NZ531188A - Improved sill flashing - Google Patents

Abstract

A sill flashing including a ribbed portion and a top cover; the ribbed portion consists of an upstanding flange connected to one side of a rear portion, the plane of the rear portion being perpendicular to the plane of the flange, a vertical connecting portion connected at its upper end to the opposite side of the rear portion from the flange and at its lower end to a front portion and the plane of the front portion being at an angle to the vertical. The ribbed portion being formed with a series of spaced ribs on its upper surface and being arranged to extend below a window frame from the wall cavity through to the exterior of the walls, across the full width of the frame; said ribbed portion being dimensioned to partially cover the upper edge of a wall cladding beneath the frame; the top cover being arranged parallel to but spaced from the ribbed portion and extending over the part of the ribbed portion underlying the window frame and extending from the exterior of the wall.

Description

New Zealand Patent App. 531188 Filed: 17 August 2004 Patents Form No. 5 Patents Act 1953 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION IMPROVED SILL FLASHING We, Dean Paul GREANEY of 32 Wharf Road, Riwaka, R.D. 3, Motueka, New Zealand, a New Zealand citizen and Russell Andrew ELTHAM of 361 Main Road, Hope, Nelson, New Zealand, a New Zealand citizen, hereby declare the invention for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: Title: Improved Sill Flashing Technical Field The present invention relates to an improved sill flashing, for use in combination with aluminium, wooden or plastics window frames and door frames. The flashing of the present invention has been developed specifically for use in combination with aluminium window frames, and therefore will be described with particular reference to that application. However, it should be appreciated that the flashing of the present invention is not restricted to that application. In this specification, the term "windows" includes doors, French windows, sliding doors, and all similar components.

Background Art A common method of building construction is to erect a building frame (typically of wood), cover the frame with a layer of building paper on the exterior of the building, and then apply cladding over the building paper. The cladding may be any of a wide variety of materials, e.g. plaster based preparations, sheets of simulated or synthetic stone, weatherboard, fibre cement or polystyrene.

The frames for windows are set into the framing, and the cladding butts up against the edge of each window frame. Sealing the join around the cladding and the window frame is vital, since any water which seeps behind the cladding cannot easily escape, and can very quickly make the whole building damp and rot any non-ground-treated timber framing.

A wide variety of different techniques have been proposed over the years to cure this problem. Many of these systems involve the use of sealants surrounding each window frame. These can work adequately, but are dependent upon being properly applied during installation of the frames, and once the seal is breached, or if the seal is applied imperfectly in the first place, the join can leak badly.

Disclosure of Invention It is an object of the present invention to provide a sill flashing which can be applied reliably by an ordinary building tradesman, is cost-effective to manufacture and install, and which provides an effective seal around the sill of the frame, whilst allowing easy drainage of any water which has entered the wall cavity. 1a The present invention provides a sill flashing including a ribbed portion and a top cover; the ribbed portion being formed with a series of spaced ribs on its upper surface and being arranged to extend below a window frame from the wall cavity through to the exterior of the walls, across the full width of the frame; said ribbed portion being 5 dimensioned to partially cover the upper edge of a wall cladding beneath the frame; the top cover being arranged parallel to, but spaced from, the ribbed portion and extending over the part of the ribbed portion underlying the window frame and extending from the exterior of the wall.

In a preferred embodiment, the ribbed portion consists of an upstanding flange connected to one side of a rear portion, the plane of the rear portion being perpendicular to the plane of the flange, a vertical connecting portion connected at its upper end to the opposite side of the rear portion from the flange and at its lower end to a front portion, the plane of the front portion being at an angle of about 30° to the vertical, and the spaced ribs are located on the rear portion and the front portion of the ribbed portion. Preferably the ribs on the rear portion have a different spacing to the ribs on the front portion; more preferably the ribs on the front portion are more widely spaced than the ribs on the rear portion; ideally the ribs on the front portion are spaced 30 mm apart and the ribs on the rear portion are spaced 15 mm apart.

The sill flashing may also include a drain section which is adapted to connect to the ribbed portion and the top cover of the sill flashing. Preferably the drain section consists of a ribbed section with a series of spaced ribs on its upper surface and a top cover and includes a substantially vertical fall section.

