GB2298891A - A water tight shower curtain retaining device - Google Patents

Abstract

A shower curtain retaining device that provides a water tight seal between a edge of a shower curtain and an adjacent wall of a bathroom or shower cubicle comprises a L-profile body 1 having a flat surface 30 fixed to the wall by adhesive strips 6 or screw holes 8. The device retains the curtain (4, fig 1) by way of a spring clip 2, which can extend the full length of the device, and a tongue member 31. The curtain is placed in front of tongue 31 and the clip 2 is snapped over the tongue 31 and the curtain, thereby holding the curtain in place. In another embodiment a channel and wedge arrangement (see fig 6) may replace the clip and tongue. A base seal (see fig 3) is provided to effect a water tight seal at a lower end of the body 1. The clip may be hinged (see fig 4) to the body 1 and a resilient pressure pad (10, fig 4) may be provided so as absorb varying thicknesses of curtain. The device may be manufactured from plastics and it can be made to any length and cut or sawn to size. The body 1 may be in the form of a F-profile body (13, fig 6) or a T-profile body (see fig 7).

Description

SHOWER CURTAIN RETAINING DEVICE The present invention relates to shower curtain fixtures, and in particular to apparatus for holding an edge of a shower curtain in place against a wall.

Shower curtains, such as those provided for use in conjunction with a bath or a shower tray to prevent splashing of water onto a bathroom floor and elsewhere offer some advantages over rigid shower screens and rigid four-walled cubicles, namely that they are very easy to install using shower curtain rails; they are relatively cheap and readily replaceable if the bathroom decoy should be changed; the curtains are easily removable for cleaning; and when not in use, the curtain is conveniently drawn out of the way of the bath etc.

However, shower curtains do suffer from a distinct disadvantage.

A shower curtain typically forms one, two or possibly even three "walls" of a shower cubicle, the other sides of the cubicle being formed by tiled walls, partitions or the like. A problem which arises is that the vertical, or lateral, edge or edges of the curtain are not sealed or affixed to the wall, cubicle side or partition to which the curtain edge is adjacent. The curtain typically abuts the adjacent wall, being held in place only by its own weight. Thus, it is commonplace for the shower water to be able to splash or run around the curtain edge if the curtain is disturbed or not correctly drawn across.

In addition, it is often difficult for the curtain edge to lie completely parallel to the adjacent wall, as the bottom edge of the curtain may be pulled sideways to some extent, away from the adjacent wall, particularly near where the curtain overlies an edge of a bath or the lip of a shower tray. This further exacerbates the problem indicated above. This departure from the adjacent wall thereby typically occurs precisely where the greatest protection from falling water is required, and usually allows the water from the shower to run along the bath edge or shower tray lip, behind the curtain, to thereby escape down the bath outer panel.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a means of preventing water escape around a shower curtain, and to provide a means for affixing a lateral edge of the curtain to an adjacent wall.

In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a shower curtain retaining device adapted to hold a lateral edge of a shower curtain proximal to an adjacent wall.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 shows a shower curtain retaining device according to the present invention, in use in an over-bath shower arrangement; Figure 2 shows a perspective view of an "L-profile" body with a sealing tongue and detached sealing clip; Figure 3 shows a perspective view of a base member in conjunction with the L-profile body of figure 2; Figure 4 shows an end view of an L-profile body with a sealing tongue and hinged sealing clip; Figure 5 shows an end view of an L-profile body with a spring clip; Figure 6 shows an end view of an F-profile body and detached wedge clip; Figure 7 shows an end view of a T-profile body with a sealing tongue and detached sealing clip.

With reference to figure 1, there is shown an over-bath shower arrangement including a shower curtain 4 suspended in known manner from a curtain rail 5. The curtain is draped inside the bath 20 when the shower is in use, and is held against an adjacent wall 22 with a retaining device 100. The retaining device 100 provides a water- and splash-proof seal against the wall, and also includes a base seal 3 which prevents water from running along an upper surface 21 of the edge of the bath 20 and escaping down the outer panel 23 of the bath.

