US2213354A

US2213354A - Flue lining

Info

Publication number: US2213354A
Application number: US213716A
Authority: US
Inventors: Wilson Leonidas
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1938-06-14
Filing date: 1938-06-14
Publication date: 1940-09-03
Anticipated expiration: 1957-09-03

Description

) sink or settle into the green concrete of Patented Sept. 3, 1940 UNITED-"STATES PATENT OFFICE,

19 Claims.

The .present invention relates to a flue lining, and. especially to that section thereof which forms the base of a flue.

An object of the invention is to provide a flue lining section of ceramic material or the like, which has integrally formed therewith a pair of lateral hollow extensions projecting in a com mon direction from one side of the lining section, providing preformed openings for a cleanout and for reception of a cylindrical flue pipe from a furnace, stove, or other piece of equipmentto be vented.

Another object of the invention is to provide a flue lining section of the character referred to, whichwill effect a material saving of time and labor in the building of a chimney.

- A further object of the invention is to provide a flue lining section for the base of a flue, which presents safety features not heretofore found in fiues or chimneys as commonly constructed.

Anotherobject is to provide a flue lining section of the character stated, which is so constructed as to facilitate the work of making the necessary connection to heating equipmenuand to simplify the construction of a building foundation or masonry wall in the region of the base of the flue.

Another object is to enhance the appearance of the finished flue installation, and to provide means of identification of the flue section, which means are visible after completion of the flue and chimney construction.

Other objects of the invention are to provide a flue lining section which will not ob-jectionably a foundation wall during construction of the flue; to provide a flue lining which easily may be cleaned at the base corners thereof; to provide a flue lining having effective means for bonding the flue sections together to preclude leakage of smoke and gases of combustion; to provide for reinforcement of the lining section at locations where the section is likely to be inherently weak due to strains and stresses set up during the firing treatment of the ceramic material constituting the flue section; and to provide a flue section with lateral extensions having flat faces against which bricks or blocks may be butted and cemented as easily as such bricks or blocks may be abutted and cemented one to another, with the result that a workman-like job is performed without the employment of makeshift structural expedients, all of this being accomplished with ya substantial saving ,of material, laborv and expense.

. The foregoing and other objects are attained. by the means described herein, and disclosed. in the accompanying drawing, in which:

. Fig. l. is a perspective view of a. flue liningsection embodying the invention. 5 Fig 2 is a perspective. view showing: a modiflcation of the lining. section.

Fig- 3 is. a perspective view showing a second modification.

- Fig. 4 is a perspectiv view showing av third 10- modiflcation.

Fig. 5 is a fragmental bottom view in perspective, showing a base flange. with which: any of. the flue lining sections may be furnished, if. desired;

Fig. 5A is a side elevational view of a flue sec- 1'5- tion as formed without acIean-out aperture.

Fig. 6 is. an enlarged cross-sectional view taken on line 6.-6 of. Fig. 1.

Fig. '7 is an enlarged cross-sectional View taken on line 11 of Fig. 4.

