.

How to Prevent Furnace Puff Backs

1. Make sure to service all your oil burning appliances once a year. Request that the technician does a thorough cleaning and inspection. Foregoing a yearly inspection of oil fired heating equipment poses a risk to your home or commercial building.

2. Look out for odors, noises, soot around the boiler or furnace room.

3. Be vigilant for oil leaks on or near the oil piping system and the oil burner – since oil leaks are also air leaks in many cases.

4. Keep your eye out for debris. If you see soot, rust flakes, and debris in the flue vent connector this means that the heating system needs to be cleaned and serviced.

What to do when a puff back happens?

The first step one should take after a puff back is to shut off your heating system to prevent any more damage. If there is lots of smoke, carbon monoxide or a risk of a fire leave your home and call the fire department. After ensuring that the heating system is off and the home or building is safe, you should take the following steps:

1. Take photos and/or videos of the damage in order to document the event for your insurance company.

2. Contact a full service restoration company. They can help assess the heating system and make the necessary repairs before turning your heat back on. Restoration companies will then professionally clean your home or business, removing the smoke and soot.

3. Clean your belongings. You may be able to dry clean and wash some of your fabrics. Dispose of any food that may have been contaminated.

Professional Puff Back Cleanup

If your home has suffered a puff back you don’t want to try to clean it up yourself. Puff backs can affect every inch of your home. The best option is to call a puff back specialist. The soot from a puff back is greasy, toxic and carcinogenic. The soot particles are small and are very difficult to clean. Vacuuming the carpet and wiping down the walls with soap and water is not enough. Most insurance companies will be reluctant to pay homeowners who attempt to clean it up themselves as well.

Puff Back Restoration Process

A professional fire restoration company can help you with the complete process.

1. Most restoration companies can help you with the insurance claims process.

2. A complete cleaning of surfaces affected by soot and/or smoke and also setting up equipment to start cleaning the air within your home.

3. Restoration companies can help clean your affected belongings such as clothes, dishes, electronics, curtains, and decorations. Many times these items will be packed up and cleaned at a facility using specialized cleaning equipment. Your contents will be returned free of soot and residue.

4. Finally, and most importantly, restoration companies can help repair your heating system, boiler or water heating and determine the cause of the failure in order to prevent a puff back from occurring in the future.

If your oil fired furnace has suffered a puff back, call KPM Restoration at 518-859-9769 for immediate service.

We can clean up the oily soot and have your furnace working again quickly. We specialize in fire and smoke damage cleanup and we’ve helped many families and businesses recover from puff backs in the Upstate New York area including Albany, Troy, Schenectady, Glens Falls and Saratoga Springs.