With reference to figure 2, a shower retaining device comprises an elongate L-profile body 1 having, on an outer surface of one branch of the L-profile, a flat surface 30 for juxtaposition with the adjacent wall 22 (figure 1). The surface 30 is provided with suitable fixing means, for example flexible adhesive strips 6, or screw holes 8 for attachment to the adjacent wall 22. The body is made from suitable waterproof plastics or metal material or similar, and is preferably also selected for its suitability to the binding of a silicone-based waterproof sealant thereto. Such a sealant is preferably used to enhance the waterproofing of the seal of surface 30 against wall 22.

The other branch of the L-profile body includes an inwardly projecting tongue member 31 which preferably has re-entrant side profiles which co-operate with a resilient, correspondingly shaped sealing clip 2.

In use, the shower curtain lateral edge is hung inside the L-profile body, in front of the tongue 31, and the sealing clip 2 is snapped into place over the tongue 31 and the curtain 4, thereby holding the curtain in place.

Preferably the body 1, tongue 31, and sealing clip 2 extend longitudinally for the full length of the curtain drop from a position proximal to the curtain rail 5 to a position proximal to the upper surface 21 of the bath edge (or shower tray). However, it will be understood that shorter lengths may be used since splash resistance becomes less important higher up. It will also be understood that the tongue 31 and sealing clip 2 similarly need not extend for the full length of the body 1.

To provide an effective water-tight seal of the lower longitudinal end of the body against the upper surface 21 of the bath edge, it is desirable to provide a base seal 3 as shown in figure 3. The base seal 3 is formed with a similar L-profile and has a body slot 33 adapted to receive the end of the L-profile body 1, and has a tongue slot 34 to receive the tongue 31. The advantage of this base seal 3 is that it provides a broad, flat lower surface for sealing to the bath, and an uninterrupted lower corner edge 35 for sealing against the bath surface 21 with siliconebased sealant, the edge 35 not having the complexity of the tongue 31 projecting therefrom.

It will be understood, however, that the base seal could be omitted if the lower longitudinal end of body 1 can conveniently be sealed directly to the upper surface 21 of the bath edge.

The displacement of the body 1 from the wall 22 caused by the thickness of adhesive strips 6 preferably corresponds with the thickness of the body slot wall 36.

While the foregoing represents a presently preferred arrangement of the shower curtain retaining device, further possible arrangements are now discussed.

With reference to figure 4, an L-profile body includes a hinged snap-fit clip 40 which co-operates with tongue 41. The snap-fit clip 40 is attached to the L-profile body by a hinge 11 and arm 9. A resilient pressure pad 10 may be provided on the body 1 to absorb varying thicknesses of curtain lying between arm 9 and body 1. In use, the curtain 4 is placed into the opening defined by arm 9 and body 1, and the snap-fit clip 40 closed over the curtain 4 and the tongue 41.

With reference to figure 5, an L-profile body includes a permanently affixed spring clip 12 which projects laterally from an inner surface of the body 1, and is resiliently biased back towards the body at a free edge 50 of the spring clip 12. In use, the spring clip 12 is prised away, at its free edge 50, from the body 1 and the curtain placed in the gap formed. Upon release of the clip 12, the curtain is retained by the clip 12.

With reference to figure 6, an F-profile body 13 includes two branches of the F-profile extending outwardly and defining the walls 61,62 of a channel 60 therebetween. One of the channel walls 61 includes a body wedge 66 adapted to co-operate with a wedge and clip member 14.

In use, the lateral curtain edge is passed into the cavity 63 defined by clip 64, and the open end of the cavity, with curtain installed, is pressed into the channel 60, the clip wedge 65 engaging with the body wedge 66 and compressing the clip 64 to retain the curtain therein.

With reference to figure 7, a simple T-profile body is provided.

