AU2009202636B2

AU2009202636B2 - A debris screen and a device including a debris screen for removing solid debris from a water stream

Info

Publication number: AU2009202636B2
Application number: AU2009202636A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Brian Eyley; Andrew Hobbs
Original assignee: Plastec Australia Pty Ltd
Current assignee: Plastec Australia Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2008-06-30
Filing date: 2009-06-30
Publication date: 2013-09-19
Anticipated expiration: 2029-06-30
Also published as: AU2009202636A1; NZ578073A

Abstract

A device 1 for screening solid matter from a water stream being directed into a tank is 5 disclosed. The device 1 includes a screen 41 mounted on a housing 3 for screening debris out of water that is directed into the housing 3 through a water inlet. The screen 41 also includes two mounting elements in the form of laterally outward projecting stub arms 53, 55 for mounting on complementary mounting supports 57, 59 on end walls 7, 9 of the housing 3. The stub arms 53, 55 permit the screen 41 to be manually raised 10 out of the operative position by a user by either lifting or pivoting the screen 41 out of the operative position. The screen 41 may curve convexly down from its rear edge to its front edge with a radius of curvature of 0.5 to 1.0m. The curve on the screen 41 assists with the removal of debris from the surface of the screen. 15 FIG 1 FOR PUBLICATION

Description

1 A DEBRIS SCREEN AND A DEVICE INCLUDING A DEBRIS SCREEN FOR REMOVING SOLID DEBRIS FROM A WATER STREAM FIELD OF THE INVENTION 5 This invention relates to a debris screen for a device that is used to separate debris from a water stream. It also extends to the device for separating debris from a water stream including a debris screen, and to a plumbing installation a d a building including the device. 10 This invention relates particularly, but not exclusively, to a device for separating out debris from a water stream for mounting on a domestic building structure and directing rain water received from the roof into a rain water collector that is a storage tank. It will therefore be convenient to hereinafter describe the invention with reference to this 15 example application. However it is to be clearly understood that the invention is capable of broader application. BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION 20 A consequence of water scarcity and reduced annual rain fall figures is a greater imperative and need to collect rain water for water use. It has become a common practice to collect rain water from a roof of a domestic dwelling and to direct this rain water into a rain water storage tank associated with the dwelling. Typically such tanks are mounted on the ground adjacent to a perimeter wall of the dwelling. 25 In order to achieve this, rain water falling on the roof of a house is collected in a gutter extending around the perimeter of the house. Vertically extending down pipes are located at spaced intervals along the gutter for draining the rain water out of the gutter. Water that is collected in the gutter is allowed to drain into the down pipes and from 30 there into a water collection tank. Typically the water collection tank is mounted on the ground adjacent to a perimeter wall of such a house.

2 One difficulty associated with the collection of rain water from a roof is that debris and waste deposits on a roof due to its exposure to the environment. When it rains this debris runs down the roof and Into the gutters together with the rain water. 5 If this debris and waste is not screened out of the water flowing off the roof it will end up in the water storage tank. Naturally this will detract from the quality of the water stored in the tank. It might also obstruct water flow passages and cause blockages in pipes and the like. 10 Clearly therefore it would be advantageous if this debris and/or waste was screened out of the water that is collected before it is passed into the water tank. SUMMARY 15 According to a first aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a device for screening solid debris out of a water stream that is being directed into a water collector, the device including: a housing defining an inlet through which water can enter the housing and an outlet through which water can exit the housing, and a flow path extending from the inlet to 20 the outlet; a debris screen for screening debris out of water that is directed into the housing through the water inlet, wherein the debris screen is curved and has an upper convex face and a lower concave face; and a screen mounting arrangement which mounts the debris screen on the housing 25 adjacent to the Inlet in an operative screen position extending across the flow path; and wherein the housing comprises a front wall portion configured to provide a spout, spaced apart from the outlet, to allow overflow of water from within the housing when the level of water in the housing reaches a predetermined height above 0 bottom of the outlet. 30 The spout may be formed by a portion of the front wall, over which water can flow when the level of water in the housing reaches the predetermined height above the bottom of the outlet.

3 The spout may be formed by a lowermost portion of an upper edge of the front wall. The lowermost portion of the upper edge of the front wall portion may be provided on a 5 substantially central portion of the front wall and may be provided more forwardly than less central parts of the front wall upper edge. The screen mounting arrangement also permits the screen to be displaced out of its operative position to provide access to the flow path within the housing. 10 The debris screen may have a rear edge and a front edge and may curve down from the rear edge to a front edge, e.g. with a substantially constant radius of curvature, such as a radius of curvature of 0.5m to 1.0m. 15 The debris screen may comprise a grid of longitudinal members and transverse members that define a plurality of screen openings. The longitudinal members have a height and the longitudinal members may extend vertically down in the direction of their height when the debris screen is in the operative 20 position whereby to ease the passage of water through the screen openings. The longitudinal members and transverse members may define substantially rectangular screen openings having a length of 10 to 25 mm. The debris screen may include a perimeter frame surrounding the grid, and the grid 25 and the perimeter frame may be integrally formed. The housing may be integrally formed of a polymeric material by means of. injection moulding. The debris screen may be integrally formed of a metallic material, e.g. a material that is stainless steel. 30 The housing may include two mounting supports, and the debris screen may include two stub arms that project laterally away from the sides thereof. The mounting 4 arrangement may comprise a rotatable mounting of the two stub arms on the two mounting supports. Each mounting support may comprise a mounting recess which is configured to 5 receive the stub arms therein while permitting rotation of the stub arms to displace the screen out of the operative position and back into the operative position. Further each mounting recess may open in an upward direction to permit the debris screen to be removed from the housing by lifting the stub arms out of the mounting recesses with a simple lifting action. 10 The mounting recesses may comprise substantially semi-circular cut-outs in the upper edges of the two side wall portions. Each stub arm may have a stop formation at each end thereof for retaining the debris screen in position on the housing. 15 The housing may have a front wall portion, a rear wall portion and two side wall portions, and each of the front wall portion, the rear wall portion and the two side wall portions may have an upper edge. The upper edge of the rear wall portion and the two side wall portions may project up above the front wall portion and the upper edge of the front wall portion may be configured to form the spout over which water can 20 overflow. The debris screen may further include a handle formation for assisting a user to move the debris screen into and out of the operative position. Further the debris screen and the housing may include complementary catch formations for releasably fixing the 25 screen to the housing when the debris screen is in the operative position. The device may include a further screen extending across the flow path downstream of the debris screen for screening out further debris from the water stream passing through the outlet and for resisting the passage of insects through the outlet. The 30 further screen may include a mesh having mesh openings having a size of 0.7mm to 1.0mm for screening out fine debris.

