GB2047395A - Draining support - Google Patents

Abstract

A shelf unit for the draining of wet articles, such as glasses, comprises a perforated support surface, e.g. a mesh or grid, under which is a collection tray for catching the drips. The shelf unit may be embodied in a new counter structure or it may be provided as an attachment for an existing structure. The tray and support are preferably removable from a support frame for periodic cleaning.

Description

SPECIFICATION Support structure for supporting wet articles etc This invention relates to support structures for supporting wet articles to be drained. The invention has wide application but is of particular interest to me in connection with the draining of washed glasses which have been used in public houses for the consumption of beverages. Main reference is made hereinafter to the washing of such glasses, but it is to be pointed out that the invention could be applied for the draining of crockery, pots and pans, laboratory vessels, and cutlery.

The washing and drying of used glasses in public houses after closing time has always been considered by Landlords as a baneful task. In an average public house after closing time, there may be of the order of 200 glasses to be washed and individually dried by hand using tea towels. With the tendency towards an increase in the size of public houses, so the task of washing and drying glasses after closing time increases. Furthermore, when the number of glasses to be washed and dried is as large as indicated, and because the people who are doing the washing and drying invariably are in a hurry to finish the evenings work having regard to the fact that normal closing time will be 10.30 or later in the evening, it is usually the case that the glasses are imperfectly washed and dried.

More frequently, because of the increased use of washing machines, it is the drying which is performed imperfectly. Finally, the washed and dried glasses are placed on wooden surfaced shelves.

The above practice has been followed for very many years, and indeed is still followed today. The disadvantages of the practice are however numerous, and extremely significant.

Firstly, there is the significant task of drying the wet glasses individually. Secondly, the use of tea towels to dry very many glasses is considered unhygienic, and indeed is a complete antitheses of the fact that the washing up liquid which must be used in public houses is required to have a detergent and a sterilizing agent, whereas there is no such limitation on the tea towels which are used.

The authorities are in fact examining the question of the use of tea towels in public houses, from a hygiene point of view and it may well be that their use in the future will be prohibited. Thirdly, because many glasses will be imperfectly dried when they are placed on the wooden shelves in the normal upside down position, this leads to a number of problems including that there is little or no natural air convection to enhance the drying of the interior of the glass, the residual liquid which drains from the glass on to the wood surface causes staining of that surface, and furthermore, if a glass stands in this condition for a sufficient length of time, it will in actual fact stick to the wood surface making its removal difficult or creating a deposit on the glass rim when it is removed.Additionally the shelving which supports the glasses inevitably gathers dust, and whilst from a practical point of view it is desirable for these shelves to be cleaned frequently, because the cleaning of the shelves is such a tedious task involving the individual removal of the glasses, the steps of cleaning of the shelves and the replacement of the glasses, in actual fact are performed far too infrequently.

The present invention was conceived because of the experience which I acquired in running and maintaining a public house for a number of years. The problem of drying glasses is truly considerable and in my opinion there is an extremely urgent need for innovation and improvement in the field of glass washing, handling and drying in public houses, in order that a Landlord may be saved money and time, with particular reference to time saving because Landlords are required to perform many operations outside the selling of beverages which make his working day extremely long.

My invention resides in the provision of a draining structure which is for supporting articles which are wet, and which comprises a mesh, grid or other perforated su-port under which is located a collection tray which can be slid from under the screen for simple cleaning.

The said structure may form decking on a counter, but in the preferred example will be in the form of a shelf, and will comprise a frame defining slide tracks for the tray. The support may be integral with or simply resting on the top of the frame. The said frame may be provided with holes for the receipt of screws whereby the shelf unit can be readily attached to an existing support structure.

By virtue of the invention, it will now be open to Landlords to replace their existing wooden surface shelf units for the support of glasses by shelf units according to the invention. The use of these units provides a host of advantages. Thus the Landlord can simply place the washed glasses directly on the shelf units. No drying is necessary, and therefore it is not necessary to use any tea towels.

Thereby, there is a saving in time as no hand drying is involved, and there is a saving in expense because it is not necessary to have any tea towels; not is it necessary to employ staff to perform the hand drying operation.

There is the additional advantage that it is more hygienic to let the glasses drain naturally and avoid the use of tea towels.

