CA2204043C - Insulative wall cladding - Google Patents

Abstract

A wall of a building comprising cladding having a plurality of interconnecting air pressure and moisture vent channels. The cladding prevents formation of an air pressure differential between the outside atmosphere and the inside atmosphere a building or the atmosphere in a cavity of the cladding, which reduces moisture ingress.
Preferred cladding is further provided with fire-retardant panels.

Description

~IJ~ATI~ llaI~ C~aDDI~I~

This is a Divisional Application of C~n~ n Application No. 2,1 13,955, filed 21 Janualy, 1994.
F1~1~ O~ Th~ Tnvention Thi~ invention relate~ to ir- 1ative c~ inq of wall~ of building~, particularly to thermal and water-proof in~ulative cladding, and to insulation board~ and batten~ o~ u~- in ~aid c~ nq ~a ~ o~ 1 to the ~nv~ntion Wall~ of building~ that are not formed of reinforced concret-, typically, compri~e structural support me~ber- ~ad- of ~t-el, concrete and like material~ and having cladding di~po~ed ther-between The outer face of th- cladding i~ generally provided with a de_o~ativ- fini~h ~uch a~, for example, a polished granite slab, a brick wall or an exterior fini6h layer having an outer surface of a polymer/particulate decorativ ~aterial In th- latter case, the ëxterior fini~h i~ also provided a~ a rain-fa~t surface Certain type~ of wall~ of building~ have an inner cavity between outer cl~ nq and an inner wall, typically con~i~ting of a pla~terboard material The afGr~ cavity com~unicate~ with the out~ide atmo_p~ere to provide an air pre~ure equalization chamber and water

