GB2287178A - Paint roller cleaner and drier - Google Patents

Abstract

A paint roller cleaner and drier has a booth 1 that has numerous pierced openings 2 in its surface and is surrounded by a Jacket 3 which can be filled with liquid through an inlet 4 and is provided with a drain 5. A roller is inserted and seated onto a rotatable mounting 7 which is located to a lower drive shaft 9. A handle 15 is rotated driving the shaft 9 and located mount 7, thus rotating the seated roller. Water or other liquid passes through the booth 1 via the openings 2 and the roller is spun and cleaned. <IMAGE>

Description

PAINT ROLLER CLEANER AND DRIER This invention relates to a paint roller cleaner and drier.

Paint rollers comprise a rotatable roller covered with a material for carrying and spreading the paint, for example sheepskin, synthetic fur-like material, or sometimes a synthetic or natural sponge. The rotatable roller is carried on a handle which extends from one end of the roller and is usually cranked so that there is a grip at approximately the centre of the length of the roller itself.

Such devices are well-known.

Washing out paint rollers of this type can take a considerable time and it is not unknown to take about 20 minutes and necessitates continual rinsing and squeezing by hand under cold running water. When clean the roller is still wet and must then be left to drain which can take a number of hours and they are usually left overnight.

With professional painters this long and tedious cleansing process is time wasting and, moreover, it is not possible to use the same roller on different coloured paints without a considerable delay.

To the private individual or amateur painter it also is a time wasting chore.

The present invention is intended to provide a roller cleaner and drier which can act rapidly to clean and dry paint rollers of the type referred to above.

According to the present invention a paint roller, cleaner and drier comprises a booth to receive the roller portion of a paint roller, means for creating a number of inwardly directed liquid sprays through the wall of said booth and means for rotating the roller within the booth for contact by the sprays when they are operated and a drain for removing spent liquid therefrom.

Thus, with the cleaner and drier according to the present invention it is merely necessary to place the roller within the booth and operate the liquid sprays at the same time causing the roller to rotate. The water will rinse the roller in two or three minutes, the rotating action ridding the roller of paint much faster than the usual squeezing method. The liquid can now be switched off and by spinning the roller again for a relatively short time it can be spun dry enough to use immediately.

Preferably the means for rotating the roller in the booth includes a mounting provided with means to receive and grip the paint roller to be cleaned.

The means to create the liquid sprays may comprise a number of openings in the wall of the booth which communicate with a surrounding jacket which can be filled with liquid, for example water.

The jacket could have means for attachment to a liquid source of pressurised liquid, for example a tap.

The means to receive and grip a paint roller may comprise two or more resilient grips which can locate and grip the outer surface of the roller.

The means for rotating the mounting can be ianually or power operated.

An advantage of manual operation is that that cleaner and drier can be used anywhere as long as there is a source of water or liquid.

Preferably means are included for locating and stabilising the roller handle where the paint roller is located in said booth and gripped on the mounting.

In a preferred construction the booth comprises a substantially vertical cylinder, the mounting having an axis of rotation substantially co-axial with the axis of the cylinder.

In a convenient construction the means for rotating the mounting are carried on an extension at one end of the booth and when the booth is vertical this extension can form a base.

If desired the extension can be made readily detachable from the booth so that the apparatus can be readily dismantled.

The invention can be performed in numerous ways but one embodiment will now be described by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a cross-sectional diagrammatic front elevation of a paint roller cleaner and drier according to the invention; Figure 2 is an end elevation of the apparatus shown in Figure 1; and, Figure 3 is a plan view of the apparatus shown in Figure 1.

As shown in the drawings a paint roller cleaner and drier according to the invention comprises a booth 1 in the form of an upright cylinder the wall of which is pierced with numerous openings 2, not all of which are shown in Figure 1. The wall of the booth 1 is surrounded by a jacket 3 which can be filled with liquid through an inlet 4. The position of the inlet 4 as shown in Figure 1 is indicated by broken lines 4a.