5 According to a second aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a debris screen for a device for screening solid debris out of a water stream that is being directed into a water collector, including a housing defiriing an inlet through which water can enter the housing, an outlet through which water can exit the housing, and a 5 flow path extending from the inlet to the outlet; the debris screen including: a screen member mountable on the housing extend across the flow path for screening debris out of water that is directed into the housing through the water inlet, wherein the debris screen is curved, has an upper convex face and a lower concave face, and has a shaped front edge adapted to conform to the front portion of the 10 device inlet, wherein when the debris screen is in an operative screen position on the device a central portion of the shaped front edge projects forwardly and downwardly further than less central parts of the curved front edge. The debris screen may have a rear edge and may curve down from the rear edge to the front edge with a substantially constant radius of curvature. The debris screen may 15 include any one or more of the features of the debris screen defined in relation to the device of the first aspect above. According to a third aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a plumbing installation including: 20 a device for screening solid debris out of a water stream in accordance with the first aspect; and a drain pipe operatively coupled to the outlet and extending away therefrom; wherein the installation is provided below a gutter of a building and is positioned to receive a water stream from said gutter. 25 The installation may include any one or more of the features of the device defined in the first aspect above. According to a fourth aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a building 30 including: a vertically extending external wall mounted on a support; 6 a roof mounted on the external wall having a gutter for collecting rain water running off the roof; and a plumbing installation in accordance with the third aspect. 5 The building may include any one or more of the features of the device defined in the first aspect above. According to another aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a debris screen for mounting on a housing for screening solid matter from a water stream that is being 10 directed into a water collector, the screen including: a screen member mounted on the housing for screening debris out of water that is directed into the housing through the water inlet; and at least one mounting element on the screen member for removably mounting the debris screen on the housing In an operative position, wherein the screen member and the mounting elements are integrally formed. 15 The debris screen may include two major surfaces and two opposed side edges with front and rear edges extending between the opposed side edges. The debris screen may also have a mounting element on each side edge of the debris screen for co operating with complementary mounting supports on the housing, e.g. end portions of 20 a side wall of the housing. This facilitates mounting the debris screen in the operative position on the housing. The mounting elements may comprise stub arms that project out away from each side edge of the debris screen. The stub arms may be rounded to enable them to pivot on 25 the complementary mounting supports on the housing. Each stub arm may have an enlarged end for assisting in retaining the insect screen in the operative position on the mounting supports by resisting the arms from being laterally pulled off the mounting supports. 30 The debris screen may curve convexly down from its rear edge to its front edge and the curvature of the screen may have a radius of 0.5m to 1.0m. The screen may have a length of 25 to 45cm such that the curvature of the screen is noticeable when the screen is viewed end on.

7 The debris screen may comprise a perimeter frame surrounding a grid. The grid may comprise a plurality of longitudinal and transverse members that define a plurality of screen openings. 5 The transverse members have a height or depth that extends in a direction away from the major surfaces of the screen. The transverse members may be formed such that they extend vertically downwardly in the direction of their height when the debris screen is in the operative position. This provides transverse members that have unobstructed screen openings when in the operative position to assist the passage or 10 fall of water there through. This is achieved because the transverse members extend vertically downward in the direction of depth. Each screen opening may have a substantially rectangular configuration with a length of 10 to 25 mm. In some forms each screen opening may have a length of 15mm to 15 20mm. The debris screen may include a handle formation for assisting a user to move the screen out of the operative position, and also for assisting a user to return it to its operative position. Further the debris screen may have snap fitting formations for 20 engaging complementary snap fitting formations on the housing to hold the screen in the operative position. The frame and the grid may be formed of metallic material, e.g. stainless steel. In particular the frame and the grid may be Integrally formed of metallic material. 25 Instead the perimeter frame and the grid may be integrally formed of a plastics material by means of a single Injection moulding operation. The mounting elements, including the enlarged ends, the handle, and the snap fitting formations may also be integrally formed by the injection moulding operation that forms the perimeter frame 30 and the grid. Thus the entire debris screen can be integrally formed, and no assembly of a mesh material onto a support frame or a perimeter frame is required. Further a curved debris screen having working advantages over a planar extending screen can be 8 produced in a moulding operation having no additional complexity over a planar screen. According to another aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a device for 5 screening solid matter from water that is directed into a water collector, the device including: a housing enclosing a chamber, the housing defining a water inlet through which water can enter the chamber and a water outlet through which water is 10 discharged from the chamber; a debris screen mounted on the housing for screening debris out of water that is directed into the housing through the water inlet; and 15 a mounting arrangement for mounting the debris screen on the housing in an operative position and which also permits the debris screen to be displaced out of its operative position by means of a single movement by a user. The mounting arrangement may comprise two mounting elements on the debris 20 screen. The mounting arrangement may also include complementary mounting supports on the housing that co-operate with the mounting elements to mount the debris screen on the housing. 25 The screen may be moved out of the operative position by means of a single movement which comprises lifting the mounting elements off the mounting support, e.g. with a single lifting action. The screen may be placed back In the operative position by an action of placing the mounting elements on their mounting supports, e.g. 30 with a single placing action. Thus the mounting supports may provide vertical support to the mounting elements and the screen, while permitting the screen to be lifted off the housing to provide access to the interior of the housing.

