US2003618A

US2003618A - Method of and means for waterproofing buildings

Info

Publication number: US2003618A
Application number: US617373A
Authority: US
Inventors: Edwin H White
Original assignee: American Reenforced Paper Co
Current assignee: American Reenforced Paper Co
Priority date: 1932-06-15
Filing date: 1932-06-15
Publication date: 1935-06-04
Anticipated expiration: 1952-06-04

Description

June 4, 1935. w n- 2,003,618

METHOD OF AND MEANS FOR WATERPROOFING BUILDINGS Filed June 15, 19:52

Patented June 4, 1935 PATENT OFFICE METHOD OF AND MEANS FOR WATER- PBOOFING BUILDINGS Edwin H. White, Newark, N. 1., aeeignor to American lteeni'orced Paper Company, Atticboro, Mm, a corporation of Massachusetts Application June 15, 1932, Serial No. 617,373

2Claims.

This invention relatesto a method of and means for waterproofing bulidings and more particularly to the membrane system as distinguish from the integral system.

In the integral system an effort is made to render the fioor or wall of a building waterproof by mixing concrete with a substance intended to render the concrete itself waterproof, whereas in the membrane system a special waterproof layer is provided within the fioor or wall structure or near a surface thereof.

It is important that this waterproof layer or membrane shall form a continuous water impervious sheet covering the entire area to be rendered waterproof so that water will not pass therethrough even under pressure, and that the waterproofing layers be sufilciently elastic and flexible to prevent being ruptured by the formation of cracks in the fioor or other structure 29 with which the membrane is employed.

The membrane system of waterproofing may be employed to waterproof the basement of buildings, in the construction of floors for laundries and dairies or to prevent the water from fire sprinklers from passing through a floor, in the construction of bridges, subways, tunnels and swimming pools and in various other building structures where water tight floors and walls are required.

Heretofore in employing the membrane system of waterproofing the fioor and walls to be made water impervious have been covered with several layers of felt, burlap or cotton fabric laid one over the other in overlapping relation and each layer when applied has been mopped or coated with a bituminous substance, such as asphalt, to firmly unite the adjacent layers and form a flexible waterproof membrane.

Burlap and cotton goods, however, are not water impervious, even when impregnated with asphalt since the fibres of the fabric will absorb moisture and water will also tend to pass through the apertures or interstices of the weave, and felt is-open to the objection that it tends to disintegrate in the presence of moisture.

In accordance with the present invention the so-called membrane is preformed to a. plurality of sheets of material and is rendered inherently waterproof by presaturating or impregnating at least one of the sheets of the multiply sheet material with a waterproofing substance, such for instance as asphalt, before the plurality of sheets are assembled together to form the multiply structure.

Since paper is of a homogeneous nature and devoid of the opening inherent in all woven or textile fabrics, it will act efl'ectively to prevent the passage of water when combined as an element with other sheet material by a waterproof adhesive, and an important feature of the present invention therefore consists in a multiply water impervious sheet material, one of the components of which consists of a water impervious sheet secured to the other compol0 nents by a waterproof adhesive either with or without a reenforcement between the component sheets.

In some cases it may be desirable to incorporate between the layers or component sheets a reenforcement which, while adding strength to the multiply sheet material, will be susceptible of sufiicient yield to accommodate the multiply sheet material to expansion and contraction without rupture even where the walls or floors of the building should crack to any usual extent. Such reenforcement may be particularly desirable where the components of the multiply sheet material are mainly or wholly formed of paper sheets secured together by a waterproof adhesive.

The reenforcement above mentioned may be variously contrived but in the present instance of the invention it is composed of interwoven filaments such as spun or unspun fibres embedded in the waterproof adhesive between the components of the multiply sheet material.

It has been found in practice that where one or more of the components of the multiply sheet material is or. are formed. of paper the desired impervious character may be secured by presaturating one or more of the paper sheets with a bituminous product, such as hot asphalt, whereby the paper sheet or sheets become permanently impervious to the passage of water even under pressure; the result being that a preformed multiply sheet material is produced in which at least one sheet is presaturated or impregnated with a waterproof material before the sheets are united together by a waterproof adhesive. The multiply sheet material thus formed comprises therefore a multiply sheet structure wherein at least one of the components is composed of a presaturated or impregnated sheet.

The waterproofing membrane thus formed may be applied by a single operation and there after effectively prevent the passage of water while at the same time being sufilciently yieldable or elastic to accommodate for expansion 55 dowanddoorheads.

The invention will be further understood from the following description when read in connection with the accomp yi drawing illustrating several applications of the invention.

