EP1147733A2

EP1147733A2 - Method for removing guano from infested spaces and apparatus for carrying out this method

Info

Publication number: EP1147733A2
Application number: EP01105962A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Gilberto Cristofori; Lucia Manzini
Original assignee: Cristofori Gilberto
Current assignee: Cristofori Gilberto
Priority date: 2000-03-09
Filing date: 2001-03-09
Publication date: 2001-10-24
Also published as: ITPI20000015A0; IT1319415B1; EP1147733A3; ITPI20000015A1

Abstract

A method and an apparatus for removing guano from surfaces and from infested environment, such as a garret or attic room (1) of a building (2). At the ground level of the building (2) a sucking apparatus (3) is arranged from which a flexible duct (4) extends whose end (6) terminates in the garret (1). The duct (4) is long enough to reach the garret (1) from ground level and to allow an easy manoeuvre in the garret to reach all the points to decontaminate. The apparatus (3) comprises a sucking unit (10) communicating with a filter (11) and with a separation unit (12) where the other end (5) of the duct (4) is arranged. In the separation unit (12) the flexible duct (4) leads air and solid particles that by gravity fall in a hopper (13) whereas the dust is dragged through a duct (14) towards the filter (11), where it is retained. For carrying out a decontamination phase the end (6) of the duct (4) is put in the garret room (1), and once operated the fan (10), an operator can start decontamination simply bringing the end (6) onto the zone to clean. The guano, normally dry, is easily dragged away by the air flow through the free end (6) and the duct (4). The removal of guano is quick and effective. Dust is not raised any more and there is no need of manual transport of the guano through the rooms of the buildings.

Description

Field of the invention

The present invention relates to the field of the environmental disinfestation and decontamination and more precisely it relates to a method for removing guano from surfaces and from infested environment.
Furthermore the invention relates to an apparatus for carrying out this method.

Background of the invention

The problem of decontamination from guano of attic rooms, garret rooms, under roof spaces, and other high spaces in buildings is felt. Especially in cities there is proliferation of pigeons and other birds where food and shelter can be easily found, in particular in the high and not controlled spaces of buildings.
In particular, such spaces, where man is not present and that can normally be reached with difficulty, are a place of nesting and shelter for birds .
Also when the access to such spaces is closed to drive the birds away, the problem of cleaning the places already infested remains. In fact, before disinfecting the dirt surfaces and closing the access to the places, large amount of guano must be removed that has accumulated there in years.
In particular, in guano many pests and parasites of birds live and proliferate, such as ticks and louses, as well as other parasites, dangerous bacteria, grubs can be present.
The spaces that are located under the places infested by guano, then, can become unhealthy owing to the unavoidable migration towards below of such organisms. This danger is still more serious when in these spaces children or sick people live, such as in kindergartens, schools, hospitals or old people's homes. The exposition to danger for people is in any case considerable also for other types of public buildings or private houses.
A first problem that decontamination teams meet is physically removing guano from places, such as in particular old buildings, where large amount of guano has piled up for decades. Normally, it is necessary to scrape it from the surfaces and pick it up with appropriate tools. This raises much dust that is dangerous for the operators and is subject to fall in the rooms that are located below. Furthermore the operators must often clean garret rooms or attic rooms that have weak floors on which they cannot walk. This causes complications and risks for the operators in addition to possible damages to the structures.
Another problem is that, once guano has been removed, for example collected in tanks or sacks, it has to be carried at ground level. Owing to the absence of windows, the tanks or sacks have to be lowered through narrow trapdoors or passages through the spaces located below, where they have to be handled with care to avoid that they fall or loose dust of guano in particular in those places that, as above said, must be kept sterile and clean.

Summary of the invention

It is therefore object of the present invention to provide a method for removing guano from surfaces and infested places that has not the drawback of the existing methods, and in particular:

allows a quicker removal of guano;
it prevents dust from raising;
it does not need manual transport of guano through the rooms of the buildings;
it requires less operators for carrying out the decontamination than in the traditional way;
it allows to clean areas in the range of several metres around where the operator is located without that he/she moves, in particular without walking on weak floors of garret and attic room.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for removing guano from surfaces and contaminated spaces that allows to carry out this method.
These and other objects are achieved by the method according to the present invention whose characteristic is that it comprises the steps of:

arranging a flexible duct between a contaminated zone located at a high level and a collecting zone located at ground level, the duct having free and handy end in the high level zone;
creating a strong air flow through the duct by suction means located at the ground level zone;
passage of the free end on contaminated areas infested by guano at the high level zone, whereby the guano is sucked through the duct and dragged at ground level;
collecting the guano by gravity and filtering the dust dragged by the air conveyed by the sucking means.

According to another aspect of the present invention an apparatus for removing guano from surfaces and from infested environment, for carrying out said method, has the characteristic that it comprises:

a flexible duct suitable for having a free handy end at a contaminated high level zone, the duct having a length capable of reaching said contaminated zone located at a high level starting from a ground level position where its other end is located;
sucking means arranged at the other end of the duct at the ground level position;
means for collecting by gravity solid particles of guano dragged through the duct, the means for collecting by gravity being arranged at before the sucking inlet of the sucking means;
means for filtering the residual dust not retained by the means for collecting, arranged between the latter and the sucking means.

