GB2204617A - Provision, repair or replacement of facia boards and barge boards of buildings - Google Patents

Abstract

A new or existing facia or barge board of a building is clad from plastisol coated sheet steel stock. A plurality of profiled panel members are produced from such stock. Each panel member defines a main panel 1 and a contiguous edge panel 2. The main panels fit together contiguously so as to cover at least the entire exposed outer face of the board with the edge panels covering at least the entire lower exposed edge of the board. Joint members 6 formed from the same plastisol coated sheet steel stock cover abutting edges. Adhesive material is applied to inner surfaces of the joint members and the joint members are applied to the panel members where they abut. In a modified arrangement a facia serving in place of conventional facia or barge boards on a building is provided. In this arrangement, a plurality of profiled panel members each defining a main panel and an integral edge panel are provided from plastisol coated sheet steel stock together with appropriate joint members as before. The panel members further include a fixture panel contiguous with the main panel along its edge remote from the edge panel, which fixture panel is fixed to a respective rafter of the building (Fig 10). In this arrangement, the edge panels may serve as a soffit board support. <IMAGE>

Description

PROVISION, REPAIR OR REPLACEMENT OF FACIA BOARDS AND BARGE BOARDS OF BUILDINGS Description This invention is concerned both with the provision of facia boards or barge boards on newly built or renovated buildings and also with the repair or replacement of existing facia boards or barge boards of buildings.

It is a common building practice to provide facia boards or barge boards for example at gable and the like ends of buildings and/or at the edges of a flat roof on a building. The conventional practice is to provide such boards of wood, a material which rots and which requires periodic painting if it is not to deteriorate rapidly.

Apart from the simple replacement of a rotten facia or barge board by an otherwise identical facia or barge board likely to be subject to similar deterioration over time, we are aware only of one prior proposal, namely the use of preformed white plastics replacement facia and barge boards available under the trade name SWISH CELUKA. These replacement boards require the demounting of the existing board and, in addition to the plastics material, the use of special fittings. The replacement operation is labour intensive and the replacement material and special fixings inherently expensive. Furthermore, the plastics material itself tends to deteriorate over time, though at a slower rate than the previous painted wooden boards. In particular, the plastics material gradually becomes brittle through exposure to heat and light. The plastics material may warp, split or crack.

As will become clear from the detailed description which follows, we have devised a novel arrangement which makes use of a quite different material'and which enables new or existing facia or barge boards which may be made of the conventional wood to be clad in a simple and inexpensive manner, thereby providing an arrangement which is weather resistent. The end result does not rot and is unaffected by light and heat. We believe it to be essentially maintenance free. In an alternative arrangement most suitable for new buildings, no separate board as such may be necessary, the "cladding" itself serving as an alternative to a facia board.

In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, we provide a method of cladding a new or existing facia or barge board of a building, the method comprising: providing, from plastisol coated sheet steel stock of thickness substantially less than the thickness of the facia or barge board, a plurality of profiled panel members each defining a main panel and a contiguous edge panel, the panel members being of such configuration that the main panels are adapted to fit together contiguously so as to cover at least the entire exposed outer face of the board with the edge panels covering at least the entire lower exposed edge of the board; providing respective joint members formed from the same plastisol coated sheet steel stock and adapted to cover abutting edges of respective main panels and edge panels; applying adhesive material to inner surfaces of each said joint member and applying said joint members to the said panel members where they abut and simultaneously to cover any auxiliary fixing members (if employed) between said panel members and the underlying board in the region of said abutting edges.

Preferably each panel member is profiled so as to provide in addition to the main panel and the lower edge panel, an additional edge portion running along the edge of said edge panel opposite said main panel, whereby the main panel, the edge panel and the additional edge portion effectively embrace the lower edge of the board. Preferably, a further edge portion is provided along the upper edge of each main panel member to lie along the upper edge of a barge board or facia board.

With this arrangement it may be possible to avoid the use of auxiliary fixing means for coupling the panel members to the facia board or barge board, but we prefer to employ special plastics headed stainless steel nails at appropriately spaced centres, the heads being suitably colour matched to the colour of the plastisol coat.

In an alternative arrangement, each main panel member has a fixture panel provided along its upper edge and which is adapted to extend across the upper edge of the barge board or facia board for fixture to a rafter by appropriate fixture means such as stainless steel nails.

This fixture panel may serve to support the lowermost tile of the roof and the felt and to stop the felt collapsing behind the facia board.

