Natural gas furnaces need enough space and airflow to run right.

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

Routine furnace maintenance is important to keep your system operating well. A routinely serviced furnace may heat more efficiently, which could decrease your heating costs.

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

Maintenance often helps us discover issues before they begin. This could help reduce future repair bills and possibly lengthen the life of your system.

So how much area should your equipment really have?

How Much Space Should My Furnace Have?

If you’re finishing your basement or enclosing your furnace room, you should consult manufacturer directions and Mankato area laws for clearance guidelines.

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

You also need to check the area has enough 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 needs combustion air from the nearby area. If there’s inadequate air, unsafe gas fumes and toxic 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 put in supplemental openings. This could involve a fully louvered door or vents in the walls.

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

Keep Flammable Items Away from Your Furnace

Although furnace rooms function as laundry and storage space, you should keep yours free of clutter 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 in another room. Cat urine contains ammonia, which could corrode your furnace’s heat exchanger. Plus, the furnace could spread the unpleasant odors all over your home.

You should also frequently sweep by your furnace to prevent dust from building up.

Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?

Request a Free Quote for Furnace Service

Whether you need furnace replacement or routine maintenance in Mankato area, Northern Comfort Inc can expertly meet your needs. Our highly trained technicians can repair any furnace model or brand.

Call us at 507-387-6596 or use our online scheduler to set up an appointment now.