GB2243393A

GB2243393A - Emergency flood barrier

Info

Publication number: GB2243393A
Application number: GB9024620A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Clifford Brian Tracey
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1990-04-03
Filing date: 1990-11-13
Publication date: 1991-10-30
Also published as: GB9024620D0; GB9007508D0

Abstract

A flood barrier, eg for gateways or doorways of property, which incorporates interlocking cross bar barrier sections 7 with seals 8 that can be removed to allow normal use of the gateway or doorway when there is no flood risk. During times of flood risk the barrier is installed by sliding cross bar barrier sections 7 in between seals and guide rails 1 and 3 which are permanently secured to the wall. Compression blocks, pressure plates and hand-tightening knobs 11 are provided to compress the detachable cross bars 7 together causing deformable seals 8 between them to make a watertight barrier. <IMAGE>

Description

EMERGENCY FLOOD BARRIER This invention relates to an emergency flood barrier.

Traditional emergency flood barriers for property are sandbags, sometimes used in conjunction with sheets of wooden board, placed around the gateway or doorways of the property to be protected against imminent inundation of flood water.

Sandbags are, however, not totally effective against some passage of water into the property. Additionally, they are heavy to handle, and adequate protection from greater depths of flood water would necessitate bulky storage of a considerable number of sandbags near to or on the property.

According to one aspect of this invention, there is provided a removable flood barrier for a doorway or other opening in a building, comprising two support means for being secured one to either side of the opening and one or more removable panel elements for being supported by said support means to prevent or reduce the passage of water.

Preferably, said support means comprise two elongate channelled guides. The guides may include a seal element for sealing against the fabric of the building adjacent the opening. Alternatively, sealing could be effected by applying a sealing compound.

Likewise, seal means are preferably provided for sealing between the panel element or elements and the support means. Here the seal means are advantageously in the form of a resiliently deformable seal element provided on or in the support means, and urging means is provided for urging the panel element or elements into sealing contact with the seal element. The urging means may be a plurality of screwed members each associated with a respective panel element or the urging means may comprise a common means for urging all of the panel elements.

Preferably, a plurality of overlapping or interlocking panel elements is provided, conveniently of the same or similar cross-section. Each such panel element conveniently includes a seal element extending along its edge which is lowermost in use. It will be understood that, in use, the seal element of the lowermost panel element will bear against the cill or threshold of the opening whilst those of the remaining panel elements will bear on the upper edge of the next lower panel element. Preferably, means are provided for urging each seal element into sealing contact with the adjacent surface. In a preferred arrangement, two removable screw jack arrangements are provided, one associated with each support means respectively, for commonly compressing each of said seal elements.

The support means and the panel elements may be made of any suitable material but it is preferred for them to be formed from extended aluminium.

A specific embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows in diagrammatic perspective, the lefthand and right-hand guide rails, wall seals and screws for fixing the rails to the wall; Figure 2 shows an end-section of one of the interlocking cross bars with rubber seal, and the top section of one of the two pressure plates; Figure 3 shows the top section of the right-hand guide rail, one of the compression blocks and two of the threaded bolts with knurled knobs; Figure 4 shows the emergency flood barrier assembled.

Referring to the drawings the flood barrier comprises a left-hand guide rail 1, a right-hand guide rail 3, thick gasket seals 2 located between each guide rail 1 and 3 and the wall of the property, fixed permanently in place by screws 4, access to which is through the threaded holes 5, both guide rails 1 and 3 having bonded to their inner rear faces seals 6, similar to the gasket seals 2, as shown in Fig 1. In between the guide rails 1 and 3 are located removable interlocking hollow cross bars 7, as shown in Fig 2, each of which has a deformable seal 8 on its base which forms the seal between the ground and the lowest of the cross bars 7, and between each of the higher cross bars 7. Two pressure plates 9, two compression blocks 10 and twelve threaded bolts with knurled knobs 11 are provided to effect a tight fit of the cross bars 7.

In order to instal the emergency flood barrier one of the cross bars 7 is inserted between the two prefixed guide rails 1 and 3 in the gaps 12 and slid down to ground level. This is repeated with a second cross bar 7, and a third cross bar 7, and so on until the full height is reached between the guide rails 1 and 3, as shown in Fig 4. Each cross bar 7 is installed with the seal 8 lower-most and adjacent to the bonded seals 6. Pressure plates 9 are pushed into place between the outward-facing cross bars 7 and the inside of the front of the guide rails 1 and 3.

Pressure blocks 10 are introduced to the top of each of the guide rails 1 and 3, and located by the dowel 13 entering the larger reception hole 14 from the gap 12 on the inside of each of the guide rails 1 and 3, as shown in Fig 3. A threaded bolt with knurled knob 11 is screwed through the threaded hole 15 on each pressure block 10 and screwed down until contact witl the uppermost cross bar 7 is effected, continued tightening of each knob 11 causing the seals 8 to deform between each of the cross bars 7, the lowest cross bar 7 and the ground, and the seals 8 against the seals 6. Each remaining knurled knob and threaded bolt 11 is then inserted into each raised threaded hole 5 and tightened so that the threaded end of the bolt 11 presses each pressure plate 9 against the outward-facing surfaces of all the cross bars 7, which in turn with the seals 8 press tighter against the seals 6.

To remove the flood barrier, leaving behind the permanently-fixed guide rails 1 and 3, the steps described above are carried out in the reverse sequence.

Claims

1. A removable flood barrier for a doorway, gateway or other opening, comprising two support means for being secured one to either side of the opening and one or more removable panel elements for being supported by said support means to prevent or reduce the passage of water.

2. A removable flood barrier according to Claim 1, wherein said support means comprise two elongate channelled guides.

3. A removable flood barrier according to Claim 2, wherein each channelled guide includes means for sealing against the fabric of the building adjacent the opening.

4. A removable flood barrier according to any preceding claim, including seal means for sealing between the panel element or elements and the support means.

5. A removable flood barrier according to Claim 4, wherein the seal means are in the form of a resiliently deformable seal element provided on or in the support means, and urging means is provided for urging the panel element or elements into sealing contact with the seal element.

6. A removable flood barrier according to Claim 5, wherein the urging means comprises a plurality of screwed members each associated with a respective panel element.

7. A removable flood barrier according to Claim 5, wherein the urging means comprises a common means for urging all of the panel elements.

8. A removable flood barrier according to any preceding claim, including a plurality of overlapping or interlocking panel elements of the same or similar cross-section.

9. A removable flood barrier according to Claim 8, wherein each panel element includes a seal element extending along its edge which is lowermost in use.

10. A removable flood barrier according to Claim 9, including means for urging each seal element into sealing contact with the adjacent surface.

11. A removable flood barrier according to Claim 10, including two removable screw jack arrangements, one associated with each support means respectively, for commonly compressing each of said seal elements.

12. A removable flood barrier according to any preceding claim, wherein the support means and the panel elements are formed from extruded aluminium.

13. A removable flood barrier substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in any of the accompanying drawings.