AU726444B2

AU726444B2 - Joist protector

Info

Publication number: AU726444B2
Application number: AU16478/95A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Ray D'Arcy
Original assignee: ARCY RAY
Current assignee: ARCY RAY
Priority date: 1994-04-15
Filing date: 1995-04-13
Publication date: 2000-11-09
Anticipated expiration: 2015-04-13
Also published as: AU1647895A

Description

P/00/01 1 MW9 AUSTRALIA Regulation 3.2 Patents Act 1990

ORIGINAL

COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT Invention Title: ::The following statement is a full description of this Invention, including the best -m:~~ethod of performing It known to me:- I z JOIST PROTECTOR The present invention relates to a product that protects flooring joists from moisture and in particular those joists having timber decking or flooring laid there across.

For many years timber decking has been popular for residential applications outdoors as timber tends to give a natural look which blends in well with gardens and bush settings Exposed timber decks however are constantly subject to the elements and often the joists supporting the structure rot due to continued exposure to moisture which rot renders them unsafe.

Wet area flooring laid directly over timber joists in such areas as bathrooms and laundries are also subject to moisture which with time will rot the supporting joists.

Rotting of joists is particularly dangerous in that it is often not apparent to the unskilled eye as the joist is substantially covered by timber planking or flooring running perpendicular thereto. Replacement of the joists is an extremely labour intensive job which usually involves complete dismantling of the deck involved and subsequently a cost of the same order of magnitude as construction of a new timber deck.

It is accordingly an object of the present invention to retard rotting of timber joists and other similar type timber member.

2 According to the present invention there is provided a resiliently deformable thermoplastic channel section extrusion having a planer top surface and two opposing skirt portions depending from either side of the planer top portion; each skirt portion forming an include angle of between 45 and 89 degrees with the underside of the planer top portion.

One embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawing in which: Figure 1 is schematic diagram indicating a joist protector in accordance with the present invention in place on a section of timber deck, and Figure 2 is a section through and a schematic diagram of a joist protector in accordance with the present invention.

Figure 1 depicts a joist protector having a planer top wall 2 and two skirt walls 3 and 4. It will be observed that the essentially channel section joist protector is laid over the top of joist 5 before timber decking is nailed over the top of the joists using nails 7 which nails penetrate joist protector 1.

Any rain falling on decking 6 and between gaps 8 in the decking cannot therefore lie on the top of the joist and instigate rot due to the fact that the top of the joist is sheathed by joist protector I. The embodiment depicted also includes a clamping action created by the angle between the skirt portion with the underside of the planer top portion and a gripping means which in this instance takes the form of small raised longitudinal ridges and valleys 9 on the upper surface of top wall 2 of the joist protector 1. The included angle of these ridges and valleys are best seen in Figure 2 and prevent the decking from sliding long joist protector 1, and the joist protector from becoming misaligned on the joist, prior to the decking being nailed off through the joint protector and into the joist. The longitudinal ridges and valleys best seen in Figure 2 hold off the decking and flooring allowing air movement and drying out to occur, thus obviating the potential of water and damp to initiate a rotting action on the underside of the decking or flooring.

o• Low density polyethylene is the preferred material of construction for the joist protector and the gripping means is therefore of some importance having regard to the fact that low 0density polyethylene would otherwise give a low friction contact area with the underside O0O9 of the decking. It is important that the joist protector be capable of accepting a nail through its top wall 2 without splitting or fracturing and furthermore once penetrated by a Snail the material from which the top wall 2 of the joist protector is fabricated must be S .9 sufficiently resiliently deformable so as to form a good seal around the nail such that water may not run down the nail into the joist.

Although timber is sold in accordance with its normal size such sizing varies considerably in practice.

lA 4 such variations and in order that the skirts may sit hard onto the side of the timber at their lower extremities 10 this embodiment depicts the skirts be forming an acute angle with the underside of top wall 2. The distance between opposing lower extremities 10 of the skirts is therefore less tan the upper extremities of the skirts. As this embodiment is fabricated from flexible thermoplastic it will be appreciated that a joist protector in accordance with this embodiment will therefore fit snugly about a joist and/or joists having variable widths.

Internally facing surfaces of skirts 3 and 4 are additionally provided with inwardly protruding ribs 11 which further assist the skirt walls to grip the joist and prevent the joist protector unintentionally slipping up and off the joist during installation.

Joist protectors may advantageously be fabricated from plastics stable in the presence of UV light and can furthermore be manufactured from recycled plastic.

Other embodiments apart from that above described may be devised without departing from the scope and intendment of the preset invention and for example the ridges and valleys 9 may be replaced by other grip patterns in order to increase the friction of the upper surface of top wall 2.

Claims

1. A timber joist protector which protects against moisture and retards the rotting of the timber joist comprising a resiliently deformable thermoplastic channel section extrusion having a planar top surface and two opposing skirt portions depending from either side of the planar top surface said protector having longitudinal ridges and valleys which grip the joist and space the decking flooring.

2. A timberjoist protector of claim 1 where in each skirt portion forms an included angle of between forty-five and eighty-nine degrees with the underside of the S. planar top surface. s.

3. A joist protector of claim 1 self seals around fixings preventing ingress of moisture. o *o