WO2003074812A1

WO2003074812A1 - Sheet flashing member and flashing kit comprising such sheet flashing members

Info

Publication number: WO2003074812A1
Application number: PCT/DK2003/000139
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jens-Ulrik Holst Henriksen
Original assignee: Vkr Holding A/S
Priority date: 2002-03-07
Filing date: 2003-03-06
Publication date: 2003-09-12
Also published as: EP1485547A1; CN100564760C; PL372892A1; DK1485547T3; EP1485547B1; ATE528458T1; PL205337B1; CN1639432A; AU2003218953A1

Abstract

The flashing member provides a tight connection between a roof penetrating structure and a surrounding roofing. The flashing member comprises a sheet member (2), a first flange (3) intended to be arranged against the roof penetrating structure, and a second flange (4) arranged at a distance from the first flange, the distance defining a width. Means (6) are provided for adjusting the width between the first and second flanges in order to allow the flashing member to be adjusted to different installation situations.

Description

Sheet flashing member and flashing kit comprising such sheet flashing members .

The present invention relates to a sheet flashing member for a roof penetrating structure, comprising a sheet member having an upper and a lower surface, a first flange intended to be arranged against the roof penetrating structure in a mounted position, and a second flange arranged at a distance from the first flange, the distance defining a width. The invention furthermore relates to a flashing kit comprising such sheet flashing members.

When flashing roof penetrating building structures, for example chimneys or frame structures for roof windows, in order to protect them from the^' ^' weather and to provide a seal between the structure itself and the roof, it is common to use flashing covers of sheet metal, for instance aluminium, copper, steel or zinc. Conventionally, such flashing covers have been manufactured by ordinary tin man work from a plane sheet material which is profiled and formed to make a fit at the desired location.

The comparatively costly adjustment and assembly work on location, which is required when using this conventional craftsmanship, may be avoided by use of pre-manufactured flashing members. When these flashing members are used with, for example, a standard window type mounted in a given roof surface, it is possible to use the same "standard" flashing members regardless of, for example, the slope of an inclined roof surface.

Typically, a flashing assembly adapted to be used between, for example, a roof window and a sloping roof surface comprises upper and lower flashing members adapted to be mounted in a horizontal position between the upper and lower frame portions of the window and the roof surface, respectively, as well as first and second side flashing members adapted to be mounted in a sloping position between the two side frame portions of the window and the roof surface, respectively. Such a flashing assembly further comprises corner segments adapted to provide a seal be- tween the side flashings and the upper and lower flashings, such corner segments often being integrated in either the upper and lower flashing members or the side flashing members .

To prevent water from entering under the roof sur- face, side^' flashing members are normally formed as gutter-like members with a first flange adapted to be mounted on the window frame and a second flange adapted to be mounted under the roof surface . When the side flashing member is mounted with a slope, the gutter then directs the water downwards.

However, some type of flashing members are not "standard" as they are dependent upon, for example, whether a single window is mounted in a roof surface or two or more windows are mounted in neighbouring relationship. In this case special flashing members are used to provide a seal between two neighbouring windows, which may be either entire flashing members adapted to span the width between two windows, side flashing members which are adapted to be connected directly to each other, or it may be additional flashing members which are adapted to create a seal between two neighbouring side flashing members.

FR-A-2 473 595 discloses a flashing assembly in which first and second flashing members are adapted to be interconnected with each other when roof windows are mounted next to each other. However, as the connection is provided by different "male" and "fe- male" flashing members, a flashing kit for a single roof window will have to supplied with different flashing members for the opposed sides of the window frame, e.g. two different side flashing members.

DK-B 154 099 discloses a flashing element specifi- cally adapted for connecting two neighbouring side flashing members. The connecting flashing element allows two flashing elements with the same profile to be connected, such that identical first and second side flashing members can be used for a given flash- ^' ing assembly.

