GB2311322A

GB2311322A - A corner building guide

Info

Publication number: GB2311322A
Application number: GB9705158A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Nigel Pettinger
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1996-03-19
Filing date: 1997-03-13
Publication date: 1997-09-24
Anticipated expiration: 2017-03-13
Also published as: GB9705158D0; GB2311322B; GB9605716D0

Abstract

A building guide to assist in the laying of building blocks of corner sections of a wall comprises an L-shaped base portion 10. The base portion 10 comprises a flat piece of plastic and ridges that protrude upwards from the base along the edges 14,15. Optionally the base 10 may also have a central ridge of trapezoid cross section defining a cavity between two rows of blocks. The base is placed on the ground or in the foundations and blocks are placed on top of it in order to define the first row of a wall. The ridges constrain the orientation of the blocks to that of the guide.

Description

BUILDING GUIDE This invention relates to a guide to be used in the laying of building components, particularly, but not limited to, building blocks or bricks, in a corner configuration, and to a method of laying building components, particularly, but not limited to, building blocks or bricks, in a corner configuration.

Previously it has been necessary for a skilled bricklayer to lay the bricks for a corner of a structure.

It has been necessary because a semi-skilled bricklayer does not generally have sufficient competence to lay the bricks for the corner of the structure with the requisite accuracy. The normal course of events would be that a skilled bricklayer would lay the bricks for the corner or corners of a structure and then a semi-skilled bricklayer would lay the bricks of the straight courses between the corner sections. This procedure clearly has disadvantageous cost implications including the fact that frequently the semi-skilled bricklayer is left unable to work whilst the more skilled bricklayer is laying the bricks for the corner of the structure.

It is an object of the present invention to address the above disadvantages.

According to one aspect of the present invention a building guide comprises a guide portion or portions arranged to constrain the orientation of building components laid with the building guide, said constraint being such that the building components adopt a configuration to define a corner of a structure.

The or each guide portion may be substantially upwardly projecting.

The building components may be building blocks or bricks.

The or each guide portion may comprise at least one abutment member defining a corner. The or each abutment member may be formed by deforming the base portion upwardly, which upward deformation may provide a corresponding recess in the underside of the base portion which increases the adhesion of the building guide to a layer of cement or other similar materials. Preferably the or each abutment member defines a right-angle. The or each abutment member may be continuous along its length.

The or each abutment member may comprise a ridge.

The or each abutment member may be wider at its base than at its top. Preferably, the sides of the or each abutment member taper inwards towards the top. The or each abutment member may have an average width in the range lOmm to 30mm. The base of the or each abutment member may be 2Omm wide and the top of the or each abutment member may be 18mm wide.

The or each abutment member may have a height in the range lOmm to 3Omm. The or each abutment member may have a height of 20mm.

The or each guide portion preferably comprises two abutment members. The two abutment members may define a channel defining a corner. The channel preferably defines a right-angled channel. The right-angled channel is preferably of constant width. The width of the said channel may be chosen to correspond to the width of a standard size of building block.

The or each guide portion may comprise a base member.

The base member may extend laterally beneath the or each abutment member.

The base member preferably extends between the two abutment members, where provided. The base member preferably defines a base of the said channel. The base member may define width of the building guide. The or each abutment member may run along an edge of the base portion.

The channel may have a width in the range 100mm to 400mm. Preferred channel widths are 140mm, 255mm and 300mm. Building blocks, with a width corresponding to the channel width, laid in the channel will be constrained to form a right-angled wall.

The building guide may comprise two guide portions.

The two guide portions may define two similar corners.

Preferably, two right-angled corners are defined. Each of the two guide portions preferably comprises two of the said abutment members. Preferably the two sets of abutment members define two equally spaced channels.

Building blocks, having a width corresponding to the width of one or both of the channels, when laid in the channels, will be constrained to form two right angled walls with a cavity therebetween. The two walls may form the leaves of a cavity wall.

The two equally spaced channels may have one common abutment member. The common abutment member may have a width which defines the spacing between the channels. The width of the common abutment member may be chosen to comply with regulations concerning the width of a cavity in a cavity wall. The common abutment member may have an average width in the range 30mm to 7Omm. The common abutment member may taper towards the top. The base of the common abutment member may be 51mm wide and the top of the common abutment member may be 48mm wide.

The common abutment member may have a height in the range 15mm to 45mm. The common abutment member may be 30mm high.

The building guide may be adapted to be secured to a course of cement or the like forming a foundation.

The building guide may comprise at least one substantially downwardly directed projection. The or each projection may comprise a rib. The or each projection may be in the shape of a right angle. The or each projection may have a rounded profile.

The or each projection may be arranged to increase the adhesion of the building guide to a layer of cement or other similar material. The or each projection may reduce the amount of lateral movement of the building guide, when the guide is laid on a layer of cement or similar material.

The building guide may comprise at least two abutment members protruding from each of the upper and lower surfaces of the base member. Each pair of abutment members may define a channel. The channel defined on one side of the base portion may be of a different width to the channel defined on the other side of the base portion.

The building guide with channels defined on upper and lower sides of the base portion may be suitable for use with either of said sides facing upwards.

According to a second aspect of the present invention a method of laying building components in a corner configuration comprises the steps of laying a building guide in a location for a corner of a wall or the like, which building guide comprises a guide portion or portions arranged to constrain the orientation of building components laid with the building guide to a corner configuration, and laying building components against the building guide.

The method may comprise laying a building guide in which the guide portions are substantially upwardly projecting.

The method may comprise the building components being building blocks or bricks.

The method may include building up a wall or similar construction from the building guide.

The method may include laying building blocks with a building guide comprising any of the features referred to in the first aspect of the present invention.

The present invention may be brought into practice in various ways but two embodiments will now be described, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a plan view of a first embodiment of building guide for a cavity wall; Figure 2 is a partial side view of the first embodiment of building guide; Figure 3 is a plan view of a second embodiment of building guide for a wall; Figure 4 is a partial side view of the second embodiment of building guide; Figure 5 is a plan view of a third embodiment of building guide; Figure 6 is a partial side view of the third embodiment of building guide; Figure 7 is a plan view of a fourth embodiment of building guide; and Figure 8 is a partial side view of the fourth embodiment of building guide.

The first embodiment of building guide to assist in the laying of building blocks of corner sections of a cavity wall comprises an L-shaped base portion 10. The base portion 10 is formed from a flat piece of plastic in this example, although it could be made of wood or other suitable material. The base portion has outer edges 14 1,000mm long and the end of each arm has a width of 371mm.

Ridges 11, 12, 13 protrude downwardly beneath the base portion 10. The ridge 11 runs along the outer edge 14 of the base portion 10. The ridge 13 runs along the inner edge 15 of the base portion. The ridge 12 runs along the centre of each arm of the base portion. The ridges 11, 12, 13 are approximately 20mm wide and have a depth of approximately lOmm. The ridges 11, 12, 13 have a rounded profile.

Ridges 16 and 17 protrude upwardly above the base portion. The ridge 16 runs along the outer edge 14 of the base portion. The ridge 17 runs along the inner edge 15 of the base portion. The ridges 16 and 17 are approximately 20mm wide at the base and approximately 18mm wide at the top, forming a trapezoid cross-section. The ridges 16 and 17 are approximately 20mm high. Another ridge 18 protrudes approximately 30 mm above the base portion 10. The ridge 18 has a trapezoid cross-section being 51mm wide at its base and 48mm wide at its top. The ridge 18 runs along the centre of each arm of the L-shape of the base portion 10. The ridges 16, 17 and 18 define two parallel right-angled channels, each 140mm wide at their base, which are sized to receive a chosen brick size. The spacing of the channels, dictated by the width of the ridge 18, is chosen to comply with building regulations for the spacing of cavity walls. The width of the cavity is 51mm in this example.

When building a wall, a trench is generally excavated and partially filled with a cement or concrete mixture to provide a foundation. The building guide of this embodiment is used on such a foundation in the following way. A thin layer of cement is spread on the foundation layer, which has been allowed to set. The building guide is pushed into the thin layer of cement and aligned correctly. The correct alignment is that which gives channels aligned each way along the foundation trench to the next corner, where another building guide will be placed. The ridges 11, 12 and 13 of the building guide bed into the layer of cement and reduce the likelihood of the guide sliding out of its correct position.