In a further variation, particularly suitable for new buildings, no separate board as such is employed, the cladding itself serving as a board. In this variation, the cladding suitably incorporates the fixture panel, and may abut, to, or support a soffit.

A preferred adhesive material is acrylic foam pressure sensitive adhesive tape. Such tape is readily available commercially and an appropriate length of such tape can simply be cut and adhered to the inner surfaces of each joint member before application to the panel members where they abut. Alternatively, a silicone sealant, preferably of architectural grade, can be applied to the inner surfaces of each joint member and possibly additionally to the corresponding surfaces of the panel members. We have found that such sealants achieve good adhesion with plastisol coated sheet steel stock.

In a second and alternative aspect of the present invention, we provide a method for providing a facia serving in place of conventional facia or barge boards on a building, the method comprising: providing from plastisol coated sheet steel stock a plurality of profiled panel members each defining a main panel and an integral edge panel, the panel members being of such configuration that the main panels are adapted to fit together contiguously to provide an exposed outer face for a facia replacing or serving as an alternative to facia boards or barge boards of a building with the edge panels providing an entire lower exposed edge for such facia, each said panel member further comprising a fixture panel contiguous with the main panel member along its edge remote from the edge panel; fixing each said fixture panel to a respective rafter of the building; providing respective joint members from the same plastisol coated sheet steel stock as said panel members and adapted to cover abutting edges of respective main panels and of respective edge panels; and applying adhesive material to inner surfaces of each said joint member and applying said joint members to the said panel members at least where respective main panels and respective edge panels abut.

The invention also extends firstly to a building which has one or more facia or barge boards clad by a method as a foresaid; and secondly to a building provided with a facia, serving as an alternative to or a replacement for a conventional facia or barge board, and provided by a method as defined above.

The invention is hereinafter more particularly described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Fig. 1 shows a building gable end with a facia board clad by a method in accordance with the present invention; Fig. 2 is a perspective view of a portion of one panel member of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a schematic illustration of the application of a panel member to a length of facia board; Fig. 4 is a sectional view illustrating a panel member in position clad upon an existing facia board; Fig. 5 is a sectional view of a modified embodiment of panel member suitable for the facia boards of an existing flat roof; Fig. 6 illustrates two panel members together with a joint member applied thereto; Fig. 7 is a top plan view of the joint member of Fig. 6 prior to its application to the abutting edges of the panel members shown in Fig. 6;; Fig. 8 is a view similar to Fig. 6 illustrating the formation of a corner joint by means of a corner joint member; Fig. 9 is a view similar to Fig. 7 for the corner joint member of Fig. 8; and Fig. 10 is a sectional view showing another means by which a facia or barge board may be clad by a method in accordance with the present invention.

Fig. 1 shows a conventional gable end to the facia board of which has been applied a plurality of profiled panel members produced from plastisol coated sheet steel stock of appropriate configuration whereby the respective main panels 1 together cover the entire exposed outer face of the board while edge panels 2 contiguous with the main panel together cover the lower exposed edge of the barge board.As can best be seen from Figs. 2 and 4, the panel members, in tis embodiment, also have an additional edge portion 3 formed along the edge of the edge panel opposite the main panel so that the main panel, the edge panel and the additional edge portion together embrace the lower end of the facia board F (see-Fig.4). Additionally, the upper edge of the main panel 1 is provided with a further edge portion 4 which locates the upper edge of the panel member on the upper edge of the facia board. With this particular configuration for the panel members, they can simply be pushed into place as shown schematically in Fig. 3.

Thereafter, all that is necessary is to provide the joint members at the abutting edges between respective panel members. We prefer, however, the additional security of plastics headed stainless steel nails fixed at appropriately spaced centres, the heads being colour matched to the colour of the plastisol coat.

A joint member 5 such as that shown in Figs. 6 and 7 comprises at least a joint main panel 6 and a joint edge panel 7. The joint member 5 may also have a joint additional edge portion 8 as shown in Fig. 7.

As can be seen in Fig. 7, the joint main panel 6 has marginal portions 9 inturned behind the joint main panel proper to provide a region of doubled thickness. As a result, when the joint member 5 is fixed in position as shown in Fig. 6, the marginal sides of the joint member indicated at 10 do not expose raw steel edges to the elements. In effect the plastisol protection is maintained at exposed edges such as 10.