With this background it is an object of the present invention to provide a sheet flashing member, which enables roof flashings to be provided in an economical and efficient way by providing for a stan- dardized and cost-optimised production, and which sheet flashing member may easily be adapted to different installation situations.

This and further objects are met by the provision of a sheet flashing member of the kind mentioned in the introduction, which is furthermore characterized in that said sheet flashing member comprises means for adjusting the width between the first and second flanges .

By providing the sheet flashing member with such means, one and the same sheet flashing member may be used regardless of whether it is to be used in connection with a single roof penetrating structure or roof penetrating structures installed side-by-side. Thus, a sheet flashing member is provided which can be used together with a similar sheet flashing member in pairs in different configurations to suit a wide variety of conditions. Especially, such a sheet flashing member can be used either alone providing a seal between a roof penetrating structure and the surrounding roof surface, or in combination in a stacked or overlapping relationship providing a seal between neighbouring structures. In an advantageous embodiment the sheet member comprises two portions connected by a flexible element providing said adjustment means for the width, and in which the flexible element preferably is wave- corrugated or pleated. In another advantageous embodiment^', the sheet member comprises at least one upstanding rib member in a general longitudinal direction of the flashing member, the width of the rib member being adjustable. The rib member may comprise first and second substan- tially co-planar sides connected at their upper edges by a flexible element, thereby providing a downwardly open hollow rib structure.

In an embodiment, in which the sheet flashing member is particularly easy to- adapt to the installation situation concerned, the flanges and/or rib member (s) are substantially parallel to each other and the adjusting means may be expanded and/or compressed along a line substantially parallel to the flanges.

In an alternative embodiment, the sheet member has a wave-formed configuration comprising, fully or partly, one or more hills and one or more dales arranged in the general longitudinal direction of the flashing. The individual hills and dales may be gen- erally symmetrical, preferably formed in an angular zigzag pattern or has a general sinusoidal cross- section.

In order to provide a particularly easy installa- tion and an improved seal against the surrounding roofing, an elastic or adhesive and/or plastic sealing element may be provided, said elastic or adhesive and/or plastic sealing element preferably comprising at least one slit providing a tearing aid, and pref- erably an attachment element attached to the elastic or adhesive and/or plastic sealing element and the flashing member allowing the attachment element to be manually peeled off.

In another aspect of the invention, a flashing kit comprising at least two sheet flashing members is provided. The kit is characterized in that a first sheet flashing member is intended to be arranged against a first member of the roof penetrating structure, and a second sheet flashing member is intended to be arranged against a second member of the same roof penetrating structure, or against an adjacent member of a neighbouring roof penetrating structure, the first and second sheet flashing members being positioned in an overlapping relationship when the first and second sheet flashing members are arranged in connection with neighbouring roof penetrating structures .

Thus, the roof penetrating structure may be built- in as a single unit and other roof penetrating struc- tures may subsequently or at the same time be built- in adjacent the first roof penetrating structure, without the need for replacing the flashing of the first structure with a specially designed flashing system. This entails, i.a., that the decision of whether or not to build e.g. two adjacent roof penetrating structures in a roof does not have to be taken at the moment of investing in a single unit, as further units may be built-in subsequently at a later stage, i.e. independently of the first unit.

Further details and advantages connected with the present invention will readily appear from the following description of a number of preferred embodi- ments.

The invention will now be described in detail in the following with reference to the schematic drawings, in which

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing the different components of a prior art flashing assembly for two roof windows mounted side-by-side;

Fig. 2 shows in partial a flashing member according to the present invention;

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the flashing of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a partial cross-sectional view of a connection between two sheet portions;

Fig. 4a shows a prior art flashing member comprising a rib as well and an elastic seal member; Fig. 4b shows a flashing member with an upstanding rib;

Figs. 5a-5c show an embodiment in which first and second flashing members each comprises an upstanding rib; Fig. 5d shows an embodiment in which first and second flashing members comprise interlocking means;

Fig. 6 shows two gutter-like flashing members arranged upon each other; Figs. 7a-7f show embodiments in which flashing members comprise a flange and a wave-formed sheet portion;

Fig. 8 shows a typical lower flashing member for a roof window;

Fig. 9 shows a flashing member according to the present invention comprising a rail member and a skirt ;

Fig. 10 shows a preferred embodiment for a flash- ing member as illustrated in Fig. 9; and

Fig. 11 shows an adjustable seal member to be used in combination with the flashing members of the present invention.