As the glasses drain, so the residual liquid drops directly through the support into the collection tray. With modern detergents and sterilization agents, drying will take place in approximately two minutes. Drying of the inside of the glasses is enhanced by virtue of the fact that air can circulate through the support into the interior of the glasses as they stand on the shelf units.

Cleaning of the or each tray is extremely simple, as it simply requires to be slid out from under the screen and wiped with a cleaning cloth.

When a publican has the tray units according to the invention installed, his evening cleaning up procedure is much reduced in time and is simplified considerably. He simply takes the glasses after washing, which may be by washing machine, of which there are several efficient machines already on the market, and places the wet glasses on the she-ves.

The glasses dry overnight, and in the morning he simply is required to clean the collection trays. There is less collection of dust on the shelves, because the dust will settle in the collection trays, which will be cleaned every morning. The whole shelf units need only be cleaned for example once per month.

The support may be a mesh screen defined by rods arranged in a grid pattern and joined at the interstices. The rods may be for example plastic coated 1 /8th inch metal rod, arranged in a 1 inch square grid pattern.

The invention applied to individual shelf units, and also to an appropriate support structure when embodied in permanent apparatus. Structures according to the invention could for example be embodied in sink units as provided for domestic buildings.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described by way of example, with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawing, wherein: Figure 1 shows in exploded perspective elevation, a shelf unit according to the present invention; Figure 2 shows how a number of shelf units each as disclosed in Fig. 1 may be arranged to the underside of a counter in a public house; and Figure 3 is a sectio.nal elevation through one of the shelf units shown in Fig. 2.

Referring to Fig. 1, the shelf unit shown comprises a mesh screen 10, a support frame 12, and a tray 14. Each of these items is of substantially rectangular configuration, and approximately of the same size. The screen 10 is made up of a number of longitudinal and transverse rods 1 6 and 1 8 which are secured together at the interstices so as to define approximately 1 inch square apertures. The frame 1 2 comprises a pair of L sectioned angle irons 20 arranged respectively at the ends of the frame 12, and with the bases of the angle irons 20 facing each other and defining slideways for the tray 14. The angle irons 20 are connected by three square sectioned rods 22 welded to the irons 20 as shown.The tray 14 is provided with a rim 24 in order that it will collect water which drips thereinto, and the front section of the rim 24 is taller than the others as shown. The tray 14 is adapted to be slid into the frame 20 and out of the frame 20 in the opposite direction as indicated by the arrow 26. The angle arms 20 are provided with fixing holes 28 in order that the shelf unit might be mounted, as indicated to Fig. 2 in a suitable counter structure 30. In Fig. 2 each shelf unit indicated by the letter F is conveniently constructed as shown in Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 shows the shelf unit of Fig. 1 in transverse sectional elevation, and the tray 1 4 is shown in dotted lines in the position to which it is moved for the purposes of cleaning same and Fig. 3 also shows, for example, a number of glasses 32 mounted on the shelf unit so that the residual liquid will drain therefrom, pass through the screen 10 and will collect in the tray 14.

The unit described is extremely simple, and as explained herein will be extremely useful, especially to Landlords. The shelf unit mPy be fitted to an existing structure in place of the existing shelves or indeed of the existing shelves if they are fixed permanently in position. Although not shown, it is preferred that the screen 10 be clipped to the frame 1 2 so as to be capable of being removed therefrom for cleaning not only of the screen, but also of the frame 12.

Claims (7)

1. A draining structure which is for supporting articles which are wet, and which comprises a mesh, grid or other perforated support under which is located a collection tray which can be slid from under the screen for simple cleaning.

2. A draining structure according to Claim 1, wherein the support comprises a mesh defined by sets of orthogonally arranged rods.

3. A draining structure according to Claim 1, wherein the rods are of metal and are coated with plastics material.

4. A draining structure according to Claims 1, 2 or 3, including a support frame which slidably supports the tray and removably supports the perforated support.

5. A draining structure according to Claim 4, wherein the support frame is removably attached to a support structure.

6. A draining structure according to Claim 1, 2, 3 or 4, wherein the support frame comprises a permanent shelf frame.

7. Adraining structure substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawing.