EcoVent
My journey began late one night when our darling children cooked popcorn and I awoke to an asthma attack, choking violently on burnt popcorn smoke, one story up and diagonally opposite the kitchen. This proved that the zoning of our ducted air-conditioning was not controlled when off, not to mention when on. After the popcorn incident I witnessed my 83-year-old uncle wrapping his ceiling vents while balancing dangerously up on a ladder. After his words of wisdom, "Cold-Air will find its lowest point and Hot-Air will always find the highest point my boy" it was then I decided that an innovative solution must be found for these two-way bleeding vents. Envisioning a potential product that was not only convenient and safe, but increased energy efficiency and ecological sustainability by mitigating the hazard, thus eliminating all risks.
I made it my mission to create a one-way, self-closing ducted ceiling vent that would save on all forms of household heating loss, from all types of ducted air-conditioning systems.
I have presented my innovation to the board of the South Australian Housing Industry Association and received a positive response whilst winning the eNVIes People's Choice Award scholarshipJuly-2018 enrolment with Flinders University's NVI accelerated Start-up program.
The end-product development is a one-way drop-in OEM replacement to suit current ceiling vent registers. This perpetual self-educating solution does not require power or plumbing and is as easy to install as changing a light bulb. I have taken the initiative to create a mobile testing unit to demonstrate my solo solution to this massive non-addressed problem. Corroborated by a registered provisional product patent, that is now NATA certified to validate and quantify my lighter footprint innovation.