A common practice in, the building of chimneys having ceramic flue linings, has been. to place a plain open ended flue lining section in position to be embedded in a concrete or masonry foundation wall under construction, using make- 25 shift means providing roughly formed passageways through the foundation wallv for gaining access to the lining section after completion of the foundation wall. In cases. where the foundation wall was of poured concrete, it was cus- 3 tomary for the carpenter to nail pieces of ordinary strip lumber together in the approximate form of a cylinder, and. to fasten the block thus constructed to the inside of the foundation wall form, between the form and the flue lining section. It was necessary to shape one wooden block for the flue thimble, and a second block for the clean-out opening of the flue. After setting these blocks in the forms, concrete was poured for the construction of the foundation wall, and after removal of the wall forms, it was necessary for a workman to chisel out or otherwise remove the blocks from the concrete in which they were set. In many instances, this entailed a considerable amount of labor. After removal of the wooden blocks, it was necessary 'to puncture the flue lining section so as to pro- .vide for access into the interior of the flue. This was accomplishedby hammering the flue section until it would break. In most instances, 0 the break in the lining section would be very irregular, and would extend along the full height of the section, thereby practically destroying one entire wall of the lining section. This obviously weakened the flue construction, and insome cases the lining was so disrupted that the flue and chimney would not withstand inspection and tests of the building inspector. In such cases, it was necessary to tear down the entire chimney, remove the broken flue section, and replace it with a new one. In some instances, the punctured lining section would be so injured and broken away as to constitute a fire hazard by affording access of the flue gases to the joists, flooring and studding situated immediately above the broken flue section. Moreover structural difficulty frequently was encountered by reason of the fact that the base section of the flue would sink into the green concrete of the partly completed foundation wall. To avoid this, various make-shift supporting contrivances were resorted to, the commonest of which was to stand the base section of the flue upon short lengths of sheeting or boards, which necessarily remained at the base of the flue thereby constituting a further fire hazard and producing a weakened foundation wall and a very poor job at the base of the flue, resulting in soot accumulations that could not be removed through the clean-out opening without considerable effort.

From the foregoing explanation, it should be clearly understood .that the building of every chimney was attended by considerable risk of faulty construction, which in any case might have required tearing down the flue and chimney, and replacing it so that it would pass inspection. Moreover, the contractor always was required to furnish additional labor in order to form the flue and clean-out openings, and to suitably line the openings with metal or other acceptable material which would furnish a tight fit with the flue pipe of the heating equipment, and with the closure for the clean-out opening.

By means of the present invention, all of the risk and the various disadvantages and sources of diificulty in the building of a flue or chimney, are definitely eliminated and every job unquestionably withstands all tests applied by the building inspector, there being eliminated all possibility of a fire hazard and leakage of smoke and gases from the flue. All of this is accomplished with a reduction of construction costs, and with the ultimate result that a more attractive job is performed, from the standpoint of both appearance and efficiency.

With reference to the accompanying drawing, the characer l2, in every instance indicates a flue lining section, which by preference is constructed of fired ceramic material. Each lining section has a front wall l3, a rear wall l4, and side walls I 5. As shown, the lining section is of rectangular formation and may be either square or oblong, although it is to be clearly understood that any lining section might be made cylindrical in form. As shown in Fig. 1, the lining section may be provided with a solid bottom or base I5, in which case the corners where the base meets the upright walls, preferably are formed with fillets l5, whereby the sharp corners are eliminated. The fillets strengthen the ceramic structure at the points of inherent weakness, and perform the further function of facilitating the cleaning of the flue interior, where soot and other foreign materials are deposited during a season of use. It should be understood that the base [5 of the lining section shown in Fig. 1 may be centrally apertured as shownin Fig. 5, if desired, or it may be left open, as indicated at the top of the flue lining section. In either case, the fillets such as IE-may be included in the base structure.

The upper edge I! of the lining section may be grooved or gouged out, as indicated by Fig. 6. As shown, the upper edge of each wall has been grooved so as to provide a recess l8, leaving upper plane edges I9 at opposite sides of the groove, for the purpose of providing a. fiat-wise abutment upon similar plane faces of a superposed flue lining section indicated at 20. Before the upper section is placed upon the lower section of Fig. 6, an excess of mortar or other cementing material is placed in the groove, so as to be squeezed upwardly and outwardly when the upper section is placed upon the lower section. This provides an effective means of keying the sections together, and precludes the possibility of gas or smoke leakage. The excess mortar at the joint will of course enter the triangular or otherwise shaped groove of the upper or superposed flue lining section 20.

As indicated in Fig. '7, the recess or groove of Fig. 6 may be replaced by a series of spaced parallel grooves 2| running along the upper edges of the upright walls, said series of grooves being included between the plane faces 22 and 23, and which corresponds to the plane faces l1 and H) of Fig. 6. It will be understood that Fig. 7 shows the flue lining on a larger scale than does Fig. 6.

