GB2189527A

GB2189527A - Cavity tray for wall abutting an inclined surface

Info

Publication number: GB2189527A
Application number: GB08707918A
Authority: GB
Inventors: John Louis Shillabeer
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1986-04-16
Filing date: 1987-04-02
Publication date: 1987-10-28
Also published as: GB8707918D0; GB8609299D0; GB2189527B

Abstract

A cavity tray has elongate wall portions 12, 14; (112, 114 Fig. 5) constituting a base 12; a rear wall 14, and also has one end wall 16. However it is symmetrical so that the functions of the base 12 and the rear wall 14 are exchangeable to reverse the "handedness" of the tray. There may be flaps 17; (117 Fig. 5) extending from the elongate wall portion. A flap 17 on the rear wall 14 assists in bridging a cavity; that on the base 12 may assist in installing the tray correctly, and in locating a tray subsequentially. The end wall 16 may be adapted to be folded or cut to accommodate a thick outer skin 30 of a cavity wall. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Cavity tray The present invention relates to cavity trays, and, in particular, to cavity trays for use in a wall abutted by an inclined surface.

Where a wall is abutted by an inclined surface, cavity trays are usually steeped down the wall to follow the line of contact. One tray designed for such a purpose has a base which extends in use through the outer skin of the wall. A rear wall rises from the rear of the base. An end upstand rises from one end of the base andes also connected to a lower portion of the rear wall. At least an upper portion of the rear wall is rearwardly inclined, possibly to a variable degree so as to allow cavities of different sizes to be bridged.

Because of the upstand at one end, the tray is "handed". A tray handed in one sense is used where the inclined surface sloees down from left to right, as viewed facing the abutted wall, and a tray handed in the opposite sense is used for an inclined surface sloping the other way. This means that two different trays have to be manufactured and stocked.

The present invention provides a single cavity tray that can be arranged to serve as a tray that is handed in either sense. Preferably the cavity tray comprises two like elongate wall portions connected side by side and extending in different planes so as to provide base and rear wall portions of the tray; an end wall connected to both of said wall portions; and optionally a pair of like flaps each connected to a respective elongate wall portion remote from the other elongate wall portion; the arrangement being such that the tray is selectively orientable either in a first configuration of use in which the first elongate wall portion provides the base and the second elongate wall portion provides a rear wall portion, (and if there is a said flap connected to the second elongate wall portion, this may provide a further rear wall portion for extending across a cavity); or in a second configuration in which the roles of the first and second elongate wall portions are exchanged, (and if there is a said flap connected to the first elongate wall portion, this may then be arranged to extend across a cavity).

Preferably the end wall is stepped so that in either configuration it has a lower front portion for extending along the end face of a building module (such as a brick) of the outer skin of a cavity wall, when a said module stands on the base of the tray. Thus the height of this lower front portion is similar to or less than the height of a module.

In order to reduce the risk of the higher rear portion of the end wall fouling the outer skin of the cavity wall or an adjacent (upper) tray, the elongate wall portions may be extra deep, at least adjacent the end wall, e.g. being trapezoidal. Alternatively or additionally the end wall may have slits or be slittable such that the rearward extent of the lower front portion can be increased by folding back (or cutting away) at least a part of the rear portion.

The flaps if present may be hingedly attached to the elongate wall portions, and each may extend for substantially the whole length of the tray. Each hinge may be sufficiently stiff to maintain the flap in a selected position. The hingeing may be resilient, such that in use the rear flap may be resiliently urged against the inner skin of a wall. A hinge may be provided by a semiperforated line, which may additionally or alternatively facilitate removal of a flap.

Alternatively, the flaps may be just small tabs, preferably adjacent the end wall, serving to indicate the position of a tray after installation.

In further aspects the invention provides a method of installing a cavity tray; and a wall assembly including at least one cavity tray.

Some embodiments of cavity trays according to the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of the cavity tray of the invention; Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing three of the cavity trays of Fig. 1 stepped down a wall abutted by an inclined roof.