When the thin layer of cement has dried and the ridges 11, 12 and 13 are held firmly in the cement, bricks of the size defined by the width of the channels can be cemented into position in the building guide. Successive courses of bricks can be laid on top of the first layer of bricks, the first layer being constrained to lie in the channels in the building guide. The orientation of the bricks forming the corner will be dictated by the building guide. Consequently, if the building guide has been aligned correctly, a semi-skilled worker, able to lay courses of bricks only in straight lines and vertically, will now be able to lay all of the bricks for a corner section, if the building guide has been laid for him.

Previously the semi-skilled bricklayer would have had to wait for a more skilled bricklayer to lay the corner bricks for him before he could lay the straight courses.

The building guide can reduce costs by allowing a more skilled bricklayer to set the building guide in position quickly, without the need to lay any bricks. A semiskilled bricklayer can then lay all of the necessary bricks.

A second embodiment of a building guide is shown in Figures 3 and 4. The building guide has an L-shaped base portion 20. The base portion has outer edges 24 which are the same length as the edges 14 shown in the embodiment in Figure 1. The end of each arm of the L-shape has a width of 340 mm. The base portion also has inner edges 25. The building guide of this embodiment has upwardly protruding ridges 26 and 27 which have the same cross-section as the ridges 16 and 17 in the first embodiment. The ridge 26 runs along the outer edges 24 of the building guide. The ridge 27 runs along the inner edges 25 of the building guide. The ridges 26 and 27 define a right-angled channel of constant width 300mm at its base. The spacing of the ridges 26 and 27 is chosen to correspond to the width of a standard building block.

Protruding from beneath the base portion 20 are further ridges 28 and 29. The ridge 28 runs parallel to the outer edges 24 of the base portion but is inset from the edges. The cross-section of the ridge 28 is the same as that of ridges 26 and 27. The ridge 29 runs parallel to the inner edges 25 of the base portion 20 but is similarly inset from those edges. The ridges 28, 29 form a right angled channel with a base width of 255mm. This width is chosen to match the width of a second standard type of building block.

The building guide of the second embodiment is used generally in the same way as that of the first embodiment.

However, since there is no central ridge in the second embodiment, it is intended for use with single-skinned walls.

A further feature of the second embodiment is that it can be used with two sizes of building block. If a block of width 255mm is to be used then the building guide can be used with the ridges 28 and 29 facing upwards. The ridges 26 and 27 being used to bed the guide into the thin layer of cement used to hold the guide in place.

Alternatively, for a block 300mm wide the guide can be used with the ridges 28 and 29 being used to bed into the thin layer of cement to reduce slippage of the guide.

A third embodiment of building guide is shown in figures 5 and 6 and a fourth embodiment of building guide is shown in figures 7 and 8. The third embodiment of building guide has the same ridges 16, 17 and 18, having the same dimensions as those of the first embodiment of building guide. However, the third embodiment of building guide does not have downwardly protruding ridges 11, 12, 13. The upwardly protruding ridges 16, 17 and 18 have a hollow form with a recess in the underside of the base portion formed by deforming the base portion upwardly.

The recess increases the adhesion of the building guide to a layer of cement or other similar materials. This embodiment of building guide is manufactured from a single piece of plastic by a vacuum forming process. The plastic may be ABS plastic.

The third embodiment of building guide has the advantageous properties of being cheap to manufacture, being formed from a single sheet of plastic, and also that it can easily be stacked in a space efficient way.

The fourth embodiment of building guide (see figures 7 and 8) has a form similar to that of the second embodiment of building guide. The dimensions of the ridges 26 and 27 in the fourth embodiment of building guide are the same as those in the second embodiment of building guide. However, there are differences in the underside of the fourth embodiment. As with the corresponding ridges in the third embodiment the ridges 26 and 27 are formed from a single sheet of plastic by a vacuum process. Consequently, there are no ridges protruding from beneath the fourth embodiment of building guide. This construction has the same advantages as those associated with the third embodiment of building guide.