Fig. 1 illustrates the different components of a prior art flashing assembly for two roof windows 1' mounted side-by-side. For each window the flashing comprises an upper flashing member 2', a lower flashing member 6', 7' provided with a skirt 8B' , and an outer side flashing member 10'. Corner segments 8A' are provided on the lower flashing members as well as corresponding segments on the upper flashing members. A further flashing member 13' is arranged between the two roof windows . When in the context of the present application the terms "upper" and "lower" are used, they refer to structures in their mounted state. However, to the skilled person this will also be evident for the flashing members per se .

Fig. 2 shows in partial a flashing member 1 according to the present invention, comprising a sheet member 2 having first and second opposed sheet edges

7, 8 substantially parallel to each other, as well as first and second flanges 3, 4 extending from the first and second sheet edges respectively, the flanges being arranged at an angle relative to the plane of the sheet member, whereby a gutter is formed. In the illustrated embodiment the flanges are arranged in parallel to each other and perpendicu- larly to the sheet member, however, the flanges could also be arranged with different orientations as long as they provide a gutter there between. In the shown embodiment the flashing member is provided with a higher first flange 3 adapted to mounted on the side frame portion of a roof window and a lower second flange adapted to be mounted under a roof surface. The higher flange may be provided with an upper flange 5 adapted to engage an upper surface on the window frame. In the shown embodiment the flanges and the sheet member all extend to the end of the flashing member, however, they may also be of different length. The sheet member forming the bottom surface of the gutter is provided with an adjusting means 6 along the length thereof generally in parallel with the flanges. The adjusting means allows the width of the sheet member between the flanges to be adjusted, or in other words, allowing the distance between the two flanges to be adjusted.

The adjusting means may be in any suitable form providing the desired functionality, however, in preferred embodiments an adjustable connection is provided between first and second portions 9, 10 of the sheet member 2. The adjustable connection may be in the form of an additional element allowing elastic or plastic deformation, or it may be in the form of adjustable, cooperating connection means formed on the first and second sheet portions respectively.

Fig. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the flashing of Fig. 2 and shows a first embodiment for a flashing member comprising adjusting means. The sheet member is divided in two portions 9, 10 having inner 11, 12 and outer edges 7, 8 which, preferably, are substan- tially parallel to each other. As described in the above, the outer edges 7, 8 connect to first and second flanges 3 and 4, respectively, and the inner edges 11, 12 are connected to each other by a flexible element 6 providing an adjustment means. Prefera- bly the flexible element extends along the entire length of the inner edges . In the shown embodiment the flexible element has wave-corrugations along the length thereof, this allowing the sheet member to adjusted either wider or narrower. Instead of a wave- corrugated material a pleated material could be used, however, this is best suited for extension, i.e. widening of the sheet member. Preferably the waves or the pleats are arranged in parallel with the inner edges. Indeed, the sheet member may comprise more than two portions connected by more than one flexible element. As in principle all materials are more or less flexible, a flexible element in accordance with the present invention is to be understood as an element which is more or at least somewhat more flexible than the structures it interconnects.

