GB2488541A

GB2488541A - Towel rail assemblies

Info

Publication number: GB2488541A
Application number: GB1103076.4A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Jeremy Damien Bosworth
Original assignee: Bard and Brazier Ltd
Current assignee: Bard and Brazier Ltd
Priority date: 2011-02-23
Filing date: 2011-02-23
Publication date: 2012-09-05
Also published as: GB201103076D0

Abstract

A towel rail assembly adapted for mounting on a wall has a riser 20 arranged for mounting to the wall behind the front face 12 thereof, the riser having at least one horizontal spigot 27,28,29 which, when the riser has been installed behind the wall front face, extends forwardly beyond the front face of the wall. The riser also has inlet and outlet pipes 33,34 for connection to pipework of a wet heating system. A towel rail member has a plurality of main parts 16 adapted to extend with clearance across the front face 12 of the wall and mounting parts 17 connected to the main parts. Each mounting part 17 has a sleeve 19 adapted to inter-fit with a respective spigot 27,28,29 in a sliding manner. Sealing means 45 is arranged to effect a fluid-tight seal between each sleeve and the associated spigot and a screw is fitted into a threaded bore 48 to secure the sleeve to the spigot at a selected relative axial position. The riser pipes and fitting are concealed to reduce their visual impact, leaving the simpler aesthetic of just the rails visible.

Description

TOWEL RAIL ASSEMBLIES

This invention relates to a towel rail assembly adapted for mounting on a wall.

The invention also relates to a method of installing a towel rail assembly of this invention.

Modern bathroom design almost invariably requires the provision of a heated towel rail and so-called ladder towel rails are increasingly popular. A typical ladder towel rail has a pair of vertical riser pipes with individual towel rails extending horizontally between the riser pipes. Suitable fixings or mounting devices for the riser pipes, or sometimes for the rails, are used to support the ladder rail to a wall.

Pipe connectors for the pipes of a hot water heating system are provided at the ends of the two riser pipes; normally, only two of those connectors are used and blanking plugs are fitted to the other two connectors.

The riser pipes of a ladder towel rail tend to be somewhat prominent, but they may be made more appealing for example by applying a suitable finish such as a chromium plating. In this way, the riser pipes may be made a feature of the ladder towel rail, but cleaner lines may be imparted to the rail by minimising the impact of the riser pipes.

The installation of a ladder towel rail usually requires the heating system pipework to be visible to at least some extent, and this impacts on the visual appeal of the installed towel rail. Also the fixings required for mounting the towel rail on a wall will intrude on the visual appeal. There have been proposals for at least partially concealing the pipework or the fixings but inevitably the preferred clean lines of a heated towel rail are spoilt to some extent by the additional components required to give the towel rail its required functionality.

Taking the foregoing into account, it is a principal aim of this invention to provide a towel rail assembly where the impact of the component parts other than the or each rail itself is reduced to a minimum, in an attempt to obviate visible riser pipes and fixings for the towel rail.

According to one aspect of this invention, there is provided a towel rail assembly adapted for mounting on a wall having a front face, which assembly comprises a riser arranged for mounting to the wall behind the front face thereof, the riser having at least one generally horizontal spigot which when the riser is installed extends forwardly beyond the front face of the wall, the riser also having inlet and outlet ports for connection to pipework of a wet heating system, and a towel rail member having a main part adapted to extend with clearance across the front face of the wall and a mounting part connected to the main part and having a sleeve adapted slidingly to interfit with the spigot, there being sealing means arranged to effect a fluid-tight seal between the sleeve and the spigot, and also locking means to secure the sleeve to the spigot at a selected relative axial position.

It will be appreciated that with this invention, the towel rail assembly allows installation on a wall having a front face with only the towel rail member (i.e. the part of the assembly over which a towel is hung), or each such rail member if there is more than one, visible on the front face of the wall. The riser pipe is arranged behind the front face of the wall and has a spigot which emerges through the front face of the wall and communicates with the towel rail member to allow the flow of hot water therethrough. The spigot of the riser and the sleeve of the rail member may slide relative to each other so that the end of the rail member sleeve may be disposed closely adjacent the wall front face, allowing the assembly to be installed on walls of differing thicknesses. Once the sleeve has been located as required on the spigot, the sleeve and spigot are locked together, there being a seal arrangement between the sleeve and spigot to ensure a water-tight assembly.

Normally, the towel rail member will extend horizontally across a wall, spaced from that wall so that a towel may be hung over the member. Though it might be possible to support the towel rail member soieiy by one mounting part engaged with the spigot, it is preferred that the spigot supports one end of the towel rail member and the other end of the rail member is also supported with respect to the wall. For this purpose, a mount may be provided for the other end of the towel rail member, which mount is appropriately secured to the wall. Such a mount may be concealed, for example by providing a spigot similar to that associated with the riser, the support spigot locating in a sleeve provided in a mounting part similar to the first-mentioned mounting part, for example at the other end of the towel rail member. By having a corresponding locking means at both ends of the towel rail member, the member may be securely supported on the wall.

The riser may be configured both for the flow of hot water to the towel rail member and the return of cooled water therefrom, the riser having two ports for the connection of a wet heating system flow and return pipes. The riser may therefore have two ducts extending therealong, with separate conduits from the ducts into the spigot, for flow to and return from the towel rail member. For example, the two ducts of the riser may be arranged concentrically therewith in, or the riser could be divided into the two ducts by an internal transverse wall extending along the length of the riser. The spigot preferably has the flow and return conduits arranged concentrically with the flow conduit projecting further into the sleeve of the towel rail member than the return conduit.

The ports of the riser may be defined by internally threaded orifices communicating with the two ducts respectively of the riser. Suitable pipe connectors may be threaded into those orifices, in a manner well known and understood in the art. In the alternative, pipes may be permanently secured to the riser, for example in an end cap thereof, the free ends of the pipes providing the flow and return ports for the riser. Pipework connections to those free ends may be undertaken in the usual way for wet heating systems, using for example compression olive fittings.

As an alternative to a single riser providing the flow and return for the towel rail member, another possibility would be to provide two risers, one for each end of the towel rail member respectively. Thus, according to a closely related second aspect of this invention, there is provided a towel rail assembly adapted for mounting on a wall having a front face, which assembly comprises a pair of risers each arranged for mounting to the wall behind the front face thereof, each riser having at least one generally horizontal spigot which when the riser is installed extends forwardly beyond the front face of the wall, each riser also having a port for connection to pipework of a wet heating system, and a towel rail member having a main part adapted to extend with clearance across the front face of the wall and a pair of mounting parts each having a sleeve adapted slidingly to interfit with a respective spigot, and for each sleeve and spigot there is sealing means arranged to effect a fluid-tight seal between the sleeve and the spigot and also locking means to secure the sleeve to the spigot at a selected relative axial position.

In this alternative arrangement, by having spigots extending forwardly through the wall from the two horizontally spaced risers, the flow of the hot water may be from the first riser into one end of the towel rail member, and the return flow being out of the other end of the towel rail member into the other riser. In such a case, each riser would require only one port, either for flow or return as appropriate. The advantage of having two risers is that the two ends of the towel rail member may be supported by the spigots of those risers, obviating the need for a separate mount for one end of the towel rail member, but the mounting of the two risers to a wall is likely to be more difficult than if there is only one riser.

Advantageously, either towel rail assembly (i.e. the preferred arrangement with one riser or the arrangement with two risers) has a plurality of towel rail members, extending parallel to one another horizontally across the face of the wall.

Such towel rail members may be of the same length, or could be of different lengths to suit the bathroom, so long as the assembly has only one riser. Each towel rail member may be of the same cross-sectional shape and size, or the members could be of different cross-sectional sizes or even of different cross-sectional shapes.

The sleeve of the towel rail member preferably is a sliding fit over the spigot of the riser, so that when the sleeve is in abutting engagement with the wall front face, Is the spigot is wholly concealed by the sleeve. The locking means may comprise a screw threaded into the sleeve and extending generally radially, so that the screw may be tightened against the spigot with the sleeve and spigot in the required relative position. Conveniently, the sealing means comprises one or more 0-rings fitted around the spigot and bearing against the inner surface of the sleeve.

It will be appreciated that with the towel rail of this invention, access must be had behind the front face of the wall, for the installation of the riser. This may be achieved during fitting out of a bathroom, by cutting a suitable channel in the wall and then securing the riser in that channel, for example by the use of brackets secured to the wall and on to which the riser may be mounted. Then, after connection of the heating system pipework to the ports of the riser, a suitable facing for the wall may be applied over the channel. For example, the wall may be tiled, with the tiles extending over the channel but with the spigots projecting through holes provided in the tiling at the required locations. In order to facilitate this installation technique, a pre-formed box for the riser may be secured within the channel in the wall, with the riser then mounted to the box. The box may have a front panel which is secured to the back part of the box, so that tiling over the channel may be facilitated. It is envisaged that the normal installation technique will be with a wall box of this kind.

In an alternative installation, suitable for an internal wall of studwork and plasterboard, noggings may be provided between the vertical studs so that the riser (or a wall box as mentioned above) may be secured to those noggings. When completed, the installation may be tiled over as described above, but it would be possible to provide an access hatch in the face of the wall opposed to that which is to carry the towel rail.

This invention extends to a method of installing a towel rail assembly of this invention as described above.

By way of example only, one specific embodiment of towel rail assembly of this invention will now be described in detail, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which:-Figure 1 is a diagrammatic isometric view of a part of a dry-lined wall with the towel rail assembly mounted thereon; Figure 2 is a diagrammatic vertical section through the part of the dry-lined wall of Figure 1, showing the installation of the towel rail assembly; Figure 3 is a rear view of the assembly of Figure 2, but with the noggings partly cut-away for clarity; Figure 4 is a part-sectional view of the riser used in the assembly of Figures 2 and 3; Figure 5 is a vertical section through the riser shown in Figure 4, on an enlarged scale, but shortened vertically between the spigots; Figure 6 is a partiai cross-section through an end support for a towei rail member; and Figure 7 is an exploded view of a wall box for use with the towel rail assembly.

Figures 1 to 3 diagrammatically show the towel rail assembly fitted to a studwork and plasterboard wall. The wall has a wooden frame including horizontal wooden studs 10 and vertical studs (not shown) forming a framework to which are secured plasterboard panels, one such panel being shown at 11 and having a front face 12. Such a walling technique is very widely used and well understood, and will not be described in further detail here since it forms no part of this invention, as such. The towel rail assembly comprises three similar rail members 13,14 and 15 each held to the wall panel 11 to extend substantially horizontally across the front face in alignment with one another. Each rail member comprises a main part 16 having at each end a mounting part 17 which abuts the wall front face 12. Each mounting part comprises a 90° elbow 18 connected to the main part 16 and a short linear sleeve 19 to be described below.

Behind the wall panel 11, there is a riser 20 supported, in this example, on upper and lower noggings 21,22 connected to and extending between a pair of upright studs of the wall framework. The mounting of the riser 20 to the noggings 21,22 may be achieved in any appropriate manner, such as by means of a threaded stud 23 extending through a nogging and having a washer and nut 24 as shown in the upper part of Figure 4, or by means of an angle bracket 25 as shown in the lower part of Figure 4, the angle bracket being secured to the riser by means of a bolt 26.

In a preferred installation, a wall box will be employed to mount the riser to the studwork frame, such as the wall box of Figure 7, to be described below. The riser has three spigots 27,28,29 extending horizontally through the wall panel 11 to engage with the sleeve 19 at one end of the respective rail member 13,14,15. The other end of each rail member is connected to the wall panel 11 by an end mount 30 (Figure 6).

The components mentioned above will now be described in more detail. The riser 20 is in the form of a tubular outer duct provided with upper and lower end caps 31,32. The upper end cap 31 serves to close off the outer duct, 0-ring seals (Figure 5) being provided to ensure a water-tight joint between the cap and duct. The cap 31 includes a radial threaded bore for receiving a correspondingly threaded mounting bolt or stud and in Figure 4, there is shown a stud 23, washer and nut 24 used to attach the upper end of the riser to nogging 21. The lower end cap 32 is similar to the upper end cap 31 and in Figure 4 the radial threaded bore is shown receiving a bolt 26 securing a right angle bracket 25 to the end cap, the bracket engaging the lower nogging (not shown in Figure 4) to secure the lower end of the riser thereto.