The spacing of the ridges in any of the four embodiments can be selected to suit a particular size of building block. Also the width of the central ridge 18 in the first and third embodiments could be varied to provide different cavity widths. Measurements are given for several of the dimensions of the ridges on the base portion of any of the four embodiments. It will be understood that these measurements are only preferred values and a large variety of measurements could be used.

The reader's attention is directed to all papers and documents which are filed concurrently with or previous to this specification in connection with this application and which are open to public inspection with this specification, and the contents of all such papers and documents are incorporated herein by reference.

All of the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), and/or all of the steps of any method or process so disclosed, may be combined in any combination, except combinations where at least some of such features and/or steps are mutually exclusive.

Each feature disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), may be replaced by alternative features serving the same, equivalent or similar purpose, unless expressly stated otherwise. Thus, unless expressly stated otherwise, each feature disclosed is one example only of a generic series of equivalent or similar features.

The invention is not restricted to the details of the foregoing embodiment(s). The invention extends to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the features disclosed in this specification (including any accompanying claims, abstract and drawings), or to any novel one, or any novel combination, of the steps of any method or process so disclosed.

Claims

1. A building guide comprises a guide portion or portions arranged to constrain the orientation of building components laid with the building guide, said constraint being such that the building components adopt a configuration to define a corner of a structure.

2. A building guide as claimed in claim 1, in which the or each guide portion is substantially upwardly projecting.

3. A building guide as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, in which the building components are building blocks or bricks.

4. A building guide as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the or each guide portion comprises at least one abutment member defining a corner.

5. A building guide as claimed in claim 4, in which the or each abutment member is formed by deforming the base portion upwardly.

6. A building guide as claimed in claim 5, in which the upward deformation of the base portion provides a corresponding recess in the underside of the base portion which increases the adhesion of the building guide to a layer of cement or other similar materials.

7. A building guide as claimed in any one of claims 4 to 6, in which the or each abutment member defines a right angle.

8. A building guide as claimed in any one of claims 4 to 7, in which the or each abutment member comprises a ridge.

9. A building guide as claimed in any one of claims 4 to 8, in which the or each abutment member is wider at its base than at its top.

10. A building guide as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the or each guide portion comprises two abutment members.

11. A building guide as claimed in claim 10, in which the two abutment members define a channel defining a corner.

12. A building guide as claimed in claim 11, in which the channel defines a right angled channel.

13. A building guide as claimed in claim 12, in which the right angled channel is of constant width.

14. A building guide as claimed in any one of claims 11 to 13, in which the width of said channel may be chosen to correspond to the width of a standard size of building block.

15. A building guide as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the or each guide portion comprises a base member.

16. A building guide as claimed in claim 15, in which the base member extends laterally beneath the or each abutment member.

17. A building guide as claimed in any preceding claim which comprises two guide portions.

18. A building guide as claimed in claim 17, in which the two guide portions define two similar corners.

19. A building guide as claimed in claim 17 or claim 18, in which each of the two guide portions comprise two of said abutment members.

20. A building guide as claimed in claim 19, in which the two sets of abutment members define two equally spaced channels.

21. A building guide as claimed in claim 20, in which building blocks, having a width corresponding to the width of one or both of the channels, when laid in the channels, are constrained to form two right angled walls with a cavity therebetween.

22. A building guide as claimed in any preceding claim which is adapted to be secured to a course of cement or the like forming a foundation.

23. A method of laying building components in a corner configuration comprises the steps of laying a building guide in a location for a corner of a wall or the like, which building guide comprises a guide portion or portions arranged to constrain the orientation of building components laid with the building guide to a corner configuration, and laying building components against the building guide.

24. A method of laying building components as claimed in claim 23, which comprises laying a building guide in which the guide portions are substantially upwardly projecting.

25. A method of laying building components as claimed in claim 23 or claim 24, in which the method comprises a building components being building blocks or bricks.

26. A method of laying building components as claimed in any one of claims 23 to 25, in which the method includes building up a wall or similar construction from the building guide.

27. A method of laying building components as claimed in any one of claims 23 to 26, in which the method includes laying building blocks with a building guide as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 22.

28. A building guide substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

29. A method of laying building components substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.