Referring back to Fig. 1, it will be noted that the front face or wall l3 has formed integrally therewith a hollow thimble 24, and a hollow clean-out extension 25 beneath the thimble and spaced therefrom. These hollow extensions may project from the wall 13 several inches, in a common direction. When the flue lining section is installed, the entire structure, including the walls of the extensions, are concealed in the masonry or concrete wall of the building, so that only the peripheral

outer edges

26, 21, and 28 are exposed at the surface of the building wall. In order to provide proper support for the hollow extensions, and to furnish an attractive means of identifying the flue lining section after placement thereof, there is provided the web 29. The web is integral with the hollow extensions and with the front wall l3 of the lining section, and its forward face or edge 28 is made flush with the

peripheral edges

26 and 21 of the hollow extensions. The web may be formed wide or narrow, as desired, and it presents an excellent exposed surface to be marked with identifying characters which may be seen after installation of a flue pipe in the thimble 24, and the placing of the usual plug or other closure upon the clean-out extension 25.

In order that the thimble may be reinforced where it meets the front wall l3 of the flue section, and to furnish a stop or abutment to limit the extent with which a flue pipe may enter the thimble, there may be provided the interior flange 30. The flange preferably is of ceramic material, and may be in the plane of the front wall l3, thereby to furnish a substantial mounting for the thimble upon the front wall. As will be understood, the diameter of the opening at the flange may be slightly less than the inside diameter of the thimble proper. The flue lining section just described is adapted particularly for placement in a poured concrete wall construction wherein the concrete may form about the lateral faces of the web and the hollow extensions which are connected thereby.

In the modification shown in Fig. 2, the thimble is indicated at 3|, and the clean-out opening is indicated at 32. It will be noted that the forward extension 33 on the front face of the lining section divides the material for formation of the openings 3| and 32, and all of the

faces

34, 35; 36, and 31 of the extension are made flat, and at right angles to one or more walls of the flue section proper. As shown, the side faces 35 and 31 of the extension are in the plane of the side walls of the flue lining. In contrast with the Fig. 2 construction, the modification shown in Fig. 4 shows the side faces 35 and 3'! outside the plane of the side walls of the flue lining, or in parallelism therewith. The upper and lower faces 38 and 39 are at right angles to the

faces

35 and 31, and to the forward face l3 of the lining section. The provision of the various plane faces at the right angular relationship specified, enables a neat and rapid finishing of the building wall in instances wherein the wall is constructed of bricks, concrete blocks, or other individual units of construction having butt ends, sides or faces to be placed along the forward extension of the flue lining section. It is preferred that the forward extensions of the flue section be at a distance from the front wall of the flue section corresponding to the width or thickness of a brick or other structural unit, so that the for-- ward face 40 will be flush with such bricks or other structural units.

In accordance with the modification of Fig. 3, each of the openings 4! and 42 is formed in an individual angular block or extension 43' and 44, respectively, said blocks having upper, lower, and

' side plane faces at right angles to one another,

for the purpose above explained. The degree of extension of the blocks is the same for each of the openings, so that the forward exposed faces 45 and 46 will be visible upon completion of the building wall. The extensions for the openings are integral with the forward face of the flue lining section in all forms of the. invention, so that the flue lining sections will be delivered to the job in completed assembled form, thereby requiring nothing more than placement thereof at the location of the chimney for the building. a

In Fig. 4, the flue thirnble is indicated by the character-41, whereas 48 indicates the clean-out opening. The various forms of the invention may be furnished with either of the grooved structures shown in Fig. 6 or 7., and any of them may be provided with a base and fillets as indicated in Figs. and l, or a substantial equivalent thereof.. As previously stated, however, the closed or flanged bottom or base may be eliminated from the flue lining section if desired, and especially in instances wherein the building wall is constructed of individual structural units such as bricks, concrete blocks or the like. It should readily bev evident that the thimble and cleanout construction herein disclosed may be applied to flue lining sections of shapes other than the rectangular shapes illustrated, it being well known among persons skilled in the art that flue lining sections are of various sizes and shapes. In each form of the invention shown, the degree of extension of the thimble and clean-out structure preferably is such that the extended faces thereof, such as 25, 21, 28, 40', 45 and 46 will be flush with one face of the building wall, and exposed to view. Such faces accordingly may be utilized to carry identification markings or indicia which will be exposed to view-when the building is completed and occupied, with all heating appliances set up for operation.

