Natural gas furnaces need adequate space and airflow to work properly.
Your furnace can shut down if it doesn’t have enough clearance. It also makes it challenging for our professionals to perform furnace repair.
Regular furnace maintenance is essential to keep your system operating trouble-free. An annually serviced furnace may run more efficiently, which could lower your utility expenses.
Related: How Does Furnace Maintenance Impact the Energy Efficiency of Your Home?
Maintenance often helps us discover problems before they start. This could help reduce future repair bills and likely prolong the life of your system.
So how much room should your furnace really have?
How Much Space Does My Furnace Need?
If you’re finishing your basement or enclosing your furnace room, you should take a look at manufacturer instructions and Menomonie and western Wisconsin laws for clearance guidelines.
As a general recommendation, your heater should be 30 inches away from furnace room walls on all sides. This permits our service technicians to conveniently work on it.
You also need to check the room has ample airflow and ventilation, especially if you have an older furnace with a metal flue.
Related: Furnace Service or Furnace Replacement: What to Consider
This type of furnace pulls combustion air from the adjacent location. If there’s insufficient air, unsafe gas fumes and toxic carbon monoxide could leak into your home.
If your furnace is placed in a small room with a gas water heater, you may need to add more openings. This could include a fully louvered door or vents in the walls.
Not sure if your furnace or water heater has enough ventilation? We can help!
Contact us
You don’t need to think about airflow and ventilation as much if you have a newer, high-efficiency furnace with PVC piping. Your furnace uses one pipe as an exhaust vent and the other to draw in air.
Keep Combustible Materials Away from Your Furnace
Although furnace rooms function as laundry and storage space, you should keep yours free of things that could be fire hazards.
This includes:
- Clotheslines
- Cleaning or laundry products
- Gasoline, paint or paint thinner
- Rags and papers
- Wood scraps and sawdust
- Used filters
If you have a cat, place your litter box in another room. Cat urine contains ammonia, which could deteriorate your furnace’s heat exchanger. Plus, the furnace could circulate the stinky odors all over your home.
You should also regularly vacuum near your furnace to prevent dust from developing.
Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?
Request Expert Furnace Service
Whether you want furnace replacement or routine maintenance in Menomonie and western Wisconsin, Halverson Brothers Inc can expertly meet your needs. Our highly trained technicians can repair any HVAC model or brand.
Call us at 715-352-4052 or use our online scheduler to set up an appointment right away.