My wife listens to your program here in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, and heard a portion regarding fresh air vents into the basement furnace room. We have one in the basement and no vent into the furnace room.
Answer:
You have to be thinking of combustion air for the furnace. This is a 4" duct that supplies combustion air to the furnace and in many cases where gas furnaces are used, they are a necessity. Should you wish to add one, you can just use an ordinary dryer vent kit through the basement wall (up between the joists). Remove the flapper that permits air to travel only outward and then stuff a square meter of vinyl window screen in there to let air pass. The duct should then be lead to somewhere near the furnace. Put a bucket under it so air has to do a full 360-degree turn before it gets into the basement or the floor down there will be forever cold. Insulate the first 4 to 6 feet of the duct after it comes through the wall.