- 2 - SL363 vent conAll~t for water i,~L~--ing through the outer cladding Notwiths~AnAing th- high degre~ of carQ during construction to provide a water-impermeable ie rain-fast membrane to th- out~id- claA~nq surfac~, ov r periods of tim- under the influence of wind and rain, temperature and frost and ths lik-, hair-line crack~ invariably are formed in th- rain-fast lay-r to p-rmit said il~L~ 7~ of moisture through th- cladding to the cavity and into the int-rior of th- building Accordingly, th- cavity must communicate with a weep or vent hole or channel to prevent build-up of water within the cavity One ~ c-~-ful for~ of insulative cl ~A~ng pre~ently in u~e that does not requir- th- presencQ of an inner cavity comprises a multi-layer insulation board having a, typically, 6-8c~ thick layer of in~ulating foa~, such a~, ~Ypan~A pOly_-y~llQ, polyur-thane, ur-a-formaldehyde or min-ral wool Adh red to th~ inn-r surfac- of th- foa~ layer i8, typically, a gypsum plasterboard layer of approximately 2 ca thicknes~ on the outer surface of th- foa~ layer i~ a reinforcing layer of two or ~or- glas~ fibre me~he~ floated in a polymer-cement modified basecoat ThiJ ba~ecoat protects th- foa~ in~ulation lay-r froa both physical damage and moistur- ingrQ~ To th- out-r ba~ecoat layer is provided an exterior de_G~ativ layer of a polymer-particulate ~at-rial, typically, sand di~per~ed in an~
acrylic polymer Such ~ulti-layer insulativ- cl -~Atnq is formed, generally, a~ a handl-able, rectangular batten or board of dimensions of 1 2 m x 0 6 ~ x 8 c~ comprising 4 0 cm foa~ insulative material Each of the co~posite layer-d battQns or boards may b- madQ ~ , ie th- inner plasterboard and outer water-proofed layers may be adhered to th- foa~ layer after the wall of in~ulative foa~ ha~ been cG _~L~cted, _ 3 _ S~363 one batten upon another batten, during co _LL~ction Alternatively, the i n-~-l Ative batten~ and boards may be pr--~abricated and ~hipped to the ~on_L~ction site The clA~ng comprising a plurality of the insulation boards or battens is for~ed by th- plurality of 1 r,r~ tion board~ b ing cooperativ ly hon~e~ in ad~acent relationship as to provide t~-~lation to th- wall Such con~truction lie- well within the skill of plasterboard tradesmen Batten~ ar- abutted one on top of and next to other ~i~ilar battens and caulked or th- like to fill in any gap-, void~ between batten- Suitable connections to th- structural ~U~OL-8 of th- walls of th- building ar-~ade In con~idering th- d-sirability of a particular typ of in-ulativ- cladding for u~- in a wall, regard mu-t b had to th- eff-ct o~ wind pr-~sur- and rain on th- outer wall In th ab~ence of direct coDmunication between th- out~id- at~osph-r- and the at~o~phera in~ide th- building and/or any cavity, significant air pres~ure differential~ may exi~t dependent on the wind speed and th- like In consequ-nce of thi~ relatively larg-pr--sur- differ-ntial bet~aL the outside and inside of th- building cr-ated by _~.o~ wind~ acting on th- wall, aignificant wat-r ingres- through hair-line cracks and other unint ntional oFen~ng~ and the lik- readily OC~i~ d.
In th- ab~enc- o~ a cavity in the wall such moistur- will reach and da~age the in~ide ~urface of the wall of the h ~ q. Accordingly, caviti-~ ar- moat pref~rred in wall-, to ~ nt water il~eas, provid-d the cavity i~
vented to at~o-phere to allow for ~ re equalization and accu~ulativ water run-off out of th- cavity Thus, cladding ~yste~s r-lying sol-ly on out-r face ~ealing ~aterials suffer th- risk of water i,~a_~ over time, h-n~-~ by air pres~ur- differentials, rain, and c~ eF ive fre-zing and thawing of water contained within the c~ 1ng Thus, while th- composite layered cl~ n~ of the prior art provides a generally satisfactorily cladding, which readily enable~ a decorative cla~ng system of a wall to be sati-factorily and quickly con~tructed, such a resultant wall often suffers from the effect~ of water damage under th- air pressure diff-rential~ a~ aforesaid d--cribed, in th- ah~-n~e of an out~id- air-vented cavity It is an ob~ect of the ~L~7ent invention to provid- an im~Lo~ed ct~ ng for th- wall of a building which can be readily constructed on-site and which