GB2474067A

GB2474067A - Floor board or panel with heating duct embedded in top surface

Info

Publication number: GB2474067A
Application number: GB0917362A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Nicholas Julian Jan Francis Macphail
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2009-10-05
Filing date: 2009-10-05
Publication date: 2011-04-06
Also published as: GB0917362D0

Abstract

For under-floor heating a flooring board or panel 1 has a duct 2 routed or moulded into a top surface, heating pipes 5 or electric cables located in the duct 2, and then cover strips 3 provided above the pipes 5 to provide a top surface level with the upper surface of the board or panel. Each cover strip 3 can be glued, nailed, pinned or retained by the shape of a rebate 6. An embodiment has the cover strip retained by the duct wall shape (fig 1 a), while another doesn't have a cover strip. The pipe can drop below the board or panel between successive ducts (fig 2), or return in curved ducts. A foil sheet can be adhered to the top surface, the board or panel 1 can be wood, chipboard or ply, and the cover strip 3 can be wood, metal or plastic.

Description

IMPROVEMENTS IN FLOORING BOARD UNDERFLOOR HEATING PANELS.

It is known that the location of a heating pipe at a distance from the upper surface and within a routed duct in a wood flooring board/panel underfloor heating system makes for a swift installation and assured pipe spacing. Effectively the heating system pipework layout is installed as the floor boarding is installed, saving installation time and material cost.

The above prior art system has provision for locating a heating pipe within a or several routed duct/s within the underside of a floor board/panel said duct/s sized to provide an interference fit for the heating pipe to be in thermal contact with the structural fabric of the floor board/panel to provide a good thermally conductive path to the top surface of the flooring board/panel for room heating.

In the prior art described above the heating pipe routed duct is located in the underside of the floor board/panel to present a smooth upper surface finish.

One disadvantage with the above described prior art is that the installation of the heating pipe into the routed duct has to be done before the fixing of the floorboard/panel onto the joists etc. to which it is to be fixed. This is because the prior art has the ducts in the underside of the board making the routed duct inaccessible after the floor board/panel is fixed. This means that the heating pipe has to be pre-installed which adds to manufacturing costs and removes any option of on site pipe location which would allow layout flexibility to better suit site conditions.

* Another disadvantage, and a serious one, is that; as the routed duct is located on the underside of the heated floor board/panel any damage to the heating pipe after installation * by, for example, a badly located nail or screw is very expensive and difficult to rectify.

This is because the heating pipe is usually located in a succession of floor boards/panels * . that it is therefore nigh impossible to raise the board/panel to gain access to the pipework from above without cutting and weakening the board/panel and taking down a ceiling for * : * access is an expensive, messy nightmare. Although, to reduce the risk of pipe damage, the upper surface of the prior art floor board/panel is clearly marked with an identifying :. red line over the path of the pipe and while this may help avoid the pipe being damaged * during initial installation, it is unlikely that after the passage of time this marking will be remembered or uncovered by, for example, carpeting prior to work that may damage the pipe therefore making pipe damage quite likely.

It is the intention of the present invention to overcome or obviate the above disadvantages.

According to the present invention there is provided a floor board /panel as would be used in forming a conventional wooden floor being provided with a routed or moulded heating pipe duct in the top of the panel having a space above the pipe with a space filling cover strip being provided to fit snugly into the said space to cover the said heating pipe in such a way as to make the fmished level of the strip covering the heated pipe substantially level with the upper surface of the floor board or panel. Said heating pipe being in thermal contact with the said pipe duct walls and said cover strip to transfer heat to the said floor board or panel top surface. Said floorboard/panel, pipe duct, cover strip and heating pipe may conveniently be factory assembled or assembled on site to suit requirements.

Preferably the said pipe duct incorporates openings to enable the said heating pipe to pass through to the under side of the board or panel to enable the heated pipe to continue between successive boards or panels and/or to follow a looped path into the next said pipe duct in the same board or panel and/or to link to larger pipes to complete the heating layout. Additionally the said pipe duct and cover strip may be formed into a return curved path for the heating pipe to link to other parallel pipe ducts.

Conveniently the said cover strip may be of a conductive material to better spread the heat from the said heated pipe.

Preferably the said cover strip side wall and or pipe duct side wall is/are formed to retain the cover strip in position above and in thermal contact with the said heated pipe.

The present invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Drawing 1. Is a diagrammatic perspective representation of one form of the present invention in which heating pipe 5. is fitted in thermal contact with and within pipe duct 2.

* : * which is formed together with cover strip rebate 6. in the board or panel I. which has : cover strip 3. snugly fitted in. The vertical walls of the cover strip rebate 6. and those of **,* the cover strip 3. may be shaped to make the cover strip 3. self retaining within the rebate 6. The cover strip may alternatively simply be glued or screwed or pinned in position. **.*

Drawing 1 a. Is a diagrammatic representation of a preferred form of the present invention * : * . * having a smaller form of cover duct and cover strip to that shown in figure 1. This preferred form involves less material removal to that of figure 1. and its greater thickness :. between the pipe duct and the bottom of the board/panel means less reduction of the * : board/panel's strength. ***

Drawing lb. Is a diagrammatic representation of a smaller cover strip of the preferred form of the present invention shown in Drawing la. As outlined in the reference to Drawing 1. the preferred form would also advantageously incorporate a wall shape that would make the cover strip of Drawing lb self retaining and present a substantially flat surface to the upper face of the panel/board.

Drawing 2. Is a diagrammatic section through the board or panel 1. showing how the heating pipe 5. may be conveniently dropped below the board or panel to link between successive pipe ducts 2. or successive boards or panels 1. It should be noted that the heating pipes instead of dropping below the board/panel, may alternatively link or return in curved ducts with curved cover strips -not shown. This also applies to the preferred form shown in Drawing la.

Drawing 3. Is a diagrammatic plan view showing ways in which the panels can be linked having similar numbered components as those in drawing 1.

If the boards/panels 1. are factory assembled a conductive foil sheet may conveniently be adhered to the top of the board/panel 1. to aid sideways conduction and maintain its component's location during transport and installation.

Where a suitably resilient floor covering is to be used a board/panel incorporating just the pipe duct 2 may be utilised removing the need for the cover strip 3. Under these circumstances it would be advantageous that the pipe duct 2. was located so that the pipe top was substantially level with the surface of the board/panel 1.

The board/panel 1. may conveniently be formed from solid wood, chipboard, plywood or other suitable flooring material and may conveniently be plain or tongue and grooved to fit standard flooring systems or plank type to fit in with existing plank type boards. The cover strip 3. may conveniently be formed from wood, metal strip, composite, plastic or other suitable material. The heating pipe 5. may be conventional pulybutylene, PEX, copper or other suitable heating pipe and may conveniently be of approximately 10mm outside diameter though this does not preclude other sizes to be used when circumstances dictate.

The board/panel 1 is laid in the normal way and the heating pipe 5. is connected in the normal way to a wet heating system with temperature and time controls that are used on a normal underfloor heating system. * * *SS I

Although this invention has been described in a form that uses imbedded pipes heated by ** circulated hot water this does not preclude its use with electrically heated imbedded cables. * . ** * 5 * S.. S..

S