The present invention relates to a shield for a rainwater gutter assembly or a eaves trough.
The use of shields for gutters or eaves troughs is well known in the prior art and there have been many proposals for different types of shields. The purpose of the shield is essentially to permit passage of rainwater from the roof to the eaves trough while protecting the same from extraneous foreign matter such as leaves and the like.
To date, there have been several different approaches taken. A first approach is utilizing a shield or a guard which is apertured and permits the passage of rainwater while ostensibly barring the passage of extraneous material. However, many of these guards do not function as desired and access must still be had to the eaves trough for cleaning purposes. Also, each one must be fabricated to the particular size of eaves trough.
It has also been proposed in the art to provide relatively complex structures wherein the eaves troughs are mounted for rotatable movement such that they may be emptied at desired intervals.
There have also been proposed gutters having a design wherein a cover has an outer edge which curls downwardly and the water flow follows the curved portion due to surface tension to cascade into the eaves trough. However, this concept will not necessarily work when the volume of water becomes sufficiently large that the surface tension is insufficient to cause all the water to flow into the gutter.
It is known from US Patent 3 351 206 to Wennerstrom to provide a device for protecting gutters wherein the aperture member provided is held in place with a clip structure securd adjacent the front wall of the gutter.
Similarly, it is known from US Patent 4 553 356 to Pepper to provide a retaining member which has a flange for positive sealing against the surface to which it is mounted. The mounting member helps retain a fixed screen which extends the top of the gutter.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a novel gutter guard which is designed to fit many different sizes of eaves troughs.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a gutter for a eaves trough wherein the rainwater may enter the gutter but virtually all foreign matter is excluded.
According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a device for protecting a gutter wherein the gutter has a rear wall, a front wall, a bottom wall, the walls defining a trough therebetween, the device comprising a mounting member, means for securing the mounting member to the gutter, a guard member having an elongated configuration with first and second longitudinally extending opposed sides, a first side of the guard member being engageable with the mounting member to prevent substantial vertical movement of the guard member while permitting horizontal movement thereof to allow adjustment of the guard member for an individual gutter width, and wherein the guard member has a substantially planer portion between the first and second sides, the substantially planer portion having a plurality of apertures extending therethrough and wherein said means for securing said mounting member to said gutter comprising a securing member designed to be attached to a gutter retaining member extending between said rear side wall and said front wall.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided, in combination, a gutter having a rear wall, a front wall, and a bottom wall, the rear wall, front wall and bottom wall defining an open top trough, the gutter being attached to a structure by means of an attaching member extending through the front and rear walls to the structure, and a device for protecting the gutter, the device comprising a mounting member, means for securing the mounting member to the gutter, a guide member having an elongated configuration with first and second longitudinally opposed sides, a first side of the guard member being engageable with the mounting member to prevent substantial vertical movement of the guard member while permitting horizontal movement thereof to allow adjustment of a width of the guard member between the front and rear walls, and wherein the guard member has a substantially planer portion between the first and second sides, the substantially planer portion having a plurality of apertures extending therethrough and wherein said means for securing said mounting member to said gutter comprising a securing member designed to be attached to a gutter retaining member extending between said rear side wall and said front wall.
According to a further aspect of the present invention, there is provided a device for protecting a gutter wherein the gutter has a rear wall, a front wall, a bottom wall, the walls defining a trough therebetween, the device comprising a mounting member, means for securing the mounting member to the gutter, a guard member having an elongated configuration with first and second longitudinally extending post sides, a first side of the guard member being engageable with a first side of the mounting member to prevent substantial vertical movement of the guard member, the mounting member having a flexible sealing portion extending outwardly in a direction away from the first side of the mounting member for sealing engagement with an adjacent structure, and the guard member having a substantially planar portion between the first and second sides, the substantially planar portion having a plurality of apertures extending therethrough and wherein said means for securing said mounting member to said gutter comprising a securing member designed to be attached to a gutter retaining member extending between said rear side wall and said front wall.
The device of the present invention may be formed of any suitable material and would conveniently be formed either of a metallic or plastic material. Thus, both materials are known for use in gutters and one may use either a similar or dissimilar material.
The device of the present invention provides a guard for the eaves trough to prevent foreign matters from entering into the eaves trough through the appropriate sizing of the apertures formed therein. In this respect, the aperture size and their placement permit them adequate drainage of the water through the apertures into the eaves trough while substantially excluding a foreign matter which remains on the top and would normally be removed by wind and the like. The size of the apertures prevents clogging of the device.
The apertures preferably extend in diagonal lines at an angle of 45 degrees with respect to the gutter length. In the preferred embodiments, the apertures have an aperture of between 2.5 and 10 mm and even more preferably between 3.0 and 4.0 mm. As the apertures are arranged in diagonal rows, they are also preferably arranged in longitudinally extending rows. In a longitudinally extending row, the apertures are spaced apart by a distance of between 10 and 15 mm while in a diagonal row, they are spaced apart by a distance of between 5 and 10 mm.
As will be appreciated, during a period of heavy rain or the like, the drainage may not be instantaneous and accordingly, there is preferably provided a vertically extending wall adjacent the front wall of the gutter to prevent overflow.
Referring to the drawings in greater detail and by reference characters thereto, it is illustrated a gutter generally designated by reference numeral 10 and which is attached to a roof generally designated by reference numeral 12. As is conventional, there is provided a drip edge 14 extending from under the edge of the roof.