9 The screen may be moved out of the operative position by means of a single movement comprising rotating or pivoting the mounting elements on the mounting supports, e.g. by means of a single pivoting or rotating action, whereby to pivot the 5 screen up from the housing, and by pivoting the screen down to return the screen to the operative position, e.g. by means of a single pivoting action. In particular the mounting arrangement may permit the screen to be moved out of the operative position by either lifting the mounting elements off the mounting support or 10 pivoting the mounting elements on the mounting support, e.g. so that a user can select from a lifting or a pivoting action depending on what is most suitable or convenient at that time. The debris screen may have front and rear edges and two side edges extending 15 between the front and rear edges. The mounting elements may comprise stub arms on the side edges of the debris screen that project laterally away from the side edges of the debris screen. 20 The housing may comprise a bottom wall and a side wall extending up from the bottom wall portion. The side wall may include two major wall portions and two end wall portions joining the associated ends of the major wall portions. One major wall portion may form a rear wall portion which can be positioned adjacent to an external support on which the device is mounted in use and the other major wall portion may be a front 25 wall portion that faces away from a structure to which the housing in mounted. Each complementary mounting supports may include a semi-circular recess defined in the upper edge of the end wall portion within which the stub arm is received. Each recess may be sized to be broadly complementary to the stub arm so as to permit the 30 stub arm to rotate or pivot within the recess. Further the recess may open in an upward direction to permit the stub arm to be lifted out of the recess by a simple lifting movement to move the debris screen out of the operative position.

10 The water inlet of the housing may be defined by an upper edge of the side wall, e.g. the free upper edges of the front and rear wall portions and the end wall portions. The debris screen may extend across the water inlet. 5 The debris screen may curve convexly down from its rear edge to its front edge, e.g. with a radius of curvature of 0.5m to 1.0m. The screen may have a length from front to rear edge of about 25-45cm. In this form the debris screen may have a small slope adjacent the rear edge and the slope increases progressively to the front edge of the debris screen. The steep slope assists debris to slide off the screen and thereby to 10 assist with removal of debris from the screen. The debris screen may project forwardly over the front wall portion of the housing when it is in the operative position, e.g. a leading front edge of the screen may project out proud of the front wall portion of the housing and will be positioned above the front 15 wall portion. This assists in causing debris on the screen to fall off the front edge of the screen clear of the housing, Instead the leading front edge of the screen may terminate short of the front wall portion. Further the front wall portion may project up above the leading front edge of 20 the screen. The debris screen may include a handle formation for assisting a user to pivot the screen or to lift the screen up off the housing. The debris screen may also include a snap fitting formation, for engaging a complementary snap fitting formation on the 25 housing with a snap fitting engagement, to releasably retain the debris screen in the operative position. The end wall portions of the housing may project upwardly above the debris screen, and the debris screen may be arranged to be received within the upward extending 30 end wall portions of the housing, e.g. with a working clearance to provide a neat aesthetic appearance. The rear wall portion of the housing may project above the debris screen and the screen may be sized to be received within the upward extending rear wall portion, The 11 rear wall portion may have an upper section projecting above the debris screen for mounting the housing to an adjacent structure. The front wall portion of the housing may be belly shaped and may curv$ forwardly in a 5 direction inwardly from each end wall portion. The front wall portion may define an operatively upper edge that forms an overflow weir over which water can discharge from the chamber when the level of water within the chamber rises above a certain level. In particular the upper edge of the front wall portion may be shaped like a spout that is positioned substantially centrally on the front wall portion. The lowermost point 10 of the weir overflow may be spaced 15-50mm above the lowermost point of the water outlet, e.g. 20-40mm. The front edge of the debris screen may be complementary to the upper edge of the front wall portion of the housing so that when the debris screen is in its operative 15 position it extends across the open top of the housing whereby to close off the water inlet. In one form the debris screen may be positioned above the upper edge of the front wall portion and in this form the front well portion does not act as a barrier to solid matter and water flowing off the front edge of the debris screen. In another form the debris screen may be received behind the front wall portion, e.g. towards the upper 20 edge thereof. In this other form the front wall portion can act as a barrier to water running down the debris screen and thereby assist in directing it through the screen openings. The bottom wall may be curved. In particular the bottom wall may be dish shaped 25 whereby to define a lowest point and the water outlet may be positioned to drain water from the lowest point on the bottom wall. The water outlet may be defined in the side wall and may face out perpendicularly to the bottom wall. In particular the water outlet may be defined in the rear wall portion of 30 the side wall and may face in a rearward direction, instead the water outlet may be defined in the bottom wall and may face downwardly away from the housing. The housing may include an outlet pipe section, e.g. a short or stub outlet pipe section, forming the water outlet. The outlet pipe section may extend away from the housing 12 downstream from the outlet such that water discharging though the outlet passes through the outlet pipe section. The water outlet and associated outlet pipe section may have a substantially circular 5 cross sectional area for coupling to a circular pipe, Instead the water outlet and associated outlet pipe section may have a substantially rectangular cross-sectional area for coupling to a rectangular pipe. The device may include a further screen for resisting the passage of matter that is not 10 screened out by the debris screen from passing through the water outlet and then into a collection tank. The further screen may be mounted on the housing upstream of the outlet. For example the further screen may extend across a cross sectional flow path defined 15 within the chamber and may be positioned proximate to the water outlet. In particular the further screen may be substantially planar and may be supported in a substantially horizontally extending orientation in use. The further screen may act as a barrier to flying insects to resist them from passing 20 through the outlet and may optionally be described as an insect screen. In addition to blocking flying Insects the further screen may also screen out some fine solid matter that passes through the debris screen. This matter may Include fine debris such as sand, small stones and general dirt. 25 The further screen may comprise a perimeter frame and a mesh. The perimeter frame may be sized to be received within the side wall of the housing when it is mounted in its operative position within the housing with some clearance. This enables it to be capable of being removed from the housing through the water inlet, anq also of being reinserted into the housing through the water inlet. 30 The mesh may include a stainless steel mesh having mesh openings and the mesh openings may be sized to resist the passage of flying insects such as mosquitoes and midges there though. The mesh openings may have a size of 0.7mm to 1.0mm, e.g. 0.85mm to 0.95mm, about 0.9mm.

