Natural gas furnaces need enough space and airflow to heat properly.

Your furnace can get too hot if it doesn’t have enough room. It also makes it challenging for our professionals to accomplish furnace repair.

Annual furnace maintenance is essential to keep your system working smoothly. A regularly serviced furnace may heat more efficiently, which could lower your heating costs.

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

Maintenance often helps us notice troubles before they become expensive. This could help lessen future repair costs and likely prolong the life of your system.

So how much clearance should your furnace really have?

How Much Space Does My Furnace Need?

If you’re remodeling your basement or enclosing your furnace room, you should consult manufacturer directions and Marshalltown statutes for clearance guidelines.

As a general rule of thumb, your system should be 30 inches away from furnace room walls on all sides. This allows our service technicians to conveniently replace it.

You also need to make sure the space has enough airflow and ventilation, especially if you have an outdated furnace with a metal flue.

Related: Furnace Service or Furnace Replacement: What to Consider

This type of furnace draws combustion air from the nearby location. If there’s inadequate air, unsafe gas fumes and deadly carbon monoxide could flow back 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.

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

Keep Combustible Materials A Safe Distance 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, put 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 around your home.

You should also frequently clean around your furnace to prevent dust from accumulating.

Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?

Request Expert Furnace Service

Whether you have to have furnace replacement or annual maintenance in Marshalltown, Kapaun & Brown can expertly handle your needs. Our highly trained technicians can fix any HVAC model or brand.

Call us at 641-812-2028 or use our online scheduler to request an appointment right away.