The lower end cap 32 has a pair of bores formed therethrough, respective pipes 33,34 being secured in those bores. The free ends 35,36 of the pipes 33,34 are of a standard size to allow the connection thereto of the pipework of a wet heating system, for example by means of compression olive connectors. Within the outer duct of the riser 20, there is provided an inner tubular duct 37 extending concentrically along the length of the riser and received in counter-bores in the end caps 31,32 (see Figure 5). Pipe 33 communicates with the interior of the inner duct 37 by way of an extension pipe 38 passing through a transverse waIl 39 provided within the duct 37. Pipe 34 communicates with the annular space 40 between the outer and inner ducts of the riser, through openings 41 formed in the inner duct below the transverse wall 39.

Each spigot 27,28,29 comprises an outer tube 43 secured to the outer duct of the riser for example by welding and communicating with the annular space 40. An inner tube 44 is supported concentrically within the outer tube 43 and extends through the annular duct 40, to communicate with the interior of the inner duct 37 of the riser. Adjacent the free end of each spigot there is provided a pair of 0-rings 45 fitted in grooves formed in the outer tube of the spigot, for effecting a seal to the respective towel rail member sleeve 19.

Each towel rail member 13,14,15 is tubular, with the central main part 16 thereof being integrated with the mounting parts 17 at the two ends of the main part.

The main part and mounting parts may be given an aesthetically-pleasing finish, such as by chromium plating, since those parts of each towel rail member, and only those parts, will be exposed within a bathroom at the completion of the installation.

Within the linear sleeve 19 of each mounting part 17, there is provided a reinforcing tube 47 suitably secured in position and sealed to the inner surface of the sleeve 19.

A threaded bore 48 extends radially through the outer tube and reinforcing tube adjacent the free end thereof, on the underside of the rail when installed. A grub screw is fitted into that bore, whereby during installation tightening of the grub screw on to the outer surface of the outer tube 43 of a spigot will secure the linear sleeve 19 of the rail member in the chosen axial position with respect to the spigot. A flexible pipe 49 is fitted to a connector 50 at the free end of the inner tube 44 of the spigot supporting the towel rail member, that flexible pipe having a sufficient length -10 -to extend within the towel rail member into the mounting part of the opposite end of that rail member. In this way, when the installation is complete, flow from the spigot inner tube 44 will be directed into the mounting part 17 of the rail member at the end thereof remote from that mounting part attached to the spigot.

Figure 6 shows a support arrangement for the end of a towel rail member remote from the end connected to a spigot of the riser. The configuration of the mounting part 17, including an elbow 18, linear sleeve 19 and reinforcing tube 47 is essentially the same as that for the spigot end of the towel rail member, except that a transverse wall 53 is provided to close off the reinforcing tube 47 partway along the length thereof. The support arrangement includes a cylindrical mount 54 having an end wall 55 with a central hole, a screw 56 being used to secure that mount to wall panel 11 at the required location, using a wall board plug 57. The reinforcing tube 47 then fits over the mount 54 in much the same way as does the reinforcing tube over the outer tube 43 of a spigot, at the other end of the towel rail member, and the grub screw is used to lock together the sleeve 19 and the mount 54 at a chosen axial disposition.

The assembly described above is installed by fitting the noggings 21,22 to the studwork of the wall so as to extend between upright studs at the required height for installation of the riser 20. The riser is vertically secured in position to the noggings, using threaded studs, brackets or the like, whereafter the free ends 35,36 of the pipes 33,34 are connected to the flow and return pipes of a wet heating system.

After checking the connections are watertight, the wall panel 11 is secured to the framework in the usual way, but with holes formed in the panel at appropriate positions to allow the spigots 27,28,29 to project beyond the panel front face 12.

The required finish is applied to the wall panel 11 -for example, the panel may be -11 -painted, tiled or papered to suit the room design. Mounts 54 are secured to the wall panel 11 at the appropriate positions having regard to the spigots 27,28,29 -each mount should be on the same horizontal level as the corresponding spigot, and at a pre-set distance therefrom. It may be necessary to provide reinforcement for the wall panel to receive the screw 56, or a wallboard plug 57 may be employed, as shown. A flexible pipe 49 is secured to connector 50 at the free end of each spigot inner tube 44 and is threaded into a towel rail, which is then fitted to the spigot and corresponding mount 54. The flexible pipe 49 is of a sufficient length for its free end, when fully installed, to lie within the mounting part 19 of the rail remote from the spigot supporting the rail, as shown in Figure 6. The towel rail is pushed towards the wall until the free end of the linear sleeve 19 and reinforcing tube 47 at each end abut the wall panel, whereafter the grub screws are tightened to secure the towel rail in position.