In Fig. 5A is disclosed a flue lining section having a thimble 49' integral with the lining section, and extended therefrom as previously explained. The thimble 49 is not'accompani'ed by a cleanout aperture, as are the linings previously referred to. Flue linings such as are disclosed generally in Fig. 5A are used in connection with appliances using gas or oil for fuel, so that there is no occasion to gain access to the interior of the section for cleaning purposes. This section,

like the others, is formed of baked clay or ceramic material, and it may therefore be provided with a closed or partially closed integral base, with fillets applied as in Fig. 1. The end or ends may be treated as indicated in Figs. 6 and '7 to provide a bond and seal. It should be noted that the thimble 49 extends from the lining section at a region to one side of the middle of the length of the lining section, so that the section may be placed or supported upon one end or the other, thereby to secure a degree of flexibility in locating the thimble elevation with respect to an appliance with which it is to be connected. The thimble 49 may be either cylindrical or angular, to accomplish the purposes heretofore explained.

Attention is directed now to Fig; 4, which discloses means in the flue lining section for intercepting wet mortar or other foreign substances that may fall into the flue while the flue and chimney are under construction. The intercepting means may be in the form of a pair of overlapping substantially flat plates of metal or other suitable material, indicated at 56 and 5|, said plates being overlapped as at 52 and joined together by inserting nails or the like into registering

apertures

53 and 54 formed in both plates in Y the region of the overlap. It should be noted that the length of each plate exceeds the depth of the flue section, so that the joined plates will slope downwardly and toward the flue aperture 4?, thereby to direct foreign substances from the flue section by way of the flue aperture. The combined width of the plates when lapped upon one another as indicated, is substantially equal to the width of the flue lining section, so as to furnish an effective closure preventing the deposit of foreign material into the space below the clean-out aperture 48. Where the plates overlap along their forward edges, they are extended. forward as indicated at 55 and 56, so as to rest upon the interior surface of the thimble opening. To'

remove the intercepting plate, it is necessary only to remove the nails from the

apertures

53 and 54, whereupon the plates may be further overlapped and withdrawn through the opening 41. The means for detachably joining the plates are subject to variations, as will be understood. The intercepting plates are to be constructed of inexpensive material, such as a low grade of sheet metal.

By comparing the cost of the flue lining section of this invention with the amount of time, labor, and materials involved in the building of a chimney by means of the present methods, it may readily be demonstrated that the means of the present invention effects a substantial saving of expense, while at the same time removing entirely the element of risk or chance in having the flue approved by the building inspector, and in guarding against fire hazard and weakness of construction that threatens to occur when flues are tapped by attempting to puncture them in order to form a flue or clean-out hole in the ceramic material of a lining section. As will be understood, any of the flue lining sections herein disclosed may be formed without a clean-out aperture, following the suggestions of Fig. 5A.

What is claimed is:

1. A flue lining section comprising. a ceramic conduit having opposed ends, and integral laterally extending hollow bosses at one side of the conduit providing a flue thimble and a clean-out opening, and a temporary inclined deflector means in one of said openings extending into the lining section for intercepting and deflecting through said one opening all foreign substance gravitating through the lining section during erection of a chimney thereabout.

2. A flue lining section comprising a ceramic conduit having opposed open ends, and an intermediate laterally disposed opening in the conduit providing a flue pipe support, and a temporary inclined deflector means in one of said openings extending into the lining section for intercepting and deflecting through said one opening all foreign substance gravitating through the lining section during erection of a chimney thereabout.

