The Draw Collar is a device that is installed on a woodburning stove (replacing a 1 foot section of pipe) which is plugged in and will heat up, warming the air inside the flue - creating a draw before a fire is ever lit - thus eliminating smoke coming out into the room.
It's been a long, long road in many ways.
But in others, the time from idea conception to winning a prestigious industry award has been mind-blowingly short!
A little background - John has been in the fireplace industry for about 14 years in varying degrees. The past 5-6 years have been in depth.
My family has a cabin in the Uintah Mountains, and a few years ago, John put in a new wood-burning stove. The flue of this stove is probably 20 feet long (or more), and it was difficult to get a draw going. We tried many things - lighting paper inside the flue, holding a torch up in the pipe - all of the normal things. One particular trip up there, inspiration struck. The concept that would become the Draw Collar was born.
The next little while was dedicated to securing a patent, and then on to the practical development. Attempts at having a prototype made started in China, and have ended with a local metal company, Metco. We have been so grateful for Randy and his crew - for their excitement and willingness to go above and beyond the standard.
Person after person has come into our lives that have contributed in various ways, and we are forever in their debt.
This past week was spent in Reno at the HPBA Expo. Response was greater than we ever anticipated, and the dreamed about and coveted Vesta Award was ours!
Now, as we move forward in our efforts to build this business, we will use this blog as a means to document our journey. The frustrations, the elations and the hard, hard work that will go into turning our invention into a successful business.
