If you’re installing a furnace in the basement, especially if it’s a wood or coal furnace, the best location for it is in the center of the room. As the heat radiates from the furnace, it will rise to warm the floor above it. Centering the furnace maximizes the size of the heated area above it.
Furnaces should be checked and cleaned each year by a professional. Improved efficiency will lead to fuel savings that will more than cover the cleaning cost.
If your new house is airtight for energy efficiency, your furnace should draw air for combustion through a duct
to the outside. As the furnace fuel burns, the process creates a suction that brings in more air. In a tight house, if you don’t have a duct to the outside, that air is drawn from inside the house, and the resulting vacuum can draw potentially dangerous gases such as carbon monoxide back down the flue and into the house.

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