GB2592565A - Skirting boards and methods of fitting the same - Google Patents

Abstract

A skirting construction comprises a first elongate member 1 designed to be attached to a wall and a second elongate member 2 designed to be fitted against the first and designed to extend upwards from a floor when installed. The first member may have an elongate board having an upper profiled portion that constitutes the top of a skirting board when installed and extends outwardly enabling the second member to be fitted underneath. The second member may have a rebated portion. The members may be formed of white MDF. Also disclosed is a method of constructing and installing the skirting by attaching the first member to a wall, temporarily fixing the second member against the first raised from its intended final position and aligned parallel with the first, scribing the lower portion of the second member, profiling the lower edge following the scribing and installing the second member with its top fitted against the first member. The method may include the step of conducting an air test before fitting the second elongate member.

Description

SKIRTING BOARDS AND METHODS OF FITTING THE SAME

This invention relates to skirting boards and methods of fitting them It is customary in most buildings to fit a skirting board around the perimeter of a room. The board extends upwardly from the level of the floor to a desired height and the edge of the board remote from the floor is very often profiled for a more pleasing visual effect than the edge of a plain plank of wood. The skirting boards are often affixed to the walls of the room after flooring, for example made up of tongue and groove planks, is installed on the subfloor. While this is relatively straightforward to achieve, it is often carried out at a stage in the fitting out process of the internals of a building when much subsequent activity remains to be carried out. That subsequent activity can damage the flooring itself, for example if heavy items are dropped on to it, or liquids such as paint spilt. It is commonplace during the final stages of internal fitting to cover a newly-laid floor with some form of protective cover, for example plastics sheeting, especially if a luxury floor covering such as pre-finished timber, carpet, vinyl, marble or stone has already been fitted. The protective cover needs to be fitted temporarily into the floor area and subsequently removed, both of which processes can, if not carefully done, involve damage to the floor. The temporary covering is often simply disposed of after use, and even if it is made of recyclable material, it is often simply put into a skip with other rubbish and ends up as landfill. This is neither economically nor ecologically satisfactory.

A further problem, especially where existing buildings are being renovated, though sometimes in the case of newly-built structures, is that the walls and/or the floor or sub-floor are not always flat. In order to match the lower edge of the skirting to the floor, adjustments have to be made, which is not always easily achieved.

A further problem arises, particularly in new building works, that, in order to ensure that the building regulations are met, so-called "air testing" is carried out.

This procedure is designed to ensure that draughts do not penetrate the junction between wall and floor or sub-floor, which would adversely affect the overall thermal insulation properties between the interior of the property and the outside environment. One way of ensuring that such penetration is avoided is to seal the bottom of the skirting on to the top of the floor, which, if properly carried out, prevents airflow at the base of the skirting. Air testing is often carried out early in the fitting out sequence, which often entails fitting a skirting at a stage when there are still many other internal fitting tasks to be completed.

A separate issue relates to the architect valuation procedure which is carried out when "internal decoration" is completed, and that is taken to include the provision of skirtings, so promoting their fitting earlier in the construction cycle than needed, simply in order to search "internal decoration" status.

It is an object of the present invention to solve or at least alleviate these various problems.

According to the present invention, we provide a skirting construction consisting of a first elongate skirting member designed to be attached to the wall and a second elongate skirting member designed to be fitted against the first member and to extend upwards from the floor once the floor itself has been installed.

Preferably the first member (hereinafter "wall section") comprises an elongate board having an upper profiled portion designed to constitute the top of the skirting board once installed, and preferably the profiled portion extends outwardly enabling the second member (hereinafter "front section") to be fitted underneath the profiled portion of the wall section.

Constructing and installing a skirting board arrangement in this way gives rise to a number of advantages. In particular, it enables the wall section to be installed at a time much earlier in the internal fitting sequence and, if the lower portion of the wall section extends as far as the sub-floor, it may be sealed at its lower edge enabling air testing to be carried out before the installation of the floor itself and the installation of the front section.

The present invention is most applicable to the installation of skirtings made of 5 white MDF, but it can be applied where the skirting is made of other board type materials, for example, wrapped, foiled or solid timber components, or even of synthetic material.

Two-part skirting board arrangements are known, and, in particular, these have been developed to enable, for example, electrical cables to be run between a first part fixed to the wall and a second part fixed to the wall and to the first part or which can be clipped on to the part fixed to the wall.

The invention is illustrated by way of example with reference to the following specific description which should be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a diagrammatic vertical section of a two-part skirting board construction in accordance with the invention, showing the two parts assembled 20 together; Figure 2 shows the two parts separated; Figure 3 shows a variety of two-part skirting board constructions with differing profiles for the top of the skirting board; Figure 4 is a diagrammatic illustration of one step in the installation process where the wall is not completely flat; Figure 5 shows a different step diagrammatically where the floor itself is not completely flat; and Figure 6 shows a completed installation diagrammatically.