The-cross-bar of the T-profile provides the flat surface 30 for juxtaposition with the adjacent wall 22. The stem of the T-profile provides a tongue member 15 over which sealing clip 2 may be placed, in analogous manner to that described in relation to figure 2.

It will be understood that the shower curtain retaining devices herein described are conveniently reversible for use on the left or right hand ends of a bath or shower.

The device may be manufactured and sold in standard lengths which can be cut or sawn by the installer to an appropriate length to suit the application.

Preferably, all corners of the devices would be rounded to avoid either injury to the user, or tearing of a curtain used therewith.

The base seal 3 could be pre-formed to suit a profile of bath edge upper surface 21 which is not necessarily flat.

It will be recognized that although the present invention is particularly designed for the purpose of providing a waterproofing seal between a shower curtain and a wall, the principle may generally be applied to curtains in other environments where, for example, complete light exclusion rather than water exclusion is important, or where complete prevention of curtain movement is particularly important.

It will be understood that the present invention may also be used in conjunction with a partial shower screen which itself forms the "adjacent wall" which the lateral edge of a shower curtain must be retained against.

Claims (16)

1. A shower curtain retaining device adapted to hold a lateral edge of a shower curtain proximal to an adjacent wall.

2. A shower curtain retaining device according to claim 1 comprising: an elongate body including a flat surface for juxtaposition against the adjacent wall; a tongue member projecting from the body adapted to co-operate with a clip member for retaining the shower curtain between the tongue and the clip.

3. A shower curtain retaining device according to claim 2 wherein the tongue member extends longitudinally along the elongate body substantially along its entire length.

4. A shower curtain retaining device according to claim 3 wherein the clip member extends longitudinally along the elongate body substantially along its entire length.

5. A shower curtain retaining device according to claim 2, claim 3 or claim 4 wherein the clip member is formed from a resilient material and adapted to snap fit onto the tongue member.

6. A shower curtain retaining device according to any one of claims 2 to 5 wherein the body is formed as an "L-profile" strip, the flat surface for juxtaposition against the adjacent wall being on an outer face of one branch of the L-profile, and the tongue member extending inwardly from the other branch of the L profile.

7. A shower curtain retaining device according to any one of claims 2 to 5 wherein the body is formed as a "T-profile" strip, the flat surface for juxtaposition with the adjacent wall being on the outer face of the cross-bar of the T-profile and the tongue member being formed as the stem of the T-profile.

8. A shower curtain retaining device according to any one of claims 2 to 7 wherein the clip member is hingedly connected to the body.

9. A shower curtain retaining device according to claim 1 comprising: an elongate body including a flat surface for juxtaposition against the adjacent wall; and at least one spring clip member extending at least partially along the length of the body and projecting laterally therefrom, being resiliently biased back towards the body at a free edge of the spring clip member, for retaining the shower curtain between the body and the free edge of the clip member.

10. A shower curtain retaining device according to claim 1 comprising: an elongate body including a flat surface for juxtaposition against the adjacent wall; and an elongate channel defined by the body adapted to co-operate with a wedge for retaining the shower curtain within the channel.

11. A shower curtain retaining device according to claim 10 wherein the body is formed as an "F-profile" strip, the flat surface for juxtaposition with the adjacent wall being on the outer face of the stem of the F-profile, and the two branches of the F-profile defining the walls of the channel.

12. A shower curtain retaining device according to any one of claims 2 to 11 wherein the flat surface for juxtaposition with the adjacent wall including at least one flexible adhesive strip extending longitudinally thereon.

13. A shower curtain retaining device according to any one of claims 2 to 12 further including a base seal unit adapted to co-operate with a longitudinal end of the body to seal the body against an adjacent surface which is substantially orthogonal to the body.

14. A shower curtain retaining device according to claim 1 adapted to hold a substantial proportion of the length of the lateral edge of the shower curtain proximal to the adjacent wall.

15. A shower curtain retaining device according to claim 1 adapted to hold substantial the entire length of the lateral edge of the shower curtain proximal to the adjacent wall.

16. A shower curtain retaining device substantially as described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.