13 The housing may include a further screen support for vertically supporting the further screen in position within the housing. The further screen support may comprise one or more shoulders projecting in from an inside surface of the side wall of the housing that 5 provides vertical support whilst permitting the further screen to be lifted off the support. The further screen may also have a handle formation for assisting a user to hold it' when removing and reinserting the further screen. In some forms the further screen may include a substantially planar portion and also a 10 shaped flow diverting portion to block off water flow from flowing directly to the water outlet without passing through the further screen, e.g. when the outlet is defined in the rear wall portion. The flow diverting portion may be a curved mound like formation that projects up from the otherwise planar screen and extends to the wall of the housing around the upper half of the water outlet thereby to block it off. 15 The housing can conveniently be integrally formed by a moulding operation together with the complementary mounting supports, and the complementary snap fitting formations, e.g. from plastics material in an injection moulding operation. 20 According to another aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a device for screening solid matter from water that is directed into a water collector, the device including: a housing enclosing a chamber, the housing defining a water inlet through 26 which water can enter the chamber and a water outlet through which water is discharged from the chamber; and a debris screen having two major surfaces mounted on the housing for screening debris out of water that is directed into the housing through he water inlet, 30 wherein at least one major surface of the screen is curved. The device may include a mounting arrangement for mounting the debris screen on the housing.

14 The debris screen may have an operatively upper surface and an operatively lower surface, and front and rear edges with two side edges, extending between the front and rear edges. 5 The operatively upper major surface may have a convex curve, e.g. with a radius of curvature of 0.5m to 1.0m, and the operatively lower major surface may have a concave surface that is complementary to the convex upper surface. The debris screen may have any one or more of the features of the debris screen 10 defined in the first aspect above. According to another aspect of the present disclosure there is provided a device for screening solid matter from water that is directed into a water collector, the device including: 15 a housing enclosing a chamber, the housing defining a water inlet through which water can enter the chamber and a water outlet through which water is discharged from the chamber, wherein the housing is integrally formed in a moulding operation; and 20 a debris screen mounted on the housing for screening debris out of water that is directed into the housing through the water inlet, wherein the debris screen is Integrally formed of a plastics or a metallic material. 25 The device may include a screen mounting arrangement for mounting the debris screen on the housing. The screen mounting arrangement may include stub arms on the debris screen for mounting the screen on the housing, and the stub arms may be formed integrally with the debris screen in the injection moulding operation. The mounting arrangement my also include complementary mounting supports that are 30 Integrally moulded with the housing. In particular the debris screen may be integrally formed of stainless steel. The debris screen may also include an integrally formed handle formation and an integrally formed snap fitting formation.

15 The housing may include any one or more of the features of the housing defined in relation to other aspects and such features may also be integrally formed in the moulding operation. Similarly the debris screen may include any one or more of the 5 features of the debris screen defined in relation to other aspects and such features may also be integrally formed in the moulding operation. The present disclosure extends to a kit including a housing enclosing a chamber, the housing defining a water inlet through which water can enter the chamber and a water 10 outlet through which water is discharged from the chamber, and a debris screen mounted on the housing for screening debris out of water that is directed into the housing through the water Inlet. The kit may include a mounting arrangement for mounting the debris screen on the 15 housing. The kit may further include a dropper for mounting on an external support above the housing and for directing water issuing from the dropper onto the debris screen. The housing, the debris screen and the mounting arrangement may include any one or 20 more of the features described above in the preceding aspects. The kit may include a further screen and the further screen may include any one or more of the features described above in the preceding aspects. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 25 A device and a debris screen for removing solid matter from water that is directed into a water collector in accordance with the invention may manifest itself in a variety of forms. It will be convenient to hereinafter describe in detail several embodiments of the invention with reference to accompanying drawings. The purpose of providing this 30 detailed description is to instruct persons having an interest in the subject matter of the invention how to carry the invention into practical effect. However it is to be clearly understood that the specific nature of this detailed description does not supersede the generality of the preceding broad description. In the accompanying diagrammatic drawings: 16 Fig I is a front upper three dimensional view of a device in accordance with a first embodiment of the invention for screening debris out of rain water before it is directed into a water tank; 5 Fig 2 is a rear upper three dimensional view of the device shown in Fig 1; Fig 3 is a top plan view of the device shown in Fig 1; 10 Fig 4 is a front view of the device shown in Fig 1; Fig 5 is a side view of the device shown in Fig 1; Fig 6 is a front upper three dimensional view of a housing for the device in Fig 1 with 15 the debris screen and insect screen omitted for clarity to show details of the inside of the housing; Fig 6A is a rear three dimensional view of a housing that is a variation on the housing shown in Fig 6 having a square outlet pipe section; 20 Fig 6B is an end view of the housing of Fig 6A; Fig 7 is an upper three dimensional view of the debris screen for the device of Fig 1; 25 Fig 7A is a sectional view of part of the screen of Fig 7, section through ViI-ViI; Fig 8 is an upper three dimensional view of the device of Fig 1 showing a further screen received within the chamber of the device of Fig 1; 30 Fig 9 is a three dimensional view of the further screen of Fig 8 shown separately from the housing; 17 Fig 10 is a schematic side view showing the device of Fig 1 in use mounted on a fascia of a house and connected to a gutter for draining water into a rain water collection tank; 5 Fig 11 is a three dimensional view of a housing for a device in accordance with a second embodiment of the invention; Fig 12 is a three dimensional view of an insect screen for the device and housing 10 shown in Fig 11; and Fig 13 is a schematic three dimensional drawing showing a having some similarities to the device of Fig 11 in use mounted on a house. 15 In Figs 1 to 9 a reference numeral 1 refers generally to a device for screening out debris and insects from water prior to it being directed into a tank. The device 1 comprises broadly a housing 3 having a bottom wall 5 and a side wall (shown generally by 7) extending up from the bottom wall 5 around its circumference. 20 The walls together generally define a flow path or flow passage 6 including a water chamber extending between an inlet 19 and an outlet 15. The side wall 7 comprises two end wall portions 9, 11, and a rear wall portion 13, and a front wall portion 14 that extend between the two end wall portions 9, 11. 25 The water outlet 15 is defined in the rear wall portion 13 that faces outwardly away from the rear wall 13 in a direction transverse to the direction in which the bottom wall 5 faces. The housing 3 also includes a short pipe section or a stub pipe section 17 that extends outwardly away from the water outlet 15 for facilitating an operative coupling of the outlet 15 to a downstream conduit. In this embodiment the short pipe 30 section is in the form of a circular pipe that is particularly suitable for coupling to a circular pipe. The features of the housing described above are shown most clearly in Figs 2 to 6 of the drawings. The water inlet 19 is formed by an open top of the housing 3 which in turn is formed by the terminal upper ends of the end wall portions 9, 11 and the front and rear wall portions 13, 14.

