Indoor Climate Control Expert, John Rocheleau is the sole inventor of all beekeeping equipment on the website: https://beefortressusa.newhampshireconnections.com, including the Stainless-Steel and Hardwood Fortress Beehive and The Varroa Destructor Mite-Killing System.
John’s Background
John began his 43-year career in all-things-HVAC (Heating, Ventilating, Air Conditioning). That acronym is not comprehensive, since there are other elements of Indoor Climate Control that include:
- Humidity Control
- Refrigeration
- Air Cleaning
- Combustion Gas Venting
- Fuel Systems Storage & Delivery
- Other
John has been involved with all of these aspects of Indoor Climate Control (ICC), in design, installation and service/maintenance. While John does a comprehensive set of ICC systems work, and specializes on consulting, design and installation of upscale systems for high net worth building owners, he also serves as a legal consultant and Expert Witness up to the Superior Court level, and is an avid creative problem-solver and inventor of numerous hand tool, heating system components design and business systems designs. John is also a consultant to building owners and to independent inventors and a former president of New Hampshire Inventors Association that met at, then, the top Intellectual Law School in the world, Franklin Pierce Law Center, in Concord, New Hampshire.
John became a beekeeper in 2017 when his friend offered to pay for everything that he would need to keep honey bees, and he accepted. The same year, John’s first and only colony froze to death when it was -15-degrees F. Being a Heating systems expert, John solved this problem with his second prototype of a radiant-heated shelter for a single beehive, and it proved amazingly effective at keeping the bees warm and boosting brood by raising the temperature in March to incite the queen to lay eggs.
Since then, John has invested nearly $250,000 dollars on beekeeping equipment designs, culminating in the most recent deign, the Fortress Beehive and The Varroa Destructor Mite-Killing System that kills the majority of mites in a colony without a single chemical.
For the rest of John’s story, see his websites https://beefortressusa.newhampshireconnections.com https://www.protechhvac.com https://www.maverickinventor.com and https://www.rite-forms.com. His Curriculum Vitae is below.
HVACR – Indoor Climate Control
(1980 – 2023)
Oil, Gas, A/C and Refrigeration Service and Installation Technician • HVAC Contractor
HVAC Systems Designer, Estimator, Sales Engineer • Business Development • Marketing
Sales Management • Office Management • Service Management • Project Management • Training
Creative Problem-Solver • Inventor • Tradeshows • Legal Consultant & Expert Witness • HVAC Consultant Advanced Microsoft Office • HVAC Loads Software
HVAC CONTRACTOR & CONSULTANT
Design, Installation, Service, Legal Consultant/Expert Witness
Protech HVAC, LLC – Portsmouth, NH 2004 – Present
Best Heating Corp. – Concord, NH 1988 – 2002
From 1980 to present day, installed, serviced, repaired, and maintained residential & commercial gas and oil-fired heating, air conditioning and ventilation systems and commercial refrigeration in restaurants and convenience stores. System types include: DX A/C, Coolers and Freezers, GHA, GHW, FHA, FHW, atmospheric & low-pressure steam, fuel/gas tanks piping and lines, ducted and ductless A/C and packaged pad-mount and rooftop gas-heat/electric cooling, residential and commercial ERV/HRV ventilation and humidity control systems, whole-house air exchange, kitchen hoods/ducts, up/down-blast fans, bath exhaust, chimney liners, direct & power-vented oil and gas heating systems; plumbed whole waste and vent systems in residential and commercial buildings and installed and serviced dug/artesian wells & pump systems. Designed and installed Central-Air/Hydro-Air, Radiant Floor, Hot Air and Hot Water Unit Heaters, panel and cast-iron radiators and baseboard systems. Calculated heating/cooling loads. Performed estimates for all original designs and completed sales, project management and completion of systems construction.
Administrative duties include service management, supervision & training, project management, office management; Bus. Dev./Ops.; customer service & communications; public presentations; filing & book-keeping; A/P & A/R, collections in Small Claims & District Courts; legal consultant to attorneys and expert witness in Superior Courts; consultant and expert to building owner Plaintiffs in District Court.
HVAC PROFESSIONAL EMPLOYMENT
Sales Engineer –
Thayer Corporation – Pembroke, NH 2008 – 2009 (branch closed due to recession)
Dowling Corporation – Portsmouth, NH 2002 – 2003 (company sold and downsized)
Evaluated residential and commercial building-owner-customers’ HVAC needs, designed, estimated cost, and sold a broad range of Indoor Climate Control systems; composed proposals, cover letters, change orders and presented same; developed new business via cold-calling and follow-up on prospects, leads and existing customer requests; supervised and trained technicians.
