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

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

Routine furnace maintenance is essential to keep your system working smoothly. A regularly serviced furnace may heat more efficiently, which could lower your heating bills.

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 lower future repair costs and potentially lengthen the life of your unit.

So how much clearance should your furnace really have?

How Much Space Should My Furnace Have?

If you’re finishing your basement or closing off your furnace room, you should research manufacturer instructions and Ballwin and St. Charles laws for clearance rules.

As a general suggestion, your heater should be 30 inches away from furnace room walls on all sides. This lets our service experts to conveniently work on it.

You also need to ensure the room 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 model of furnace pulls combustion air from the nearby space. If there’s inadequate air, dangerous gas fumes and poisonous 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 put in supplemental 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 newer, high-efficiency furnace with PVC piping. Your furnace uses one pipe as an exhaust vent and the other to add air.

Keep Flammable Items 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 elsewhere. Cat urine contains ammonia, which could create wear on your furnace’s heat exchanger. Plus, the furnace could circulate the unpleasant odors around your home.

You should also regularly sweep around your furnace to block dust from building up.

Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?

Request a Free Quote for Furnace Service

Whether you have to have furnace replacement or routine maintenance in Ballwin and St. Charles, Air Alliance Team can expertly take care of your needs. Our highly trained technicians can fix any heating equipment model or brand.

Call us at 636-206-4584 or use our online scheduler to request an appointment now.