Referring to the Figures, the two-part skirting consists of a wall section 1 to be affixed to the wall and a front section 2 which fits against the first section. The front section 2 is rebated at the top so that it can be raised during the installation process as shown in Figure 5 and explained in more detail below.

As can be seen from Figures 1 to 3, the shape or profiled portion of the wall section projects from the relatively thin major planar portion of that section to provide a flat downwardly-facing ledge against which the top of the front section lies when the two parts are fitted together. Figure 3 shows, by way of example, a number of commonly used profiles, among the very wide variety of decorative "skirting board tops" which may be desired by the eventual user.

If air testing is needed, just the wall section is affixed to the wall with its lower edge scribed and contoured to fit against the sub-floor and then sealed thereto.

If the wall is not flat, the first plank of the flooring itself can be marked, for example by using a scribing block and pencil as shown in Figure 4, to ensure an eventual good fit between the edge of the plank next to the wall and the wall itself or the lower portion of the profile-bearing wall section of the skirting.

In order to ensure that any deviations from flatness in the floor itself are properly taken into account, the arrangement shown in Figure 5 is adopted with the front section of the skirting temporarily fixed vertically raised from its final position, but aligned precisely parallel with the wall section of the skirting. This can be done by simple nailing and, in order to maintain the front section vertical, a separate and disposable spacer denoted 5 in Figure 5 can be located between the two components. By the use of a pencil and scribing block, a mark can be made on the front section 2 and, following the removal of that section temporarily from the wall, its lower edge can then be profiled so that when installed, following the installation of the floor, it matches any undulations or unevenness in the floor surface itself.

The final construction is as illustrated diagrammatically in Figure 6 where the front section 2 fits snugly into the wall section 1 and likewise lies snugly against the top of the floor constituted as shown in Figure 6 by an arrangement of tongue and groove planks.

A substantial advantage of constructing and installing a skirting in accordance with the present invention is that the wall section of the skirting may be fitted and, if appropriate, air testing carried out well before the final installation of the floor itself. This means that the floor is not exposed to risk during the final stages of fitting out. A further advantage is that if, for example, the owner wished to replace one floor with another, the front sections can simply be detached from the wall sections, the old flooring removed, new flooring laid and the front sections then replaced.

The present invention includes both two-part skirting constructions as described above and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings, as well as the method of installation described and illustrated above. The major advantage of the invention is that it enables the two-component skirting board to be installed in two phases, which can be spaced apart in time. In the first phase, which should be carried out as soon as practicable, the first section is installed. This enables interior decoration to be finished, and the requirement of "valuation" at this stage to be achieved, and can aid with air testing by providing a complete skirting board seal. In the second phase, the front or cover section is fitted as late as practicable, which allows additional drying time and onerous work to be completed before fragile flooring is installed.

That installation can be more easily carried out because the absence at that stage of the front section(s) enables access to fit the floor to the periphery of the room without a high skill level, as without the front sections in place there is, for example, up to + or -lOmm tolerance at the edges of the room, making the work less demanding for the carpenter or tiler. All of these factors give rise to improved efficiencies in connection with the installation and finishing of the flooring and skirting in a building and reduce the risks of costly snagging or other removal work being unnecessary, so providing significant economic benefit to the building owner or developer.

Claims (7)

1. CLAIMS 1. 2. 3. rC\I 4. 5.CO 6.A skirting construction comprising a first elongate skirting member designed to be attached to a wall and a second elongate skirting member designed to be fitted against the first member and to extend upwards from the floor once the floor itself has been installed.
2. A skirting construction according to claim 1 wherein the first member comprises an elongate board having an upper profiled portion designed to constitute the top of the skirting board once installed.
3. A skirting construction according to claim 2 wherein the profiled portion extends outwardly enabling the second elongate skirting member to be fitted underneath the profiled portion of the first section.
4. A skirting construction according to any one of claims 1 to 3 wherein the top of the second elongate skirting member is rebated.
5. A skirting construction according to any one of claims 1 to 4 wherein the skirting members are made of white MDF.
6. A method of constructing and installing a skirting in accordance with any one of the preceding claims comprising attaching the first elongate skirting member against the wall, temporarily fixing the second elongate member against the first member but raised from its intended final position, and aligned precisely parallel with the first elongate skirting member, scribing the lower portion of the second elongate to follow the contour of the floor, removing the second member temporarily from the wall, profiling its lower edge following the scribing and then installing the second member with its top fitted against the first member.
7. 7. A method according to claim 6 wherein the lower edge of the first elongate skirting member is sealed to the floor and air testing carried out before the fitting of the second elongate skirting member thereto.