During the colder months of the year, we all need a little extra heat, but there are some dangers with a system that burns fuel. The problem is that a dangerous gas called Carbon Monoxide (CO) is formed when fuel is burned with insufficient air supply, and this gas can kill you in a few minutes. Usually, the smoke from burning fuel along with any gasses released will go harmlessly out the chimney, but in some situations, a phenomenon called backdraft could funnel these gasses into your home instead.
Backdraft can happen when your home is sealed up too tightly. If there is lower pressure inside of your home than there is outside, suction could be created that will pull the gasses in the wrong direction.
Often you will see soot marks where this has happened. Checking airflow with a smoke pencil can identify this issue, but you would need to do something about the ventilation in your home to fix it.
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