In use, hot water from a wet central heating system flows into pipe 33 and so into the inner duct 37 of the riser, and from there into the inner tube 44 of each spigot 27,28,29. The flexible pipe 49 secured to the inner tube 44 feeds the hot water to the further mounting part of the towel rail member, the water issuing from the flexible tube and then flowing back along the towel rail member and into the annular space between the inner and outer tubes 43,44 of a spigot. The return flow is then into the annular space between the inner and outer ducts of the riser, and is returned to the heating system through pipe 34.

As will be appreciated, the visual impact of the installed towel rail is highly pleasing as only the rail members are visible, abutting the outer face 12 of the wall panel 11. The riser may have other numbers of spigots in order to allow the -12 -amounting of a required number of towel rail members and also the spacing of the spigots may be selected to suit a particular installation.

The towel rail assembly has been described above as installed in a studwork and plasterboard wall. If the assembly is to be installed in a solid wall, it is necessary to cut a channel into the wall at the required location for the riser of the towel rail assembly and then secure the riser in that channel so that the spigots thereof project forwardly beyond the front face of the wall. Also, the feed and return pipes of the wet heating system must be connected within that channel to the pipes 33,34 of the riser. Once that part of the installation has been completed, the wall may be finished for example by tiling, running the tiles over the channel within which the riser has been located. In other respects, the installation corresponds to that described above, for a studwork and plasterboard wall.

In order to facilitate the installation of the riser either in a solid wall or in a studwork wall, use may be made of a metal wall box suitable for mounting within a channel cut in the wall or to frame members or noggings, the wall box being specifically designed for supporting the riser within the box. Figure 7 is an exploded view of such a wall box comprising a back member 60, sides 61,62 and end plates 63,64. Flanges 65,66 project laterally from the sides 61,62 and a cover plate 67 may be secured to the front edges of the sides 63,64. Though shown in exploded form, the sides, end plates and flanges will normally be secured together for example by spot-welding or a similar technique. Self-tapping screws may be used to secure the back member and cover plate to the sides and end plates so that either may be removed for installation of the riser whereafter the back member or cover plate should be secured to the wall box to complete the installation.

-13 -A pair of brackets 68,69 are provided within the wall box, each bracket having a slot 70 to receive a bolt threaded into the bore of an end cap of the riser. In this way, following the securing of the wall box to a channel cut in a solid wall by using the flanges 65,66, the riser may be mounted within the wall box by engaging the bolts with the slots 70 of the brackets 68,69. The lower end plate 64 is provided with two holes to allow the pipes 33,34 to be passed therethrough prior to the connection of those pipes to the pipework of the wet heating system. The flanges 65,66 ensure that the wall box, and so too the riser, has the correct relative disposition with respect to the front face of the wall and allows the easy finishing of the wall with a substantially uniform layer, for example of plaster or tiling and adhesive.

After the cover plate has been attached to the wall box, tiling over the wall box may be completed in the usual way. The cover plate is perforated as shown at 71, but is preferably perforated over its length, to enhance the sticking of the tile adhesive to the cover plate. In all other respects, use of the wall box allows the installation of the towel rail assembly in the same manner as has been described above.

