Closet - Mechanical Room No Drywall?

[fqp25]

Thanks for all the insight.

Scott sorry to her about your dog. I too am a dog person.

I made a recommendation to drywall that wall, along with a couple more in the mechanical room.

As for the mechanical room itself; as of now I'm not to worried about combustion air. There is no drywall on the ceiling, so there is enough air coming in through the exposed joist pockets. Also the other walls are only drywalled on the other side of the studs.

However, I did make a recommendation to install drywall on the ceiling and interior side of studs as added fire protection, and (as Scott said) Increased safety."

The door for the mechanical room is louvered and opens into a laundry/utility area. I didn't measure the area of this vent, but it seemed pretty standard (if there is such a thing). I would guess at least 18" x 18". It did enter my mind about combustion air for the WH, especially if they would drywall the room completely, and I feel the vent in the door is sufficient for the 40 gallon power vent. Plus, the way the floor sloped to the floor drains, both in the laundry/utility and the mechanical room, I did notice a gap between the floor and the bottom of the door.

I'm use to seeing mechanical rooms on newer houses completely rocked and sealed. Maybe the drywall guys started this basement on a Friday afternoon...