Immediately inwardly of the inturned marginal portions 9, as can be seen in Fig. 7, is an adhesive layer 11. This layer is preferably formed by applying a length of acrylic foam pressure sensitive adhesive tape to the inner surfaces of the joint member. A preferred such adhesive tape is available from Industrial Tape Specialists Division of 3M United Kingdom PLC under the trade name VHB Joining Systems and product number 4945. This adhesive has a very high peel adhesion and normal tensile adhesion. We have found that it very readily adheres to plastisol coated sheet steel stock and has the particularly useful value of tolerating relatively large differences in rates of expansion. Its adhesive properties are maintained over the range of ambient temperatures encountered in practice at least in countries with a temperate climate.

Although acrylic foam pressure sensitive adhesive tape maintains its adhesion under severe winter conditions, it is not so easy to apply under winter working conditions. Particularly for use under such circumstances, alternative adhesive materials may be used. One such preferred alternative adhesive is architectural grade, silicone sealant, for example DOW 795, which proves very satisfactory since it acts both as a sealant at any exposed edges and as an adhesive. We have found that it readily adheres to the plastisol coated surface of plastisol coated sheet steel stock.

Nevertheless, for the majority of application purposes, the adhesive tape is to be preferred.

As will be noted from Fig. 7, the adhesive tape is applied in two lengths extending down the internal side of the joint main panel 6 alongside the marginal portion 9 and then across the joint edge panel 7. For ease of application to the region where two of the panel members abut, having first been fitted over an existing facia board or barge board as shown in fig. 3, the joint member 5 omits a joint further edge portion corresponding to further edge portion 4 of the panel member. When applied to the abutting panel members in the manner shown in Fig. 6, the joint member adheres both to the main panels 1 of the abutting panel members and also to the edge panels 2 of the abutting panel members.

Joints between abutting panel members can also be provided at a corner, as shown in Fig. 8, use being made of a corner joint member 12 also formed of plastisol coated sheet steel stock. Those skilled in this art will appreciate that, in common with all the panel members described and illustrated heretofore, the corner joint member of Fig. 9 can be produced simply by cutting and bending flat sheet steel stock, including forming a right angle bend along the vertical edge between the two corner joint main panels 13 and abutting edges along the line 14 between two sections of corner joint edge panel 15.As in the joint member 5 of Fig. 7, corner joint member 12 also has its marginal portions 9 inwardly turned and lengths of acrylic foam pressure sensitive adhesive tape 11 alongside the marginal portions 9 on the inside surface of the corner joint main panels 13 and across the corner joint edge panels 15. The corner joint 12 also has corner joint additional edge portions 16 which correspond to the additional edge portions 3 of the panel members. It will be noted, however, that to assist in fitting the corner joint 12 into position over the abutting edges of the main panels 1 and edge panels 2 of the two panel members at the corner illustrated in Fig. 8, the corner joint additional edge portions 16 are omitted in the central region 17 adjacent the apex of the corner joint.

For cladding an existing facia board or barge board of an existing flat roof where the roofing felt or other material extends over the top edge of the facia board, clearly the panel member cannot b applied in the manner shown in figs. 2, 3 and 4 since there is no access to the upper edge of the facia board or barge board for the placement of the further edge portion 4 along the upper edge of the facia board or barge board. For this reason, we may employ a modified embodiment of panel member shown in section Fig. 5 for such facia boards or barge boards of existing flat roofs.

In the course of renovating rotten facia or barge boards of existing old buildings, we have found that the felt beneath the roof tiles may collapse behind the facia board, and, indeed, it is this that may have caused the board to rot in the first place. To overcome this problem, as illustrated in Fig, 10, we provide panel members in which the main panel 1 faces the exposed outer face of the facia F, while associated edge panel 2 and additional edge portion 3 extend about the lower end of the facia F, as in the previously described embodiments.

Where the panel member of Fig. 10 differs from the previously described and illustrated panel members is that along the upper edge of the main panel member 1 is provided a fixture panel 18 which extends across the upper edge of the facia F to be fixed, for example by means of a plastisol coated nail 19, at a suitable point on the rafter R. In addition, panel member supports a soffit panel 20, flange 21 of which is embraced together with the lower end of facia F by the main panel 1, edge panel 2 and additional edge portion 3, as shown in Fig.

10, soffit panel 20 underlying a soffit board S, which may suitably be formed of asbestos, and which is held in a groove in the rearface of facia board F.

PVC plastisol coated sheet steel stock is available from BSC Strip Mill Products in a variety of British Standard colours for external use under British Steel Corporation's Trade Mark COLORCOAT so that a cladding in a colour in harmony with the natural colours or paintwork of an existing building can readily be provided.

