yes, there's always some minor gaps where outside air can infiltrate, but most likely your smell problem is the outlet position of your exhaust - I'll guess either the pipes don't go all the way back or they exit barely beyond the back of the box in the center third

Bill


Moved over to the Passing Lane

"When we tug a single thing in nature, we find it attached to the rest of the world" ~ John Muir
"When we tug a single thing on an old truck, we find it falls off" ~ me
Some TF series details & TF heater pics