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

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

Annual furnace maintenance is important to keep your unit working trouble-free. A routinely serviced furnace may heat more efficiently, which could reduce your utility expenses.

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

Maintenance often helps us discover troubles before they start. This could help lessen future repair bills and possibly lengthen the life of your unit.

So how much room should your equipment really have?

How Much Space Should My Furnace Have?

If you’re remodeling your basement or sealing off your furnace room, you should consult manufacturer instructions and Myrtle Beach laws for clearance requirements.

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 easily work on it.

You also need to ensure the room 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 kind of furnace needs combustion air from the nearby location. If there’s insufficient air, hazardous gas fumes and deadly carbon monoxide could flow back into your home.

If your furnace is placed in a small room with a gas water heater, you may need to put in more 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 unit uses one pipe as an exhaust vent and the other to add air.

Keep Flammable Items 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, place your litter box somewhere else. Cat urine contains ammonia, which could corrode your furnace’s heat exchanger. Plus, the furnace could spread the smelly odors throughout your home.

You should also frequently vacuum by your furnace to prevent dust from building up.

Related: Is it Time for Furnace Service or Replacement?

Request Expert Furnace Service

Whether you have to have furnace replacement or annual maintenance in Myrtle Beach, Polar Air & Mechanical can expertly take care of your needs. Our highly trained technicians can repair any furnace model or brand.

Call us at 843-253-4874 or use our online scheduler to get an appointment today.