Brief description of the drawings

Further characteristics and the advantages of the method and the apparatus according to the present invention for removing guano from contaminated spaces, will be made clearer with the following description of an embodiment thereof, exemplifying but not limitative, with reference to the attached drawings, wherein:

figure 1 shows a diagrammatical elevational view of an apparatus according to the invention for sucking guano from the garret room of a building;
figure 2 shows a diagrammatical enlarged view of the apparatus of figure 1;
figure 3 shows a step of decontamination according to the sucking method operated by the apparatus of figures 1 and 2.

Description of a preferred embodiment

With reference to figure 1, for removing guano by a garret or attic room 1 at ground level with respect to the building 2 a suction apparatus 3 is provided. A duct 4 has an end 5 that begins at apparatus 3 and terminates at garret room 1 with another end 6. Duct 4 is long enough to reach garret 1 from ground and furthermore to allow inside an easy manoeuvre to reach all the points to decontaminate.
Apparatus 3, as shown also in figure 2, comprises a sucking unit 10 communicating with a filter 11 and with a separation unit 12 from which end 5 of duct 4 extends. In separation unit 12 air and solid particles flow that come from duct 4, which by gravity fall into a hopper 13, at least the heaviest ones. The separation unit 12 can for example be a centrifugal dust separator. The finest dust, instead, is dragged through duct 14 towards filter 11, where it is retained leaving air to pass through fan 10.
With reference to figure 2, an auxiliary compressor 16 can be provided for cleaning filter 11.
For carrying out the decontamination phase, according to the invention, after having put the end 6 of duct 4 in garret 1, and once operated fan 10, the operator 20 (figure 3) can start decontamination simply bringing end 6 on the area to clean. The guano, that is normally dry, is easily dragged away by the suction air flowing through end 6 and duct 4. The operator 20 can use auxiliary terminal tools 21, 22 suitable to make easier to scrape guano off from the dirt surfaces.
The solid material falling into hopper 13 can be then collected into sacks or carried directly to disposal through a self moving transport means 17 (figure 1). The collection can be carried out with appropriate means that are easily handled far from the contaminated environment and especially far from the rooms located below which, differently from the prior art, are not crossed any more by the containers for carrying the guano downstairs.
The method according to the invention, then, allows removal of guano quickly and effectively. Moreover, dust cannot be raised, nor there is the need to carry manually guano downstairs through the buildings. By varying the length of tool 21 or 22 (figure 3), for example by means of a tubular extension, the operator 20 can clean areas in the range of several metres without walking on weak surfaces of garret 1.
The foregoing description of a specific embodiment will so fully reveal the invention according to the conceptual point of view, so that others, by applying current knowledge, will be able to modify and/or adapt for various applications such an embodiment without further research and without parting from the invention, and it is therefore to be understood that such adaptations and modifications will have to be considered as equivalent to the specific embodiment. The means and the materials to realise the different functions described herein could have a different nature without, for this reason, departing from the field of the invention. It is to be understood that the phraseology or terminology employed herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation.

Claims

A method for removing guano from contaminated room and surfaces (1) characterised in that it comprises the steps of:

arranging a flexible duct (4) between a contaminated zone located at a high level (1) and a collecting zone located at ground level, said duct (4) having a free and handy end (6) located at said high level (1);

creating a strong air flow through said duct (4) by suction means (10) located in said ground level zone;

passage of said end (4) free on contaminated areas infested by guano on said zone located at a high level (1), whereby the guano is sucked through said duct (4) and dragged at ground level;

collecting the guano at ground level by gravity and filtering the dust dragged by the air conveyed by said sucking means (10).
An apparatus for removing guano from contaminated rooms and surfaces (1), characterised in that it comprises:

a flexible duct (4) having free and handy end (6) at a contaminated zone located at a high level (1), said duct (4) having length connecting said contaminated zone located at a high level (1) starting from a ground level where its other end is arranged (5);

sucking means (10) arranged at the other end (5) of said duct (4) at said ground level;

means for collecting (13) by gravity solid particles of guano dragged through said duct (4), said means for collecting by gravity being arranged at said ground level (3) upstream of said sucking means (10);

means for filtering (11) the residual dust not retained by said means for collecting (13), said means for filtering (11) being arranged between the latter and said sucking means (10).
Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said sucking means comprise a sucking unit (10) communicating with a filter (11) and with an separation unit (12), in said separation unit (12) air and solid particles flowing that come from said duct (4), a hopper (13) being provided for collecting directly the heaviest particles, said filter (11) receiving air and dust coming from said separation unit (12).
Apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said separation unit (12) has a centrifugal dust separator.
Apparatus according to claim 3, wherein an auxiliary compressor (16) is provided for cleaning said filter (11).
Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said free end (6) of said duct (4) is associated to terminal tools (21) suitable to make easier scraping the guano from the surfaces as well as to an extension (22) for increasing the distance of said tools from an operator.