provid-~ air pre~ure eq~alization with the outside air It i~ a further ob~ect of th- invention to provid- im~ .d in~ulation board~ or battens for u~e in the aforesaid improved cladding of the wall of the building The~- and other ob~ect~ and advantages of the invention will become readily apparent to the man skilled in the art fro~ a reading of this specification as a whol-Su~mary of th- Invent1on Accordingly, the invention provides in its broadest aspect a wall of a building comprising cla~nq having a plurality Or interconnecting air ~ q~re and moisture vent channels Th- invention provides in a further broad aspect an improved cla~A~ng of the wall of a building, said clr~ng comprising a plurality of insulation board~
in cooperative, ad~acent relationship as to provide insulation to the wall, the im~o~ment compri~ing said boards being so shaped a~ to provide ~aid cladding with _ 5 _ SL363 a plurality of inter-co~necting air ~ re egualization and v nt channel- in ~aid c~a~ng By ~coop~rativ-, ad~acent r-lation~hip~ i~
meant that the in~ulation boards are built or layered one ad~acent or atop anoth-r b tween th- structural ~o~
~bQr~ of th- wall a~ i~ pr-~ently done in th- art as to provid- an in-ulation lay-r to th- wall By th- term ~cladding with a plurality of int-rconnecting air pr---ur- equalization and moi~ture vent ~h-nn~ 1- i- meant cl~dA~ng having a plurality Or cris--cro~sing chann-ls thlo~l Y~t a d-sired ar-a ot th~
cladding It i~ not meant to includ- cladding having a plurality ot parallel vertically align d chann-l- which inter--ct ~ol-ly with a ~ingl-, horizontally aligned channel ext~ "g acro-s th- width of th cladding, particularly, at a lower part thereof Th- boards ar- ~o ~haped such that when they ar- part ot th wall th-y produce, in con~quence of ad~ac-nt r-lationship with oth-r boards, a plurality of ch~nn~l~ which int-r-conn-ct with each other and via a lower vent m aber with the outsid- atmo~ph-re Th-plurality ot chann-l~ may ~xtend ~ub-tantially acro~s th-full ar-a ot th- cladding or, it de~ir-d, only a part th-r-of Th- wall ay b provided with interv ning stru~L~ uch a- door~ or window~ which ~ay a~ut, dir-ctly or indir-ctly, in~ulation boards according to th invention, but which wall ~till ~atisfactorily sati~ri-- th ob~-ct o~ t~- invention Although the inv-ntion include- cladding co~pri-inq board- a- her-inabove detined wherein th-v~rtically align d channel- comJunicate with horizontally aligned chann-ls at th- ~ide~, ~ac-s and ~dg-J, cla~nq for ed ot a plurality of boards having a plurality of v rtically align-d channels on a full fac- ot the board, which channels must be in alignment contiguous with the plurality of upwardly aligned channels of at lea~t one other board resting upon it Provided that th- full face al-o has a portion d-fining a lateral channel which int-rco~nQct- with th- upwardly aligned channels to provid- an interconn-cting air ~,e~rlr~ equalization and vent rh ~nn - t .
Each of th- in-ulation board~ may b of any suitabl~ shape and di~ n-ion Pref-rably, th- board is of th- order of 1 2 ~ x 0 6 ~ x 8 0 c~ r-ctangularly shaped batt~n of in-ulativ ~aterial Alt~rnativ~ly, ~ach of th- batten- may b of oth r ~hape~, such a- a triangl-Th- batten~ ~ay b ~o ~haped a- to provid-suitabl- int-rconnecting channel- of a~ Liat-location, ~hap- and di~ension to per~it sati~factory air pr--sur- equalization and wat-r r-~oval In on-e~bodi~ent, th- batt-n ha~ cut-away ~dg- portion~ along at l-a~t a portion of at lea-t on- dg- of a fir-t face which pr~ferably con-titute~ th- inn-r fac- of the cla~ng Th- cut-away portion may b defined by th~
~dg- Qurfac- a- a quadrant arcuat- fora, ~--i--quare for~
or 45 d gre- angl d fora In an alt-rnativ chann~l for~ing board of th- inv ntion, th- board ha~ a ~ ough ~xt~n~ng at l-a~t partly along at l ast on ~id- of the board Pref-rably, th- trough ext-nd- th- whol- le~gth and ~idway of ~ach of th- side~
