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 hard for our technicians to perform furnace repair.

Annual furnace maintenance is important to keep your equipment running trouble-free. A routinely serviced furnace may work more efficiently, which could decrease your heating expenses.

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

Maintenance often helps us spot troubles before they start. This could help lower future repair costs and potentially lengthen the life of your unit.

So how much room should your furnace really have?

How Much Space Does My Furnace Need?

If you’re finishing your basement or closing off your furnace room, you should take a look at manufacturer specifications and Cambridge ordinances for clearance requirements.

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 easily work on it.

You also need to ensure 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 pulls combustion air from the nearby space. 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 tiny room with a gas water heater, you may need to add extra openings. This could include a fully louvered door or vents in the walls.

You don’t need to assess airflow and ventilation as much if you have a modern, 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 Away from Your Furnace

Although furnace rooms function as 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, place your litter box in another room. Cat urine contains ammonia, which could corrode your furnace’s heat exchanger. Plus, the furnace could circulate the smelly odors around your home.

You should also routinely clean around your furnace to stop 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 Cambridge, Pliescott HVAC Services LLC can expertly meet your needs. Our highly trained technicians can fix any furnace model or brand.

Call us at 410-228-4822 or use our online scheduler to set up an appointment now.