The lower end of the booth 1 is provided with a liquid drain 5.

The lower end of the booth is connected to an extension 6 which acts as a base.

Located within the booth 1 is a rotatable mounting 7 located on a bearing support 8 and in which is located a drive shaft 9. The upper end of the drive shaft is secured to the mounting 7 and the lower end is carried in bearings 10 in the base extension 6. Mounted on the drive shaft 9 is a drive pulley 11 which is connected via an endless belt 12 to a drive pulley 13 carried on a shaft 14 which is again suitably mounted in bearings 15 in the base extension 6.

The upper end of the drive shaft 14 is connected to an operating handle 15.

The rotatable mounting 7 has means to receive and grip a paint roller and comprises four resilient grips 16 which can locate and grip the outer surface of the roller to be cleaned which is indicated by broken lines 17 in Figure 1.

The upper end of the booth 1 has a cut out 18, as is most clearly shown in Figure 2, and a pair of stabilising resilient locators 19 are provided on the external side of the water jacket 3.

As will be seen from Figure 1 when a paint roller 1 is placed in the booth 1 and held by the grippers 16 the handle of the paint roller shown in broken lines and indicated by reference numeral 20 is located in the cut out 18 and the extending part of the handle is held between the locators 19. Thus the cut out and locators 19 act to locate and stabilise the roller handle when a paint roller is located in the booth and gripped on the mounting.

The base extension 6 is formed from a pair of spaced apart plates 21, 22 which are held together by spacers 23.

This extension base is provided with feet 24.

The booth, water jacket and other parts can conveniently be formed from a suitable plastics material, metal or any other material which is suitable to carry out the functions required and the actual construction of the various parts can be made in a way which is suitable for mass production.

In the construction shown the grippers 16 are shown as being separate but attached to the mounting 7 but this could be made as a suitable single piece unit.

The design of the grippers can be such that they can accommodate rollers of different diameter. They can also be shaped so that they will grip rollers of different lengths, for example 6", 7" or 9" which are standard sizes.

It is not necessary for the roller to engage the surface of the mounting 7 provided it is gripped within the gripper 16.

It will be appreciated that the liquid inlet 4 can be connected by a suitable pipe or hose to a source of pressure liquid, for example water, thus the apparatus can be used with a standard water tap.

Drain 5 can also be connected to a take-away pipe or the device could be stood on the side of a sink so that the drain feeds the spent liquid into to the sink and away.

Although the booth 1 is shown in the construction described above in an upright position it could equally well be arranged so that it was substantially horizontal provided there was suitable support and this, in certain circumstances, could be an advantageous construction enabling the handle to be wound about a horizontal axis rather than about a vertical axis.

In use the water inlet 4 is connected by a hose to a water tap and the apparatus is located so that the drain 5 can either empty over a sink, soak away or through an appropriate pipe to a drain.

The roller to be cleaned is placed, whilst still full of paint, into the booth 1 and pressed down through the grippers 16 so that it is located on the rotary mounting 7.

The handle 15 is now rotated a few times which causes the paint on the roller to be flung clear. It has been found that only a few turns of the handle 15 are necessary to achieve this. The water is now switched on and enters the water jacket 3 which it fills up, the pressure of the water forces it through the openings 2 so that it emerges as a number of inwardly directed liquid sprays into the booth and onto the roller. The handle 15 is now operated for three or four turns which it has been found is sufficient to get rid of all the remaining paint on the roller, this being caused by the rotary action of the roller and the impinging liquid sprays.

The water emerging from the outlet 5 or from a pipe attached to it gives a clear indication when the roller is clean. Thus the handle 15 is rotated until all signs of paint colour in the spent liquid is removed.

The water is now switched off and the roller is spun for a short period, 15 seconds has been found to be long enough, to dry it sufficiently for immediate use.

Thus, the apparatus enables the user to clean and dry a paint roller ready for use with a different coloured paid in two or three minutes. This can be achieved without the user wetting his hands and obviates the chore of continual rinsing and squeezing by hand of the roller.