Surpri~ingly, w- have found that a relatively s~all v-nt hol- in cou~unication with th- int-rconnecting air pr--sur- qualization chann-l~ provid-- ~ati-factory ~qualization Th- cladding and th- ~ulti-layered boardJ hav-pr-f-rably an airtig~t inner barr$-r ~ith-r adhered ther-to, or di-posed or ad~ac-nt in clo-e proximity thereto _ 7 _ SL363 Thus, in a further aspect ths invention provide~ insulation board~ a- herein defin-d for u8e in th~ o~-~ cladding of th- wall of a building as h~rein d-fined S On- very i~portant con~idQration that must be giv n to th- con~truction of wall cladding, particularly, cl~1ng of co~ercial and indu~trial builA~ng~, is that ~rning fir- prev-ntion and r-tardation Wall clAA~ng co~prising ~YpanAeA poly~tyrene of the prior art i~ provided with a back wrapping comprising a glass fiber me~h eibedded in a ce~ent modified acrylic poly~er base coat, which ~nv lop--, at l-a-t, th EPS
Prior to th coD~ rcial i ~v~ction to th-trad- of a nov-l wall clr~ng for u-- in a co~ ercial or indu~trial building, th~ wall ~at-rial~ and con-tructed wall ~u~t undergo ~xten~iv , sta~A-rd fir- te~ting In on~ ~uch te~t, a fla~ i8 play d onto th- back wrapping of th- EPS in~ulativ- c~ ng to deter~in~ wh-ther th-re~ultant syate~ ~eet- the regulatory r-guirements It i~ known that EPS ~ lt~ g~ 170 C to a vi~cou~, but nobil- fluid Thu-, in th wall cladding structur- according to th~ inv ntion, it i~ r-a~onable to exp ct that, notwith-tanA1nq th fir- r-tardancy of th-conventional back wrapp d EPS, under c-rtain extre~e high te peratur- conditiona th- EPS ~ay ~ lt and exit to-and through th- low r air pre~ure equalization and moisture v~nt chann l- o~ th panel~ and cl-~n~ according to the inv ntion. Further, it i- r-alized that th channels may al~o con~titut- pas-age~ in the cladding by which fla~e~
and hot ga--~ ~ay ri-- throughout th- cladding in the event of a fir-Accordingly, to reduc- th- po-~ibility of the ch-nr-l~ in th- cladding acting a~ ~uch fla~ pa~sages, th- invention provide~ in a further aspect, wall cl~ nq of a building a~ h-r-inabove defined wh-rein a portion of a least on- of said ch~nn~ls is filled with a fla~e re-i~tant, fluid perviou~, particulat- material By ~fluid p rvious~ i~ meant that air may r-adily pas- through th ~at-rial to allow of rapid air pr-~-ur- equalization wh-n ~ub~-ct d to ~xternal wind ~ff-ct- and th- lik-, and al~o allow wat-r to b vented through and out of th- chann-l~ Clearly, ~uch material mu-t not bo capabl- of b ing burnt in th- ~vent of a fir- Suitabl- mat-rial- includ- ~olid particulate material, such a~ in-ulativ- vermiculit- but mo~t pr-f-rably, ~ineral wool and glas~ fiber in th- for~ of int-r~ shed strand- or lay-r- Provid d that th location and volu~ of th- flam re-i~tant ~aterial in th- channel i- ~uffici-nt to ~ propagation of th-flame and al~o to ab-orb, hold-back or oth-rwis- ~.ve or r--train any m lt-~ EP8 fro~ exiting out of th- fla~e re-i-tant l~at-rial from th- cladding, 9nh- ~d flame r-tardation and improv d fir- saf-ty can b achieved - In it~ ~i~plest form, thi- aspect of th-inv ntion comprise~ a wedge of th- flau retardant material di~po~ d within at l-a~t a ~ufficient number of channel~ to prop rly achiev th- fir- retardant and air pr-~-ur- qualization goal Mo-t fr qu-ntly, th-~at-rial will b di-po-ed within chann-l~ at a ~uitable low-r plac- th r-of, to optimally trap any melted EPS
How v r, ~ucb material may b- A~ ~po~ed ad~acent or in cloa- proximity to upp r, and/or ~ide edge~ of windows and door~ in tho wall, wh-r--air pre-sur~ diff~rential equalization i~ para~ount, although no wat-r drainage facility i~ requir d Pref-rably, th- f lam r-tardant material i~
di~po- d within a rigid fire r-~i~tant ~tructur- such a-a ~all conduit foru d of a netal, brick or th- lik-, which communicates with and forms part of th- c~~nr el Th- conA~t ~ay thus be e~e~A within tho EPS or, more _ g _ SL363 pr-ferably ~u,~o~ eA by flame retardant material a~
h-r~n~hov- de~crib d In a mo-t preferred e~bodiment the flame re~istant sy~te~ compri~e~ a disparate panel o~ flame r-~i~tant material a- h-~ ~nah~v- d-~crib d ~po~ed b low, but ~xt n~ng b yond th- cro~ ectional area of th- channel In on ~mbodiment, th- unit compri~es a r-ctangularly ~haped mQober forned of a mineral wool, gla~ fiber or th- like which fitJ, wholly or partly, within an aF~ a wholly or partly within the clA~n~