18 The bottom wall 5 is bowl shaped and has its lowest point in a central position between the end wall portions 9, 11 corresponding to the position of the water outlet 15 as shown in Fig 4. Water within the chamber 6 gravitates to the lowest part of the bowl 5 shaped bottom wall 5 from where it drains through the outlet 15. This arrangement therefore discourages accumulation of water within the chamber 6 for any length of time. The rear wall portion 13 is substantially planar and this enables it to be suitable for 10 mounting against a substantially planar backing surface of the type that is often found on the fascia of a building structure. The rear wall portion 13 has an upper section that extends up to an upper edge that is spaced above the upper edge of the front wall portion 14. It is also spaced a significant distance above the upper edges of the end wall portions 9, 11. The end wall portions 9, 11 are also substantially planar and form 15 box-like square corners with the rear wall portion 13. In the Figure 1 embodiment the water outlet 15 is positioned towards a lower edge of the rear wall portion 13 and has a lower edge or lowest drainage point that is substantially aligned with the adjacent lower edge of the rear wall portion 13 and also 20 the lowest point on the bottom wall 5. The front wall portion 14 is belly shaped and curves outwardly in a direction inward from each end thereof with a convex shape to an outermost point that is broadly midway between the two ends thereof. 25 The front wall portion 14 has a terminal upper edge that defines a weir overflow 21 over which water can flow from the collection chamber 6 if and when it rises above a certain level. The upper edge of the front wall portion 14 tapers or inclines downwardly from each end thereof to a lowermost central region that is broadly centrally 30 positioned. Thus the weir overflow 21 operates like a spout with a relatively narrow lowermost central region 23 and widens progressively in both directions away from the lowermost central weir region 23. The terminal upper edge of the front wall portion 14 is spaced below the upper edge of the rear wall portion 13 so that the housing 3 opens upwardly and also forwardly to some extent.