Service/Installation Technician & Fuel Delivery –
Bill Trombly Plumbing & Heating – Concord, NH 1987 – 1988 (I chose self-employment after 8 mos.)
Ferns Energy Centers – Concord, NH 1984 – 1987 (I left to go to NHTI full-time)
Tenney Fuels, Inc. – Concord, NH 1980 – 1984 (my first HVAC job)
…continued
Serviced & installed residential & commercial oil-fired heating systems. System Types included: GHA, GHW, FHA, FHW, atmospheric & low-pressure steam, coal-to-oil conversions, G.E.-compressor, Timken/Torrid Heat-rotary and earliest gun-type and ‘new’ Carlin and Beckett burners; fuel/gas tanks piping and lines. Performed routine maintenance and emergency service/repair; installed/repaired gas station tanks, pumps, fuel lines and installed signage. Heavy Commercial-licensed fuel oil delivery driver; straight-truck, dump-body and performed basic heavy truck maintenance. For Trombley I assisted with numerous plumbing installation and repair jobs and as solo made emergency repair to residential plumbing pipes and fixtures of typical types.
NON-HVAC DIVERSIONS
Transformer Service Inc. – Concord, NH 1987 (8 months of non-stop travel)
Repaired industrial electrical transformers in Natural Gas and Coal-fired power plants, sub and switching stations, industrial processing facilities, military bases and various manufacturing plants from Tampa, Florida to Lake Ontario. Decontaminated PCB dielectric platform and pole-mounted transformers and oil switches up and down the U.S. seaboard.
Tennis Courts of New Hampshire – Tilton, NH 1984 (4-month summer job before school at NHTI)
Laborer in construction and maintenance of red clay, Har-Tru and Omni tennis courts.
I was the number one new employee for Pike Industry-owned division, Tennis Courts of New Hampshire, and was awarded the position of maintenance technician of the red clay tennis courts at the International Volvo Tennis Tournament, in North Conway, NH: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qRzOSmhx3m0.
HVAC-RELATED PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
HVAC PRODUCTS CREATOR
Independent Inventor – New Hampshire – 1990 – 2023
BUSINESS SYSTEMS DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT – 1990 – 2021
Designed a Lotus 123 spreadsheet for job estimating calculations, then, perfected it in Excel for use over the next 33 years. Had 3 times as many job-estimates as the six other sales engineers at Thayer Corp, with my Microsoft-based system. From this, I created Quote-Rite Job Estimating & Costing System and Bill-Rite Job Billing System in digital and paper form to present all associated job costs, honestly, transparently, convincingly. These Systems have won over more customers and generated higher confidence in my HVACR business.
Hand Tools & Circulator Flanges and Valves – 1996 – 1999
Created/developed/produced/sold/licensed hand tool designs, and numerous circulator flange and valve designs; filed 17 patent applications/awarded 9 patents, developed 100s of prototypes; interviewed on numerous radio shows; speaker at educational institutions from elementary schools to MIT; judge at inventor competitions; President of New Hampshire Inventors Association & Chairperson & Board Member of New Hampshire High Technology Council.
Circulator Flanges, fittings, Valve handles, Document Holders – 2010 – 2021
Created/developed/produced my own product line for my HVAC business as a competitive edge and for upscale HVAC systems for high net-worth building owners; patented Omni-Flange 2-piece circulator flange.
BEEKEEPING EQUIPMENT INVENTOR – 2018 – 2023
As a hands-on keeper of Honey Bees, discovered the flaws in the Langstroth beehive, circa 1852, and created/evolved the Bee Fortress Bee Hive that solves virtually all the flaws that can kill honey bees. Obtained investment capital and equity investors to design and develop $250K+ of prototypes of Indoor Climate-Controlled bee hives and hive shelters. Worked on numerous patent drafts for dozens of designs. Arranged domestic manufacturing. Led drafting, foundry, plating, metal fabrication and numerous other vendors to achieve professional grade prototypes. Worked with attorneys, accountant and Angel Investor. Inventor of the World’s Most Advanced Beehive – the Fortress Beehive: bear-proof, thief-proof, weather-proof, heated and killer of varroa destructor mites.
