Natural gas furnaces need adequate space and airflow to run right.

Your furnace can overheat if it doesn’t have enough clearance. It also makes it challenging for our professionals to perform furnace repair.

Regular furnace maintenance is essential to keep your unit working smoothly. An annually serviced furnace may work more efficiently, which could lower your energy bills.

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

Maintenance often helps us spot troubles before they start. This could help reduce future repair expenses and potentially lengthen the life of your furnace.

So how much area should your equipment really have?

How Much Space Does My Furnace Need?

If you’re remodeling your basement or closing off your furnace room, you should take a look at manufacturer specifications and Yukon laws for clearance guidelines.

As a general rule of thumb, your heater 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 make sure the room 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 needs combustion air from the adjacent space. If there’s insufficient air, unsafe gas fumes and deadly carbon monoxide could leak into your home.

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

Keep Combustible Materials Away from Your Furnace

Although furnace rooms function 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, situate your litter box elsewhere. Cat urine contains ammonia, which could create wear on your furnace’s heat exchanger. Plus, the furnace could circulate the smelly odors all over your home.

You should also routinely clean by your furnace to prevent dust from accumulating.

Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?

Request Expert Furnace Service

Whether you want furnace replacement or regular maintenance in Yukon, Comfort Concepts Heating & Air Conditioning can expertly handle your needs. Our highly trained technicians can work on any heating equipment model or brand.

Call us at 405-494-7444 or use our online scheduler to get an appointment today.