In my laundry room I have a closet with a gas hot water heater and on the wall to the outside in this closet are two vents going outside. This obviously presents a heat leak as you can feel the cold air coming into the laundry room. I would like to close this up but I am not sure if that would present an issue due to the hot water heater being gas. Is there a reason those vents are there and is there anything I can do about it?
Add a comment
|
1 Answer
Your gas water heater needs air to burn the gas. Without the vent, there's a possibility of air being sucked in through the flue instead, which could fill your house with carbon monoxide. So yes, you need the vent.
The exterior vent should have a flap/door on it that closes when there is no need for additional combustion air. If yours doesn't, then get it replaced with one that does.
-
Don't forget, it's an intake. So the flapper has to open in, not out. Commented Dec 19, 2016 at 15:48
-
Ah thanks, it doesn't have the flapper so I need that. Commented Dec 19, 2016 at 15:48