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

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

Annual furnace maintenance is essential to keep your equipment working well. A regularly serviced furnace may heat more efficiently, which could decrease your heating bills.

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

Maintenance often helps us discover troubles before they begin. This could help reduce future repair costs and potentially lengthen the life of your furnace.

So how much area should your furnace really have?

How Much Space Does My Furnace Need?

If you’re updating your basement or closing off your furnace room, you should take a look at manufacturer instructions and Newark statutes for clearance guidelines.

As a general recommendation, your furnace should be 30 inches away from furnace room walls on all sides. This permits our service experts to easily repair it.

You also need to check the area 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 model of furnace needs combustion air from the nearby area. If there’s inadequate air, dangerous gas fumes and poisonous carbon monoxide could back draft into your home.

If your furnace is positioned in a little room with a gas water heater, you may need to add extra openings. This could consist of a fully louvered door or vents in the walls.

You don’t need to think about 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 add air.

Keep Combustible Materials Away from Your Furnace

Although furnace rooms double 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, put your litter box elsewhere. Cat urine contains ammonia, which could deteriorate your furnace’s heat exchanger. Plus, the furnace could move the stinky odors around your home.

You should also regularly clean around your furnace to prevent dust from accumulating.

Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?

Request Expert Furnace Service

Whether you have to have furnace replacement or regular maintenance in Newark, Luikart Heating & Cooling can expertly meet your needs. Our highly trained technicians can repair any furnace model or brand.

Call us at 740-200-5591 or use our online scheduler to get an appointment today.