A further advantage is that the roller emerges from the apparatus with its outer surface fluffed out all around its outer surface and is ready for use. When rollers are normally left to dry by placing them, for example, on a drain board this inevitably results in a "flat" being produced on the surface. The present invention produces a roller which does not suffer from this problem.

It will be appreciated that the apparatus is particularly useful if the user only has one roller and needs to change a paint colour.

It has been found that the drive ratio between the drive pulleys of about 20:1 produces a satisfactory result.

If desired the manual drive can be replaced by a power drive by the use, for example, of an electric motor and suitable switch gear indicated by reference numeral 26.

In the construction described above a belt and pulley system is used for driving the mounting 7 but in other arrangements, for example, a friction drive or a gear drive could be used.

The booth 1 can be arranged to be detachable from the extension base, for example by providing a number of lugs indicated by broken lines 27 at the base of the booth provided, for example, with keyhole slots which engage appropriate pins 28 provided on the base.

With such an arrangement the drive shaft 9 can be arranged to be split above the base and provided with, for example, a square section which engages a suitable square section bore in the lower part of the drive shaft 9.

With such an arrangement it is possible to readily detach the booth and the mounting together with its bearing block 8 in order to reduce the overall size of the apparatus for storage.

Although in the construction described above the extension base is shown as being made from two plates it could of course be made in various ways and different materials so that, for example, it could be totally enclosed. In the arrangement described above the two plates provide a simple construction and one in which the drive mechanism can be easily inspected and serviced.

Claims (8)

1) A paint roller cleaner and drier has a booth and surrounding jacket that has a cylindrical form housing numerous pierced openings. Means to supply water to the outer jacket are provided via an inlet tube. A paint roller is held in a rotating mount within the booth, means to rotate provided via a drive system. Means to action the system provided by a hand operated handle or similar device.

A water outlet allows water to exit the booth via an outlet tube to the lower region of the unit.

2) A paint roller cleaner and drier as claimed in claim 1 wherein, a vertical booth has a surrounding jacket to house water.

3) A paint roller cleaner and drier as claimed in claim 2 wherein, the wall of the booth is pierced with numerous holes to allow water to pass from the jacket.

4) A paint roller cleaner and drier as claimed in claim 3 wherein, a paint roller is held in an adjusting rotating mount.

5) A paint roller cleaner and drier as claimed in claim 4 wherein. the roller within the mount is rotated via a linked drive system.

6) A paint roller cleaner and drier as claimed in claim 5 wherein, water passes through the pierced booth and through the rotating roller.

7) A paint roller cleaner and drier as claimed in claim 6 wherein, the roller is rotated using a handle or similar device, with water exiting through a lower outlet.

Amendments to the claims have been filed as follows 1) A paint roller cleaner and drier has a booth and surrounding jacket that has a cylindrical form, housing numerous pierced openings, means to supply water to the outer jacket are provided via an inlet tube, a rotating mount within the booth allows the roller to be cleaned on entrance of the water, or spun to dry the pile only.

2) A paint roller cleaner and drier as claimed in claim 1 wherein, a vertical booth has a layer that forms a housing and outlet for water into an interior chamber.

3) A paint roller cleaner and drier as claimed in claim 2 wherein, the wall of the booth is pierced with numerous holes to allow water to pass from the housing.

4) A paint roller cleaner and drier as claimed in claim 3 wherein. a paint roller is held in an adjusting rotatable mount.

5) A paint roller cleaner and drier as claimed in claim 4 wherein. the roller within the mount is rotated via a linked drive system.

6) A paint roller cleaner and drier as claimed in claim 5 wherein, water passes through the pierced housing and cleans the rotating raller.

7) A paint roller cleaner and drier a5 claimed in claim 6 wherein, the roller is rotated using a geared handle on the base, with used water exiting via a lower outlet.

8) A paint roller cleaner and drier as claimed in claim 1, wherein a roller may be spun only to dry its material pile