NZ307272A - Roof block unit with a capping and overhang portion as link for roof tiles and double skinned walls - Google Patents

Abstract

A building component comprises a block unit of the figure 1 having a capping portion (10, 10'') and an overhang portion (12) with the outer face of which serving as a barge/fascia board (14A). A lower face of the overhang portion serves as a soffit. The block unit is for use with others of its kind in being laid side-by-side as a course on top of a gable wall or front/rear wall. This component is for use in constructing a roof having a double-skinned wall provided with a cavity between its inner and outer skins.

Description

1991 13 23 No 0275 P 4 BUILDING COMPONENT This invention relates to a building component for use in constructing a roof for a building primarily, but not only, a building constructed having a "double skin" outer wall(s) particularly, but not necessarily, having a cavity between said skins, the cavity normally being filled or substantially so with an s insulation material A requirement of building regulations currently jn force is the capping or closing-off of the top of such cavity This capping operation is normally achieved by fabrication on site using a board of natural or synthetic material in the same, a preceding or a succeeding operation including a gable wall overhang, a barge board and a soffit While this invention is primarily in concerned with the provision of gable wall overhangs, barge boards and soffits, it is also applicable to the provision of front/rear wall overhangs, fascia boards and soffits Heretofore, overhangs have been constructed of timber as have barge boards and soffits which require regular painting maintenance with both barge boards and soffits being susceptible to rot and decay and is requiring periodic replacement Barge boards and soffits have also been provided of synthetic plastics material While these are beneficial in requiring little maintenance they tend to degrade when exposed to sunlight, due to ultra violet radiation and thermal stresses These existing building components are disadvantageous and an object of the present invention is to obviate or 20 mitigate these disadvantages Accordingly, the present invention is a building component for use in constructing a roof for a building having a double-skinned wall provided with a cavity between its inner and outer skins, said building component comprising a block unit having an intermediate capping portion, an outer overhang 25 portion extending downwardly at right angles to the capping portion and an inner leg portion extending downwardly at right angles to the capping portion, the overhang portion having an outer face serving as a barge/fascia board, i1 !-• llp 1 ijal property^ofhcf of nz - 5 JAN 2000 28 Dec 1999 13 24 Mo 0275 P 5 2 van under face serving as a soffit and an inner face, the capping portion being shaped with a flat top face extending from its inner edge to its outer edge and a flat under face which is parallel to the flat top face and which extends from the inner face of the overhang portion to an oppositely facing outer face of the 5 inner leg portion, the shape of the capping portion enabling it to be positioned over, and straddle, the outer skin of a double-skinned wall with the outer overhang portion projecting outwardly beyond the outer skin with the-inner face of the overhang portion lying adjacent to the outside of the outer skin Preferably, a batt of insulation material is secured to an inner end of the block unit The inner end of the capping portion is beneficially rebated to accommodate a heat insulation batt such that the capping portion and leg portion have, at their inner end, said insulation batt to abut or nearly abut the outside of the inner skin of the double-skmned wall 15 A marked recess or recessed panel is preferably provided in the flat top face, and above the flat under face, of the capping portion The under face of the overhang portion serving as a soffit has desirably an outer edge and wherein a drip channel is provided in the under face of the overhang portion adjacent to its said outer edge 20 The capping portion is preferably of equal weight to or heavier than the overhang portion to counterbalance or overbalance inwardly the block unit when laid on the outer skin of a double-skinned wall, the overhang portion being beneficially hollow or having multi-cavities therein, or being cellular Preferably, the block unit is made of any durable material, for example 25 cementitious material The capping portion is preferably of equal weight to or heavier than the overhang portion to counterbalance or overbalance inwardly the block unit when laid on the outer skin of a double skinned wall, and wherein the block unit may be cast from two cementitious mixtures, one containing a stone aggregate in respect of the capping portion, and the other 23 Dec 1999 13 24 No 0275 P 6 •«? c .^ntaining a light-weight aggregate in respect of the overhang portion which is solid An embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which - Fig 1 is a Derspective view of a part of a top and one gable of a building showing a roof support structure with a gable overhang, a barge board and a soffit constructed conventionally, Fig 2 is a perspective view of a part of a top and one end of a building showing & roof support structure with a course of block units according to a second embodiment, overlying both the top of a gable wall and a front wall, Figs 3A and 3B are respectively, a perspective view and a side elevational view of a block unit, and Figs 4A and 4B are respectively, a perspective view and a side elevational view of a modified block unit having a batt of insulation material secured to the inner end of the block unit Referring to the drawings, a building component comprises a block unit 8' having a capping portion 10' and an overhang portion 12 with the outer face of portion 12 serving as a barge or fascia board 14A and a lower face as a soffit 14B The block unit 8' is for use with others of its kind in being laid side-by-side as a course on top of a double-skinned wall 16 with the capping portion 10 thereon and the overhang portion 12 projecting outwardly beyond the outer skin of the wall 16 The capping portion 10' of the block unit 8' overlies horizontally the outer skin of any outer wall and terminates with a downwardly extending leg portion 9 at right angles thereto, the capping portion 10' straddling the outer skin with leg portion 9 closing off the top of the cavity between the double skins of the wall intellectual property of nz - 5 JAN 2000 RECEIVED 2S D«c 1999 13 U No 0275 P 7 •• The capping portion 10 is of equal weight to or heavier than the overhang portion 12 to counterbalance or overbalance inwardly the block unit 8' when laid on a gable wall 16 The block unit 8' is made of any durable material, for example 5 cementitious material, and can be coloured to suit a particular colour scheme for the rest of the normally painted or coloured parts of a building, for example window frames, guttering or doors The overhang portion 12 is hollow as shown in Figs 3A or 3B, 4A or 4B with a cylindrical tubular formed passage {not shown) or a square tubular formed passage as shown in Figs 10 3A or 3B, 4A or 4B Corner or end block units 18 are provided to terminate a course of block units 8' as shown in Fig 2 laid on top of the gable wall or front wall 17 in the same manner as conventional bricks or blocks are laid using mortar An apex 20 may be formed by providing mitre sides to the block units 8' to be abutting at the vertex of the wall The top surfaces of the block units 15 8' are flush with the top surfaces of a series of rafters 22 on the gable wall which rafters 22 together provide a roof support structure for a tiled or slated roof including battens and felt/underlay covering The outer face of the overhang portions 12 when being moulded may be provided w»th a wood grain or other ornamental/decorative effect 20 A gable overhang and barge board when formed in the manner described above is beneficial over the existing provision for such and requires little or no maintenance Although the invention has been described in connection with pitched gable walls, the building component can equally be used with gable walls 16 is of flat-roofed structures and with front and rear walls 17 of pitched gable or flat-roofed structures As shown in Figs 3A and 3B, 4A and 4B, the block unit and modified block unit of the second embodiment is provided with a drip channel 24 adjacent to the outer edge of soffit 14B, and a marked or recessed panel 26 intellectual property offici of nz - 5 JAN 2000 29 Dec !993 13 25 No 0275 D wis provided in the top face of the capping portion 10 as an indicator for the positioning of a restraining element in the form of a wooden batten (not shown) or the like forming part of a roof structure The panel 26 when in a recessed form can have a secondary use as a collector of any rain or other 5 water which penetrates between the roof structure and block units A multi-block unit can be provided of a desired length equal to and to locate between a formed apex unit and a corner or end block unit in each -gable wall Such length units may also be used in multiples along front or rear walls between corner or end block units 10 In the manufacture of the block units, the cementitious mixtures can have a mat or fibre reinforcement of synthetic matenal In a first modification, the overhang portion is provided with multi-cavities/passages, normally axially parallel to each other, or is of a cellular structure In a second modification, the block unit may be cast from two cementitious mixtures, one containing a stone aggregate in respect of the capping portion and the other containing a light-weight aggregate, for example pumice, perlite (RTM) or expanded polystyrene, in respect of the overhang portion In a third modification as shown in Figs 4A and 4B, the inner end of the capping portion of the block unit is rebated to accommodate a heat insulation batt 28, namely the capping portion 10' and leg portion 9 have at their inner end a heat insulation batt 28 to abut or nearly abut against the outside of the inner skin of the wall 25 Variations and other modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention described above and as claimed hereinafter intellectual property*'01 fic~ of nz -5 JAN 2000 RECEIVFP 6