Preferably the sill flashing also includes at least one endplate, which has a shape to correspond to the side profile of the flashing. Two adjacent lengths of the sill flashing are joined together by a connecting block, which has a shape corresponding to the side profile of the flashing but is sized to be a push fit into the cavities of the adjacent 30 flashings.

Brief Description of Drawings By way of example only, a preferred embodiment of the present invention is described in detail, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:- 2 Figure 1 is an isometric view of a sill flashing in accordance with the present invention, with the outer panel removed; Figure 2 is an isometric view of the outer panel of the sill flashing; Figure 3 is an isometric view of a connecting block for joining two adjacent length of 5 flashing; and Figure 4 is a perspective exploded view of a sill flashing in accordance with the present invention, with the outer panel removed.

Best Mode for Carrying out the Invention Referring to the drawings, a sill flashing 2 in accordance with the present invention consists of a ribbed portion 3, a top cover 4 and a drain section 101.

The ribbed portion 3 consists of an upstanding flange 5, a rear portion 6, the plane of which is perpendicular to the plane of the flange 5, a vertical connecting portion 7 and 15 a front portion 9. The plane of the front portion 9 is at an angle of about 30° to the vertical.

The flange 5, rear portion 6 vertical connecting portion 7 and front portion 9 are formed integrally with each other. The upper surface 6a of the rear portion 6 is formed with a 20 series of spaced parallel ribs 10, with the length of each of the ribs parallel to the side edges 11 of the ribbed portion 3.

The upper surface 9a of the front portion 9 is formed with a series of spaced parallel ribs 102 (Fig. 4 only), with the length of each of the ribs parallel to the side edges 11 of 25 the ribbed portion 3. The spacing of spaced parallel ribs 102 may be wider than the spacing of spaced parallel ribs 10, but all of the ribs 10 and 102 are the same height.

The cladding 103 may be of any known type, e.g. weatherboard, polystyrene or plaster.

The top cover 4 overlies the end of the rear portion 6 and the portions 7, 9 and 9a of the ribbed portion, and is the same general shape as the underlying parts of the ribbed portion 3. Thus, the top cover provides a substantially vertical flange 12, and inclined portion 13 having a slope corresponding to that of rear portion 6, a vertical portion 14 35 and a front portion 15; all these parts are formed integrally. The top cover 4 is spaced above the ribbed portion 3 by the height of the ribs 10 and 102, and is secured (e.g. by 3 gluing or welding) to the upper surface of the underlying ribs 10 and 102. A further cover (not shown) may be mounted over the top of the ribs 10 on the portion 6.

Drain section 101 comprises a drain ribbed portion 104 and a drain top cover 105. Drain ribbed portion 104 consists of an angled section 106 and a fall section 107. The upper surface 106a of the angled section 106 is formed with a series of spaced parallel ribs 108, with the length of each of the ribs parallel to the side edges 109 of the drain ribbed portion 104. The drain top cover 105 overlies the drain ribbed portion 104 and is the same general shape as the underlying parts of the drain ribbed portion 104. Thus, the top cover provides an angled section 110 and a fall section 111. The drain top cover 105 is spaced above the drain ribbed portion 104 by the height of the ribs 108, and is secured (e.g. by gluing or welding) to the upper surface of the underlying ribs 108. The gap 20 between fall sections 107 and 111 is fitted with a gauze 112, which may be made of stainless steel, plastics material or any other suitable material, which prevents spiders and other undesirable intruders from entering the body of the flashing 2.

In use, the above described flashing 2 is arranged as shown in Figure 1:- the house wall and the aperture for the window frame 17 are constructed in known manner, with a trimmer block 16 extending along the lower edge of the aperture and secured to the inner surface of the wall. The trimmer block 16 may be mounted with its upper surface inclined at an angle to the horizontal, to assist in drainage of the rear portion 6. A length of flashing 2 is then prepared, of a length equal to the length of the window frame, and is mounted on the trimmer block 16 with the lower surface of the rear portion 6 of the ribbed portion 3 supported on the top surface of the trimmer block 16 and the vertical connecting portion 7 and flange 7a tight against the outer edge 16a of the trimmer block 16. In this position, front portion 9 and the corresponding front portion 15 of the top cover 4 extend outwards away from the exterior surface of the wall, leaving a space into which the exterior cladding 103 can be inserted.

