5 Items You Should Never Store in Your Boiler Room, According to Pros

If you're curious about whether your home's boiler room—which contains your furnace and water heater—can serve as a storage space for common household items, the answer in most cases is no, pros say.

Below, we spoke with home maintenance and design experts who share five types of items that do not belong in this part of the house and why it is so critical to keep them safely tucked away elsewhere.

Meet the Experts

• George Noble is the lead carpenter at Anthony Wilder Design/Build, Inc., in Cabin John, Maryland.

• Michael Sauri is the co-owner and president of TriVista USA, a boutique design and build firm based in Arlington, Virginia.

• Diana Bastone is the principal designer at Diana Bastone Designs in Ontario, Canada.

1. Paint

Paint is complicated to dispose of and can also come in handy over the years as you make small home repairs of all kinds, so it's no wonder that many homeowners wish to hold onto paint cans, despite their bulkiness.

It may be tempting to keep extra cans of paint in the boiler room to free up your basement or closet space; however, this is a major no due to paint's flammability, says George Noble, lead carpenter at Anthony Wilder Design/Build, Inc.

Noble adds that thinner, stains, and the like do not belong in the boiler room, either.

2. Clothes

Experts say that no, your boiler room cannot automatically double as a storage unit for off-season clothes.

Michael Sauri, co-owner and president of TriVista USA, says that the boiler room should be kept free of "anything that would be harmed by any exhaust fumes or high heat," and, yes, that includes fabrics.

Instead, if you're looking to free up closet space in your bedroom, consider placing off-season clothes in fabric or plastic bins that slide under your bed or can stack neatly in the hall closet or basement.

3. Your Washer and Dryer

Diana Bastone, principal designer at Diana Bastone Designs, says that many people are tempted to set up their washing machine and dryer in the boiler room, yet she recommends avoiding this practice for several reasons. In terms of safety and function, this type of setup is less than ideal.

"It compromises the efficiency of the furnace because as the dryer creates heat, this room becomes quite hot, and for the furnace to work well it needs proper airflow and ventilation," she says.

This issue aside, Bastone advises her clients to think about creating a more aesthetically pleasing laundry space. Given that boiler rooms are generally dark and unfinished, most people wouldn't look forward to using such spaces to tackle their chores anyway.

"It's hard enough to motivate ourselves on laundry day—creating a separate laundry room that's clean, fresh, and inviting and it will make the task more pleasurable," she says.

Even if you don't have the space to create a designated laundry room, consider installing a laundry closet or incorporating your washer and dryer into a bathroom on the upper level of your home, which will be more convenient on a day-to-day basis.

4. Cleaning Supplies

Bastone says that cleaning supplies should be kept out of the boiler room, too, given that getting too hot will alter their effectiveness and may pose safety hazards.

Instead, make an effort to free up space in a hall closet or under the sink and stash your sprays, rags, buckets, and the like there.

5. Bins and Boxes

Bins and boxes are useful for storing everything from holiday decor to craft supplies to sporting gear.

Even if you think you've taken the proper steps to keep your bins free of items that do not belong in the boiler room per the expert advice above, you're not actually in the clear—simply put, this part of the house simply isn't meant to serve as a storage unit for excess. Once again, the issue comes down to ensuring the furnace receives proper air flow.

"By starting to put bins and boxes around the furnace, they compromise its efficiency," Bastone explains.

Read Next: 8 Items You Actually Shouldn't Store in Your Closet, Pros Explain

Read the original article on The Spruce.