A preferred material for the flexible element would be sandwich flashing materials developed originally for use as skirts in flashings as described in greater detail above. Such sandwich constructions typically comprise a stress damping and stabilizing core layer of ductile material covered on one or both sides by a foil sheeting. The core layer has typically been made out of polymeric material or bitumen product, and the foil has typically been a thin metal foil such as aluminium foil . Bitumen as a product class is normally adhesive at ambient temperatures which will assure that it will adhere to and stabi- lize the foil, however, when a non-adhering core material is used it may be necessary to coat the core material with a pressure adhesive coating. Such flashing materials are disclosed in for example Danish Patent Specifications No. 148 064 and No. 145 509 as well as in German patent specification DE-A-4 032 058.

Fig. 4 shows in cross section a further embodiment for an adjusting means connecting the first and second sheet portions in an engaging and adjustable man- ner. In this embodiment the inner edges of the sheet

^• portions 9, 10 are bent over forming first and second connecting flanges 13, 14 further having upstanding securing edges 15, 16. In this way rabbet channels are formed along the inner edges. The first connect- ing flange 13 is arranged in the rabbet channel between the second connecting flange 14 and the second sheet portions allowing the sheet portions to be adjusted relative to each other. The securing edges prevent that the sheet portions are pulled apart. This type of connection allows the sheet portions to be adjusted both in- and outwards. Indeed, the sheet member may comprise more than two portions connected side-by-side to each other.

A sheet flashing kit for a roof window may thus e.g. comprise two flashing members as described above with reference to Figs 2 to 4, the flashing members being preferably substantially identical in a state of delivery. With reference to Figs . 2 to 4 flashing members have been described which provide a simple gutter structure between outermost flange members. As described above with reference to Fig. 2, the lower (outer) of the two flanges are normally mounted under a roof surface, such that water flowing from the roof surface is guided into the gutter. However, although this normally works well, during strong winds water may be blown over the outer flange and enter the room under the roof surface, which, indeed, is undesirable. To prevent this, the gutter may, in a manner known per se, be divided into two or more narrow gutters by additional upstanding rib structures, whereby the wind will act on a smaller surface. Such a flash- ing^' member with an additional rib- member is shown in Fig. 4a in its mounted position partly under a roof tile 30' . The rib comprises first and second substantially co-planar sides 21 ',22' connected at the top 23', this establishing a hollow rib structure. In or- der to further prevent wind from blowing under the roof surface, an elastic sealing element 40' may be provided, this as explained in greater detail below.

Fig. 4b show an embodiment of the invention using the adjustable width principle as described with ref- erence to Figs. 2 to 4. However, instead of providing the sheet portions with the adjustable means, these are arranged corresponding to the top edge portion of the ribs. More specifically, Fig. 4b shows the connection between two sheet flashing members 1 and 1A having substantially identical configuration in a state of delivery. A flexible element 24 of the one sheet flashing member 1 connects the two sides 21,22 allowing the width of the rib member to be adjusted such that a first rib can be mounted on top of a second rib, i.e. of the other sheet flashing member 1A, as illustrated in Fig. 4b. In order to accommodate the upper sheet portions 9,10 the position of the lower outer flange 4 may be made adjustable, e.g. by additional adjustment means arranged in the vicinity of the outer edge 8, or one or both of the sheet flashing member may undergo some deformation. The flexible elements may be formed integrally with the sheet member by e.g. embossed structures or by thinning the material, or it may be provided as an additional element as described above.

Figs. 5a to 5c show an embodiment show an embodiment in which first and second flashing members 50,70 each comprises an upstanding rib or flange member 51,71 arranged between the outermost flange members 53,54 and 73,74, respectively, in a general longitudinal direction of the flashing member, each rib comprising first and second substantially co-planar sides connected at their upper edges, this establishing a hollow rib structure. In order to allow the first rib structure 51 of the first flashing member 50 to be mounted on top of the second rib structure 71 of the second flashing member 70. (see Fig. 5c) , the width of the first rib structure is somewhat larger than the width of the second rib structure, this allowing the first rib to accommodate the second rib. Indeed, the spacing between the upstanding structures (flanges and ribs) of the first flashing member is chosen to allow for the interconnecting sheet portions 59,60 of the first flashing member to be arranged between the upstanding portions of the second flashing member, i.e. corresponding to the intercon- necting sheet portions 79,80 of the second flashing member. However, some deformation of the flashing members occurs, viz. in the zones ZB and ZC, respectively. Depending on the number of ribs, it is possi- ble to provide a kit of flashing members which can be arranged in order to provide a number of different widths for the flashing between two neighbouring windows. For example, Figs. 5b and 5c illustrate that a pair of matching flashing members as illustrated in Fig. 5a can be arranged to provide either a broad (Fig. 5b) or a narrow (Fig. 5c) combined gutter flashing.

