I had quite a scare this morning. I was trying to figure out what was causing the water on the basement floor and went into the furnace room. I looked over and noticed that the vent from the gas water heater was coroded, separated at a joing and had holes in it. In other words it was venting carbon monoxide into the basement!! So, I immediately opened windows and called the plumber. He came out with his handy roll of duct tape and made a few temporary fixes. I had already decided to get a new water heater (the one here has a 6 year warranty and was installed in 1993). He gave me a quote, but it seemed a bit high, so I waited until I could get to Home Depot and check out the prices. I've decided his price is reasonable, so i'll call tomorrow and will probably get it installed tomorrow. He said they will put in all new venting. that's a good thing