19 Figs 6A and 6B show a housing 3 that is a variation on that shown in Fig 6. Specifically the difference is that the housing has an outlet pipe section 17 that is in the form of a square pipe section. This square pipe section is particularly suitable for 5 coupling to a square pipe. The short pipe section 17 transitions from an outlet in the rear wall of the housing having a curved lower edge for drainage purposes, to its square pipe configuration for coupling to another square pipe. The short pipe section 17 may typically be about 50 10 mm long. The transition to the square pipe occurs over the first 25mm extending away from the housing. The remaining 20-25mm forms a square pipe spigot or socket for coupling to another square pipe. The device 1 also includes a barrier for resisting the passage of flying insects, in 15 particular mosquitoes, there through. The barrier is in the form of a further screen that is an insect screen 29. The screen 29 is positioned in the chamber 6 in such a way that it extends across a water flow path through the chamber 6 such that any matter passing out of the chamber 6 through the water outlet 15 has to first pass through the insect screen 29. Naturally in addition to barring the entry of insects the insect screen 20 29 also acts to screen out fine solid particles and it can therefore serve two purposes. The further screen 29 which is shown in some detail in Figs 8 and 9 comprises a perimeter frame 33 and a mesh 31. The mesh 31 has apertures sized to resist the passage of flying insects such as mosquitoes there through. The mesh could be 25 stainless steel mesh 31 having apertures of 0.9mm by 0.9mm. The perimeter frame can be made of plastics material. The perimeter frame 33 is configured to generally complement the size and shape inside the housing 3 and is sized to be received in a horizontally extending configuration within the collection chamber 6 of the housing 3 with some clearance. 30 In the Fig 1 embodiment the insect screen comprises a substantially planar portion containing the mesh and also a shaped diverting portion. The shaped diverting portion exists to block off water flow from flowing directly to the water outlet 15 without passing through the further screen 21. This feature is needed in this embodiment because the 20 outlet 15 is defined in the rear wall portion 13. As shown in the drawings the diverting portion is a curved mound like formation that projects up from the otherwise planar screen and extends to the rear wall portion 13 of the housing 3 around the upper half of the water outlet 15 thereby blocking it off. 5 As shown in Fig 18 the housing 3 defines an insect screen support 35 for vertically supporting the insect screen 29 in its operative position within the housing 3. The insect screen support 35 includes an internal shoulder formed integrally with the side wall of the housing 3 on which the insect screen 29 can be rested. The shoulder 35 10 permits the insect screen 29 to be lifted off the shoulder 35 for maintenance, cleaning and the like. The screen support also includes two supporting formations 36 on the rear wall portion 13. As shown in Fig 9 the insect screen 29 also includes a handle formation 37 for 15 assisting a user to handle the screen 29. The perimeter frame 33, the handle formation 37, and the shape diverting portion of the insect screen 29 can conveniently be formed integrally of plastics material in a single injection moulding operation. In addition to the insect screen 29 the device 1 also includes a debris screen 41 for 20 mounting over the water inlet 19 defined by the open top of the housing 3 as shown in Figs 1 to 4. The debris screen 41 is for screening coarse debris such as leaves branches, twigs and stones and chaff out of the water stream entering the chamber 6. The debris screen 41 has a rectilinear rear edge 45 and a curved front edge 51. It also has two rectilinear side edges 47, 49. 25 The debris screen 41 which is shown in some detail in Fig 7 curves down in a forward direction with a constant radius of curvature of 0.5m to 1.00m. The slope on the debris screen 41 is quite steep towards its front edge and this feature assists debris to slough off the screen 41 while water passes through the screen 41 to assist with removal of 30 debris from the screen 41 while it is being used. The curve on the screen 41 also provides a stylish and attractive aesthetic feature. The front edge 51 of the screen is shaped to complement the front wall portion 14 of the housing 3. In particular, the front edge 51 curves down from each end edge 47, 49, 21 to a lowermost point that is centrally positioned. The debris screen 41 projects forwardly over the front wall portion 14 of the housing 3 when it is in the operative position to assist in directing debris that is retained on the screen 41 to fall off the front edge of the screen 41 clear of the housing 3. 5 The debris screen 41 comprises an integrally formed member comprising a perimeter frame and a grid. The grid comprises a plurality of longitudinal members extending between the front and rear edges of the screen 41 and transverse members that extend between the side edges of the screen defining an array of screen apertures. 10 The screen apertures are rectangular with one pair of sides longer than the other and in the illustrated embodiment the longer sides of the rectangle have a length of between 15mm and 20mm. The transverse members have a height or depth that extends in a direction away from 15 the major surfaces of the screen. In this embodiment the transverse members are specifically formed such that they extend vertically downwardly in the direction of their height when the debris screen is in the operative position. The cross section of the screen showing the vertically extending streamlined transverse formations is shown in Fig 7A. This ensures that the transverse members do not obstruct the screen openings 20 when the screen is in the operative position to assist the passage of water there through. This is achieved because the transverse members extend vertically downward in the direction of depth. The debris screen 41 is pivotally mounted to the housing 3 such that it can be pivoted 25 between a raised open position and a lowered operative position where it extends across the water inlet to the housing 3. It can also be lifted off the housing with a simple lifting action. The debris screen 41 has stub arms 53, 55 at each end thereof and towards the rear 30 thereof for pivotally mounting the screen 41 on the housing 3. The stub arms 53, 55 have enlarged heads at the ends thereof to avoid the screen 41 from being slid sideways off the housing 3 so that it cannot be detached other than by lifting it in an upward direction.

22 The housing 3 further includes complementary mounting supports that are pivot mounts 57, 59 on each end wall 9, 11 of the housing 3 for supporting the stub arms 53, 55 on the screen 41. The pivot mounts 57, 59 each include semi-circular recesses defined in the terminal upper edges of the end wall portions 9, 11 within which the stub 5 arms 53, 55 are pivotally received. The recesses 57, 59 open in an upward direction and this enables them to support the debris screen 41 while also enabling the debris screen 41 to be lifted off the pivotal mounts 57, 59 and be detached from the housing 3 by a simple lifting action. A user 10 can obtain access to the insect screen 29 in the chamber 6 by lifting or pivoting the debris screen upwardly. By designing the debris screen 29 so that it can be pivoted on the housing 3 and also be lifted off the housing 3, the screen 29 can be used in many applications. 15 The debris screen 41 has a handle formation 61 positioned on its front edge, e.g. centrally positioned, to assist a user with lifting and lowering of the screen 41. The debris screen 41 also includes a snap fitting formation, for engaging a complementary snap fitting formation on the housing with a snap fitting engagement, whereby to releasably retain the debris screen 41 in the operative position. 20 The debris screen 41 including the stub arms 53, 55, the handle formation, and the snap fitting formation may conveniently be integrally formed in an injection moulding operation. In particular the screen 41 may be formed from plastics material in an injection moulding operation. The housing 3 including the short pipe section 17 25 projecting outwardly away from the water outlet 15, the mounting supports and the complementary snap fitting formations may also be formed integrally of plastics material in a moulding operation. In use as shown in Fig 10 the device 1 may be mounted on a building structure 71 30 positioned beneath a perimeter gutter 73 of the structure to receive rain water from the gutter 73. The device 1 includes a dropper 75 that diverts water from the gutter 73 down into the chamber 6 through the water inlet 19.