3. A flue lining section comprising a length of ceramic conduit having an open end and an upper peripheral edge at said end, the edge being triangularly grooved lengthwise of the edge leaving a pair of spaced parallel plane faces for flatwise abutment with similar faces of a superposed lining, and a closed end on the conduit providing a base to preclude sinking of the conduit into plastic concrete when placed on end upon the concrete, the corners of the conduit interiorly thereof being sloped gradually inwardly and downwardly to meet the base as a fillet at said corners.

4. A flue lining section comprising a length of ceramic conduit having an open end and an upper peripheral edge at said end, the edge being triangularly grooved lengthwise of the edge leaving a pair of spaced parallel plane faces for flatwise abutment with similar faces of a superposed lining, and a closed end on the conduit providing a base to preclude sinking of the conduit into plastic concrete when placed on end upon the concrete, the corners of the conduit interiorly thereof being sloped gradually inwardly and downwardly to meet the base as a fillet at said corners, a flue thimble laterally projecting from the conduit near the upper peripheral edge thereof, a clean-out extension between the base and the thimble, and an integral web flush with the outer ends of the extension and the thimble, to be exposed when the flue lining section is embedded in a building wall.

5. A flue lining section comprising a length of ceramic conduit having an upright wall about which a chimney structure is to be built, said conduit carrying a laterally extending hollow flue thimble and a clean-out extension spaced therefrom, both projecting from the conduit in the same direction and for equal distances, and an internal inwardly directed flange in the thimble for limiting the extent to which a pipe may be inserted in the thimble, the excess material of the flange being located in the thimble flush with the interior of the conduit where the thimble joins the conduit.

6. A flue lining section comprising a length of ceramic conduit having an upright wall about which a chimney structure is to be built, said conduit carrying a laterally extending hollow flue thimble and a clean-out extension spaced therefrom, both projecting from the conduit in the same direction and for equal distances, and an internal inwardly directed flange in the thimble for limiting the extent to which a pipe may be inserted in the thimble, the excess material of the flange being located in the thimble flush with the interior of the conduit where the thimble joins the conduit, and means spanning the space between the thimble and the clean-out extension, and lying flush with the outer ends thereof, so as to be exposed along with said outer ends when the lining is embedded in a building wall.

7. A flue lining section comprising a length of ceramic conduit having an upright wall and opposite ends, a pair of hollow bosses formed on the wall of the conduit and extending laterally therefrom for equal distances, one of said bosses being cylindrical interiorly thereof to receive a flue pipe of a corresponding shape, and both bosses having exterior flat faces all of which faces are either parallel with or perpendicular to the conduit wall, thereby providing flat abutment surfaces at all sides of the bosses to accommodate building blocks and bricks to be placed against the conduit wall and flush with the outer ends of the equally extended bosses.

8. A flue lining section comprising a length of ceramic conduit having an upright wall and opposite ends, a pair of hollow bosses formed on the wall of the conduit and extending laterally therefrom for equal distances, one of said bosses being cylindrical interiorly thereof to receive a flue pipe of a corresponding shape, and both bosses having exterior flat faces all of which faces are either parallel with or perpendicular to the conduit wall, thereby providing flat abutment surfaces at all sides of the bosses to accommodate building blocks and bricks to be placed against the conduit wall and flush with the outer ends of the equally extended bosses, and means at one end of the conduit for effecting a keyed relationship of the conduit with a second conduit of the same cross-sectional area.

9. A flue lining section comprising a length of ceramic conduit having an upright wall and opposite ends, a hollow boss integral with the conduit wall and laterally extended therefrom, the interior of the hollow boss being of cylindrical formation to receive a cylindrical stove pipe, said boss having a flat forward face parallel to the conduit wall, and side, top, and bottom flat faces at right angles to the forward face providing flat surfaces for the application of rectangular building blocks to be bonded thereto in flatwise abutting relationship.