Thu~, in a further a~pect th- invention provide~ c~ ng of a wall of a h~ n~ a~ h-r~n~hQve d-fin-d, wh-rein a portion of at l-ast on- of ~aid channel~ ha~ a flame re~i-tant fluid perviou~, particulate ~at-rial di-po~ed therein ~o a- to for~ a ~1~ r~ tant barri-r for th channel In a pref~r d a~pect of th- inv-ntion th-cladding further compri ~ a m ~ber formed of a flame-r-tardant, fluid perviou~, particulate material and di~po~ed within, in whol- or in part, ~aid cl~ g ad~acent and in co~ounication ~ith at l-a~t one of ~aid chann-l~ so a~ to form a flame-retardant barrier for ~aid channel; ~aid m ~ber having a ronA~t form d of a rigid, fir- r-~i~tant ~at-rial, which conduit ha~ a fir~t portion defininq a fir-t ap_~u~_ in communication with ~aid flam r-Ji-tant material and a 8e._0.~d portion defininq a ~econd apeL~u~a in com~unication with the at~o~phere, wh reby ~aid conA1~1t con~titut-s an air pr-~-ure conduit and moi~ture drain in indir-ct co~munication with ~aid channel The ~econd aFe~ a may b- in dir-ct or indirect co~unication with th-atmo~phere dep~nA~q on wh-ther or not an air and water p-rvious material i~ provided to yL~vel,~ direct communication Accordingly, in yet a further a~p-ct o~ th-invention th-r- i~ provided a flam -retardant panel for UJQ in th- cladding of a wall of a building, said panel compri~ing a flame-retardant, fluid perviouJ, particulate material; and a conA~t forned of a fir- resistant material and having a first portion defining a firJt ap-L ~L C in communication with said flame-retardant material and a -~~onA portion defining a ~-cond apertur-in co~unication with th- atmo~ph-r~ Pre~erably the conduit i~ formed o~ a rigid mat-rial such a~ a metal, for ~xampl-, aluminum, copper, steel and the like, or a c-ramic material Th- ~qconA apeL~uLe may b- in direct or indirect co~unication with th- atmoJpher- d-penAln~
on whether it i~ advantageou~ly provided with an air and wat-r p rviou~ lay-r or membrane Th- pan~ pr-f-rably forn d having th-conA~t di~po-ed, in whole or in part, within th- fire-r-tardant material ad~ac-nt on dg- th-r-of Preferably, the conA~t ha~ a ~ub~tantial upst~llA~ nq portion pro~-cting from an edge Or the pan-l Or ~uch h-ight from th- edge Or the pan-l that when fitted, g ç~ 1 5c to ~o~Laapond with th- thickne~J Or ca~ n~ typically uJed bet~a~l individual pan-l of a con~tructed cl~ n~ of a wall Th- flame re~istant panels according to the invention may b- Or any ~uitable dim nJion, but panel~ of 30c~ x 8cm x 5cm, optionally provided with a back wrapping a- hereinbefor- deJcribed and having a metal conduit wh r-in th pan~ adapted to fit bet~een two ad~acent in~ulative board- a~ her-inb for- d-scribed such that th- low-r ~nd Or th- chann-l i- di~posed above th-flam -retardant panel and the fir~t a~_L-~_ of the conA~t, i~ most pr-ferr-d It will be readily und-rJtood by th- man skilled in the art that ~lame retardant material and/or fla~ r-tardant panel~ will be 80 ~ rQ-6~ in the wall cladding in relation to thos- channels where fire r-tardancy and ~ lt d EPS mat-rial retardation i~
d--ired Pr-f-rably, ~ach 12~ x 6~ ~p~n-- of wall area ha- a flame-retardant pan-l at the low r end of each chann-l which abuts ~ith-r a ~tructural cros~-member or th- top of th- lower wall ar-a ~Yp~n~e. Pr-ferably, a ~ini~u~ 8c~ thickn-~ Or flan -retardant ~aterial is utiliz-d ~ criDt~on QI~ t~h~ Dr~w1 ~8 Thus, in ord-r that th- inv-ntion may be better underatood, prererred e~bodiments will now b de~cribed, by way Or exa~pl- only, with ref-~_ e to th acco~panying drawing~ wherein Figur- 1 repre~ents a p r~pectiv vi-w of a plurality Or id-ntical in~ulation batten~ according to the invention;
Figuro lA ~e~.~-~nt~ a p~r~pectiv~ vi-w of the batt-ns of Figur- 1 in cooperativ- ad~acent r-lationship;
Figur- lB r-pr-~ent~ a perspectiv vi~w of alt-rnativ insulation batt-n~ according to th-inv-ntion;
Figure- 2A - 2C L ~ aaent ~che atic cross-s-ctional view~ Or in~ulation batten~, in part, having alternativ cut-away edge portions according to the inv ntion;
Figur- 3 r-~Lc-ents a p-r~p-ctiv view, partly cut-away o~ a ~ulti-laye~.d in~ulation batten according to the inv ntion;
Figures 4 and 5 repL~~ent perspectiv views of wall clr~n~ according to the inv-ntion co~prising the in~ulation battens of Figure 1 or Figur- 3;