In the shown embodiment each flashing member comprises a single rib. However, two or more ribs may be provided allowing for three or more different widths to be chosen corresponding to the situations shown in Figs. 5b and 5c.

Preferably, the flashing members are provided with interlocking means 81,82,83 allowing them to be "clicked" together. In preferred embodiments, such interlocking means may be arranged on the rib and/or flange members as shown in Fig. 5d.

With reference to Fig. 6 the principle of a further embodiment of the present invention is shown. This embodiment relies on the concept that two corresponding gutter-like flashing members can be arranged upon each other, the elastic deformation forces being controlled by means of locking the two flashings together, this substantially eliminating an unstable connection which would arise if the flashing members were merely pressed together. Preferably the flashing members are identical.

First and second flashing members 100, 200 each comprises a sheet portion 101, 201 having first 102, 202 and second 103, 203 flanges. The first flanges comprise first ridge like connecting means 112, 21-2 and the second flanges comprise second ridge like connecting means 113, 213 as well as connecting flanges 114, 214. The first and second ridge like connecting means and the connecting flanges are all arranged substantially in parallel with each other and in parallel with the sheet portions. When the second flashing member is forced down between the flanges of the first flashing member the sheet portion of the first flashing member will bend or curve upwards . Normally this would create an unstable connection, however, as the first ridge connecting means 112 on the first flange 102 of the first flashing member engages the second ridge connecting means 213 on the second flange 203 of the second flashing member, and the connecting flange 114 on the second flange 103 of the first flashing member engages the first ridge connecting means 212 on the first flange

202 of the second flashing member the two flashing members are securely locked together.

When the first and second flashing members are arranged in such an overlapping relationship, the width between the flanges of at least the lower flashing member is adjusted slightly. Furthermore, the sheet portion 101,201 of each of the flashing members has a tendency of forming a curve (not shown in Fig. 6) . In order to ease e.g. manual plastic and/or elastic de- formation relatively thin and/or flexible material could be used.

Figs . 7a to 7d show embodiments in which a set of two substantially identical flashing members, pref- erably comprising a dividing rib structure, can be arranged fully or partly on top each other. This embodiment is based on the principle that a flashing member comprises a flange adapted to engage a window or similar structure and a wave-formed sheet portion adapted to provide a seal between the window and the roof. The wave-formed sheet portion comprises hills and dales, fully or partly, arranged in the general longitudinal direction of the flashing, the hills functionally providing the flanges as described with reference to the previous embodiments. In order to allow the wave-formed sheet portions to be stacked upon each other, the individual hills and dales should be generally symmetrical. Even in this case, the flashing members undergo some deformation, thus adjusting the width between the flanges. In case the sheet portion comprises more than one dale or one hill, preferably, each dale and each hill have the same geometry allowing two flashing members to be ar- ranged in a number of positions. The hills and dales may have any desirable configuration allowing them to be stacked in accordance with the invention (i.e. very narrow hills and dales would make stacking difficult) , for example, the sheet portion may be formed in an angular zigzag pattern as shown in Figs. 7a to 7c or it may have a general sinusoidal cross-section as shown in Figs. 7d and 7e.