Claims (9)

WHAT WE CLAIM IS:

1 A building component for use in constructing a roof for a building having a double-skinned wall provided with a cavity between its inner and outer skins, said building component cornpnsing a block unit having an intermediate capping portion, an outer overhang portion extending downwardly at right angles to the capping portion and an inner leg portion extending downwardly at nght angles to the capping portion, the overhang portion having an outer face serving as a barge/fascia board, an under face serving as a soffit and an inner face, the capping portion being shaped wrth a flat top face extending from its inner edge to its outer edge and a flat under face which is parallel to the flat top face and which extends from the inner face of the overhang portion to an oppositely facing outer face of the inner leg portion , the shape of the capping portion enabling it to be positioned over, and straddle, the outer skin of a double-skinned wail with the outer overhang portion projecting outwardly beyond the outer skin with the inner face of the overhang portion lying adjacent to the outside of the outer skin

2 A building component as claimed in Claim 1 and including a batt of insulation matenal secured to an inner end of the block unit

3 A building component as claimed in Claim 1, wherein a heat insulation batt is secured to the inner end of the capping portion which is correspondingly rebated such that the capping portion and leg portion have, at their inner end, said insulation batt to abut or nearly abut the outside of the inner skin of the double-skinned wall. intellectual property OFncT? OF Nz ; - 5 J AN 2000 RECEfVFD i 7

•« A building comconent as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 3, whersin a marked or recessed panel is provided in the flat top face, ana above- the flat under face, of the capping portion

5 A building component as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 4, wherein the under face of the overhang portion serving as a soffit has an outer edge and wherein a dnp channel is provided in the under face of the overhang ~ portion adjacent to its said outer edge.

6. A building component as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 5, wherein the capping portion is of equal weight to, or heavier than, the overhang portion to counterbalance or overbalance inwardly the block unit when laid on the outer skin of a double-skinned wall, said overhang portion being hollow, or having multi-cavities therein or being cellular

7 A building component as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 5, wherein the block unit is made of a cementitious matenal having equivalent properties

8 A building component as claimed in any one of Claims 1 to 5, wherein the capping portion is of equal weight to, or heavier than, the overhang portion to counterbalance or overbalance inwardly the block unit when laid on the outer skin of a double-skinned wall, and wherein the block unit is cast from two cementitious mixtures, one containing a stone aggregate in respect of the capping portion and the other containing a lightweight aggregate in respect of the overhang portion which is solid

9. A building component as claimed in Claim 7, wherein intellectual property UFFIC OF NZ - 5 JAN 2000 receive o 8 the bicck unit is moulded in s manner in wnicn the overhang under fees serving as a soffit and/or overnang outer faca seiving as a fescia/barge board is/are provided with a wcod grain or other ornamental effect. 10 A building component as claimed in Claims 7 to 9, wherein the cementitious matenal has a mat or fibre reinforcement of synthetic matenal. 11 A roof of a building having a double-skinned wall provided with a cavity between its inner and outer skins and compnsing a building component as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 10 wherein the block unit is laid in side-by-side relationship with others of its kind as a course at the top of the wall PIPERS Attorneys for: