GB2130327A

GB2130327A - Ties for building structures

Info

Publication number: GB2130327A
Application number: GB08233155A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Alan Thomas Anderson; Gordon William Fraser
Original assignee: Clan Contracting Ltd
Current assignee: Clan Contracting Ltd
Priority date: 1982-11-20
Filing date: 1982-11-20
Publication date: 1984-05-31
Also published as: GB2130327B

Abstract

A tie (10) for securing a wall structure (28) to a floor structure (22) has spaced-apart screw- threaded portions (14,16) to be received respectively in wooden joists (18,20) of the floor structure. The bolt head (42) engages a backing plate (44). Alternatively, the bolt head may be replaced by an expansion- type anchorage (32,34) for securing the tie bolt (10) to the wall structure (28). <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Improvements in ties for building structures The present invention relates to ties for securing wall structures such as a house wall to a wooden structure such as a floor or roof.

In older buildings it is often found that an exterior wall will tend to bulge outwardly. One cause of such bulging in the case of a cavity brick wall is that the metal ties, incorporated in the wall to tie the two skins together when the wall was built, rust and thereby expand.

The only satisfactory remedy for such a situation is to remove the rusted ties and to secure the wall to the floor and/or ceilings or roof structures of the house or other building. A conventional way of doing this is to attach metal brackets to the wall by means of masonry bolts and to attach the brackets to the wooden structure that is to say to joists forming part of the wooden structure. This is an expensive and time-consuming operation requiring lifting of floor boards and, when there is a fitted cupboard or sanitary suite adjacent the wall, these have to be dismantled before the floor boards can be lifted.

An object of the present invention is to provide a tie bolt which can be used to secure a wall structure to a wooden structure incorporating joists without having to gain direct access to that wooden structure.

The present invention consists in a tie bolt whose shank is provided with screw-threaded portions thereon intended to be received in two substantially parallel spaced apart wooden joists and adapted at its head to be secured in a wall structure to support the wall structure relative to a structure of which the joists form a part.

In order to insert a tie bolt according to the invention, it is simply necessary to drill a hole through the wall structure of sufficiently large diameter for the tie bolt to pass through freely and it is then advantageous to drill a pilot hole through the two joists. The tie bolt can then be inserted through the wall structure from the outside and can be screwed into the joists without having to gain direct access to the joists from within the building.

When it is desired to secure the inner skin to the structure of which the joists form a part, such as a wooden floor, it is sufficient to provide a suitable head on the tie bolt to engage the inner wall. Alternatively a conventional type of expansion anchorage can be fitted to the head of the tie bolt and can be tightened within the inner skin. To secure the outer skin to the structure of which the joists form a part, an extension rod can be attached to the tie bolt, the extension rod having at its outer end the usual type of expanding anchorage which can then be tightened within the bore of the outer skin.

The invention is further described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a sectional view of a tie bolt in accordance with the present invention, used for securing the outer skin of a cavity wall to a floor structure; Figure 2 is a similar view showing the securing of the inner skin of a cavity wall to a floor structure by means of the bolt according to the invention; and Figure 3 is a larger scale view of the tie bolt itself.

Referring to the drawings, it can be seen that the tie bolt 10 according to the invention has a long shank 1 2 provided with two spaced apart screw-threaded portions 14 and 1 6. As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the threaded portions 1 4,1 6 are so spaced apart as to be received respectively in two parallel wooden joists 1 8 and 20 forming part of a floor structure 22. Thus, the spacing between the threaded portions 1 4 and 1 6 has to be chosen to suit the pitch between the joists 1 8 and 20.

As shown in Fig. 3, the rear end of the tie bolt 10 is provided with a screw-threaded blind bore 24. In the embodiment of Fig. 1, an extension rod 26 is screwed into this blind bore, this extension rod being almost long enough to extend through a cavity wall structure 28 which is to be tied to the floor structure 22. Thus, the extension rod 26 is screw-threaded at one end to be received in the blind bore 24 and it is also screwthreaded at its outer end to receive a conventional expanding anchorage of the kind used for a wedge-type masonry bolt. Thus, a nut 30 is screwed first onto the outer end of the extension rod 26 to serve as an abutment, the wedge assembly 32 is placed over the screwthreaded outer end and finally a clamping cone 34 is threaded onto the end of the rod and tightened in order to clamp the wedge assembly to the outer skin 36 of the cavity wall 28.

It can be seen it is merely necessary to drill a hole through the outer and inner skins 36 and 38 of the cavity wall structure 28 of an appropriate diameter for the wedge assembly 30,32,34 and, when the joist 18 is reached, a smaller hole is drilled through the joists 1 8 and 20 to act as a pilot for the tie bolt 1 0. A suitable head for the engagement of a tool, such as a spanner or brace, is temporarily screwed on the outer end of the extension rod 26 to enable the tie bolt to be screwed home.

Thereafter, the temporary extension head is removed and the wedge structure 30,32,34 is screwed on and tightened. Thus, it can be seen the wall structure 28, or at least its outer skin 36, has been firmly secured to the floor structure 22 without having to gain access to the floor structure itself other than to ascertain the positions of the joists and without having to remove any bricks. Cursory examination of the floor structure is all that is necessary to ascertain the locations of the joists, since these will be revealed by the nail heads by which the floorboards are secured to the joists.

One way in which a tie bolt according to the invention can be used to secure the inner skin 38 to the floor is shown in Fig. 2. As shown in Fig. 2, a brick is preferably removed temporarily from the outer skin 36 and a hole is drilled through the inner skin and a pilot hole through the joists 1 8 and 20. A bolt 40 is screwed into the blind bore 24 in the tie bolt 10 and the tie bolt can be screwed home using the hexagonal head 42 of the bolt 40.

Preferably, a backing plate 44 is located between the head 42 and the inner skin 38.

Whilst the tie bolt according to the present invention has been described in its use for securing house walls to the floors they can equally well be used for clamping walls and parapets to flat roof structures.

Whilst it would be possible to have the tie bolt 10 screw-threaded throughout the length of its shank, such an arrangement would obviously result in it taking a long time to insert the tie bolt. By having two spaced apart threaded portions 14 and 16, each of little more than sufficient length to pass through the thicknesses of the joists, it is only necessary to screw the portion 1 6 through the joist 1 8 and then the bolt can be pushed in freely until the threaded portions 1 4 and 1 6 engage respectively each of the joists 1 8 and 20.

For the sake of clarity, the tie bolts 10 have not been drawn to scale in Figs. 1 and 2. In practice, the diameter of the tie bolts will be much smaller in relation to the dimensions of the bricks of which the wall 28 is built.

Whilst the invention has been illustrated in conjunction with a cavity wall, tie bolts according to the invention can be used to secure solid or concrete wall structures to wooden joists or the like.

Claims

1. A tie bolt whose shank is provided with screw-threaded portions thereon intended to be received in two substantially parallel spaced apart wooden joists and adapted at its head to be secured in a wall structure to support the wall structure relative to a structure of which the joists form a part.

2. A tie bolt as claimed in claim 1, in which a head is provided on the tie bolt.

3. A tie bolt as claimed in claim 1, in which a conventional type of expansion anchorage is fitted to the head of the tie bolt.

4. A tie bolt as claimed in claim 1, in which an extension rod is attached to the tie bolt, the extension rod having at its outer end the usual type of expanding anchorage.

5. A tie bolt constructed and adapted to be used substantially as herein described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.