EDUCATION
- 400 hr. Oil Burner Technology Certificate, NHVTC – Manchester, NH – 1980
- Night Classes and Four Semesters of General Studies, NHTI, Concord, NH – 1982-1989
- Design Graphics I & II/Manual Drafting; Auto CAD R14 I & II (A) – NHTI, Concord, NH – 2000
- Associate in Science – Business Administration with Specialization in Management
with High Honors (3.92 GPA) – NHTI, Concord, NH – 2001 - Technical Mathematics (A-) – NHTI, Concord, NH – 2001
- NH Bar Continuing Legal Education (CLE) Seminars “Construction Law 1”, “Construction Law 2” and “Attacking the Expert’s Opinion” – 2011
- Teacher/Training Certificate – NHTI, Concord, NH – 2012
- Continuing New Hampshire Gas Fitter’s License Renewal Classes
- Geothermal Design & Installation Training – WEDI – 2008
- Biomass Boiler Training – Viessman – 2008
- Solar Domestic Hot Water and Heating Seminars and Training – 2006
COMPUTER EXPERIENCE
Formal Training at NHTI: Microsoft DOS & Windows; Visual Basic for Applications; Excel (advanced)/Word/PowerPoint/Publisher; AutoCAD R14; Wrightsoft; Uponor/Wirsbo; Watts Radiant; Elite RHVAC; Internet and Social-Media; WordPress site design; PC installation/troubleshooting/maintenance.
INDUSTRY LICENSES & CERTIFICATIONS
- State of NH, Gas Fitter’s License # GFE0803219 – STN / STP
- State of Maine Master Oil Burner Technician License – 2001
- Certified Trac-Pipe Gas Piping System Installer – 2010
- Certified Wardflex Gas Piping System Installer – 2004
- EPA, CFC Refrigerant Handling, Technician Type II – 1995
AFFILIATIONS
- American Society of Heating Refrigerating Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Former Associate
- National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Former Member
- International Code Council (ICC) Former Member
- Plumbing Fuel Gas Fitters and HVAC Association of NH (PFGFHVAC) Former Member
OTHER
- President – New Hampshire Inventors Association (NHIA) – Concord, NH – 2000–2001
- Board Member/Chair – Independent Inventor Committee – New Hampshire High Technology Council (NHHTC) – Manchester, NH – 2001
- Federal Aviation Administration Air Traffic Controller Exam-Passing Grade of 89 – 1989
- Private Pilot License, VFR, SEL – Ferns Flying Service, Concord. NH – 1988
- New Hampshire Boating License – 2020
- Amateur Mycology – wild mushroom identification, analysis and consumption since 1977
- Guitar, 5-string Banjo, Harmonica – student, hobbyist and occasional performer- solo and with ensembles, since 1981
Letters of Recommendation
Joshua Greenspan MD
American Pain Institute
14 Manchester Square, Suite 290
Portsmouth, NH 03801 / americanpain.org
10-8-2020:
To whom it may concern,
I am writing a letter of recommendation on behalf of John Rocheleau. I’ve known John for about two years, he revised the HVAC system for my home and subsequently for my office.
I’ve dealt with a number of people in construction including Architects, HVAC, Painters, Electricians and other members of industry. I have found that nearly all of them failed to perform up to the standards that they claimed they were capable of. John has been the lone exception to this.
As a Physician, I have spent many years in Academia. I think of John Rocheleau as a Professor of HVAC at an Ivy League University. Whenever I speak with him, he provides an in-depth lecture about various topics in the field of HVAC. I appreciate how he can dissect other people’s work and point out the mistakes they made and the reasoning behind their mistakes. I understand that John has designed and holds patents for many of the valves and other vital connections used in HVAC. To me this is extremely impressive not only because he was able to achieve this but also because he felt the motivation to do this. Simply put: John is brilliant and brings his work to an extraordinarily high standard.
I believe most people have no idea about HVAC systems. Whenever my wife and I look at houses and ask the Real Estate agents about the home’s HVAC system, we always get the same blank stare followed by, “I can look into that for you.” Being able to control your environment at home or at work is crucial; not only for personal comfort, but also for productivity. Thanks to John, our home is far more live-able and our office is far more productive.
I recommend John Rocheleau to your attention without reserve, without constraint, and with my complete enthusiasm.
Sincerely,
Joshua Greenspan MD
