Vent

Abstract

A flood flaps vent for sealing a building crawlspace includes: (a) a vent box including open opposite front and rear ends forming a vent passageway in the vent box, the vent box including a top box portion and an opposite bottom box portion; (b) flexible flood flap hingably mounted to the vent box near the rear end of the vent box and constructed and arranged to permit the flexible flood flap to flex within the vent passageway to open the passageway; and (c) a grille that may be hingably mounted, the grille having openings therein for air and water flow through the grille, and positioned over the open front end of the vent box; the flood flap occluding the rear end of the vent box when it is in an at rest, home position. This simplified abstract is not intended to limit, and should not be interpreted as limiting, the scope of the claims.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A vent for sealing a building crawlspace, the vent comprising:
 (a) a vent box comprising a front end and a rear end located at opposite ends of a vent passageway in the vent box portion, the vent box comprising a top box portion, a bottom box portion, and two side wall portions that surround the vent passageway; and   (b) a flexible flood flap extending across and covering rear end of the vent box, with a side of the flexible flood flap hingably connected to the vent box near the rear end of the vent box, with other sides of the flexible flood flap being unattached, the flexible flood flap constructed and arranged to flex within the vent passageway;
 wherein the flexible flood flap substantially occludes the rear end of the vent box portion when the flexible flood flap is in an at rest, home position, and flexes under pressure to open the passageway. 
   
     
     
         2 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 1 , further comprising a grille, the grille comprising a plurality of openings therein, the grille positioned near the front end of the vent box and covering vent passageway near the front end of the vent box, the grille hingably mounted to the vent box and the grille constructed and arranged to pivot within the vent passageway. 
     
     
         3 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 1 , wherein the top box portion of the vent box comprises a flap slot near the rear end of the vent box, and wherein the edge of the flexible flood flap that is hingably connected to the vent box is inserted into the flap slot and forms a hinge for the hingably connected flexible flood flap. 
     
     
         4 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 2 , wherein the top box portion of the vent box comprises a flap slot near the rear end of the vent box, and wherein the edge of the flexible flood flap that is hingably connected to the vent box is inserted into the flap slot and forms a hinge for the hingably connected flexible flood flap. 
     
     
         5 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 1 , the vent box further comprising a flap channel in the rear end of the vent box portion, wherein the flap channel receives and seats therein an unattached edge of the flexible flood flap when the flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position. 
     
     
         6 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 2 , the vent box further comprising a flap channel in the rear end of the vent box portion, wherein the flap channel receives and seats therein an unattached edge of the flexible flood flap when the flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position. 
     
     
         7 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 1 , wherein the flexible flood flap is substantially rectangular in shape and comprises three edges that are unattached, the vent box further comprising a flap channel in the rear end of the vent box portion, wherein the flap channel receives and seats therein an unattached edge of the three edges that are unattached, when the flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position. 
     
     
         8 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 2 , wherein the flexible flood flap is substantially rectangular in shape and comprises three edges that are unattached, the vent box further comprising a flap channel in the rear end of the vent box portion, wherein the flap channel receives and seats therein an unattached edge of the three edges that are unattached, when the flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position. 
     
     
         9 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 1 , wherein the flexible flood flap comprises three edges that are unattached, wherein the three unattached edges of the flexible flood flap are each seated in a corresponding flap channel formed in the vent box when the flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position. 
     
     
         10 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 2 , wherein the flexible flood flap comprises three edges that are unattached, wherein the three unattached edges of the flexible flood flap are each seated in a corresponding flap channel formed in the vent box when the flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position. 
     
     
         11 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 1 , further comprising a second flexible flood flap, positioned near the rear end of the vent box. 
     
     
         12 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 2 , further comprising a second flexible flood flap, positioned near the rear end of the vent box. 
     
     
         13 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 1 , further comprising a second flexible flood flap positioned near the rear end of the vent box and substantially parallel to the flood flap, the vent box, the vent box further comprising a flap channel and a second flap channel near the rear end of the vent box portion, wherein the flap channel receives and seats therein an unattached edge of the flexible flood flap when the flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position, and the second flap channel receives and seats therein an unattached edge of the second flexible flood flap when the second flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position. 
     