10. A flue lining section comprising a length of ceramic conduit having an upright wall and opposite ends, a hollow boss integral with the conduit wall and laterally extended therefrom, the interior of the hollow boss being of cylindrical formation to receive a cylindrical stove pipe, said boss having a flat forward face parallel to the conduit wall, and side, top, and bottom flat faces at right angles to the forward face providing flat surfaces for the application of rectangular building blocks to be bonded thereto in flatwise abutting relationship, and a mortar receiving recess at an end of the conduit for keying same to a second conduit placed in end to end abutment therewith.

11. A flue lining section comprising a ceramic conduit having opposite ends and an intermediate portion apertured to provide for access laterally to the conduit interior, a thimble extended outwardly about the access aperture and having flat front, side, and top faces all arranged at right angles to one another, and a partial bottom at one end of the conduit constituted of an integral flange extending inwardly from the outer surface of the conduit, leaving an enlarged central aperture surrounded by a peripheral supporting base of such area as to preclude the weight of the conduit from sinking in unhardened concrete.

12. A flue lining section comprising a ceramic conduit of rectangular cross-section having 'opposed open ends and flat front, rear, and side faces, the front face of the conduit being apertured in a circular formation to receive a cylindrical flue pipe, an extension on the front face surrounding the circular aperture, said extension having parallel top and bottom faces, and opposed side faces formed in the plane of the conduit side faces and extending longitudinally of the conduit.

13. In combination with a flue lining section having an interior wall surface and a lateral aperture therein for connection with a pipe, a pair of separable overlapping plates each of a greater length than the distance from the flue aperture to the interior of the lining section at its greatest distance from the lateral aperture, the combined width of the plates when overlapped being substantially equal to the width of the lining section, and the width of each plate individually being less than the width of the lateral aperture, a forward extension on one of the plates to rest within the lateral aperture to preclude gravitation of the plates through the section, and means for detachably securing the plates in the overlapped relationship prescribed.

14. An interceptor for falling mortar and like foreign substances through a flue in the process of construction, which interceptor comprises a plurality of plates joined together to completely close the flue, the plates being of such size individually as to be capable of withdrawal through the thimble opening of the flue.

15. The combination which comprises a hollow flue lining element having an opening in a wall thereof, and a deflector projecting into the flue lining element for intercepting and directing falling mortar and chips through the wall opening, occurring incident to the building of a chimney about and above said lining element.

16. The combination which comprises a hollow flue lining element having an opening in a wall thereof, and a deflector within the flue lining element for directing falling mortar and chips through the wall openings, occurring incident to the building of a chimney about and above said lining element, said deflector including a spout portion resting within said opening and inclined inwardly and upwardly within the flue lining element and away from said opening.

17. In a chimney undergoing the process of erection, the combination which comprises a hollow flue lining element having anopening in a wall thereof, and a temporary deflector positioned within the flue lining element in an inclined position, for'directing through the Wall opening any mortar and chips falling into the lining element incident to the building of a chimney about and above said lining element, said deflector being of such size as to form a substantially complete sloping temporary barrier transversely of the hollow flue lining element.

18. In a chimney undergoing the process of erection, the combination which comprises a hollow flue lining element having an opening in a wall thereof, an extending hollow thimble surrounding said opening, and a deflector posi-.

tioned within the flue lining element in an inclined position, to form a substantially complete barrier across the hollow flue lining element located for directing, through the wall opening and the hollow thimble, any mortar and chips falling into the lining element from above incident to the building of a chimney about and above said lining element.

19. In a chimney undergoing the process of erection, the combination which comprises a hollow flue lining element having an opening in a wall thereof, an extending hollow thimble surrounding said opening, and a deflector positioned within the flue lining element in an inclined position, to form a substantially complete barrier across the hollow flue lining element located for directing, through the wall opening and the hollow thimble, any mortar and chips falling into the lining element from above incident to the building of a chimney about and above said lining element, and means on the deflector extending into the hollow thimble for supporting the deflector in the inclined position stated.

LEONIDAS WILSON.