GB2604850A

GB2604850A - Dry Bonnet System for Hipped Roofs

Info

Publication number: GB2604850A
Application number: GB2101744.7A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Charles Chownsmith Daniel; Eastwood Ray
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2021-02-09
Filing date: 2021-02-09
Publication date: 2022-09-21
Also published as: GB202101744D0

Abstract

A dry, i.e. mortar-free, system and method is disclosed for tiling a bonnet hip on a tiled roof. The mortarless system includes a spacer provided in each space between pairs of respective upper and lower bonnet tiles of a sloping hip. The spacer comprises clips which engage an underlying hip tile and a wedge portion for projecting from the top of the underlying tile to space an overlying tile from it. The spacer sits against the upper surface of the bonnet tile and the clips are formed at lateral edges of the spacer and clip around edges of the tile. Additionally, a rubber or polyurethane insert may be inserted in front of the spacer to seal between the adjacent tiles, this may be a separate component or may be integral to the spacer. A hip made according to the system and method looks very similar to a traditionally made hip, but is easier to install and essentially maintenance-free.

Description

DRY BONNET SYSTEM FOR HIPPED ROOFS

The present invention relates to a dry bonnet system for tiling the hip of a roof, without the need to use mortar.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

The sloping external junction between two sloping faces of a roof is known as a "hip".

Traditionally, roof hips are finished using bonnet tiles. Bonnet tiles are narrow at the top and flare out towards the bottom, curving around the hip. When fitted the bonnet tiles overlap one another to ensure a watertight roof. Bonnet tiles are fitted starting from the bottom of the hip, where a tile is fixed. Mortar is then placed on top of the tile, and then the next bonnet tile up the hip is placed over the mortar bed, overlapping the lower tile. The bonnet tiles are typically fixed to the timber of the roof with a single nail near the top of the tile.

A traditional hip made from bonnet tiles is aesthetically pleasing, and if installed correctly should last a long time. However, it is a skilled job requiring practice to correctly create the mortar bed and ensure a waterproof seal. Also, if the mortar is mixed improperly then it can become loose after a few years. Even when the mortar is correctly made it will perish over time and require maintenance. Bonnet files which are not firmly fixed can come loose in very windy conditions, potentially causing injury or damage and leaving a roof non-watertight.

In recent years "dry", i.e. mortarless, systems for roof ridges have become popular, and are widely used on roof ridges (i.e. the horizontal junction between two sloping sections, which runs along the top of a roof). Dry ridge systems have support trays and clamps which are fixed to the roof with screws, and which hold ridge files securely in place without the use of mortar. This means that they are essentially maintenance-free. These systems, or similar ones, have also been used on the sloping hip of a roof.

However, this does not reproduce the look of a traditional bonnet hip.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a dry bonnet system for hipped roofs. STATEMENT OF INVENTION According to the present invention there is provided a method of tiling a sloping hip of a hipped roof using bonnet tiles and spacer components, each spacer component having clips for engaging a respective bonnet file and a wedge portion for projecting from the top of the respective bonnet file when the spacer component is engaged to the bonnet tile using the clips, the method comprising: engaging a first spacer component with a first bonnet file, and fixing the first spacer component and bonnet tile to the hip of the roof; engaging a second spacer component with a second bonnet tile; placing the second bonnet tile on the hip in a position up the hip from the first bonnet file, a front section of the second bonnet tile overlapping a rear section of the first bonnet tile, and an upper surface of the first bonnet tile being spaced apart from a facing lower surface of the second bonnet tile by the wedge portion of the intervening first spacer component, and fixing the second bonnet tile and respective spacer component to the hip of the roof; engaging a further spacer component with a further bonnet tile, and placing and fixing the further bonnet tile on the hip in a position up the hip from the previously uppermost bonnet tile in the manner described, and repeating until enough bonnet tiles have been fixed to tile the hip of the roof.

The spacer replaces the beds of mortar between tiles in a traditional bonnet hip, providing a long-lasting and maintenance-free hip which is easy to install and does not require any mortar. A spacer is provided in each space between adjacent tiles. The final, i.e. uppermost bonnet tile on the hip will have a spacer component below it, but not a spacer component fixed to it and projecting from its upper surface.

The "front" of the bonnet tile is the wide flared part of the bonnet tile, which is not overlapped by the file above it. Hence the "front" of the bonnet file is the lowermost part, when installed on a sloping hip. The "rear" of the bonnet tile is the narrow end which has an aperture for a fixing (e.g. a nail). Hence the "rear" end of the bonnet tile is the uppermost part, when installed on a sloping hip. The "upper surface" is the substantially convex surface, which faces away form the roof and forms the top surface of the roof when installed. The "lower surface" of a bonnet file is the substantially concave surface, which is hidden from view (facing into the building) when installed on a roof.

The spacers are preferably made of a resilient plastic material. The clips may be integrally formed at edges of the spacers, for engaging with the respective bonnet tile substantially along the length of either edge of the spacer.

