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

Your furnace can get too hot if it doesn’t have enough space. It also makes it challenging for our technicians to perform furnace repair.

Annual furnace maintenance is important to keep your unit running smoothly. An annually serviced furnace may heat more efficiently, which could decrease your heating expenses.

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

Maintenance often helps us discover problems before they start. This could help lessen future repair expenses and potentially extend the life of your furnace.

So how much room should your furnace really have?

How Much Space Will a Furnace Take Up?

If you’re finishing your basement or sealing off your furnace room, you should consult manufacturer specifications and Wyandotte statutes for clearance requirements.

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

You also need to ensure the area has plentiful 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 location. If there’s insufficient air, hazardous gas fumes and toxic carbon monoxide could leak into your home.

If your furnace is placed in a tiny room with a gas water heater, you may need to put in more openings. This could include 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 Hazardous Items A Safe Distance from Your Furnace

Although furnace rooms are often also used for laundry and storage space, you should keep yours free of items 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, place your litter box in another room. Cat urine contains ammonia, which could deteriorate your furnace’s heat exchanger. Plus, the furnace could spread the stinky odors around your home.

You should also frequently sweep by your furnace to block dust from developing.

Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?

Request Expert Furnace Service

Whether you have to have furnace replacement or routine maintenance in Wyandotte, Gee & Missler Heating & Air Conditioning can expertly meet your needs. Our highly trained technicians can work on any HVAC model or brand.

Call us at 734-284-1224 or use our online scheduler to set up an appointment today.