Fig. 3 is a side view of a cavity wall into which the avity tray of Fig. 1 has been installed; Fig. 4 is a sectional view along the line A-A of Fig.

2; and Fig. 5 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the invention.

The cavity tray 10 shown in Figs. 1-4 has an elongate wall portion that in the illustrated configuration constitutes a base 12. This is integral with and perpendicular to a second elongate wall portion constituting a backstand 14. An end upstand 16 closes off one end of the tray, and a respective extension flap 17, fluted (18) to give rigidity, projects at an angle from each of the base and the backstand. The tray is formed from a stiff material, such as plastics or thin metal sheet. The base and backstand are of the same dimensions. They may have patterned upper surfaces to aid keying to mortar. There may be longitudinal drainage channels 19 extending from the open end of the tray, and/or formations on the reverse sides to inhibit water from running back along the underside of the base 12.The elongate wall portions 12,14 are connected to respective extension flaps along vertices 20.

Each flap 17 is generally at an angle to the adjacent wall portion 12 or 14. It may be held rigidly but preferably the vertices 20 allow some degree of flexibility or hingeing. Thus the tray may be basically self-supporting in a given shape, but with the upper flap 17 resiliently urgeable to pivot forwardly about the adjacent vertex 20 to reduce the rearward extent of the tray.

The end upstand 16 is an approximately square wall, connected at adjacent edges to the base 12 and backstand 14, and with a square cut away at its free corner to form a step defined by edge portions 22 parallel to the base and the backstand.

Two equal cuts 22a continue the lines of respective edge portions 22 to define flap portions 24 which can be folded back to enlarge the step.

Although the cavity tray is depicted in Fig.

1 with its upstand- 16 on the left, the overall symmetry of the tray enables the roles of the base and backstand to be reversed, so that one gets a cavity tray with its upstand on the right. A series of trays 10 being used in their right-hand mode for a wall sloping downwards from right to left is shown in Fig. 2.

In use, the tray is built into the outer skin of a wall, with the base 12 sandwiched between courses of building modules (such as bricks), with only the flap 17 attached to the base protruding forwardly of the outer skin 30, as shown in Fig. 3. The backstand 14 is located in the cavity spaced from the inner skin, with the intervening gap being bridged by the extension flap 17 attached to the backstand. If the thickness of the outer skin is greater than the distance between the front edge of the base and the leading edge 32 of the upper section of the upstand, the flap portion 24 can be folded back to abut the interior surface of the outer skin, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, to prevent the excess material from fouling the cavity.

Thus a single tray type is suitable for use with walls with a range of thicknesses of outer skins (and possibly with a range of cavity sizes), at abutments of inclined surfaces sloping in either sense.

The flap 17 that extends forwardly of the wall portion that is being used as the base 12 may be removed. However, if it is not removed until after the tray has been built into a wall it can serve a useful purpose in aiding a plumber in locating the tray in order to connect a flashing.

Furthermore, particularly if the flaps 17 are hingedly connected they can have a gauging function to assist in correctly locating the position of the tray during installation. It is generality required that the corner of tray adjacent the upstand should be a specified distance (generally 75 mm for a brick wall) above the roof line or other inclined surface where it abuts the wall. Thus if the flaps 17 are 75 mm deep, the installer can use the front one to position the tray correctly.

Fig. 5 shows a second form of tray 110 embodying the invention. It is quite similar to the first, and corresponding elements have the same reference numbers raised by 100. Thus there are main wall portions 112,114 with channels 19, and an end upstand 116 with edges 122 extended by cuts 122a to define flap portions 124 that can be folded back or removed.

The main wall portions 112,114 are in this case not rectangular but trapezoidal. The edges adjacent the end upstand 116 are longer than the opposite edges (and the upstand 116 is correspondingly larger than in the first embodiment). This makes it easier to locate the tray 110 so that there is no fouling of the higher rear portion of the end upstand 116.

