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CREDENTIALS
WILLIAM G. SYKES
CREDENTIALS
Experienced in, patent law, intellectual property law, environmental
law, contract law, business law, and toxic mold litigation.
The Virginia State director of the National Toxic Mold Coalition
and Foundation.
As a patent attorney have represented many clients with product ideas and have
directed them through the idea, design, prototype, patent, copyright, trademark,
manufacturing, marketing and to the shelf stages of product development.
Bachelor degree in Electrical Engineering from Old Dominion
University, trained in Nuclear Engineering. Co-inventor
with James Jackson and in 2001 was issued
three patents, USPTO #D441,874, #D446,317 and D448,489, for plastic crawlspace
Doors. The doors are designed to allow maximum ventilation into and out of
the crawlspace. The door frame was designed to hold
a screen, vent, louver or fan.
Co-inventor with James Jackson and have patents pending on a portable crawl
space fan and a crawlspace door mounted fan. In 1998
formed crawlspace Door Systems,
Inc. with co-owner James Jackson to design, develop, patent, manufacture and
sell crawlspace ventilation products.
JAMES
S. JACKSON CREDENTIALS
Since 1984 James has been designing, testing, manufacturing
and installing products for under homes to eliminate moisture
problems. His first patent, USPTO #4,829,882, was issued in
1989 for a crawlspace Ventilation System. The ventilation
system uses fan-mounted vents with intakes, exhausts, and
internal booster fans for jet-streaming. In 2001 with co-inventor
William G. Sykes was issued three patents, USPTO #D441,874,
#D446,317 and D448,489, for plastic crawlspace Doors. The
doors are designed to allow maximum ventilation into and out
of the crawlspace. The door frame was designed to hold a
screen, vent, louver or fan. With co-inventor William Sykes
have patents pending on a portable crawlspace fan and a crawl
space door mounted fan. Have many years experience in retail
management and marketing for large retail companies. In 1998
formed crawlspace Door Systems, Inc. with co-owner William
Sykes to design, develop, patent, manufacture and sell crawl
space ventilation products. He has been featured in many news
articles two of which follow:
Inventor Aims to Leave Houses High and Dry
Hampton Roads Business Journal, Inside Business, June
4-10, 2001
Bending over, hunched on all fours while inspecting the darkened
crawlspaces of his customers’ homes, Jim Jackson (Crawl
Space Door Systems Inc.) realized houses in Hampton Roads
shared a common problem.
“One of the biggest problems in this area is that it’s
a low-lying area,” Jackson said. “A lot of the
houses are affected by that moisture and they start to decay.”
Jackson soon realized that the key to fighting the moisture
lies in the air flow under the house and getting it moved
from one side of the house to the other.
After many prototype drawings, Jackson came up with a solution.
The result was what Jackson refers to as a crawlspace ventilation
system, which he patented in 1989.
Because his door lid is constructed of a solid-color, all-weather
ABS/PVC plastic, Jackson said, there is no need to ever repaint
it or replace it, since it will not rust or rot.
Another item Jackson patented is a crawlspace door. This
plastic access door has a grid screen with half-inch holes
that allow more air to flow through the crawlspace, compared
to the mesh screens found on most homes. The increased airflow
is essential, Jackson said, in getting the homes dried out.
“These louvers create a larger volume of air for the
whole crawlspace, instead of just point air, which is what
the vent does,” he said.
Many of the people whose homes Jackson has already fitted
with louvers are pleased with the results and the product’s
appearance.
Jackson has another patent. This one is for a crawlspace
door that has a fan behind its slatted front exterior. When
the wind passes through the louvered door, the fan is set
into motion.
“We know the demand throughout the U.S. is there,”
he said. Jackson plans on distributing the products nationwide.
A combination of these products, he added, is probably what
most homes will need to get their crawlspaces and homes rid
of moisture and mildew.
Moisture Has Met Its Match
Business Weekly, The Virginian-Pilot, July 3, 1989
Moisture control beneath Hampton Roads homes has always
been a problem.
Homeowners and builders have tried spreading sand and sheets
of plastic beneath homes, and even installing temperature-controlled
vents in the foundation.
Now comes another idea: the crawlspace Door.
The door was invented by Jim Jackson, from Chesapeake.
“I found out that the moisture problem in this area
is so extensive that there’s not just one solution,”
said Jackson.
Jackson’s product fits into the ventilation holes in
the foundation of a house. It has intake and discharge ducts,
as well as thrust fans and a system that closes the vent when
it rains.
The idea is to suck dry air from outside under the house
and to blow the cool, damp air from beneath the house. The
electrical system can be controlled by a timer inside the
house or automatically by a humidistat.
The benefits are many.
“A lot of the houses in Norfolk were built with creosote
wood,” said Jackson.
“The odor under there is tremendous. And a lot of people
have allergies that come from mold and fungus growing up under
the house. The (crawlspace door system) more or less cleans
the house out and dries it out over a period of time.”
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