Figur-~ 6, 6A, 6B and 6C ~e~ nt per~pectiv vi~w- Or alt-rnativ- board~ according to th- invention;
and Figur-~ 7 and 8 ~L clent diagrammatic s p-r~pectiv view~ of modified wall cla~n~ according to th- inv ntion, furth-r co~pri~ing fire-r~tardant panel~
Like nu~eral- d--crib th- ~a~e featur- within the drawing-Figur- 1 ~how~ a plurality Or 1 2~ x 0 6~ x 8c~
lo r-ctangularly DhapQd in~ulation board- shown generally a~
10, for ed Or ~YpA~A~ poly-~y.~ne and having a first or inn~r face 12, a -sconA or outer face 14, upper fac- 16, lowQr fac- 18, and ~ide fac-~ 20, 22 Inn-r fac- 12, with fac-~ 16, 18, 20 and 22 defin- 45 degr-- angl d edge~, 24, i6, 28 and 30, re~p-ctively Figure 1 Dhow- the four board~ 10 in int~n~eA
(a~ indicated by th- arrow-) ad~acent relation~hip, on-board 10 abut~ oth-r board- 10, with lower fac-~ 18 to r-~t on upp-r faces 16 of a low-r board 10 and ~ide face~
20 abutting ad~ac-nt ~idc face~ 22 The ~ff-ct Or thi~
con~truction i~ to provid a plurality Or ~urfac-chann~l~, 32 ~hown in Figur- lA, b tw -n board~ 10 ~h-~r el~ 32 con-titute air pr-~-ur- ~gualization and ~oi~ture vent chann-l~ in a cladding Or a wall Or a building a~ h ~ ~inaft-r de~crib d Figur- lA ~how~ the plurality of in~ulation board~ 10 in cooperative, ad~acent relation~hip a~ to provid in~ulation a~ a uni~ied ~eg~ent of a wall a~
b tt-r de~crib~d hereinaft~r Fiqur- lB ~how- a plurality Or triangular shap~d in~ulation board~ ahown q-nerally a- 50 having an inn-r fac- 52, ~id- fac-a 5~, 56 and S8, which with face 50 d~fine 45 deqr-e angularly shaped edge~, 60, 62 and 64, re~pectively Cooperativ-, ad~acent relation~hip ~c,_L~ction of ~nr~lAtion board~ 50 provides th-resultant cl r~ ng with inte~co ~cting air ~ ?-~r~
egualization and v-nt channel~ a~ for th- embodiment Or Figure lA
With r-f~Lenre to Figure~ 2A - 2C, thes-Flgure~ show, in part, in~ulation boards lOA, lOB and lOC
having cut-away portion- 40A, 40B and 40C, respectively, at edges, 42A, 42B and 42C, rs~pectively, at inner faces, 12A, 12B and 12C, r-~pectiv-ly Thu~, th- surface~ of edge~ 42A d-fine a 45 d-gr-- angled surfac~, edge~ 42B
defin- a quadrant arcuate ~urfac-, and tho~e Or 42C
define a se~i-square surfac-Figure 3 show~ g-nerally a- 100, a r-ctangularly shap d ~ulti-lay-r d board having a lay-r of in~ulation board 10 a- de~cribed with r-ferenc~ to Figur- 1 Adhered to inn r fac- 12 of board 10 ia a 1 2c~ thick ~GYP~G~ pla-terboard 102 and to outer face 14 a ~odifi d ha~coat 104 Ba~ecoat 104 con~i~t- of two layer~ of gla-~ fibr- reinforc-ment ~e~h floated in a polymer coated ~odifi-d base coat compo~ition To the outer surface ha~c~-t 104 i~ an exterior decorative water proof 0 2c~ thick lay-r 106 of an acrylic polymer impr gnat d with ~and Board 10 ha~ ~dge- 108 d-fin d a~
45 d gre- angl d ~urface~ which d-fin- a cutaway portion 110 Portion 110 with cooperating, ad~acent board~ 100 (not shown) d-fin- air pr-s~ur- equalization and ~oisture vent chann-l-Figur- 4 ~hown generally a~ 200, a clr~ng for th- wall ~hown g nerally a~ 202 of a building (no~ shown) between structural st--l 8~0~ 204 ~ ng 200 co~prise~ a plurality of in-ulation board- 10 a~ de~crib d with reference to Fig~r- 1, or boards 100 a~ described with r-f~.cl e to Figur- 3 Board~ 10 or 100, a~ the case may be, are manually laid in the st~n~r~, cooperative ad~acent one-CA 02204043 l997-04-30 - 14 - S~363 to-on- r-lation~hip a~ to provide in ulation to the wall A~ de~cribed with r-ference to Figure~ 1 and lA, th-array of the cut-away edged, ~haped board~ when ~o laid provid- a plurality of horizontally and vertically align d channel~ 32 acro-~ th- inner faces of the board~
within the wall cladding In an alt-rnativ ~ bodi~ent, th- c~ n~
co~pri-ing a ~ingl- full ar-a of in~ulation board that may b con~tructed in ~i~ and th- plurality of interco~necting channel~ in the for~ of trough~ defined on th- surface of the insulation in~cribed thereon The re~ultant appearance Dlay be a~ ~hown a~ for Figure~ 4 or Allh~ gh within the ~cope of th-- ~L~ nt invention, it can b readily ~een that it i~ not n-ce~sary that th- board~ 10 or 100 b ~o ~tacked ~uch that each v rtical v-nt chann-l 32 run~ cont~o~-ly the h~ht of th- wall ~hould th- v-rtical edge- of th-boards b~ vertically aligned one directly on or b low a vertical edge~ or channel~ of ad~acent board~, a~ ~hown with r-f-renc- to Figure lA Such an arrange~ent requir-- lal~.~ attentiv coLLect po~itioning of each board 10 or 100 a ~ignificantly, advantageou~ feature of th-~r~-~nt inv-ntion i~ that th- board~ according to the inv-ntion can b r-adily, quickly and ~ati~factorily, operatively laid in apparent h~p~-7~rd ~anner one board ad~ac-nt, abov or b-low oth-r board~, to provide int-r~itt-nt, v rtically and horizontally aligned channel~ di~placed fro~ the vent channel- of upper and lower cooperating ad~acent board~ Thu-, a wall ~o constructed with cladding according to the invention ha~
