Aspects of the present disclosure relate to drains, cleanouts, and other utility inlet or outlet type fixtures installed in concrete slabs or floors, and, more particularly, to a method for installing such fixtures.
Floor drains and/or floor drain fixtures are generally installed in concrete slabs, such as concrete floors in warehouses, garages, basements, parking lots, commercial buildings, residential buildings, and/or the like, to accept water and/or other liquids from the top surface of the floor and provide a means for such liquids to flow into an underlying drain pipe. Further, floor drains generally include an opening inside the floor drain, commonly referred to as a cleanout, to allow access for removing blockages and/or other material from the drain pipe. Installation of such floor drains and cleanouts into a concrete floor, however, presents a number of challenges.
For example, a typical installation assembly includes a female threaded adaptor and/or connector that is attached to a vertically extending drain pipe. A floor drain, floor drain assembly, and/or cleanout with a threaded lower section is threaded into the adaptor. Concrete is then poured and finished around the drain/cleanout bodies. The finishing process often includes the use of power trowels. In particular, after the concrete is cured, it is often necessary to chip away the concrete from around the drain/cleanout bodies such that the drain/cleanout may be raised to its final finished height to allow for desired flooring to be installed, flush with the top of the drain/cleanout, and the installation may be finalized. This process is often time consuming.
Certain embodiments provide a method of installing a floor drain/cleanout. The method generally includes positioning a drain/cleanout body comprising a first opening for receiving a finish drain/cleanout; disposing, on the drain/cleanout body, a cover base of a drain/cleanout cover assembly comprising a second opening for receiving the finish drain/cleanout, wherein a center of the second opening of the cover base is aligned with a center of the first opening of the drain/cleanout body; threading the finish drain/cleanout through the first opening and the second opening to retain the cover base on the drain/cleanout body; engaging an upper portion of the drain/cleanout cover assembly with the cover base of the drain/cleanout cover assembly, wherein engaging the upper portion with the cover base defines an enclosed void space above the finish drain/cleanout; installing a flooring material around at least the upper portion; removing the upper portion of the drain/cleanout cover assembly from the cover base of the drain/cleanout cover assembly to expose the void space; and positioning the finish drain/cleanout at a desired height.
The following description and the related drawings set forth in detail certain illustrative features of one or more embodiments.
The appended figures depict certain aspects of the one or more embodiments and are therefore not to be considered limiting of the scope of this disclosure.
To facilitate understanding, identical reference numerals have been used, where possible, to designate identical elements that are common to the drawings. It is contemplated that elements and features of one embodiment may be beneficially incorporated in other embodiments without further recitation.
Aspects of the present disclosure provide a plumbing floor drain/cleanout cover assembly (subsequently referred to herein as a “drain/cleanout cover assembly” and/or “cover assembly”) used for covering and protecting a floor drain/cleanout when installing flooring material. For example, the drain/cleanout cover assembly may be used to protect a drain/cleanout body and/or a finish drain/cleanout when pouring and finishing concrete around the drain/cleanout body and/or the finish drain/cleanout. As used herein, the term drain/cleanout is intended to be interpreted broadly enough to include cleanouts or cleanout assemblies, as well as drains or drain assemblies.
The drain/cleanout cover assembly described herein may include a cover base and an upper portion. Installation of the drain/cleanout cover assembly may include positioning the cover base of the drain/cleanout cover assembly on top of a drain/cleanout body and retaining the cover base on the drain/cleanout body using a finish drain/cleanout. The upper portion of the drain/cleanout cover assembly may then be positioned to engage the cover base and enclose the finish drain/cleanout for installation of a flooring material (e.g., concrete). The upper portion of the drain/cleanout cover assembly may be cut to a height, prior to engagement with the cover base, such that a top surface of the upper portion is at a desired level of the finished flooring material, thereby allowing the use of finishing tools and processes without disturbing the cover. After the flooring material is cured, the upper portion may be broken free and removed, thereby exposing the finish drain/cleanout. In certain aspects, the finish drain/cleanout is threaded into an opening of the drain/cleanout body, and after the upper portion of the drain/cleanout cover assembly is removed (e.g., after installing the flooring material), the finish drain/cleanout may be unscrewed and raised to a desired level/height to accommodate for finished desired flooring.
As such, aspects described herein provide an improvement over current methods for installing a floor drain/cleanout. In particular, use of the drain/cleanout cover assembly during installation reduces the effort necessary to chip away flooring material, such as concrete, poured around the drain/cleanout during installation. Instead, the drain/cleanout cover assembly encloses the drain/cleanout, as well as a void space above the drain/cleanout, prior to installation of the flooring materials such that after the flooring material is installed, removal of the drain/cleanout cover assembly allows for easier adjustment of the drain/cleanout to a desired height. The drain/cleanout cover assembly also serves to protect the drain/cleanout during installation. Accordingly, techniques described herein provide a more efficient and, in some cases, cost effective method for installing a floor drain/cleanout.
Further, according to aspects described herein, a drain/cleanout cover assembly having an upper portion 170 and a cover base 160 (illustrated together as drain/cleanout cover assembly 150) may be used to cover and protect finish drain/cleanout 120 during installation of flooring material around drain/cleanout body 110 and finish drain/cleanout 120. Details of the drain/cleanout cover assembly design are provided in
In certain aspects, top surface 172 of upper portion 170 and/or bottom surface 161 of cover base 160 are generally round. In certain aspects, side wall 174 of upper portion 170 and/or side wall 164 of cover base 160 are generally cylindrical.