The spacer may include a rubberised portion (e.g. made from rubber, polyurethane or a similar material) which fills the space between adjacent bonnet tiles at least at the front of the upper tile, where the joint between adjacent bonnet tiles is exposed. The rubberised portion of the spacer provides a waterproof seal between adjacent bonnet tiles. The rubberised portion may be integral with the spacer, for example made by overmoulding.

Alternatively, a separate rubberised component may be provided. The rubberised components may in some embodiments be inserted into the spaces between respective pairs of upper and lower tiles, after the files have been fixed in position.

An adhesive may be used to fix the upper surface of each rubberised component to the tile above it.

Adhesive may be used to fix the lower surface of each rubberised component to the tile below it.

Rubberised components, made from a material such as polyurethane, are effective for deforming slightly to correspond to the exact shape of each gap between a respective pair of bonnet tiles, bearing in mind the tolerances and imperfections which will be normal for tiles made from clay. In addition, a suitable adhesive will ensure a secure fitting, and that a watertight seal is formed between the rubberised component and the tile.

The spacing component and its respective bonnet tile may be fixed to the roof hip with, for example, a single nail or screw. The spacing component may be provided with an aperture for receiving a nail or screw, in a position corresponding to the fixing aperture typically provided on a bonnet tile.

In some embodiments, the fixing aperture may be provided spaced from the narrow end of the spacing component, further towards the centre of the file than would be typical on a bonnet file. For example, the fixing aperture may be provided around a third to half the way along the length of the spacing component. A new fixing aperture can easily be drilled into a clay tile to correspond to this position.

In some embodiments, two or more fixing apertures are provided so that the tile may be fixed to the roof timber in two places.

The method allows for a traditional-looking bonnet hip to be produced, using the same bonnet tiles as would be used for a traditional installation method using mortar. Indeed the bonnet tiles may be reclaimed or reused if an existing roof is being repaired, and/or a period appearance needs to be maintained. However the dry fixing system provides a long-lasting maintenance-free solution, secure even in very severe windy conditions.

The finished roof hip comprises a line of overlapping bonnet tiles. Between any two of the tiles in the line, there is a spacer component 10 and On some embodiments) a rubberised component 22. In relation to a particular spacer component 10 and/or rubberised component 22 therefore, there are two immediately adjacent bonnet tiles -a respective lower file to which the spacer component 10 is clipped, and a respective upper file which is at least partially supported by the projection 20 of the spacer component 10. The spacer component 10 and rubberised component 22 replaces the bed of mortar which would be traditionally laid when filing a hip.

According to a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a spacer component for use with bonnet files to file the hip of a roof, the spacer component including clips for engaging a bonnet file and a wedge portion for projecting from the top of the bonnet tile when the spacer component is engaged to the bonnet tile using the clips.

Preferable /optional features of the second aspect of the invention are set out in claims 12 to 16.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a better understanding of the present invention, and to show more clearly how it may be carried into effect, reference will now be made by way of example only to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a spacer component according to the invention; Figure 2 is a perspective view of a bonnet tile engaged with the spacer component of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a cross section through the bonnet tile and spacer component of Figure 2; Figure 4 is a rubberised component according to the invention; and Figure 5 is a perspective view of a roof hip filed according to the invention. DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring firstly to Figure 1, a spacer component is indicated generally at 10. The spacer component is shown engaged with a bonnet tile 12 in Figure 2 and Figure 3. The spacer component is made from a slightly resilient hard plastic material. It has a lower surface 14 which substantially follows the shape of the upper surface of the rear part of a bonnet file 12, so that the lower surface 14 of the spacer component 10 may in use be placed against the upper surface of a bonnet tile 12. Two clips 16, 18 run along lateral edges of the spacer component 10. The clips, in use, are designed to grip around corresponding lateral edges of the bonnet file 12. By deforming the resilient spacer component 10 slightly, the clips can be positioned over the edges where they will grip under the bonnet tile 12, holding the spacer component 10 in place over the top of the tile, as shown in Figure 2 and Figure 3.

A wedge portion 20 projects from the top of the spacer component 10, and upwardly from an upper surface of the bonnet tile 12 when the spacer component 10 is clipped in place over the bonnet file 12. The wedge portion in this embodiment is in the form of a substantially rectangular profile projection running along the length of the upper surface of the spacer component 10. The extent of the projection is tapered so that it projects above the upper surface of the tile for example by around 13mm at the front, but does not project at all (apart from the thickness of the material used to make the spacer 10) at the back. The tapering is substantially linear in between the front and back, as seen in Figure 1. In use, the projection 20 of the spacer component 10 supports the undersurface of the bonnet tile which is next up the hip.

A fixing aperture 24 is provided at the rear end of the spacer component 10. The fixing aperture is positioned to correspond with the fixing aperture on a bonnet tile. In use a nail or screw is inserted through the aperture in the spacer component 10 and the aperture in the bonnet file, and driven into the roof timber.