I In the drawing:-

Pig. 1 is a perspective view of mechanism for impregnating or saturating a sheet of paper with a waterproofing substance;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a reenforced, multiply, waterproof paper employed in carrying out the present invention;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing a number of the sheets of Pig. 2 adhesively secured together in overlapping relation to form a water impervious layer or membrane for a fioor;

Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional view through the floor and basement wall of a building made waterproof in accordance with the present meth- 0d; and

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a 'wall of a building provided with flashing formed of the reenforced, multip y. waterproof paper of Fig. 2.

The invention will be hereinafter described in connection with a preformed multiply sheet material where two sheets of paper constitute com ponent parts of the material, but it is to be understood, of course, that this is only one of the many forms which the multiply sheet material may take, the essentials .being that at least one of the component sheets of the multiply sheet material be so pro-saturated with a waterproofing material or rendered impervious to the passage of water.

Where two sheets of paper constitute the component parts of the multiply sheet material one at least of these sheets will be pro-saturated with a waterproofing material and then the two sheets I and 2, asshown,arefirmlysecuredtogether face to face by a waterproof adhesive 3, such for instance as asphalt. The reenforcing material provided between the sheets I and 2 'maybeformedofspunorunspunfibres,filaments or woven material, and the sheets are shown as reenforced both longitudinally and "transversely by straightened unspun fibres I and I securedbetween the sheetsi and 2 by the adhesive 3.

While the reenforced paper lust described is waterproof due to the waterproof adhesive I applied between the sheets of paper, the outer faces of the sheets of paper if exposed to moisture may tend to deteriorate over a period of years if fre- -quently acted upon by water, and since it is desirable that the waterproofing material employed {in a building shall last practically as'long as the building itself, it isimportant that deterioration of the paper as a result of exposure to moisture be prevented.

This is accomplished by impregnating or saturating each sheet I and 2 with a waterproofing material, such as hot asphalt. The saturating material may be applied as shown in Fig. 1, by passing a sheet of paper supplied by the roll 6 through a tank 1 containing hot asphalt or other waterproofing material. The paper is shown as they may be reenforced by applying the fibres l and I between the sheets and pressing the sheets I and 2 together to cause themto be united by the asphalt coating 3. The reenforced paper I5 thus produced is not only completely impervious to water, but the material impregnating the sheet I and 2 will prevent these sheets from deteriorating even when exposed to moisture over a period of years.

In employing the membrane system to waterproof a building construction, the waterproofing membrane "formed of the sheets I! may be applied to the upper face of a-fioor II, as shown in Fig. 3. In many constructions, however, the waterproofing membrane is positioned between an upper fioor area It and lower fioor area I9, or between an inner wall area 2. and 'outer wall area 2i, as shown in Fig. 4.

When the membrane system is used to exclude water from the basement of a building it is essential that the fioor structure applied over the membrane be designed to withstand the hydrostatic pressure, and the same is true with respect to basement walls.

The waterproofing material It is formed in situ by laying any desired number of reenforced waterproof sheets I5, one over the other, in overlapping relation and completely covering each sheet I! when applied with a coatingor mopping of bituminous substance 22, such as hot asphalt. In the construction shown in Fig. 3 the membrane sheet "has a thickness throughout of not less than three sheets II. Thiswill be found sufilcient in many constructions to withstand a substantial water pressure and its penetrating properties.

A waterproof membrane constructed as herein shown and described will be sufficiently flexible and elastic to remain intact when cracks form in the fioor in which it is embedded, so that water entering such cracks will not pass through the membrane. If however, it should be desirable to increase the stretching properties of themembrane, the multiply paper II or the sheets I and 2 of which it is constructed may be crimped, or crinkled to increase their stretching properties in one or both directions.

The waterproof multiply paper I5 is well adapted for use as a special flashing material adapted to prevent water from entering through the outer walls of a building, adjacent spandrels and window and door heads, and such use of the paper II is illustrated in Fig. 5' where it is shown as embedded in the wall 23 in position to prevent rain water from entering around the beams 21 and II.

What is claimed is:

1. The method of waterproofing the fioor of a building construction which consists in forming a lower fioor area, applying thereto successive layers of waterproof, multiply sheet material, each consisting of two sheets of impervious paper saturated with a waterproofing substance and reenforced by filaments adhesively secured between the sheets, securing said layers together in overlapping relation by applying a bituminous binder over each sheet to form a flexible membrane having complete water impervious continuity throughout the floor area, and laying dily upon said membrane the upper floor area.

2. The method of waterproofing a floor or wall of a building, which consists in forming the floor or wall area to be waterprooted, applying thereto 10 a composite flexible membrane sheet comprising as a part of its components at least one layer 01' paper devoid of interstices and rendered waterproof by a bituminous product and strengthened by a series of unspun fibres embedded in the bituminous product to permit expansion and contraction without rupturing, and 8ecuring a number of such membrane sheets together in overlapping relation by a bituminous binder.

EDWIN H. WHITE.