a plurality of air pre-~ure equalization and moi~tur-v-nt channel~ which connect with a lower air vent oriface 34 in communication with the out~ide atmc~phore Figure 5 Le~ nts a wall cl~dA~rg shown generally a~ 300 of a wall shown generally as 302, and having an alternatively laid-out array of i r~ ation boards according to th- invention, wh-r-in the boards and chann-l~ 308 ar- align-d at an angle of 45 degree~ to the horizontal and vertical axe~ In thi- ~ bodiment, the r-ctangularly shaped board- 30~ at th- top, botto~, and at the ~ide, ad~acent structural ~upport~ 306 of the wall ar- non-rectangularly shaped, but are ~uitably and readily shaped, for exa~ple by the cutting of the stan~-rd board or by ~anufacture with a suitably shap~d mold A~ de~crib d with ref~L, to Figure~ 1, lB, 2A - 2C th- boards ar- laid to produc- singls lay~r in~ulation cladding according to th- invention to which, sub~eguently, ar- adhered de~ired lay-r~ of pla~terboard, gla~- fibr-, polyner roinforce~ent and outer dccoiation, a~ th- ca~ ~ay be, to provide a ~ulti-layered in~ulation board-cladded wall In the alternative, th- cladding may b- con~tructed to co~pri~- th- wall by nethod~ known in the art with th ~ulti-layeL - A in~ulation boards as hereinabov- described Provided that th- shape and size of th- re~ultant air pres~ure equalization~and ~oi~ture vent channel~ in th- cladding of th- wall ar- suf~icient to provid sati~factory co~unication with th- out~ide at~o~pher-, th ob~ective~ of th~ nt invention are m t Such suitable size~ and shape~ of each individual insulation board ~ay b~ readily deter~ined by the skilled p rson in th- art In alternativ embodi~ents, each of the ~r-~lation boards may have a side face portion defining a ~o~gh which provide~, when in cooperativ ad~acent r-lation~hip with sub~tantially identical board~, cladding with a plurality of interconnecting air ~ re egualization and vent ch~nrels removed from the inner and outer face~ of the insulation board~
Figur- 6 show- a board 400 having an interface 402, outer face 404 and sid- fac-s 406, 408, 410 and 412 A portion of each of sid fac-- 406, 408, 410 and 412 has centrally ther-of, a trough 414 e*t~nA~ng continuou~ly around th- sid- face~ Board~ 400, when constructed into a cl~ ng according to th- inv-ntion in a ~i~ilar manner a~ hereinb~fore describ d with r--pect to Figur- 1, lA, 4 and 5, provid- th- r-~ultant cladding with a plurality of int-rconnecting air ~ re ~gualization and moisture vent chann-l~ throughout the cladding at the edge~ of each in ulation board 400 In oth-r e~bodinents of board~ having a c-ntrally provid-d trough, th- ~Lough may not extend th-full length of each sid- nor b ~L~ nt on all four face~ For ~xa~pl-, a ~uitabl- c~ ng may b con~tructed u~ing board~ having a c-ntral L~ou~}. that extends only part way of on- sid- fac- Provid d ~uch an embodiment i~ cooperativ ly ad~acent boards having suffici-nt l-ngth~, location~ and nu~b r~ of L~o~ls to enable an interconnecting air ~re~ re egualization and v nt channel to be for~ed, then th- ob~ective~ of this invention ar- ~ t Hou_~e~, it will b readily appreciated that additional attention must be paid by-the per~on con-tructing the cla~1ng wall in ord-r that sid-face- not having a trough interpo~ed between the~ are not for~d ~igur- 6A shows an alt-rnativ~ emhoA~ment of a board 500 of triangular ~hape having a centrally dis~
trough 502 on each sid- ~ac- 504, 506 and 508 Wall clr~ng u~ing boards 500 may be readily con~tructed as h-r-inabove de~cribed Figur- 6B show~ a board 600 of rectangular ~hape having an inner face 602 defining a plurality of vertically aligned and laterally aligned inte~ G ~ ~cting chann-l- 60~ and 606, re~pectively Figur- 6C ~how~ a bo~rd 700 of rectangular ~hape having a portion on a face defining a ~ough 702 ~ubotantially in th- for~ of diagonal interconnecting channel~
In furth-r ~ bodiment~, rectangularly ~haped and triangularly ~hapsd board~ co~pri-ing multilayered in~ulation boards of ~aterial~ and g neral con~truction a~ hsreinabov- de~cribsd, ~ay also b ~ade having side face~ with centrally di~po~ed ~.ough~ a~ he~ ahov de~cribed Figur~ 7 ~hows in-ulation board~ 10 or 100, a~
th- ca~- may b , of th- wall a~ ~hown in Figure 4 but having flam -retardant pansl~ 220 comprising flam -retardant mineral wool 222 and conduit 22~ having apertur- 22C po~itioned b low ~ineral wool 222 by which moi~tur- p rcolate~ downwardly through to conduit 224, and an ap-rtur- 228 op-n to the at~o-phere and acting a~
a spout Figur- 8 r-pre~ent~ a modifi d wall of Figure 5 having th flame-retardant panel de~crib d with referenc- to Figur- 7 It will b readily appreciated that th- ~pout or oth-r drainage and air pas~age vents are mo~t pref rably di~po~ed on the wall cladding on the outer or r~ot- ~id- from the channel~ on th- in~ide or inner part~ of the wall With r-ferenc- to Figure ~, each of ~h- vent channel~ ~hown th r-in, ~ay, optionally hav th- fire-r-tardant ~at-rial pack d ther-in (not ~hown) or r~k~
within a ~uitably ~hap d conduit (not ~hown) Although this di~clo~ur- ha~ de-cribed and illu~trated certain preferred embodiment~ o~ the invention, it i8 to be understood that th- invention i not re~tricted to tho~e particular embcdiment~ Rather, the invention include~ all emho~ment~ which are functional or mech~n~cal equivalence of th- specific e~bodiment~ and feature~ that have been de~cribed and illu~trated.