23 The housing 3 is mounted to the fascia 77 or like support of the building structure 71 by means of its planar rear or back wall portion 13, in particular the upper section thereof that projects up beyond the upper edge of the end wall portions 9, 11. The water outlet 15 and associated pipe section faces back towards an adjacent wall 79 of 5 the building structure 71. The pipe section 17 is coupled to a downstream pipe section or pipe 81 that extends horizontally from the outlet pipe section back towards the external face of the wall 79 of the structure 71. When the pipe reaches the wall 79 of the structure 71 the pipe 81 is 10 turned through ninety degrees using an elbow and travels vertically down the wall 79 to an inlet of a water collector such as a rain water tank 83. The pipe 81 is positioned just below the eave 80 which is aesthetically pleasing. It is much neater than having the water outlet 15 projecting through the bottom wall 5 and then traveling back towards the wall 79 spaced some distance below the eave 80. 15 After a rain fall event, rain water falling onto a roof of a structure flows into the perimeter gutter 73, through the dropper 75 and onto the debris screen 41. Coarse debris is screened out of the water stream and the rain water passes through the water inlet 19 into the chamber 6. The debris tends to be displaced forwardly and 20 downwardly across the surface of the screen 41 and then drops onto the ground. This debris includes twigs, sticks, leaves, chaff and pieces of earth. It may also include animal life such as dead vermin, birds and bugs and beetles. The fall of the screen and in particular the curved surface of the screen assists in displacing screened debris off the screen 41 as it is being used and a water stream flows into the collection 25 chamber 6. The feature that the front edge 51 of the screen 41 projects out proud of the front wall portion 14 of the housing 3 also assists removal of debris from the surface of the screen 41. Water can accumulate to some extent in the chamber 6 as the further screen 29 with 30 its small mesh opening sizes permits only a limited flow rate there through. The side wall 7 of the housing 3 enables accumulated water to stand in the chamber 6 until it can pass through the further screen 29 and then out through the outlet 15. In the event that there is a particularly strong inflow of water into the chamber 6, or the further screen 29 is blocked, the level of water can rise above the weir overflow 21 24 formed by the terminal upper edge of the front wall portion 14 and flow over this edge. However the design of the housing water ensures that overflow water flows over the front wall portion 14 which is spaced away from a side wall of the building structure. 5 From time to time it may be necessary to clean out the chamber 6 within the housing 3 including the insect screen 29. The insect screen may collect dead insects thereon and also debris that is small enough to pass through the debris screen 41 across the inlet to the housing 3. To do this the debris screen 41 can be pivoted upwardly or simply lifted off the pivot mounts 57, 59. The user can then reach into the chamber 6 10 and remove the insect screen 29 for cleaning or just simply clean the insect screen 29 while it remains in position within the chamber 6. In another embodiment of the invention that has not been illustrated, the debris screen is formed of a metallic material that is stainless steel. In yet another embodiment that 15 has not been illustrated the leading edge of the debris screen terminates short of the front wall portion as described immediately above. Further the front wall portion extends upwardly in front of the leading edge of the debris screen so that the debris screen is positioned behind the front wall portion. The front wall portion extends up above the upper surface of the debris screen so as to provide a wall of sorts in front of 20 the leading edge of the debris screen. Figs 11 and 12 illustrate a device in accordance with another embodiment of the invention. As this embodiment is functionally very similar to that in Figs 1 to 9 the same reference numerals will be used to refer to the same components and the 25 following description will focus on the differences between the two embodiments. In Fig 11 the water outlet 15 is defined in the bottom wall 5 of the housing 3 and thus faces vertically downward away from the housing 3. The bottom wall 5 is bowl shaped similar to that in Fig 1 and the water outlet 15 is positioned at the lowest point of the 30 bottom wall 5. As a result of the water outlet 15 being defined in the bottom wall 5 the insect screen 31 is shaped differently. As shown in Fig 12 it is substantially planar and does not have the shaped diverting portion in the form of a dome shaped projection that extends up from the screen to shut off the rear facing water outlet in the Fig 1 embodiment.

25 The Fig 11 embodiment also has a version where the outlet pipe section is in the form of a square pipe outlet section much like that shown in Figs 6 and 6A. This embodiment would be clearly understood by a person skilled in the art and therefore it 5 has not been separately illustrated. The Fig 11 embodiment is shown in use in Fig 13. The downwardly facing water outlet 15 is coupled to an elbow to turn it through ninety degrees back towards the wall 79. The return leg of the pipe arrangement 81 is spaced a distance below the eave 80 of the associated building before turning down and traveling down the wall 79 to a tank 83. 10 Figs 10 and 13 clearly show the aesthetic differences between the device with a rear facing outlet and a device with a downward facing outlet in use with the device mounted on a house. 15 One advantage of the device described above with reference to the drawings is that the debris screen has a curved surface from the rear to the front and this assists the screening of debris from a water stream. Another advantage is that the front edge of the debris screen projects forward over the front wall portion of the housing and this assists in removing debris from the debris screen. A further advantage is that the 20 debris screen including frame and mesh openings can be moulded from plastics material in a single injection moulding operation. Further the housing and its structural features can also be moulded in a single injection moulding operation. Another advantage is that the debris screen has a mounting arrangement for 25 conveniently mounting it on the open top of the housing where it can pivot between an upper open position and a lower operative position. Further the debris screen can be lifted completely off the housing and separated there from by means of a simple lifting action by a user. It can also be moved to the upper open position by a simple single pivoting action by a user. This simplifies and eases the task of lifting the debris screen 30 and then returning it to its original operative position across the open top of the housing 3. By contrast in some prior art devices of which the applicant is aware it is necessary to unclip clips on each side of the debris screen before it is able to be lifted off the housing. This is a more difficult action requiring considerably higher levels of dexterity than with the current application.

