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

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

Routine furnace maintenance is crucial to keep your system running trouble-free. A routinely serviced furnace may work more efficiently, which could lower your utility expenses.

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

Maintenance often helps us notice problems before they start. This could help lessen future repair costs and potentially lengthen the life of your system.

So how much room should your system really have?

How Much Space Will a Furnace Take Up?

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

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

You also need to ensure the room has enough 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 surrounding space. If there’s not enough air, dangerous gas fumes and deadly carbon monoxide could back draft into your home.

If your furnace is placed in a tiny room with a gas water heater, you may need to add supplemental openings. This could include 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 Hazardous Items Away from Your Furnace

Although furnace rooms function as laundry and storage space, you should keep yours free of items 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 in another room. Cat urine contains ammonia, which could create wear on your furnace’s heat exchanger. Plus, the furnace could circulate the unpleasant odors all over your home.

You should also regularly clean near your furnace to prevent dust from building up.

Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?

Trust the Local Pros for Furnace Service

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

Call us at 432-237-0168 or use our online scheduler to set up an appointment today.