basement
I want to put a TV right in front of my furnace and water heater. I'd like it to look reasonably finished and keep noise from the systems as low as reasonably possible.
I would love to just drywall them in, but obviously need to retain access and air flow.
Is there some way to finish the surface that would look like a wall but be reasonably easy to remove when I need to get at them? The finish level doesn't have to be perfect, but I would love it to be more than an accordion/folding door.
If you want to ensure a perfectly straight and level corner along the entire length, then I'd suggest you build a two sided "box" to rest on the raised surface. Build it out of 1x1s, making a frame that consists of 3 long straight edges connected at perfect 90 degrees by short supports (cripples) spaced 12" on center.
Lay that box over the concrete edge, and use shims to get it perfectly level. Glue in place.
Then apply plywood to the frame and proceed with tiling as normal. (You don't need to ditra the box in this scenario, just tile to the ply)
Rough sketch showing cross section of wall/floor and stick diagram of proposed box framework:
The room in question is fairly large and has several heat loss factors. Not withstanding the fact that the room sits on the cold basement floor, has large windows etc., the main problem is that the temp in the room is not thermostatically controlled properly. The only thermostat and heat zone is on the main floor and controls heat based on temps in the main living space. Your typically closed bedrooms and lower level rooms will never heat or cool at the same temps as the room the thermostat is monitoring. If you really want to have accurate temp control, it may be necessary to install zones. One zone for open living areas (kitchen, dining, living spaces) , a zone for bedrooms, and a separate zone for the office level. Without separate zones, you cannot monitor and adjust temps in the areas isolated from the living space.
Best Answer
I take it that these are both natural gas fired and both are currently taking their combustion air from the room. It looks like the furnace could be connected to get combustion air from the outside but the PVC tubing is not connected to a tube to draw from outside. I think you should investigate getting this done.
If you box these in to form a heater closet, you must provide vents for air from the room to move into the closet. The adequacy of vents for combustion air is regulated by law and regulations. You must contact your local construction inspection authority and see what they will require for size of a heater closet, access, and venting.
It looks to me like you are possibly not leaving enough clearance on the right side of the water heater. I have a furnace like this, in a closet, and there is still noise. However, my Carrier NG furnace is 27 years old.
Fiberglass insulation on the outgoing duct might make a difference in sound level.