26 Another advantage is that the device, including both the housing and the screen, has improved aesthetics when compared with prior art devices and plumbing installations on buildings. A water tank and associated plumbing is a conspicuous feature on a 5 house that influences the aesthetic look of a house. Often prior art water collection devices looked unsightly and the associated pipe work was not neat. The device and screen described above and the manner of mounting it on a house offer greatly improved aesthetics. 10 It will of course be realized that the above has been given only by way of illustrative example of the invention and that all such modifications and variations thereto, as would be apparent to persons skilled in the art, are deemed to fall within the broad scope and ambit of the invention as is herein defined and described.

Claims

1. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream, the device including: 5 a housing defining an inlet through which water can enter the housing, an outlet through which water can exit the housing, and a flow path extending from the inlet to the outlet; a debris screen mounted on the housing for screening debris out of water that is directed into the inlet, wherein the debris screen is curved and has an upper convex 10 face and a lower concave face; and a screen mounting arrangement for mounting the debris screen on the housing adjacent to the inlet in an operative screen position extending across the fIlow path; and wherein the housing comprises a front wall portion configured to provide a spout, spaced apart from the outlet, to allow overflow of water from within the housing when 15 the level of water in the housing reaches a predetermined height above a bottom of the outlet.

2. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to claim 1, wherein the spout is formed by a portion of the front wall, over which water can flow 20 when the level of water in the housing reaches the predetermined height above the bottom of the outlet.

3. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to claim 2 wherein the spout is formed by a lowermost portion of an upper edge of he front wall. 25

4. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to claim 3, wherein the lowermost portion of the upper edge of the front wall portion is provided on a substantially central portion of the front wall and is provided more forwardly than less central parts of the front wall upper edge. 30

5. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to any preceding claim, wherein the screen mounting arrangement permits the screen to be 28 displaced relative to the housing, out of the operative screen position to provide access to the flow path within the housing.

6. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to claim 5, 5 wherein the mounting arrangement permits the debris screen to be displaced out of its operative position by means of a single movement of a user.

7. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to any preceding claim, wherein the debris screen includes a rear edge and a front edge, and 10 in the operative screen position the debris screen curves down from the rear edge to the front edge.

8. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to claim 7, wherein the debris screen curves down with a substantially constant radius of 15 curvature that is 0.5m to 1.0m.

9. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to either of claims 7 or 8 wherein the front edge of the debris screen, in the operative position, conforms to an upper edge of a front wall portion of the housing. 20

10. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the debris screen comprises a grid of longitudinal members and transverse members that define a plurality of screen openings; and wherein the longitudinal members extend vertically down in the direction of their height when the 25 debris screen is in the operative position whereby to promote the passage of water through the screen openings.

11. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream, according to claim 10, wherein the longitudinal members and transverse members define substantially 30 rectangular screen openings having a length of 10 to 25 mm. 29

12. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to either one of claims 10 or 11, wherein the debris screen includes a perimeter frame surrounding the grid, and the grid and the perimeter frame are integrally formed. 5

13. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to any preceding claim, wherein the housing is integrally formed of a polymeric material by means of injection moulding, and the debris screen is integrally formed of a plastic or stainless steel. 10

14. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to any preceding claim, wherein the housing includes two mounting supports, and the debris screen includes two stub arms that project laterally away from the sides thereof, and the mounting arrangement comprises a rotatable mounting of the two stub arms on the two mounting supports. 15

15. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to claim 13, wherein each mounting support comprises a mounting recess which is configured to receive the stub arms therein while permitting rotation of the stub arms, to displace the screen out of the operative position and back into the operative position, and wherein 20 each mounting recess opens in an upward direction to permit the debris screen to be removed from the housing by lifting the stub arms out of the mounting recesses.

16. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to claim 11, wherein the mounting recesses comprise substantially semi-circular cut-outs In upper 25 edges of two side wall portions, and wherein each stub arm has a stop formation at each end thereof for retaining the debris screen in position on the side wall portions of the housing.

17. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to any 30 preceding claim, wherein the debris screen further includes a handle formation for assisting a user to move the debris screen into and out of the operative position, and wherein the debris screen and the housing include complementary catch formations for 30 releasably fixing the screen to the housing when the debris screen is in the operative position.

18. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to any 5 preceding claim, including a further screen extending across the flow path downstream of the debris screen for screening out further debris from the water stream passing through the device and for resisting the passage of insects through the outlet.

19. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to any 10 preceding claim, wherein the device is for attachment to a building below a gutter and to receive a water stream from a dropper from which water collected by a gutter Is dropped, wherein the inlet is for receiving said dropped water stream, and wherein the housing is for directing the water stream to a down pipe connected to the outlet. 15

20. A debris screen for a device for screening solid debris out of a water stream that is being directed into a water collector, including a housing defining an inlet through which water can enter the housing, an outlet through which water can exit the housing, and a flow path extending from the inlet to the outlet; the debris screen including: 20 a screen member mountable on the housing extend across the flow path for screening debris out of water that is directed into the housing through the water inlet, wherein the debris screen Is curved, has an upper convex face and a lower concave face, and has a shaped front edge adapted to conform to the front portion of the device inlet, wherein when the debris screen is in an operative screen position on the device a central 25 portion of the shaped front edge projects forwardly and downwardly further than less central parts of the curved front edge.

21. A plumbing installation including: a device for screening solid debris out of a water stream according to any one of 30 claims 1 to 19; and 31 a drain pipe operatively coupled to the outlet and extending away therefrom; wherein the Installation is provided below a gutter of a building and is positioned to receive a water stream from said gutter. 5

22. A building including: a vertically extending external wall mounted on a support; a roof mounted on the external wall having a gutter for collecting rain water running off the roof; and a plumbing installation according to claim 21. 10

23. A device for screening solid debris out of a water stream that is being directed into a water collector substantially as herein described in the detailed description of the invention with particular reference to Figures 1 to 7 of the drawings. 15