In this embodiment, a rubber insert 22 (Figure 4) is provided to seal the exposed entrance to the space between bonnet tiles. The rubber insert 22 fits over the top of and in front of the spacer component 10. As such, the insert may have cut-outs (not visible in Figure 4) to accommodate the wedge portion 20 around a rear part of the insert 22. Preferably, the front part of the insert is solid to provide a watertight seal.

As an alternative, the insert 22 may sit in front of the spacer component 10, each bonnet tile being overlapped with the lower-down tile by a greater extent than the extent of the spacer component 10, to leave room for the insert 22 in front of the spacer component 10.

The rubber insert 22 is made from rubber, or any similar suitable material which is waterproof and can be deformed to correspond to the exact shape of the opening defined by the facing surfaces of a respective paid of upper and lower bonnet tiles.

An undersurface of the insert 22 may be fixed using an adhesive to an upper surface of the spacer component 10 or, where the insert 22 is inserted in front of the spacer component 10, an undersurface of the insert 22 may be fixed using an adhesive to the upper surface of the bonnet tile below. An upper surface of the insert 22 may be fixed using an adhesive to the lower surface of the next bonnet tile up the hip.

The inserts 22 seal the spaces between the bonnet tiles, where exposed mortar would be in a traditional bonnet hip.

Figure 5 shows a hip of a roof tiled using the system described. As can be seen, each bonnet tile overlaps the bonnet tile immediately below it, in exactly the same way as a traditional bonnet hip. A spacer component (10, not visible in figure 5) sets the space between the upper surface of one bonnet tile and the lower surface of the next bonnet tile up the hip, and supports the bonnet tiles along their centres. The exposed gaps between the tiles are filled by rubberised inserts 22, which are held in by adhesive. This provides for an aesthetically pleasing, watertight, and maintenance free bonnet hip.

The embodiments described above are provided by way of example only, and various changes and modifications will be apparent to persons skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

CLAIMS1 A method of tiling a sloping hip of a hipped roof using bonnet tiles and spacer components, each spacer component having clips for engaging a respective bonnet file and a wedge portion for projecting from the top of the respective bonnet tile when the spacer component is engaged to the bonnet tile using the clips, the method comprising: engaging a first spacer component with a first bonnet tile, and fixing the first spacer component and bonnet file to the hip of the roof; engaging a second spacer component with a second bonnet tile; placing the second bonnet tile on the hip in a position up the hip from the first bonnet file, a front (lower) section of the second bonnet file overlapping a rear (upper) section of the first bonnet tile and an upper surface of the first bonnet tile being spaced apart from a facing lower surface of the second bonnet tile by the wedge portion of the intervening first spacer component, and fixing the second bonnet tile and respective spacer component to the hip of the roof; engaging a further spacer component with a further bonnet tile, and placing and fixing the further bonnet tile on the hip in a position up the hip from the previously uppermost bonnet tile in the manner described, and repeating until enough bonnet files have been fixed to file the hip of the roof.
2. A method as claimed in claim 1, in which the spacers are made from a resilient material.
3. A method as claimed in claim 2, in which the clips are integrally formed at lateral edges of the spacers.
4. A method as claimed in any of the preceding claims, in which the spacer includes a rubberised portion for filling the space between adjacent bonnet tiles at least at the front of the upper tile.
5. A method as claimed in any of claims 1 to 3, in which rubberised components are provided in addition to the spacer components, for filling the spaces between adjacent bonnet tiles at least at the front of the upper tile.
6. A method as claimed in claim 5, in which a rubberised component is inserted into each space between bonnet tiles.
7. A method as claimed in claim 6, in which each rubberised component is inserted into its respective space after the respective bonnet tiles have been fixed in position.
8. A method as claimed in any of claims 5 to 7, in which adhesive is used to fix the upper surface of the rubberised component to the lower surface of a respective upper bonnet tile.
9. A method as claimed in any of claims 5 to 8, in which adhesive is used to fix the lower surface of the rubberised component to the upper surface of a respective lower bonnet tile.
10. A method as claimed in any of the preceding claims, in which each spacing component and its respective bonnet tile is fixed to the roof hip with a nail or a screw.
11. A spacer component for use with a bonnet tile to tile the hip of a roof, the spacer component including clips for engaging a bonnet tile and a wedge portion for projecting from the upper surface of the bonnet tile when the spacer component is engaged to the bonnet tile using the clips.
12. A spacer as claimed in claim 11, made from a resilient material.
13. A spacer as claimed in claim 12, in which the clips are integrally formed at lateral edges of the spacer.
14. A spacer as claimed in any of claims 11 to 13, and a rubberised insert for fitting in front of the spacer component, in between respective upper and lower bonnet tiles.
15. A spacer as claimed in claim 14, in which the insert is made from rubber.
16. A spacer as claimed in claim 14, in which the insert is made from polyurethane.