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

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

Annual furnace maintenance is essential to keep your equipment operating well. A routinely 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 issues before they become expensive. This could help lessen future repair expenses and possibly lengthen the life of your unit.

So how much area should your system really have?

How Much Space Does My Furnace Need?

If you’re remodeling your basement or enclosing your furnace room, you should research manufacturer instructions and Bartlesville laws for clearance guidelines.

As a general rule of thumb, your furnace should be 30 inches away from furnace room walls on all sides. This lets our service experts to comfortably repair it.

You also need to make sure the room has ample airflow and ventilation, especially if you have an aging 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 not enough air, hazardous gas fumes and deadly carbon monoxide could leak into your home.

If your furnace is located in a tiny room with a gas water heater, you may need to put in 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 modern, high-efficiency furnace with PVC piping. Your system uses one pipe as an exhaust vent and the other to pull in air.

Keep Combustible Materials Away from Your Furnace

Although furnace rooms double 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, place your litter box somewhere else. Cat urine contains ammonia, which could create wear on your furnace’s heat exchanger. Plus, the furnace could move the stinky odors throughout your home.

You should also regularly vacuum around your furnace to prevent dust from developing.

Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?

Request Expert Furnace Service

Whether you have to have furnace replacement or annual maintenance in Bartlesville, Farris Heating & Air can expertly meet your needs. Our highly trained technicians can fix any heating equipment model or brand.

Call us at 918-333-0376 or use our online scheduler to get an appointment right away.