I'm a newbie to the cake decorating world and this just happened to me last night. I had no idea what the almost golf ball sized bulge on the top of my cake was untill my husband poked it and deflated it w/ his finger, then I took a toothpick to it. Its just really funny that you posted this today. Thanks Now I know how to remedy the situation.
http://cakecentral.com/gallery/2167525/2167527
see the shiney part on top of my cake, thats where the bulge was, or as my hubby would say "cake fart"
"Cake fart" just had me spraying my coffee on the pc screen. Thanks for the morning laugh!! 
Mikel79, I plug up the hole with icing on the top tier if it stacked and all if it's separated.
Here's another "icing fart" that I hate. When you add more icing in the pastry bag and you are piping, bordering along and you get to the added icing air bubble and then it farts out and blows back on you. You are standing there with icing on your face.
Here's another "icing fart" that I hate. When you add more icing in the pastry bag and you are piping, bordering along and you get to the added icing air bubble and then it farts out and blows back on you. You are standing there with icing on your face.
Too funny, and so true!!! LOL
Similar trick is to use an oral dosing syringe (like you get with kids medicines), this is great if you haven't put too much icing on your cake. Just pop it into the blowout and suck the air out by pulling on the plunger.
I love this idea. I think I would feel weird using a straw and sucking, even though I understand nothing will really touch the cake.
With a fondant cake, take an exacto knife and make a small X in the center so air can escape.
Similar trick is to use an oral dosing syringe (like you get with kids medicines), this is great if you haven't put too much icing on your cake. Just pop it into the blowout and suck the air out by pulling on the plunger.
There is nothing that makes me sick to my stomach than coming to look at a cake in the morning and it has that blow out! Mike I could hug you!!! I have been having a quite a lot of these lately. Wondering if changes in temp so much. One was the night before a wedding cake delivery - why do they happen when they've been sitting perfectly happy ready to go then bam! there is appears. Unfortunately it was a really plain cake so I couldn't cover it if I used a big straw so thought this could be the answer!!!
So my question is Mike.. will this work with fondant do you think. I use buttercream then all my cakes are fondant work. I am hoping this is the answer to my prayers.
I do think that temp change can affect cakes. I had a cake few months back where it was left in a hot kitchen due to the oven. I then placed it in the office which was easily 15 degrees cooler. Came in after dinner and a huge cake fart on the side....
=)
Sure wish I'd have known the 'suck it out through a straw' trick 5 cakes ago! It was a perfectly smooth, sharp-edged 3 tier retirement cake I made for a coworker. . As it changed to room temp. the trouble began. First, a small bubble that I tried to 'pop'. I'd periodically take a look only to find the damned thing seemed to be taking on a life of it's own 
By serving time at the job, there was a landslide of buttercream on the back of the cake from a blowout. I could have cried 
The only thing I did differently than usual was ice it while it was cold. It's never happened since nor before as I've always iced at room temp then popped in the fridge.
I failed to take a pic while it was pristine so this is kinda like telling someone you can fly but not being able to do it in front of anyone Never thought my cakes were worthy of CC but this one woulda been.
I will probably wake up during the night screaming "cake fart" now, lol
With a fondant cake, take an exacto knife and make a small X in the center so air can escape.
If you cut an X do you re-fill it with say RI after - does anyone do this or leave it as it is and just smooth the fondant back?
Also another thought.. how far in do you put the syringe to draw the air out.. just through the fondant or right into the buttercream and cake?
thank u be good to hear people's thoughts/experiences cos guess what.. yesterday looked at a perfect 10" square white iced cake.. started to put ribbon on it - bam a blow out to the front where I had stuck the ribbon. now i started thinking that was ok till I touched the icing - could the manipulation of the icing with the bow have brought that on or was it just a minor change in temp!!! Am praying for my big topsy turvy cake delivery today let alone any more blow outs and I had one small one on that too 
pls stop cake "farts"!
I've had this problem with buttercream and with fondant cakes but here is something I don't see addressed in the posts yet.
Though I can get rid of the bubble, the problem seems to be that the icing (or fondant) that was part of the bubble doesn't want to stick to the cake anymore so the bubble just keeps coming back. I've heard that you can shoot some piping gel into the hole to get it to stick but I've never had luck with this, it just makes a sticky mess.
I'd like to hear more about how to stop this in the first place. I push down on my cake after it is filled, wait a while to put the buttercream to let the "gas" escape. I've tried everything but these bubbles seem to happen on every cake I do lately.
Though I can get rid of the bubble, the problem seems to be that the icing (or fondant) that was part of the bubble doesn't want to stick to the cake anymore so the bubble just keeps coming back.
This describes perfectly what happens with some of my cake farts. I think I need to obtain a couple of syringes with wide-bore needles so I can remove air and then try to shoot some piping gel in that area. Wonder if my nice local paramedics will trade a few syringes for a tasty cake? 
I've had this issue before, and also the bulging icing on the sides. My fix was to let the cakes rest after they are filled with a little wieght on them (a can of shortening, or something like that). I haven't had this issue since.
Also, the cake fart things is so fitting, and so hillarious 
Karen
The dosing syringe works on fondant covered cakes as well as buttercream. I don't get many air bubbles, but they do occur occasionally. Once I remove the air bubble I fill the syringe with a little thinned piping gel and shoot it into the same hole. I smooth the area with my smoother, moving the piping gel around a little. It works great!! As for syringes of all description, try eBay. It's almost impossible to get them from a pharmacy without havng to buy a gazillion and signing 50,000 documents-lol!!
I've had this problem with buttercream and with fondant cakes but here is something I don't see addressed in the posts yet.
Though I can get rid of the bubble, the problem seems to be that the icing (or fondant) that was part of the bubble doesn't want to stick to the cake anymore so the bubble just keeps coming back. I've heard that you can shoot some piping gel into the hole to get it to stick but I've never had luck with this, it just makes a sticky mess.
I'd like to hear more about how to stop this in the first place. I push down on my cake after it is filled, wait a while to put the buttercream to let the "gas" escape. I've tried everything but these bubbles seem to happen on every cake I do lately.
I will second this.. I have the same issue. The icing luckily when it is still very soft will allow you to smooth the bubble out and push the icing back but more often than not it will not adhere to the cake again as perhaps the air has allowed the BC to dry out? I have not as yet tried to get more icing back into the hole
You could also use those flavor injector syringes like for injecting marinade into meat....they do have a needle with a wide hole but still smaller than a stir stick or drinking straw and longer than a childs dosing syringe...HTH.
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