I am starting to finish my basement. The first step in this process is framing a wall to close off the furnace and equipment into a utility/storage room. I have studied several books and read through this great group. I hope I can count on some advice from this group as my project progresses, I will keep the group updated with my progress.
My first question is about the placement of the wall. In order to maximize the size of my finished basement I want to place the new wall near the furnace. The problem is all of the ducts. I found a spot to place the new wall about 5 feet from the furnace but the main hot air duct from the furnace would run perpendicular and intersect the wall. I am wondering how people deal with the top plate of the wall in this kind of situation. Should I slightly lower the furnace duct by around
1 inch to give me clearance to install an un-interrupted top plate? Or can I just frame around the duct and not use a proper top plate? The wall is not load bearing but will run perpendicular to the joists.My next question is about the Ontario Canada building code. Does anyone know what the minimum distances are for the proximity of a wall to a furnace?
Many thanks,
-Sean