Australian gutters get US patent
The innovative Rainsaver Australian guttering system, featured in the Australian Technology Showcase, has been granted patent protection by the US Patent Office, allowing its inventors to market the device internationally.
Rainsaver is an ingenious device that allows large volumes of normally wasted stormwater runoff to be stored in home and building guttering systems.
“The Australian patent for our technology has been valued at over $60 million and the potential in China – where a massive environmental effort is being made in the lead up to the Beijing Olympics – is even greater,” Frank Smith, Rainsaver inventor and Managing Director, said.
Rainsaver has won several awards, including the 2001 Stormwater Industry Association Excellence Award, and two special commendations for contribution to the Tweed Smart House in the 2000-2001 Local Government Excellence Awards for Outstanding Environmental Achievement and Water Efficiency.
Rainsaver is now being commended by local councils in Australia as an effective solution for the strict requirements in many Australian states for reduced stormwater runoff.
The Rainsaver technology allows normally wasted stormwater to be safely stored in the guttering system, eliminating the need for stormwater detention and retention construction and reducing household town water usage by 25%, or on average 70,000 litres per annum.
Overflows from the Rainsaver system run through a seres of mosquito-proof holes and can be used to soak gardens.
Backed by companies such as BHP -George Ward Steel and Hunter Douglas , Rainsaver is manufactured from galvanised steel and finished in a range of colours to suit the décor of the home.
22-Mar-2002