GB2355069A

GB2355069A - Roof ventilator

Info

Publication number: GB2355069A
Application number: GB0016079A
Authority: GB
Inventors: David Bottomore
Original assignee: HARTINGTON CONWAY Ltd
Current assignee: HARTINGTON CONWAY Ltd
Priority date: 1999-07-03
Filing date: 2000-07-03
Publication date: 2001-04-11
Anticipated expiration: 2020-07-03
Also published as: GB9915555D0; GB2355069B; GB0016079D0

Abstract

A roof ventilator is adapted to be disposed, in use, in the plane of roof covering elements such as tiles or slates in a roof structure. The ventilator comprises an upper member (30) with an external surface defining a ventilation opening (31) extending longitudinally of the ventilator, and a moisture collection channel (22) disposed beneath the ventilation opening (31). The moisture collection channel (22) has upstanding lateral walls with upper edges spaced from the underside of the upper member (30) and is at its lower end open to the exterior of the ventilator. Water entering the ventilator via the ventilation opening (31) is collected in the moisture collection channel (22) and discharged therefrom, while air can flow into and out of the roof space through the space between the walls of the moisture collection channel (22) and the underside of the upper member (30).

Description

2355069 Title - Roof Ventilator This invention relates to a ventilator for

the roof space of a building, in particular to a ventilator for a roof comprising roof covering elements (eg tiles or slates) arranged in rows.

It is a requirement ofbuilding regulations that roof spaces inbuildings be thermally insulated to prevent heat loss and to conserve energy. Such insulation increases the likelihood of condensation of moisture within the roof space and it is therefore essential that roof spaces be adequately ventilated.

Numerous fonns of roof ventilator have been proposed, including soffit and facia ventilators provided at the eaves of the roof. Some roof constructions are, however, unsuitable for ventilators of these types. Another type of ventilator which is used is a so-called tile vent or slate vent. Ventilators of this type are fitted between tiles in the rows of tiles (or slates) which cover the roof and provide a ventilation pathway at a higher level than at the eaves. Tile or slate vents of this kind must be provided with suitable formations to prevent the ingress of rainwater to the interior of the roof space. Some such designs are provided with hoods which project out of the plane of the roof and may therefore be unsightly and/or may act to retain leaves or other detritus on the roof. Other designs have internal chambers which collect rainwater and channel it out of the lower part of the ventilator onto the surface of an adjacent roof covering element, whilst air passes into the roof space through an opening in an upper part of the chamber. Such ventilators may be provided with internal baffle arrangements to shield the air opening. The presence of the baffles may reduce the ventilation efficiency and the fact that the air flow is generally parallel to the plane of the roof, rather than transverse to it, may also be disadvantageous.

There has now been devised an improved form of roof ventilator which overcomes or substantially mitigates the above mentioned disadvantages.

According to the invention, there is provided a roof ventilator adapted to be disposed, in use, 2 in the plane of roof covering elements in a roof structure, the ventilator comprising an upper member having an external surface defining at least one ventilation opening extending longitudinally of the ventilator, and a moisture collection channel disposed beneath said ventilation opening, the moisture collection channel having upstanding lateral walls with upper edges spaced from the underside of the upper member and the moisture collection channel being at its lower end open to the exterior of the ventilator, the arrangement being such that water entering the ventilator via the ventilation opening is collected in the moisture collection channel and discharged therefrom, while air can flow through the space between the walls of the moisture collection channel and the underside of the upper member.

The roof ventilator according to the invention is advantageous primarily in that it prevents ingress into the roof space of moisture, eg rainwater, which may enter through the ventilation opening. The ventilator nonetheless allows effective ventilation of the roof. The ventilator is of compact design and does not necessarily project from the plane of the roof. In addition, the ventilation path is substantially transverse to the plane of the roof.

Preferably, the ventilation opening is covered by, or takes the form of, a grille to prevent the ingress of leaves or other detritus into the ventilator. The ventilator may also be provided, at the ventilation opening or some other point in the air flow path, with a mesh or the like to prevent the ingress into the roof space of insects or other vermin.

The ventilation opening preferably takes the form of a grille defined by a plurality of parallel slots. Most preferably, there are four such slots.

A moisture collection channel having a width somewhat greater than the width of such a grille may be positioned directly below the grille. More preferably, however, an intermediate fimnel-like component is interposed between the grille and the moisture collection channel such that air can flow to or from the roof space both between the ventilation opening and the intermediate component and between the interinediate component and the moisture collection channel.

