Natural gas furnaces need sufficient space and airflow to heat right.

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

Annual furnace maintenance is crucial to keep your system working well. A regularly serviced furnace may heat more efficiently, which could decrease your utility expenses.

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

Maintenance often helps us spot problems before they start. This could help reduce future repair expenses and likely prolong the life of your system.

So how much area should your system really have?

How Much Space Will a Furnace Take Up?

If you’re remodeling your basement or sealing off your furnace room, you should consult manufacturer instructions and Beckley ordinances for clearance rules.

As a general recommendation, your heater 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 check the space has plentiful airflow and ventilation, especially if you have an older furnace with a metal flue.

Related: Furnace Service or Furnace Replacement: What to Consider

This kind of furnace draws combustion air from the nearby space. If there’s inadequate air, hazardous gas fumes and toxic carbon monoxide could flow back into your home.

If your furnace is positioned in a tiny room with a gas water heater, you may need to add more openings. This could involve a fully louvered door or vents in the walls.

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

Keep Combustible Materials A Safe Distance from Your Furnace

Although furnace rooms are often also used for 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, put your litter box in another room. Cat urine contains ammonia, which could create wear on your furnace’s heat exchanger. Plus, the furnace could spread the stinky odors around your home.

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

Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?

Request a Free Quote for Furnace Service

Whether you have to have furnace replacement or regular maintenance in Beckley, Appalachian Heating can expertly meet your needs. Our highly trained technicians can fix any HVAC model or brand.

Call us at 304-877-5566 or use our online scheduler to set up an appointment today.