Additionally this shape assists in directing water to the outside skin area of the cavity wall rather than the inside skin area.

The other main difference from the first embodiment is the virtual abolition of flaps continuing the main wall portions 112,114. Now the bridging of the cavity is effected by the main portions. The flaps could be omitted entirely. But it is convenient to maintain vestigial tabs 117 so that, after installation, the tray 110 can be located by a plumber or by a builder who is subsequently building on a gable abutment for which provision has been made by the installation of trays.

Claims

1. A cavity tray which comprises two like elongate wall portions connected side by side and extending in different planes so as to provide base and rear wall portions of the tray; and an end wall connected to both of said wall portions; the arrangement being such that the tray is selectively orientable either in a first configuration of use in which the first elongate wall portion provides the base and the second elongate wall portion provides a rear wall portion, or in a second configuration in which the roles of the first and second elongate wall portions are exchanged.

2. A cavity tray according to claim 1 which includes a pair of like flaps each connected to a respective elongate wall portion remote from the other elongate wall portion.

3. A cavity tray according to claim 2 wherein the flaps are such that in the first configuration the flap connected to the second elongate wall portion provides a further rear wall portion for extending across a cavity, and in the second configuration the flap connected to the first elongate wall portion provides such a further rear wall portion.

4. A cavity tray according to claim 3 in which the flaps are hingedly attached to respective elongate wall portions.

5. A cavity tray according to claim 4 in which the hingeing of the flaps is stiff such that a flap tends to remain in a given orientation.

6. A cavity tray according to claim 4 in which the hingeing of the flaps is resilient such that in use the rear flap may be resili ently urged against the inner skin of a wall or resiliently urged to a predetermined configuration.

7. A cavity tray according to any of claims 4 to 6 in which said hinges are provided by semiperforated lines which also serve to facilitate removal of flaps.

8. A cavity tray according to claim 2 wherein the flaps comprise small tabs serving to indicate the position of a tray after installation.

9. A cavity tray according to any preceding claim in which the end wall is stepped so that in either configuration it has a lower front portion for extending along the end face of a building module of the outer skin of a cavity wall, when a said module stands on the base of the tray.

10. A cavity tray according to claim 9 wherein the end wall has a pair of slits such that in either orientation of the tray the rearward extent of the lower front portion of the end wall can be increased by folding back (or cutting away) at least a part of the rear portion.

11. A cavity tray according to any preceding claim wherein the elongate wall portions widen towards the end wall.

12. A cavity tray substantially as any described herein with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

13. A cavity wall construction including at least one cavity tray according to any preceding claim built in so that the elongate wall portion providing the base extends through the outer skin of the cavity wall, and the other elongate wall portion extends upwardly within the cavity.

14. A cavity wall construction substantially as herein described and illustrated.

15. A method of installing a cavity tray according to any of claims 1 to 12 comprising orienting the tray to achieve a desired handedness, and building it into a cavity wall so that the elongate wall portion providing the base extends through the outer skin of the cavity wall, and the other elongate wall portion extends upwardly within the cavity.

16. A method according to claim 15 wherein the tray has a respective flap connected to each elongate wall portion remote from the other wall portion and the flap extending from the base is employed for gauging the positioning of the tray.

17. A method according to claim 15 or 16 wherein the tray has a respective flap connected to each elongate wall portion remote from the other wall portion, and the tray is installed so that the flap extending from the rear wall portion extends rearwardly so that the tray substantially bridges the cavity.

18. A method according to claim 16 or 17 including the step of removing the flap extending from the base.

19. A method according to any of claims 15 to 18 wherein the end wall is stepped so that in either configuration it has a lower front portion for extending along the end face of a building module and, before the tray is built in, the rearward extent of the lower front portion is increased so that it exceeds the thickness of the outer skin of the wall, by folding back or cutting away at least a part of the rear portion.

20. A method of installing a cavity tray substantially as any herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.