3 In a particularly preferred embodiment, a plurality of grilles as just described are provided, each being associated with an intermediate funnellike component and a moisture collection channel.

The roof ventilator according to the invention is preferably fabricated as a unit which can be fitted to any one of a range of supports having a form corresponding to the form of the particular roof covering elements with which the ventilator is to be used. The support will generally be provided with an opening about which the ventilator is fitted. The support is preferably provided with one or more formations which engage the ventilator thereby positioning it correctly. Most preferably, such a formation takes the form of a continuous lip which extends around the periphery of the opening. Such a lip may be of constant height, but more preferably is of increased height at the part which, in use, is at the top of the ventilator so as to present a more effective barrier to ingress of any rainwater running down the roof.

The ventilator according to the invention is most conveniently formed in plastics material, and is preferably produced in a variety of colours to match roof covering elements (eg tiles, natural slates, imitation plastics slates etc) with which it is used.

The ventilator is preferably manufactured as several components which interlock and which, most preferably, captivate the support to which the ventilator is fitted. In one particularly preferred embodiment, the topmost component, incorporating the ventilation opening and grilles, is provided with downwardly-depending legs which engage a backplate mounted behind the support to which the ventilator is fitted.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a roof structure comprising roof covering elements arranged in a plane above a roof space, and a roof ventilator disposed in the plane, the ventilator comprising an upper member having an external surface defining at least one ventilation opening extending longitudinally of the ventilator, and a moisture collection channel disposed beneath said ventilation opening, the moisture collection channel having upstanding lateral walls with upper edges spaced from 4 the underside of the upper member and the moisture collection channel being at its lower end open to the exterior of the ventilator, the arrangement being such that water entering the ventilator via the ventilation opening is collected in the moisture collection channel and discharged therefrom, while air can flow through the space between the walls of the moisture collection channel and the underside of the upper member.

The invention will now be described in greater detail, by way of illustration only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure I is an exploded view of a tile ventilator according to the invention; Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the ventilator of Figure 1; Figure 3 shows cross-sectional views of the individual components of the ventilator of Figures I and 2.

Referring first to Figure 1, a tile ventilator according to the invention comprises generally four components, of which one is optional and may be omitted. The four components are:

a) A tile body 10, most of which is omitted from the drawings, but which has overall 15 dimensions similar to tiles with which it is to be used. The tile body 10 may have any one of numerous forms, for example being generally planar or corrugated to match the surrounding tiles. The tile body 10 is moulded in plastics material of a colour which is again chosen to match the surrounding tiles, and has a square ventilation opening 12 with an upstanding rim 14. 20 b) A gutter box 20, of generally square form, which is dimensioned to fit about the upstanding rim 14 of the opening 12. The gutter box 20 is formed in plastics material, matching the tile body 10 in colour. Because of the complexity of its structure, the gutter box 20 is not moulded in one piece but fabricated by assembly of two or more mouldings. In Figure 1, part of the gutter box 20 is cut away, to show more clearly its structure. For ease of manufacture, it may be preferable for the gutter box to be formed in two separate components which interfit but may remain completely separate.

C) A grille 30 which is dimensioned to be attached to the upper periphery of the gutter box 20. Again, the grille 30 is moulded in plastics material, to match the other components.

d) A back plate 40 which a Iso serves as a pipe connector. This is the optional component which may be omitted in many instances. The back plate 40 is again preferably moulded in plastics material, though as it is hidden when the ventilator is installed it does not necessarily have to match the other components.

The ventilator is assembled by securing the grille 30 to the upper face of the gutter box 20, eg using adhesive or welding, and by securing the back plate 40 (if used) to the lower face of the gutter box 20. The subassembly of grille 30, gutter box 20 and back plate 40 is then fitted to the tile body 10.

The grille 30 is provided with three main grille regions 31,32,33, one of which 31 is disposed centrally o f the grille 3 0 and the other two 3 2,3 3 symmetrically either side of the first 3 1. Each of the main grille regions 31,32,33 comprises four longitudinal slots. In addition, close to the lateral edges of the grille 30 a pair of smaller grille regions 34,35 are disposed, each comprising two longitudinal slots. The two smaller grille regions 34,35 together have a 20 ventilation area equal to one of the main grille regions 31,32,33. The portions of the grille 30 between the various grille regions 31-35 are solid. Beneath each of the main grille regions 31,32,33 a pair of funnel members 21 are disposed such that they collect any water entering the ventilator through the grille regions 31,32,33, and guide the water to channels 22 disposed beneath the funnel members 21. Inagenerally 25 similar fashion, beneath the two smaller grille regions 34, 35, a single funnel member 21 cooperates with the side wall of the gutter box 20 to guide water to a smaller channel 23.