Claims

-14 -CLAIMS1. A towel rail assembly adapted for mounting on a wall having a front face, which assembly comprises a riser arranged for mounting to the wall behind the front face thereof, the riser having at least one generally horizontal spigot which when the riser is installed extends forwardly beyond the front face of the wail, the riser also having inlet and outlet ports for connection to pipework of a wet heating system, and a towel rail member having a main part adapted to extend with clearance across the front face of the wall and a mounting part connected to the main part and having a sleeve adapted slidingly to interfit with the spigot, there being sealing means arranged to effect a fluid-tight seal between the sleeve and the spigot and also locking means to secure the sleeve to the spigot at a selected relative axial position.
2. A towel rail assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the connection part of the towel rail member is disclosed at one end of the main part thereof and there is a mounting arrangement at the other end of the main part of the towel rail for attaching said other end to a wall.
3. A towel rail assembly as claimed in claim 2, wherein the mounting arrangement comprises a further spigot for securing to a wall and adapted slidingly to interfit with a sleeve provided on said other end of the main part of the towel rail member.
4. A towel rail assembly as claimed in any of the preceding claims wherein there are two ducts extending along the riser and the spigot has two conduits respectively communicating with the two ducts of the riser.

-15 -
5. A towel rail assembly as claimed in claim 4, wherein the riser is generally cylindrical and there is an internal cylindrical wall extending concentrically within the riser and defining the two ducts of the riser.
6. A towel rail assembly as claimed in claim 4 or claim 5, wherein the conduits of the spigot are arranged concentrically and respectively communicate with the two ducts of the riser.
7. A towel rail assembly as claimed in any of claims 4 to 6, wherein the ports of the riser are defined by internally threaded orifices provided in the riser or externally threaded stubs projecting from the riser and communicating with the respective ducts of the riser.
8. A towel rail assembly as claimed in any of claims 4 to 6, wherein respective pipes are carried by the riser and communicate with the ducts thereof, the ports of the riser being defined by the free ends of the pipes.
9. A towel rail assembly as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the sleeve of the mounting part is adapted to slide telescopically over the spigot of the riser.
10. A towel rail assembly as claimed in claim 9, wherein the locking means comprises a screw threaded into the sleeve to extend generally radially thereof, whereby tightening of the screw to engage the spigot locks the sleeve against axial movement with respect to the spigot.
11. A towel rail assembly as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the sealing means comprises one or more 0-rings fitted between the spigot and the sleeve.
12. A towel rail assembly as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the riser has a plurality of spigots which extend generally horizontally -16 -forwardly beyond the front face of the wall when the riser is installed, each spigot communicating with a respective towel rail member.
13. A towel rail assembly as claimed in claim 12, wherein each towel rail member is of substantially the same length as the others, to extend generally parallel to each other spaced from the front face of the wall.
14. A towel rail assembly adapted for mounting on a wall having a front face, which assembly comprises a pair of risers each arranged for mounting to the wall behind the front face thereof, each riser having at least one generally horizontal spigot which when the riser is installed extends forwardly beyond the front face of the wall, each riser also having a port for connection to pipework of a wet heating system, and a towel rail member having a main part adapted to extend with clearance across the front face of the wall and a pair of mounting parts each having a sleeve adapted slid ingly to interfit with a respective spigot, and for each sleeve and spigot there is sealing means arranged to effect a fluid-tight seal between the sleeve and the spigot and also locking means to secure the sleeve to the spigot at a selected relative axial position.
15. A towel rail assembly adapted for mounting on a wall and substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.
16. A towel rail assembly as claimed in any of claims 1 to 15 in combination with a wall box adapted for mounting to a wall and including supports for the riser, so that the wall box may be secured in a selected position to the wall whereafter the riser is mounted in the wall box.
17. The combination of a towel rail assembly and wall box of claim 16, wherein the front of the wall box is open and there is a cover for the open front which -17 -when secured in position lies substantially parallel to the front face of a wall in which the wall box is mounted.
18. A method of installing a towel rail assembly as claimed in any of claims 1 to 15, wherein the riser is mounted generally vertically to the wall behind the front face thereof so that the spigots of the riser extend forwardly beyond the front face of the wall, a wall covering is applied over the riser, a towel rail member is fitted to the projecting spigot and is locked in the required position abutting the front face of the wall with the main part of the towel rail member extending across the wall, spaced from the front face thereof.
19. A method as claimed in claim 18, wherein a wall box is secured to frame members or noggings of a studwork wall or in a channel formed in a solid wall, and the riser is mounted in the wall box.
20. A method as claimed in claim 19, wherein the wall box has a removable cover which is secured to the open front of the wall box.
21. A method as claimed in claim 19 or claim 20, wherein the wall box has a removable back plate to allow installation of the riser from the back of the wall box.