AU2005263035A1 - A gutter cap - Google Patents

Description

WO 2006/006874 PCT/NZ2005/000137 1 TITLE A gutter cap. FIELD OF INVENTION 5 This invention relates to a gutter cap. A preferred form of the invention relates to a cap suitable for covering at least part of the guttering used in buildings, whether commercial, residential, or otherwise. BACKGROUND 10 It is known to use guttering on buildings to channel rainwater running off a roof structure. In some cases the water is directed to a storage container and is used for drinking, washing, or various other purposes. In certain situations debris such as leaves, twigs, or the like can collect in guttering and contaminate the water channelled therein. The debris may even build up to the extent that they block 15 the guttering or an associated downpipe. It is accordingly an object of a preferred form of the present invention to go at least some way towards addressing the above problems, or to provide the public with a useful choice. The term "comprising" or derivatives thereof, if and when used in this document 20 should be interpreted non-exclusively, eg to mean "consisting of or including". SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to one aspect of the invention there is provided a gutter cap suitable for use with guttering forming part of a building, the cap comprising: 25 i) an elongate plate having a concave porous portion therein, or ii) an elongate frame supporting a cloth mesh portion wherein the cloth is arranged to have a concave shape, at least when the cap is in use, 30 the cap being formed such that it can be fitted to the guttering to substantially prevent undesired debris (eg leaves and twigs of other than of a minute size) from entering the guttering while at the same time allowing rainwater to pass through the porous portion, or the cloth mesh portion, as the case may be.

WO 2006/006874 PCT/NZ2005/000137 Preferably the gutter cap is formed such that it is substantially longitudinally symmetrical. 5 Optionally the elongate plate mentioned at i) has two opposite side parts which are not concave. Optionally the elongate plate mentioned at i) is substantially formed from a length or lengths of a suitable metallic or plastic substance. 10 Preferably the elongate frame is formed from a length or lengths or wire or bar. According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided a gutter cap having a shape and configuration substantially as shown and described with 15 reference to figure 1 or figure 2. According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided a gutter fixed to a building and substantially covered by a gutter cap as described above. 20 Optionally the gutter cap is fixed to the gutter and/or brackets supporting the gutter with respect to the building. DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 25 Figure 1 is a perspective view of a solid gutter cap, Figure 2 is a perspective view of an alternative gutter cap having a central mesh cloth, 30 Figures 3a & 3b are transverse cross sectional views of the gutter cap of figure 1 when installed, Figures 4a and 4b are transverse cross sectional views of the gutter cap of figure 2 when installed, WO 2006/006874 PCT/NZ2005/000137 3 Figure 5a is transverse cross sectional view showing an alternative way of installing the gutter cap of figure 1, 5 Figure 5b is transverse cross sectional view showing an alternative way of installing the gutter cap of figure 2, Figure 6 is a plan view showing gutter caps according to the figure 1 embodiment of the invention when installed, 10 Figure 7 is a transverse cross sectional view demonstrating the manner in which gutter caps according to the invention can be installed, 15 Figure 8 is a transverse cross sectional view showing gutter gaps similar to that of figure 1 but having angled edge parts, and Figure 9 shows a portion of plastic mesh material as used for some embodiments of the invention. 20 DETAILED DESCRIPTION Referring to figure 1, one embodiment of the invention involves a one piece gutter cap comprising a panel 1, preferably generally rigid and optionally approximately 1.5 mm thick, and formed to have a concave (not necessarily strictly arcuate) 25 central porous portion 2. The central porous portion may comprise apertures or a mesh structure. It has been found that rectangular mesh sizes of approximately 1.5 mm by 7.5 mm, with 2.5 mm spaces between each mesh, work well in many situations. The degree of concavity is dependant on the overall structure of the gutter cap but it has been found that a top face concavity radius of approximately 30 250 mm works well in many situations, for example when combined with the size parameters described above. As an alternative, a radius of 150 mm may work well in certain situations. Optionally the mesh, when viewed in cross section, tapers or recedes in a downward direction to reduce the likelihood of mesh WO 2006/006874 PCT/NZ2005/000137 4 blockages. The panel 1, including its central porous portion 2, may be formed by plastic injection moulding techniques or any other suitable means. Optionally the panel 1, including its porous portion 2, may be formed from a 5 suitable metallic substance. As shown in figure 1, the gutter cap is longitudinally symmetrical - eg it is generally symmetrical about an axis running in its long ways dimension. Such symmetry may facilitate easy installation of the cap in that it can be rotated 180 degrees without change to its functionality. 10 Preferably the concavity is sufficient to prevent water from flowing over and off the porous portion when the cap is in use. The concavity may allow use of a very fine mesh material for the porous portion 2. Preferably the concavity is sufficient to overcome surface tension effects which would otherwise prevent the use of fine mesh materials. 15 Referring to figure 2, an alternative embodiment of the invention involves a gutter cap having a frame la supporting a mesh cloth 2a. It has been found that the invention works well in many situations if the mesh size is approximately 1 mm by 1 mm. The frame la may be formed from wire or any other suitable substance. 20 The wire may be such that it can be bent by hand to shape the cap if need be. The cloth 2a is arranged such that when it is in use it is substantially concave. A central support bar or wire lb provides support to the mesh cloth 2a. As can be seen in figure 2 the gutter cap is longitudinally symmetrical. Again, the concavity is such that when the gutter cap is in use rainwater does not flow across and off 25 the mesh cloth 2a. The concavity addresses surface tension effects which may otherwise cause such undesired run-off, ie as opposed to allowing water dropping through the mesh cloth 2a. Figure 3a shows the gutter cap of figure 1 when installed on top of a gutter 7 30 adjacent the roof of a building. The outermost side part of the cap rests on an outer edge part 3 of the gutter and the innermost side part of the cap rests on the brackets 4 which secure the gutter to the building. The roof and exterior wall of the building are shown at 5 and 6 respectively. When the gutter cap is in use rain water runs off the roof and drops through the central porous portion 2 to enter the WO 2006/006874 PCT/NZ2005/000137 5 gutter. Because the cap covers the gutter it prevents leaves, twigs, or other debris from undesirably collecting in the gutter 7. Figure 3b shows the figure 1 gutter cap when in use substantially as described 5 for figure 3a, except that the brackets 4a are of a different type. Figures 4a and 4b show the gutter cap of figure 2 when used in connection with guttering 7 and the same brackets 4 and 4a mentioned in figures 3a and 3b respectively. In the case of the figure 2 cap the water running off the roof passes 10 through the mesh cloth 2a, and the mesh cloth 2a prevents undesired build up of debris in the gutter. The gutter caps of figures 1 and 2 may be secured to the guttering and/or the associated brackets by any suitable means, for example stainless steel screws, 15 adhesives, etc. In some embodiments of the invention only the front of the gutter cap of figure 1 or 2 may be fastened to the guttering, leaving the rear of the gutter cap to simply rest on the brackets (4, or 4a) which secure the gutter to the building. In some cases the caps of figures 1 and 2 can be fixed, if desired, to the roof or wall of the building rather than the gutter brackets 4 and 4a. 20 Figures 5a and 5b illustrate alternative ways of installing the figure 1 and figure 2 caps respectively. Fixing of the caps as shown, optionally with screws as at 8, secures them against wind, rain, and other adverse influences, and may facilitate ready installation and removal. 25 Figure 6 shows a preferred way of arranging the figure 1 gutter caps 1 around a roof structure. The caps 1 may be in fixed such that they abut one another as at 9, or may be in overlapping fashion as shown at 10. An overlapping arrangement allows for ready linear adjustment of the gutter caps and linear expansion or 30 contraction caused by temperature variations. At corner parts of the roof two immediately adjacent gutter caps may be cut at 45 degrees and butted against one another as at 11.

