Furnace Closet Door Requirements

So the florida building code fbc g2406 and international residential code irc do not allow furnace installation in a bedroom bathroom or an any adjoining closet unless it meets these specifications that essentially isolate the furnace from the room.

Furnace closet door requirements. Once your combustion vents have been installed and the ceiling in the closet has been finished out you will want to close off any vents in the door. A furnace malfunction can cause a deadly carbon monoxide co buildup. In this arrangement the general rule is that your furnace room cannot be smaller than 50 cubic feet per 1000 btus of heat the furnace produces. Unscrew the hinges from the furnace room door with a screwdriver.

Door assembly shall meet the requirements of section 504 1 1. The closet shall be for the exclusive use of the water heater. When locating the walls be sure to allow enough space at least 30 inches to move around inside the furnace room so that maintenance and repairs can be performed on the furnace. Close off vents in door.

Enclose any furnace cabinet with gypsum drywall which is fire resistant. The door must have weatherstripping and a threshold to prevent air leakage between the closet and the house. Be sure to caulk around the seams to make a tight seal. This almost certainly means that you will need to add a basic vent to your closet so that it can bring in a flow of new air for combustion.

Refer to the furnace installation. Less isn t good especially in winter when drafts tend to run higher. Cut off the bottom few inches of the door with a circular saw to create a gap that allows air to vent into the furnace room. The door assembly shall be installed with a threshold and bottom door seal and shall meet the requirements of section 504 1 2.

You can do this by attaching a piece of plywood on the back side of the door. The key is that you have to install air inlets so that the furnace or water heater gets the combustion air it needs when it s running. Provide a door with a vented front large enough to provide the necessary air supply. Combustion air for such installations shall be obtained from the outdoors in accordance with section 506 4.

Keep checking the draft also for good measure open and close the garage door and an outside door on another side of the house note you want the draft to be between 0 01 and 0 02 water column inches. All penetrations must be air sealed as well.