The window frame 17 (as illustrated a known type of aluminium window frame) is then fitted in the aperture in known manner, with the flange 12 of the top cover 4 butting against the internal flange 18 of the window frame 17 and the return edge 19 of the exterior extrusion of the frame butting against the vertical portion 14 of the top cover 4. Side flashings of known type are mounted along each side of the frame, and arranged to drain into the rear portion 6 of the sill flashing. 4 With the flashing 2 in place, the angle of inclination of the portion 15 of the top cover 4, and the presence of the vertical portions 14 and 12 of the top cover, all help to prevent water from being driven into the wall cavity by being driven up under the window 5 frame. In addition, the front portion 15 of the top cover and the corresponding front portion 9 of the ribbed portion 3, together with drain ribbed portion 104 and drain top cover 105 of the drain section 101, protect the upper edge of the cladding 12, and also provide a watertight cover for the vulnerable join between the upper edge of the cladding 12 and the lower edge of the window frame 17.

Any water which does enter the wall cavity can drain out of the flashing between the ribs 10, leaving the flashing through the gap 20 between the fall sections 107 and 111.

Each end of the flashing 2 is closed off by an endplate 21 as shown in Figure 2, which 15 has a shape to correspond to the side profile of the flashing 3 and the frame 17 and may be glued or welded in place. If two adjacent lengths of flashing need to be joined together, a connecting block 22 (Figure 3) is used; the block 22 has a shape corresponding to the side profile of the flashing but is sized to be a push fit into the cavities of the adjacent flashings, where it may be glued or welded in place.

The flashing of the present invention may be made of any suitable material, e.g. a tough, ultraviolet resistant plastics material.

Claims (13)

1. A sill flashing including a ribbed portion and a top cover; the ribbed portion being formed with a series of spaced ribs on its upper surface and being arranged to extend below a window frame from the wall cavity through to the exterior of the walls, across the full width of the frame; said ribbed portion being dimensioned to partially cover the upper edge of a wall cladding beneath the frame; the top cover being arranged parallel to, but spaced from, the ribbed portion and extending over the part of the ribbed portion underlying the window frame and extending from the exterior of the wall.
2. A sill flashing according to claim 1, wherein the ribbed portion consists of an upstanding flange connected to one side of a rear portion, the plane of the rear portion being perpendicular to the plane of the flange, a vertical connecting portion connected at its upper end to the opposite side of the rear portion from the flange and at its lower end to a front portion, the plane of the front portion being at an angle to the vertical.
3. A sill flashing according to claim 2, wherein the plane of the front portion is at an angle of about 30° to the vertical.
4. A sill flashing according to claim 2, wherein the spaced ribs are located on the rear portion and the front portion of the ribbed portion.
5. A sill flashing according to claim 3, wherein the ribs on the rear portion have a different spacing to the ribs on the front portion.
6. A sill flashing according to claim 5, wherein the ribs on the front portion are more widely spaced than the ribs on the rear portion.
7. A sill flashing according to claim 6, wherein the ribs on the front portion are spaced 30 mm apart and the ribs on the rear portion are spaced 15 mm apart.
8. A sill flashing according to claim 2, also including a drain section which is adapted to connect to the lower end of the front portion of the ribbed portion and the top cover of the sill flashing and includes a substantially vertical fall section. 10
9. 9. A sill flashing according to claim 8, wherein the drain section consists of a ribbed portion and a top cover.
10. 10. A sill flashing according to claim 8, wherein the ribbed portion of the drain section is formed with a series of spaced ribs on its upper surface.
11. 11. A sill flashing according to claim 1, also including at least one endplate, which has a shape to correspond to the side profile of the flashing.
12. 12. A sill flashing according to claim 1, consisting of two or more ribbed portions and corresponding top covers, in which two adjacent lengths are joined together by a connecting block, which has a shape corresponding to the side profile of the flashing but is sized to be a push fit into the cavities of the adjacent flashings.
13. 13. A sill flashing substantially as hereinbefore described in and with reference to the accompanying drawings. 7 NOV 2035 7