Need advice on venting

[billwed]

I have a furnace and water heater in a closet in the entryway. Both are vented up through the roof. There was a vent hole in the floor to the crawl space and another in the ceiling into the attic, apparently for combustion air. However, I replaced the furnace 15 months ago with one that has sealed combustion, 2 pvc pipes now going through the attic and out the roof, and the vent hole to the attic was covered. I still have the hole in the floor, and I'd like to get rid of it due to drafts and bugs.

I was thinking of putting in a direct vent water heater (venting horizontally through the wall) so I can cover the hole in the floor. Does this make sense? Or I am going to too much trouble? I assume this is the only way to get rid of that hole.

[falkenater]

I think its a great idea, besides getting rid of the hole, a sealed combustion water heater is safer than conventional. Most people don't realize that furnace/water heater closets are outside the shell of their house. If you don't change the water heater you could weather strip the door and use some ridgid insulation on the walls and door.

[DragRag]

Make sure that direct vent water heater is getting combustion air from outside the closet if you are going to seal off the combustion air supplies. Technically you are aleady in violation of code, atleast around here for combustion venting anyway. It will work, but that's the rules. I have never seen a water heater that pulls combustion air through a pipe like a condensing furnace so check it out well. I typically do not install H2O heater though, I do HVAC-R. Good luck with the install.