Because the panel members described herein are of a relatively simple profile in section, they can be fabricated to fit any existing size of facia board or barge board. The invention has been described hereinabove in terms of cladding existing facia boards or barge boards. It will be appreciated, however, that precisely the same techniques can be applied to cladding new facia boards and barge boards.

The invention can also be applied to the construction of new buildings in a way which avoids the need for any boardn as such, thereby avoiding the provision of any exposed material likely to rot.

Referring again to Fig. 10, it will be appreciated that if the facia board F where simply omitted, for example in the initial construction of a new building, the panel members may facially abut the ends of the rafters R and may themselves together provide an effective facia serving as an alternative to or replacement for a conventional facia board F, being fixed to their upper end to the rafter R underneath the lowermost tile and associated felt and serving to support these, thereby preventing the felt from falling down behind a facia board. Since it will be necessary to support a soffit panel in this arrangement, the panel member will still require not only the main panel 1, but also a soffit support which can be provided by an edge panel contiguous with the main panel along its lower edge or, as in the profiled section shown in Fig. 10, by the uppermost edge of additional edge portion 3. In this latter arrangement, the depending flange 21 of soffit panel 20 confronts the rear face main panel 1.

Claims (13)

1. A method of cladding a new or existing facia or barge board of a building, the method comprising: providing, from plastisol coated sheet steel stock of thickness substantially less than the thickness of the facia or barge board, a plurality of profiled panel members each defining a main panel and a contiguous edge panel, the panel members being of such configuration that the main panels are adapted to fit together contiguously so as to cover at least the entire exposed outer face of the board with the edge panels covering at the least the entire lower exposed edge of the board; providing respective joint members formed from the same plastisol coated sheet steel stock and adapted to cover abutting edges of respective main panels and of respective edge panels; applying adhesive material to inner surfaces of each said joint member and applying said joint members to the said panel members where they abut and simultaneously to cover any auxiliary fixing members (if employed) between said panel members and the underlying board in the region of said abutting edges.

2. A method according to Claim 1, wherein each said panel member is profiled to provide, in addition to said main panel and said edge panel, an additional edge portion running along the edge of said edge panel opposite said main panel, the main panel, edge panel and additional edge portion being of such size and configuration as effectively to embrace the lower edge portion of the board.

3. A method according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein each said panel member is profiled to provide a further edge portion along the edge of said main panel remote from said edge panel, the arrangement being such that said further edge portions lie along the upper edge of said barge board or facia board.

4. A method according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, wherein the main panel of each said panel member has a fixture panel provided along its edge remote from said edge panel, and wherein said fixture panels extend across the upper edge of the barge board or facia board and are fixed by appropriate fixture means to a rafter of the building.

5. A method according to Claim 4, wherein said fixture panels are effective to support the lowermost tile of the roof and associated felt and to prevent the said felt from collapsing behind the said facia board or barge board.

6. A method for providing a facia serving in place of conventional facia or barge boards on a building, the method comprising: providing from plastisol coated sheet steel stock a plurality of profiled panel members each defining a main panel and an integral edge panel, the panel members being of such configuration that the main panels are adapted to fix together contiguously to provide an exposed outer face for a facia replacing or serving as an alternative to facia boards or barge boards of a building with the edge panels providing an entire lower exposed edge for such facia, each said panel member further comprising a fixture panel contiguous with the main panel member along its edge remote from the edge panel; fixing each said fixture panel to a respective rafter of the building; providing respective joint members from the same plastisol coated sheet steel stock as said panel members and adapted to cover abutting edges of respective main panels and of respective edge panels; and applying adhesive material to inner surfaces of each said joint member and applying said joint members to the said panel members at least where the respective main panels and respective edge panels abut.

7. A method according to Claim 5 or Claim 6, wherein each said panel member comprises soffit support adapted to be fixed to, to support or to abut against a soffit.

8. A method according to any preceding Claim, wherein said adhesive material comprises one or more lengths of acrylic foam pressure sensitive adhesive tape.

9. A method according to any of Claims 1 to 7, wherein said adhesive material comprises silicone sealant.

10. A method of cladding a new or existing facia or barge board of building, the method being substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

11. A method for providing a facia serving in place of conventional facia or barge boards on a building, the method being substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to Fig. 10 of the accompanying drawings.

12. A building provided with one or more facia or barge boards clad by a method according to Claim 10, any of Claims 1 to 5, or any of Claims 7, 8 and 9 as appendant to any of Claims 1 to 5.

13. A building provided with a facia by a method according to Claims 6 or 11 or according to any of Claims 7, 8 or 9 as appendant to Claim 6.