I'm getting clobbered with propane fuel costs (2.91/gal as of 15 JAN 08). Thinking of buying a corn/wood pellet stove, I had a general contractor friend of mine visit and do an energy audit.

Among MANY things I need to caulk, insulate, etc., he observed there is NO cold air vent at the furnace to allow the furnace to use basement air. He highly recommended installing a cold air vent on the cold air return duct work on the furnace.

Now....is my friend correct ? I don't have a clue about HVAC and have to take his comments as factual. It just seems hard to believe that a Lennox furnace, installed in 1998 would not have been installed without a cold air return vent at the furnace.

Can you advise ?