Natural gas furnaces need sufficient space and airflow to work properly.

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

Regular furnace maintenance is essential to keep your unit operating smoothly. A routinely serviced furnace may work more efficiently, which could reduce your energy costs.

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 expenses and likely extend the life of your system.

So how much area should your system really have?

How Much Space Does My Furnace Need?

If you’re updating your basement or closing off your furnace room, you should research manufacturer directions and Moline statutes for clearance guidelines.

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

You also need to make sure the space has enough airflow and ventilation, especially if you have an older furnace with a metal flue.

Related: Furnace Service or Furnace Replacement: What to Consider

This kind of furnace needs combustion air from the nearby location. If there’s not enough air, hazardous gas fumes and toxic carbon monoxide could back draft into your home.

If your furnace is located in a tiny room with a gas water heater, you may need to install more openings. This could involve a fully louvered door or vents in the walls.

You don’t need to assess airflow and ventilation as much if you have a newer, high-efficiency furnace with PVC piping. Your system uses one pipe as an exhaust vent and the other to draw in air.

Keep Combustible Materials Away from Your Furnace

Although furnace rooms are often also used for 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 unpleasant odors all over your home.

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

Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?

Request Expert Furnace Service

Whether you want furnace replacement or annual maintenance in Moline, J.L. Brady Company LLC can expertly meet your needs. Our highly trained technicians can fix any furnace model or brand.

Call us at 309-517-7511 or use our online scheduler to set up an appointment right away.