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

Your furnace can shut down if it doesn’t have enough space. It also makes it difficult for our specialists to accomplish furnace repair.

Routine furnace maintenance is essential to keep your system running well. A routinely serviced furnace may heat more efficiently, which could decrease your heating bills.

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

Maintenance often helps us notice issues before they start. This could help lessen future repair costs and potentially prolong the life of your furnace.

So how much area should your system really have?

How Much Space Will a Furnace Take Up?

If you’re remodeling your basement or closing off your furnace room, you should take a look at manufacturer specifications and Mankato area laws for clearance rules.

As a general rule of thumb, your system should be 30 inches away from furnace room walls on all sides. This lets our service professionals to easily work on it.

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

Related: Furnace Service or Furnace Replacement: What to Consider

This model of furnace draws combustion air from the surrounding area. If there’s not enough air, dangerous gas fumes and poisonous carbon monoxide could back draft into your home.

If your furnace is located in a small room with a gas water heater, you may need to install supplemental 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 Separate from Your Furnace

Although furnace rooms are often also used for 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 in another room. Cat urine contains ammonia, which could deteriorate your furnace’s heat exchanger. Plus, the furnace could move the unpleasant odors around your home.

You should also routinely sweep by your furnace to stop dust from building up.

Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?

Trust the Local Pros for Furnace Service

Whether you have to have furnace replacement or annual maintenance in Mankato area, Northern Comfort Inc can expertly handle 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.