US1649481A - Wall construction - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 15, 1927.

R. C. MWANE WALL CONSTRUCTION jfofierf C. M Wane,

INVENTOR.

fl/f ATTORNEY.

Patented Nov. 15.1927.

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1 Lpj ltoation'fled m 27, 1926. Serial No. 125,206.

My. invention relates to wall constructions and particularly to the construction of walls made up has features that make "the improvement of 5 particular utility in connection with outside walls. It has for its object the/provision of walls of this general class which shall have the following three all-important character: they shall not they shall 7 not;

istics: They shall be stron transmit heat readily, an

permit moisture to penetrate from-one side of the wall to the other. A further obj of the invention is to provide building blocks." to manufacture;

" extending from to to bottom, and separated .from each other ythe wall 3. Two such blocks are assembled at the place of manuwhich shall be inexpensive and easy to assemble into wallswith the'threle characteristics mentioned.

Walls of the type to which this invention? refers are commonly built up of individual blocks each block made? up of a suitable cementsan'd-gravel or other These blocks usuall have] both to save weig t and" cement or concrete desired mixture. interior air spaces expense and to make the completed wall a better heat insulator.

and efficient as those herein disclosed. Simi larly the desirability of having the wall moistureand heat-proofhas long been felt, and many suggestions will be found inv the prior art to accomplish these ends. None of them however have proved successful, and none of them have been as simple, cheap and satisfactory as the means herein disclosed.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing wherein Fig. 1' shows a projected View of a portion of a wall embodying my improvement, portions hav ng been broken away to make the construction clearer; Fig. 2 s

ows a topview of one of the blocks according to my invention; Fig. 3

of blocks ofcement orconcrete, and

The blocks are set in. mortar or the equivalent as the wall is built f shows a sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. '2; Fig. 4 shows on an enlarged scale a keyor anchor which I employ in the construction of the blocks; and Fig. 5 shows a Ziew similar to that of Fig. 1 of a modificaion.

Each individual block according to my in- VQI1t10I1 1S,tO begin with, composed of two portions which are made entirely separate from each other. These two parts are preferably symmetrical and their form is easily discerned from the drawing. Each'half is .of rectan ular prismatic shape provided with two ,para lel,-.'-rectangular air spaces 1 and 2 facture to constitute one'complete block or {building unitto be used for the wall con- 'struction. In assemblin H a I the two halves a sheet of insulating material whose properties {are hereinafter specified is used, shown at A, which is somewhat shorter than the blocks are long andsomewhat narrower than the blocks are wide. ,In practice a difference of about an inch in each direction will be found about the right amount. I do not however wish to be understood as limiting myself to any definite amount. Whatever the amount is, itwill be seen from the following description that it is desirable that the difference in; length and the difference in width be the same for all blocks. The sheet off-material is so placed between the two'halves of the block that the same amount of free space remains at the two ends, the top and the bottom of the sheet.

In moulding the halves of the block each of them has been provided with four narrow slots or depressions, 4-4, two of them in the top surface and two in the'bottom surface, and. extending inward from the surfaces which are to face each other. Their position and shape will be clear from an inspec- (see Fig. 3) that the bottom of been placed in the relative position above described, with the sheet of material between them, the keys 6 are forced into place. These keys are made of metal and have the shape illustrated in Fig. 4. The two ends-of each key are bent so they are at an angle with the central longer straight portion, this angle being something more than a right angle. The result is that when the key is forced into place as stated, it exerts a wedging .action and draws the two halves of the block together. The keys are forced down so that they do not project out beyond the sheet A and the slots are then filled up with cement. Care is taken at this point not to till up the spaces 7 between the two halves. This can readily be avoided by temporarily placing a piece of wood in the space between the two block halves while the slots are being filled up. After the four keys have been forced and cemented into place as described, the block is virtually as strong as if it were a unitary structure, and it is then ready for the assembling operation.

In assembling the blocks into a wall, the vertical joints 88 are broken in the usual way, so that those of any one course are outof line with those of the adjoining courses above and below. The partition between the two sets of block halves is completed or made continuous by the insertion of the horizontal strips BB and the vertical strips CC, both also made of the same material and of the same thickness as the sheet A. The horizontal strips preferably extend for a length of at least two blocks. The vertical ones are of the same length as the width of the sheet A, although this arrangement can obviously be modified.

Vertically and horizontally at 88 the blocks are set in mortar or other preferred material in the usual manner.

From the above it will be seen that in effect there is produced a wall of two firmly united halves separated by a continuous partition of the insulating material. And this is an important feature of my invention. It the outside of a wall is exposed to rain or some other source of moisture, this moisture readily penetrates the concrete or cement, and will follow it clear through the wall, if a continuous path is presented. To be continuous, it is not necessary that this path be continuous at all points. If there are any bridging connections of moisture conducting material, the inner wall will become moist. But with my entire separation of the two halves of the wall by insulating material the moisture can never penetrate farther than to this impervious layer. The material preferably used is one obtainable on the market under the name of celotex and is peculiarly adapted to this use, as it is to all intents and purposes impervious to moisture. It possesses in addition the desirable quality that it is a very good heat insulator. A layer of the thickness I interpose between the two halves of my wall will protect against heat radiation about as well as two feet of solid concrete would. The wall according to my construction is therefore very good from this standpoint. Of course any other material with the properties mentioned will answer.

One of the objections architects have had against the use of concrete blocks is that a wall built up of them is weak. And this is true if the wall be built by any of the 'be sheared off, and as, in addition to its other desirable properties, this material has great strength, great force would be required to break through a wall constructed as described.

In the modification illustrated in Fig. 5, the air spaces 1 and 2 are surrounded by cement on only three sides, the spaces being open toward the inside of the Wall. I have shown this variation to illustrate that my invention is applicable to a variety of block shapes. It will be noted that my inventive idea is carried out in this form as well as in the form first described. The wall is in effect made up of two entirely separated halves, with a continuous sheet of insulating material between them, the horizontal and vertical strips B and 0 being used just as in the first form. A

Some variations can obviously be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

\Vhat I claim is 2- 1. A building block of the character described comprising two juxtaposed concrete halves, a sheet of moisture-proof, heat-insulating material between them smaller in both directions than the halves, whereby a groove is left on all four sides of the block, and anchoring means to hold the two halves firmly in their relative positions.

2. A wall comprising building blocks made according to claim 1, and means to secure said blocks in position, said means comprising strips inserted into said grooves and made of material similar to that of the sheet, each strip extending into the grooves of two adjacent blocks and abutting against the two sheets, whereby there is efiected a wall made up of two halves separated completely from each other by a continuous heatand moisture-proof partition.

3. A wall comprising building blocks made according to claim 1, said blocks belll) sive courses; and vertical strips of the same material and thickness each inserted into the two adjacent vertical slots of two neighboring blocks, and binding material between juxtaposed surfaces of neighboring blocks. 10

Signed at New York, N. Y., this 22nd day of July, 1926.

ROBERT C. McWANE.

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