     
         14 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 2 , further comprising a second flexible flood flap positioned near the rear end of the vent box and substantially parallel to the flood flap, the vent box further comprising a flap channel and a second flap channel near the rear end of the vent box portion, wherein the flap channel receives and seats therein an unattached edge of the flexible flood flap when the flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position, and the second flap channel receives and seats therein an unattached edge of the second flexible flood flap when the second flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position. 
     
     
         15 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 3 , wherein the upper edge of the flexible flood flap is substantially wedge-shaped, the flap slot being correspondingly shaped. 
     
     
         16 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 4 , wherein the upper edge of the flexible flood flap is substantially wedge-shaped, the flap slot being correspondingly shaped. 
     
     
         17 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 2 , wherein the grille comprises a frame having openings therein, and a screen positioned behind and connected to the grille. 
     
     
         18 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 1 , wherein, when the flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position, opposite side edges of the flexible flood flap fit into a corresponding flap channel in the inside side wall portions of the vent box, and a bottom edge of the flexible flood flap fits into a central flap channel in an inside of the bottom box portion of the vent box, the three sections of the flap channel being contiguous with one another. 
     
     
         19 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 2 , wherein, when the flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position, opposite side edges of the flexible flood flap fit into a corresponding flap channel in the inside side wall portions of the vent box, and a bottom edge of the flexible flood flap fits into a central flap channel in an inside of the bottom box portion of the vent box, the three sections of the flap channel being contiguous with one another. 
     
     
         20 . The flood flaps vent according to  claim 1 , wherein the flexible flood flap comprises a plurality of air bubbles that are entrained in the flexible flood flap material for buoyancy. 
     
     
         21 . The flood flaps vent according to  claim 2 , wherein the flexible flood flap comprises a plurality of air bubbles that are entrained in the flexible flood flap material for buoyancy. 
     
     
         22 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 1 , further comprising a grille, the grille comprising a plurality of openings therein, the grille positioned near the front end of the vent box and covering the front end of the vent box, wherein the top box portion of the vent box comprises a flap slot near the front end of the vent box, the grille hingably mounted to the vent box with the grille comprising a flexible member near the top of the grille that engages and is held within the flap slot near the front end of the vent box, wherein the grille is constructed and arranged to pivot within the vent passageway by the flexible member flexing relative to the remainder of the grille. 
     
     
         23 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 1 , further comprising a grille, the grille comprising a plurality of openings therein, the grille positioned near the front end of the vent box and covering the front end of the vent box, the grille hingably mounted to the vent box and the grille constructed and arranged to pivot within the vent passageway, the vent box further comprising a grille channel, wherein the grille channel receives and seats therein an unattached edge of the grille when the grille is in an at rest, home position. 
     
     
         24 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 1 , the vent box further comprising a grille stop near the front end of the vent box portion, wherein the grille stop is formed by a first raised member that is raised above the bottom box portion and a second raised member that is raised above the bottom box portion, and wherein the grille stop receives and seats therein between the first raised member and the second raised member an unattached edge of the flexible flood flap when the flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position. 
     
     
         25 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 2 , the vent box further comprising a grille stop near the front end of the vent box portion, wherein the grille stop is formed by a first raised member that is raised above the bottom box portion and a second raised member that is raised above the bottom box portion, and wherein the grille stop receives and seats therein between the first raised member and the second raised member an unattached edge of the flexible flood flap when the flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position. 
     
     
         26 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 1 , the vent box further comprising a grille stop near the front end of the vent box portion, wherein the grille stop is formed by a first plurality of spaced apart raised members that are raised above the bottom box portion and a second plurality of spaced apart raised members that are raised above the bottom box portion, and wherein the grille stop receives and seats therein between the first plurality of spaced apart raised members and the second plurality of spaced apart raised member an unattached edge of the flexible flood flap when the flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position. 
     
     
         27 . The vent for sealing a building crawlspace according to  claim 2 , the vent box further comprising a grille stop in the rear end of the vent box portion, wherein the grille stop is formed by a first plurality of spaced apart raised members that are raised above the bottom box portion and a second plurality of spaced apart raised members that are raised above the bottom box portion, and wherein the grille stop receives and seats therein between the first plurality of spaced apart raised members and the second plurality of spaced apart raised member an unattached edge of the flexible flood flap when the flexible flood flap is in the at rest, home position.