Fig. 7a shows (in a combination of two identical flashing members) a "minimal" embodiment of a flash- ing element 700 comprising a flange 701 and a sheet portion 702 with a single dale 710 and two neighbouring hillsides, the ends 720,721 providing the hills in the context of the present invention. As appears, the flashing members can be stacked upon each other. Fig. 7b shows (in a combination of two identical flashing members) an embodiment with a, full hill 723 and two full neighbouring dales 711,712 providing a rib structure as well as allowing for adjustment of the width providing either a broad (Fig. 7d) or a narrow (Fig. 7c) combined gutter flashing.

Figs. 7e and 7f show a sinusoidal embodiment 750 with a full hill 751 and two full neighbouring dales 751,752 providing a rib structure as well as allowing for adjustment of the width as illustrated. In principle this embodiment corresponds functionally to the embodiment of Figs. 7c and 7d.

With reference to Figs. 8, 9 and 10 an embodiment of a flashing kit according to the present invention will be described. In this embodiment, the flashing kit comprises, in addition to the sheet flashing members described in any of the above embodiments, a lower and an upper flashing member. Although the up- per and lower flashing members essentially serve the same purpose of providing a seal between the roof window frame and the surrounding sloping roof surface, the two flashing members are adapted to fulfil their function in two rather distinct ways. The upper flashing member is normally formed as a gutter-like member with a flange adapted to be mounted on the upper window frame and a sheet portion adapted to be mounted under the roof surface. When water flows down the sloping roof surface and onto the upper flashing member, the gutter directs the water outwards towards the gutters of the side flashing members. In contrast, the lower flashing member is adapted to provide a seal between the lower window frame portion and the upper surface of the roof such that water entering the space between the window and the roof is directed outwards or downwards onto the outer surface of the roof. To serve this purpose, a typical lower flashing member comprises a rail element and a skirt element . The rail element is attached to the skirt along an edge thereof and serves as a connecting element between the skirt and, for example, the lower frame portion of a window installed in an inclined roof. The skirt may be a simple sheet member which can be mounted on top of a substantially planar roof surface, however, for use on roof surfaces in the form of undulated tiles with very deep troughs, skirts are used which can be manually deformed or stretched during mounting to enable a good fit between the^' flashing and roofing. Traditionally such skirts have been made of lead, however, in recent years lead-free skirts have been developed which are typically of a sandwich construction and which may be of simple planar or wave-corrugated and pleated designs .

Fig. 8 shows a typical lower flashing member 300 for a roof window, comprising a rail element 301 (or sheet element) and a skirt element 302. The skirt element comprises an upper portion 304 with an upper edge 305 and a main skirt portion with lower edge. The rail element comprises a first lower edge with rabbet channel 306 into which the upper edge 305 of the skirt is mounted and subsequently attached (the elements are shown prior to assembling) . The shown skirt is of the wave-undulated type, however, according to the intended use it could be pleated or planar. Fig. 9 shows a flashing member according to the present invention comprising a rail or sheet member 403 having a first lower edge 413 and a second opposed upper edge 414 as well as a skirt having a first upper edge 423 and a second lower edge 424. The skirt is attached to the rail or sheet member along the first edges thereof. However, in contrast to the flashing member shown in Fig. 6 this embodiment comprises a hinge element 401 arranged between the skirt 402 and the rail 403, the hinge allowing the skirt to be pivoted between a first extended position (shown in full line) and a second concealed position (shown in dotted line) in which the skirt is positioned beneath the rail. As explained above, this allows the flashing member to be used as a lower flashing member with the skirt in its extended position, and as an upper flashing member with the skirt in its concealed position. In Fig. 9 the hinge is represented symbolically. Preferred types of hinges would include pin- type hinges, e.g. piano hinge, or hinges integrated into the skirt material .