Claims (33)

We claim

1. A cladding assembly for a building wall, said cladding assembly comprising:
a first board having a first channel surface; and a second board having a second channel surface, said second board being adjacent to said first board, said second channel surface being adjacent to said first channel surface and sharing a common edge with said first board channel surface;
wherein said first and second channel surfaces cooperatively define at least part of a cladding channel between said first and second boards, said first and second channel surfaces defining a vertex of said channel, with said channel tapering from said vertex, said channel passing at least one of moisture and air therethrough.

2. The cladding assembly of claim 1, further comprising;
a third board having a third channel surface;
wherein at least one of said first and second boards has an additional channel surface; and said third channel surface and said additional channel surface cooperatively define at least part of an additional cladding channel therebetween, said additional channel passing at least one of moisture and air therethrough.

3. The cladding assembly of claim 2, wherein said cladding channel and said additional cladding channel communicate with one another.

4. The cladding assembly of claim 2, wherein said cladding channel and said additional cladding channel intersect one another at a predetermined angle.

5. The cladding assembly of claim 4, wherein said predetermined angle of said intersection is ninety degrees.

6. The cladding assembly of claim 4, wherein said predetermined angle of said intersection is sixty degrees.

7. The cladding assembly of claim 1, further comprising:
a third board having a third channel surface; and a fourth board having a fourth channel surface, said fourth board being adjacent to said third board, said fourth channel surface being adjacent to said third channel surface and sharing a common edge with said third channel surface;
wherein said third and fourth channel surfaces cooperatively define at least part of a cladding channel between said third and fourth boards, said channel passing at least one of moisture and air therethrough; and said channel formed by said first and second boards communicates with said channel forced by said third and fourth boards at respective ends thereof.

8. The cladding assembly of claim 7, further comprising a composite channel extending substantially across a full area of said cladding assembly, said composite channel including said channel formed by said first and second boards and said channel formed by said third and fourth boards.

9. The cladding assembly of claim 1, wherein said first board channel surface and said second board channel surface collectively define less than an entire portion of said cladding channel.

10. The cladding assembly of claim 1, wherein at least one of said channel surfaces intersects with an exterior surface of a respective one of said first and second boards at an exterior surface thereof.

11. The cladding assembly of claim 1, wherein at least one of said channel surfaces is a surface selected from the group consisting of a quadrant arcuate surface, a degree angled surface and a semi-square surface.

12. The cladding assembly of claim 1, wherein said boards are of rectangularly-shaped form.

13. The cladding assembly of claim 1, wherein said boards are of triangularly-shaped form.

14. The cladding assembly of claim 1, wherein said channel is vertically or horizontally aligned.

15. The cladding assembly of claim 1, wherein said channel is aligned at an angle selected from 30 degrees to 60 degrees from a vertical axis of the assembly.

16 The cladding assembly of claim 1, wherein at least one of said boards comprises one or more layers of material selected from the group consisting of expanded polystyrene, polyurethane, urea-formaldehyde, glass fibre, plasterboard, mineral wool and polymer based particulate matter composition.

17. The cladding assembly of claim 1, further comprising a flame-retardant, fluid pervious, particulate material adjacent and in communication with said channel to form a flame-retardant barrier for said channel.

18. A cladding assembly for a building wall, said cladding assembly comprising:
a first board having a first channel surface;
a second board having a second channel surface, said second board being adjacent to said first board, said second channel surface being adjacent to said first channel surface and sharing a common edge with said first channel surface, said first and second channel surfaces cooperatively defining at least part of a cladding channel between said first and second boards, said channel passing at least one of moisture and air therethrough; and a flame-retardant, fluid pervious, particulate material adjacent and in communication with said channel to form a flame-retardant barrier for said channel.

19. The cladding assembly of claim 18, further comprising; a third board having a third channel surface;
wherein at least one of said first and second boards has an additional channel surface; and said third channel surface and said additional channel surface cooperatively define at least part of an additional cladding channel therebetween, said additional channel passing at least one of moisture and air therethrough.

20. The cladding assembly of claim 19, wherein said cladding channel and said additional cladding channel communicate with one another.

21. The cladding assembly of claim 19, wherein said cladding channel and said additional cladding channel intersect one another at a predetermined angle.

22. The cladding assembly of claim 21, wherein said predetermined angle of said intersection is ninety degrees.

23. The cladding assembly of claim 21, wherein said predetermined angle of said intersection is sixty degrees.

24. The cladding assembly of claim 18, further comprising:
a third board having a third channel surface; and a fourth board having a fourth channel surface, said fourth board being adjacent to said third board, said fourth channel surface being adjacent to said third channel surface and sharing a common edge with said third channel surface;
wherein said third and fourth channel surfaces cooperatively define at least part of a cladding channel between said third and fourth boards, said channel passing at least one of moisture and air therethrough; and said channel formed by said first and second boards communicates with said channel formed by said third and fourth boards at respective ends thereof.

25. The cladding assembly of claim 24, further comprising a composite channel extending substantially across a full area of said cladding assembly, said composite channel including said channel formed by said first and second boards and said channel formed by said third and fourth boards.

26. The cladding assembly of claim 18, wherein said first board channel surface and said second board channel surface collectively define less than an entire portion of said cladding channel.

27. The cladding assembly of claim 18, wherein at least one of said channel surfaces intersects with an exterior surface of a respective one of said first and second boards at an exterior surface thereof.

28. The cladding assembly of claim 18, wherein at least one of said channel surfaces is a surface selected from the group consisting of a quadrant arcuate surface, a 45 degree angled surface and a semi-square surface.

29. The cladding assembly of claim 18, wherein said boards are of rectangularly-shaped form.

30. The cladding assembly of claim 18, wherein said boards are of triangularly-shaped form.

31. The cladding assembly of claim 18, wherein said channel is vertically or horizontally aligned.

32. The cladding assembly of claim 18, wherein said channel is aligned at an angle selected from 30 degrees to 60 degrees from a vertical axis of the assembly.

33. The cladding assembly of claim 18, wherein at least one of said boards comprises one or more layers of material selected from the group consisting of expanded polystyrene, polyurethane, urea-formaldehyde, glass fibre, plasterboard, mineral wool and polymer based particulate matter composition.