Natural gas furnaces need adequate space and airflow to work properly.

Your furnace can overheat if it doesn’t have enough room. It also makes it difficult for our specialists to complete furnace repair.

Regular furnace maintenance is crucial to keep your system working well. An annually serviced furnace may run more efficiently, which could reduce your heating expenses.

Related: How Does Furnace Maintenance Impact the Energy Efficiency of Your Home?

Maintenance often helps us spot troubles before they begin. This could help lower future repair expenses and possibly prolong the life of your system.

So how much room should your system really have?

How Much Space Should My Furnace Have?

If you’re updating your basement or enclosing your furnace room, you should take a look at manufacturer instructions and Crown Point statutes for clearance guidelines.

As a general suggestion, your heater should be 30 inches away from furnace room walls on all sides. This permits our service professionals to easily work on it.

You also need to check the area has ample airflow and ventilation, especially if you have an aging furnace with a metal flue.

Related: Furnace Service or Furnace Replacement: What to Consider

This kind of furnace needs combustion air from the adjacent area. If there’s insufficient air, unsafe gas fumes and poisonous carbon monoxide could back draft into your home.

If your furnace is placed in a small room with a gas water heater, you may need to add extra openings. This could include a fully louvered door or vents in the walls.

You don’t need to think about airflow and ventilation as much if you have a newer, high-efficiency furnace with PVC piping. Your unit uses one pipe as an exhaust vent and the other to pull in air.

Keep Combustible Materials Away from Your Furnace

Although furnace rooms double 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, situate your litter box somewhere else. Cat urine contains ammonia, which could create wear on your furnace’s heat exchanger. Plus, the furnace could spread the unpleasant odors around your home.

You should also regularly sweep by your furnace to stop dust from accumulating.

Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?

Request Expert Furnace Service

Whether you need furnace replacement or annual maintenance in Crown Point, Struven Heating & Cooling can expertly take care of your needs. Our highly trained technicians can work on any HVAC model or brand.

Call us at 219-292-0956 or use our online scheduler to set up an appointment right away.