Fig. 10 shows a preferred embodiment in which a hinge 501 between the rail 503 and the skirt 502 is formed directly in the skirt material by an embossed, linear depression in the upper skirt portion in the vicinity of the lower edge of the rail, this allowing the skirt to be pivoted between a first extended position (shown in full line) and a second concealed position (shown in dotted line) in which the skirt is positioned beneath the rail. As shown, the skirt is attached to the rail using a rabbet channel formed in the lower edge of the rail . The upper edge of the rail may comprise a flange member 504 adapted to en- gage an upper surface of a roof window frame portion.

A preferred material for the skirt would be sandwich flashing materials as described above. Such sandwich constructions typically comprise a stress damping and stabilizing core layer of ductile material covered on one or both sides by a foil sheeting. The core layer is typically made out of polymeric material and/or bitumen product, and the foil is typically a thin metal foil such as aluminium foil. Such a construction allows for a hinge which can be bent a number of times without cracking of the foil sheets.

Corner segments (not shown) for providing a seal between the side members and the upper/lower members may be supplied or integrated with either the side or upper/lower flashing members. .

With some modifications it might be possible to utilize the lower and upper flanges as side flashing members .

As described above with reference to Fig. 4a a flashing member may be provided with an elastic sealing element 40. However, it is often desirable to adjust the height of the seal member. In order to provide for tool-less height adjustment, the seal member 600 as shown in Fig. 11 is provided with means which allow the seal to be torn off partly providing a lower seal member, and/or to be fully torn off from the flashing member 601. In order to allow the seal member to be partly torn off, the seal comprises at least one slit 610 providing a tearing aid. Prefera- bly, the seal member is provided with two opposed slits 610,611 allowing for greater ease of tearing. Normally, each slit is arranged in parallel with the upper surface of the flashing member. Sometimes it is desirable to remove the seal entirely, however, the bonding means traditionally used for attaching the seal member (which is mostly manufactured from a foam material) to the upper surface of the flashing member makes it almost impossible to properly remove the entire seal member.

In order to allow for ease of removal of the entire seal, and additional attachment element is used. This element is preferably in the form of a ribbon- or tape-like member 620 with an upper and a lower surface. The upper surface is relatively strongly bonded to the seal member whereas the lower surface is attached to the (normally smooth) upper surface of the flashing member by a bonding means which allows for the^' tape to be easily peeled off. The tape^' member may also be of ' the "stretch-type" which provides a very strong bond until the tape is stretched in the longitudinal direction thereof. Indeed, a corresponding sealing element could also be mounted on any other surface of a flashing member.

The flashing members of the present invention are preferably manufactured from sheet metal, e.g. aluminium, copper, steel or zinc, which may be surface coated on one or both sides. However, other materials may be used for the entire flashing member or for portions thereof, e.g. for the adjustable element or the hinge member.

Claims

C L A I M S

1. A sheet flashing member for a roof penetrating structure, comprising a sheet member having an upper and a lower sur- face, a first flange intended to be arranged against the roof penetrating structure in a mounted position, and a second flange arranged at a distance from the first flange, the distance defining a width, c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that said sheet flashing member comprises means for adjusting the width between the first and second flanges .

2. A sheet flashing member as claimed in claim 1, in which the sheet member comprises two portions connected by a flexible element providing said adjustment means for the width, and in which the flexible element preferably is wave-corrugated or pleated.

3. A sheet flashing member as claimed in claim 1, in which the sheet member comprises at least one upstanding rib member in a general longitudinal direction of the flashing member, the width of the rib member being adjustable.

4. A sheet flashing member as claimed in claim 3, in which said rib member comprises first and second substantially co-planar sides connected at their upper edges by a flexible element, thereby providing a downwardly open hollow rib structure.

5. A sheet flashing member as claimed in any of claims 2 to 4 , in which the flanges and/or rib member (s) are substantially parallel to each other and the adjusting means may be expanded and/or compressed along a line substantially parallel to the flanges.

6. A sheet flashing member as claimed in claim 1, in which the sheet member has a wave-formed configuration comprising, fully or partly, one or more hills and one or more dales arranged in the general longi- tudinal direction of the flashing.