WO 2006/006874 PCT/NZ2005/000137 6 An advantage of preferred forms of the invention is that the gutter cap can be slid under the eaves of a roof without difficulty, notwithstanding the typically limited work space between the eaves and the gutter. This is demonstrated by the four progressive images of figure 7. The concavity of figure 1 type caps may further 5 assist in installing them in situations where the front wall of the gutter is higher than the rear wall of the gutter immediately adjacent the building. In some embodiments of the invention a gutter cap may be formed substantially similar to the figure 1 arrangement, except that it has edge parts at a 45 degree 10 angle or thereabouts. This is evident from figure 8, which actually shows the overlapping parts of two adjacent gutter caps. Each cap is may be formed from a suitable plastic material having a central mesh contour as shown in figure 9. While the caps have been described in connection with gutters it should be 15 appreciated that they may also be used generally to filter water running off a sloping surface. While some preferred forms of the invention have been described by way of example it should be appreciated that modifications and improvements can occur 20 without departing from the scope of the following claims. 25 30

Claims (10)

1. A gutter cap suitable for use with guttering forming part of a building, the 5 cap comprising: i) an elongate plate having a concave porous portion therein, or ii) an elongate frame supporting a cloth mesh portion wherein the cloth is arranged to have a concave shape, at least when the cap is in use, 10 the cap being formed such that it can be fitted to the guttering to substantially prevent undesired debris from entering the guttering while at the same time allowing rainwater to pass through the porous portion, or the cloth mesh portion, as the case may be. 15

2. A gutter cap according to claim 1, formed such that it is substantially longitudinally symmetrical.

3. A gutter cap according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the elongate plate 20 mentioned at i) has two opposite side parts which are not concave.

4. A gutter cap according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the elongate plate mentioned at i) is substantially formed from a length or lengths of a suitable metallic or plastic substance. 25

5. A gutter cap according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the elongate frame is formed from a length or lengths or wire or bar.

6. A gutter cap having a shape and configuration substantially as shown and 30 described with reference to figure 1 or figure 2.

7. A gutter cap substantially as herein described with reference to figure 1 or 2. WO 2006/006874 PCT/NZ2005/000137 8

8. A gutter fixed to a building and substantially covered by a gutter cap fixed to the gutter, the gutter cap being in accordance with any one of the preceding claims. 5

9. A gutter according to claim 8, wherein the gutter cap is fixed to the gutter and/or brackets supporting the gutter with respect to the building.

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