6 The wall of the gutter box 20 which, in use, is the lowest wall is provided with a series of drainage slots 24 which correspond in size and position to the channels 22 and 23.

In use, air can enter or leave the roofspace through the ventilator by following a path such as those indicated by the arrows A in Figure 2. Water entering the ventilator through one of the grille regions 3 1-3 5, on the other hand, is collected in the respective channel 22 or 23 (eg as indicated by the arrows B) and discharged through the drainage slot 24 at the end of that channel 22,23. The drainage slots 24 are positioned slightly above the plane of the tile body so that the water discharged from them runs down the tile body 10 in the same way as rainwater which does not pass through the grille 30.

It will be appreciated that the back plate 40 may not be required where the ventilator simply permits air flow between the roofspace and the external environment. However, where the ventilator functions as a soil vent or a mechanical extractor fan outlet, the back plate 40 serves as a connector for a duct or pipe, eg a flexible plastics pipe. The provision of the back plate 40 may also be beneficial in preventing blockage of the ventilator, eg in situations in which roof insulation follows the rafters.

The back plate 40 may also serve to hold the assembled ventilator together. In such a case, the grille 30 may have one or more (eg four) downwardly-depending legs (not present in the illustrated embodiment) which extend through the gutter box 20 and the opening 12, and engage in appropriately formed sockets (also not shown) in the back plate 40.

7

Claims

1. A roof ventilator adapted to be disposed, in use, in the plane of roof covering elements in a roof structure, the ventilator comprising an upper member having an external surface defining at least one ventilation opening extending longitudinally of the ventilator, and a moisture collection channel disposed beneath said ventilation opening, the moisture collection channel having upstanding lateral walls with upper edges spaced from the underside of the upper member and the moisture collection channel being at its lower end open to the exterior of the ventilator, the arrangement being such that water entering the ventilator via the ventilation opening is collected in the moisture collection channel and discharged therefrom, while air can flow through the space between the walls of the moisture collection channel and the underside of the upper member.

2. A ventilator as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the ventilation opening is covered by, or takes the form of, a grille to prevent the ingress of leaves or other detritus into the ventilator.

3. A ventilator as claimed in Claim 1 or Claim 2, which is provided with a mesh or the like to prevent the ingress into the roof space of insects or other vermin.

4. A ventilator as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the ventilation opening takes the form of a grille defined by a plurality of parallel slots.

A ventilator as claimed in Claim 2, wherein a moisture collection channel having a width somewhat greater than the width of the grille is positioned directly below the grille.

6. A ventilator as claimed in Claim 2, wherein an intermediate funnellike component is interposed between the grille and the moisture collection channel such that air can flow to or from the roof space both between the ventilation opening and the 8 intermediate component and between the intermediate component and the moisture collection channel.

7. A ventilator as claimed in Claim 6, wherein a plurality of grilles are provided, each being associated with an intermediate ftmnel-like component and a moisture collection channel.

8. A ventilator as claimed in any preceding claim, which is formed in plastics material.

9. A ventilator as claimed in any preceding claim, which comprises a plurality of components which interlock and which captivate a support to which the ventilator is fitted.

10. A ventilator as claimed in Claim 9, wherein a topmost component, incorporating the ventilation opening, is provided with downwardly-depending legs which engage a backplate mounted behind the support.

11. A roof structure comprising roof covering elements arranged in a plane above a roof space, and a roof ventilator disposed in the plane, the ventilator comprising an upper member having an external surface defining at least one ventilation opening extending longitudinally ofthe ventilator, and a moisture collection channel disposed beneath said ventilation opening, the moisture collection channel having upstanding lateral walls with upper edges spaced from the underside of the upper member and the moisture collection channel being at its lower end open to the exterior of the ventilator, the arrangement being such that water entering the ventilator via the ventilation opening is collected in the moisture collection channel and discharged therefrom, while air can flow through the space between the walls of the moisture collection channel and the underside of the upper member.

12. A roof ventilator substantially as hereinbefore described and as illustrated in the accompanying Figures.