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

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

Annual furnace maintenance is important to keep your system working trouble-free. A regularly serviced furnace may work more efficiently, which could decrease your heating costs.

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

Maintenance often helps us notice problems before they become expensive. This could help lessen future repair bills and likely extend the life of your system.

So how much area should your equipment really have?

How Much Space Does My Furnace Need?

If you’re remodeling your basement or sealing off your furnace room, you should research manufacturer instructions and Frederick statutes for clearance guidelines.

As a general recommendation, your system should be 30 inches away from furnace room walls on all sides. This permits our service experts to conveniently 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 pulls combustion air from the adjacent area. If there’s not enough air, dangerous gas fumes and toxic carbon monoxide could leak into your home.

If your furnace is placed in a little room with a gas water heater, you may need to install supplemental openings. This could consist of 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 add air.

Keep Combustible Materials Away 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, situate your litter box somewhere else. Cat urine contains ammonia, which could corrode your furnace’s heat exchanger. Plus, the furnace could circulate the unpleasant odors throughout your home.

You should also routinely vacuum by your furnace to stop dust from developing.

Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?

Request Expert Furnace Service

Whether you want furnace replacement or routine maintenance in Frederick, May's Heating & Air can expertly meet your needs. Our highly trained technicians can repair any furnace model or brand.

Call us at 301-690-0397 or use our online scheduler to set up an appointment now.