7. A sheet flashing member as claimed in claim 6, in which the individual hills and dales are generally symmetrical, preferably formed in an angular zigzag pattern or has a general sinusoidal cross-section.

8. A sheet flashing member as claimed in any of the preceding claims, in which an elastic or adhesive and/or plastic sealing element is provided, said elastic or adhesive and/or plastic sealing element comprising at least one slit providing a tearing aid, and preferably an attachment element attached to the elastic or adhesive and/or plastic sealing element and the flashing member allowing the attachment element to be manually peeled off.

9. A flashing kit comprising at least two sheet flashing members as claimed in any of claims 1 to 8 , c h a r a c t e r i z e d in that a first sheet flashing member is intended to be arranged against a first member of the roof penetrating structure, and a second sheet flashing member is intended to be ar- ranged against a second member of the same roof penetrating structure, or against an adjacent member of a neighbouring roof penetrating structure, the first and second sheet flashing members being positioned in an overlapping relationship when the first and second sheet flashing members are arranged in connection with neighbouring roof penetrating structures.

10. A flashing kit as claimed in claim 9 and comprising two sheet flashing members as claimed in any of claims 2 to 5, in which the adjustment means of the respective sheet flashing member is expanded and/or compressed when the first and second sheet flashing members are arranged in said overlapping re- lationship.

11. A flashing kit as claimed in claim 9, in which the first sheet flashing member comprises a first upstanding rib member and the second sheet flashing member a second upstanding rib member, the first rib member being adapted to substantially accommodate the second rib member.

12. A flashing kit as claimed in claim 11, in¹ which the flashing members are provided with interlocking means allowing them to be clicked together, preferably by interlocking means arranged on the corresponding flanges and/or rib member or members.

13. A flashing kit as claimed in claim 9, in which the first and second sheet flashing members comprise corresponding locking means allowing the sheet member of the first sheet flashing member to be locked in an elastically deformed state relative to the sheet flashing member when the flanges of the first sheet flashing member are forced together and arranged between the flanges of the second sheet flashing mem- ber.

14. A flashing kit as claimed in claim 13, in which the first flange of the first sheet flashing member and the second flange of the second sheet flashing member comprise corresponding locking means, and the second flange of the first sheet flashing member and the first flange of the second sheet flashing member comprise corresponding locking means, the locking means being so arranged that they will lock together the first and second sheet flashing members when the flanges of the first sheet flashing member are forced together and arranged between the flanges of the second sheet flashing member, this al- lowing the sheet member of the first sheet flashing member to be locked in an elastically deformed state relative to the second sheet flashing member.

15. A flashing kit as claimed in any of claims 9 to 14, in which said first and second sheet flashing members are intended for use as side flashing members of a roof penetrating structure, and in which the flashing kit furthermore comprises upper and lower flashing members.

16. A flashing kit as claimed in claim 15, in which the upper and/or lower flashing member comprise an extension sheet having first and second opposed edges, the first edge being connected to the sheet member along the first sheet edge thereof in such a way that the second edge of the extension sheet is displaceable relative to the second sheet edge.

17. A flashing kit as claimed in claim 16, in which the first edge of the extension sheet is connected to the second sheet edge of the sheet member by a hinge, thereby allowing the second edge of the extension sheet to be pivotally displaceable relative to the second sheet edge .

18. A flashing kit as claimed in claim 17, in which the hinge member is formed in the extension member, preferably as an embossed, longitudinal im- pression.

19. A flashing kit as claimed in any of claims 16 to 18, in which the skirt is a wave-corrugated or pleated sheet, preferably a laminate.

20. A flashing kit as claimed in any of claims 15 to 19, furthermore comprising at least one corner segment for providing a seal between a side flashing member and an upper or lower flashing member, said at least one corner segment preferably being integrated with either the side or the upper or lower flashing members .