Gutter 10 is a conventional gutter and includes a rear wall 16 lying substantially adjacent to the facia of the structure. Extending between a front wall 20 and rear wall 16 is a bottom wall 18. Front wall 20 includes a front top wall 22 which extends horizontally inwardly and which is folded under to present a finished edge as is conventional. Gutter 10 is secured by means of nails 24 which pass through an internal shroud 26, again as is well known in the art.
One embodiment of a device of the present invention includes a mounting member generally designated by reference numeral 30 and which will now be referred to. Mounting member 30 has a bottom portion 32 which extends through a radius into a side wall 34. Mounting member 30 also includes an outwardly tapering section 36 arcuately merging with side wall 34. Outwardly tapering section 36 continues to a horizontal top wall portion 38. Finally, there is a flange 40 which extends inwardly. A V-shaped recess 42 is defined within mounting member 30.
The device also includes a guard member 44 which includes a main planar body portion 46 which has a plurality of apertures 48 formed therein. Apertures 48, as may be seen, extend in diagonal lines at an angle of 45 degrees with respect to the length of the body portion 46. For a best functioning of the device, the sizing and placement of the apertures is important. The apertures preferably have a diameter of between 2.5 and 10 mm and more preferably between 3.0 and 4.0 mm. Also, the spacing is preferably such that in a longitudinally extending row, the apertures are spaced between 10 and 15 mm apart with a spacing of between 5 and 10 mm in a diagonal row. It has been found that these spacings and sizes of apertures permit water to flow into the gutter while the sizes are such that substantially all foreign matter is excluded.
The guard member 44 includes a flange 50 which extends inwardly along one side of body portion 46 for reasons which will become apparent hereinbelow. Flange 50, together with body portion 46, defines a V-shaped configuration.
At its other side, body portion 46 has a vertical inner wall 52 which is radiused to join a vertical outer wall 54. A horizontal portion 56 extends outwardly from vertical outer wall 54 and terminates in a reverse edge.
In use, mounting member 30 is secured adjacent rear wall 16 of gutter 10. To this end, there are provided securing members 66 which are secured to the underside of wall 32 of mounting member 30. In one embodiment, as shown in Figure 3, each securing member 66 comprises a pair of inwardly facing C-shaped elements 68 defining an opening 70 therebetween. These are then mounted on shroud 26 surrounding a nail 24.
As may be seen in Figure 4, the side of body portion 46 having flange 50 may be inserted into the cavity 42. It is then movable to provide for an adjustable width. The flanges 40 and 50 will prevent withdrawal of guard member 44.
Vertical inner side wall 52 forms a barrier to prevent overflow of the rainwater from the surface of body portion 46.
Referring to Figures 5 to 8 illustrating a second embodiment of the invention, there is illustrated a gutter generally designated by reference numeral 110 and which is attached to a roof generally designated by reference numeral 112. As is conventional, there is provided a drip edge 114 extending from under the edge of the roof.
Gutter 110 is a conventional gutter and includes a rear wall 116 lying substantially adjacent to the facia of the structure. Extending between a front wall 120 and rear wall 116 is a bottom wall 118. Front wall 120 includes a front top wall 122 which extends horizontally inwardly and which is folded under to present a finished edge as is conventional. Gutter 110 is secured by means of nails 124 which pass through an internal shroud 126, again as is well known in the art.
The device of the present invention includes a mounting member generally designated by reference numeral 130 and which will now be referred to. Mounting member 130 has a base 132 which extends through to an end wall 134. In turn, end wall 134 merges with a top wall 136 which terminates in a downwardly extending flange 138. A recess 140 is defined between flange 138 and walls 132, 134 and 136. A flexible sealing member 142 extends outwardly to seal against drip edge 114 to thereby permit the device to readily adjust to different size gutters.
The device also includes a guard member 144 which includes a main planar body portion 146 which has a plurality of apertures 148 formed therein. Apertures 148, as may be seen, extend in diagonal lines at an angle of 45 degrees with respect to the length of the body 146. For a best functioning of the device, the sizing and placement of the apertures is important. The apertures preferably have a diameter of between 2.5 and 10 mm and more preferably between 3.0 and 4.0 mm. Also, the spacing is preferably such that in a longitudinally extending row, the apertures are spaced between 10 and 15 mm apart with a spacing of between 5 and 10 mm in a diagonal row. It has been found that these spacings and sizes of apertures permit water to flow into the gutter while the sizes are such that substantially all foreign matter is excluded.
The guard member 144 includes a flange 150 which extends inwardly along one side of body portion 146 for reasons which will become apparent hereinbelow. Flange 150, together with body portion 146, defines a V-shaped configuration.
At its other side, body portion 146 has a vertical inner wall 152 which is radiused to join a vertical outer wall 154. A horizontal portion 156 extends outwardly from vertical outer wall 154 and terminates in a reverse edge.
In use, mounting member 130 is secured adjacent rear wall 116 of gutter 110. To this end, there are provided clip members 166 which are secured to the underside of wall 132 of mounting member 130. In one embodiment, as shown in Figure 3, each clip member 166 comprises a pair of inwardly facing C-shaped elements 168 defining an opening 170 therebetween. These are then mounted on shroud 126 surrounding a nail 124.
As may be seen in Figure 8, the side of body portion 146 having flange 150 may be inserted into the cavity 142. The flanges 140 and 150 will prevent withdrawal of guard member 144.
Vertical inner side wall 152 forms a barrier to prevent overflow of the rainwater from the surface of body portion 146.
As may be seen in Figures 6 and 6a, flexible member 142 will provide a seal against an adjacent structure and provide for the device to be utilized with structures of different sizes.