According to aspects described herein, at least a portion of an outer surface 176 of side wall 174 of upper portion 170 may be configured to engage and interconnect with at least a portion of an inner surface 166 of side wall 164 of cover base 160. For example, in certain aspects, upper portion 170 may include a plurality of circumferential grooves 177 extending along at least a portion of outer surface 176 of side wall 174. The plurality of circumferential grooves 177 may be configured to engage at least a portion of an inner surface 166 of side wall 164 of cover base 160. In certain aspects, the plurality of circumferential grooves 177 of upper portion 170 may be configured to engage a plurality of circumferential grooves 167 extending along at least apportion of inner surface 166 of side wall 164 of cover base 160. In certain aspects, upper portion 170 may be pushed and/or tapped into cover base 160 to engage and interconnect the two pieces.
In certain other aspects, engaging upper portion 170 of drain/cleanout cover assembly 150 with cover base 160 of drain/cleanout cover assembly 150 includes engaging at least one protrusion (e.g., tooth) extending inwardly from inner surface 166 of side wall 164 of cover base 160 with at least one groove of the plurality of circumferential grooves 177 of side wall 174 of upper portion 170.
As illustrated in
Relieved areas 178 may allow for easier adjustment of height and rotation of upper portion 170 with respect to cover base 160 to engage at least one tooth 168 of cover base 160 with at least one groove 177 of upper portion 170. For example, in use, teeth 168 of cover base 160 may be aligned with relieved portions 178 of upper portion 170 such that upper portion 170 may be inserted into cover base 160. A width of each tooth 168 aligned with a corresponding relieved portion 178 may have a width that is less than or equal to a width of the corresponding relived portion 178 such that when each tooth 168 is aligned with its corresponding relieved portion 178, each tooth 168 is able to pass through the corresponding relieved portion 178. In other words, this allows upper portion 170 to be freely inserted into the interior of cover base 160. Each tooth 168 and relieved portion 178 pair may have the same or different dimensions as another tooth and relieved portion 178 pair. In certain aspects, teeth 168 are equally spaced around the circumference of side wall 164 of cover base 160 and relieved portions 178 are equally spaced around the circumference of side wall 174 of upper portion 170.
After upper portion 170 is inserted into the interior of cover base 160 (where outer surface 176 of upper portion 170 is adjacent to inner surface 166 of cover base 160), upper portion 170 may be rotated about a vertical axis until at least one tooth 168 of cover base 160 engages with the at least one groove 177 of upper portion 170. Accordingly, upper portion 170 may engage and interconnect with cover base 160. In certain aspects, engaging and/or interconnecting upper portion 170 with cover base 160 defines an enclosed void space between bottom surface 161 of cover base 160 and top surface 172 of upper portion 170. Further, as described below, in certain aspects, engaging and/or interconnecting upper portion 170 with cover base 160 protects a finish drain/cleanout 120 threaded into opening 162 of cover base 160.
As an illustrative example, upper portion 170 may have four relieved areas 178 equally spaced about the circumference of side wall 174, and cover base 160 may have four teeth 168 that are also equally spaced about the circumference of side wall 164. To engage upper portion 170 with cover base 160, a center (e.g., vertical axis) of upper portion 170 may be aligned with a center (e.g., vertical axis) of cover base 160. Upper portion 170 may then be rotated about its vertical axis until each relieved portion 178 aligns with each corresponding tooth 168. Subsequently, each tooth 168 may pass through its corresponding relived portion 178, and upper portion 170 may be rotated such that one or more of teeth 168 rotated into grooves 177 of upper portion 170 thereby securing them to one another.
In certain aspects, upper portion 170 may subsequently be removed from cover base 160. As such, this process may be reversed for removal.
In certain aspects, alternative to first aligning upper portion 170 with cover base 160 prior to engaging upper portion 170 with cover base 160, upper portion 170 may be pushed and/or tapped into cover base without aligning teeth 168 of cover base 160 with relieved areas 178 of upper portion 170.
In use, upper portion 170 may be cut to a desired height and then inserted into cover base 160 such that at least one tooth 168 engages at least one of grooves 177. In certain aspects, upper portion 170 is pushed or tapped downwardly until a bottom side of side wall 174 (opposite top surface 172 of upper portion 170) contacts bottom surface 161 and bottoms out. In cases where upper portion 170 is cut to the correct dimension for a finished floor height, bottoming upper portion 170 in cover base 160 may achieve the desired height.
Further, in certain aspects, upper portion 170 and/or cover base 160 may have thinned areas in the side walls (e.g., side wall 174 and/or side wall 164, respectively) to allow for some flexibility in the side walls. As known to those of skill in the art, molded plastic parts may slightly distort and/or may be slightly undersized or oversized, thereby making it difficult for two parts (e.g., the upper portion 170 and the cover base 160) to engage. As illustrated in
As mentioned herein, upper portion 170 includes a closed top surface 172 and a generally cylindrical side wall 174 extending downwardly from top surface 172. Side wall 174 has an outer surface 176 with a plurality of grooves 177 defined therein. As shown in
As mentioned herein, cover base 160 includes a bottom surface 161 with an opening 162. A generally cylindrical side wall 164 extends upwardly from bottom surface 161. Side wall 164 of cover base 160 has an inner surface 166 with at least one engagement tooth 168 extending inwardly therefrom.
As illustrated, operations 700 begin, at block 702, by positioning a drain/cleanout body comprising a first opening for receiving a finish drain/cleanout. For example, as illustrated in
At block 704, operations 700 proceed with disposing, on the drain/cleanout body, a cover base of a drain/cleanout cover assembly comprising a second opening for receiving the finish drain/cleanout, wherein a center of the second opening of the cover base is aligned with a center of the first opening of the drain/cleanout body. For example, as illustrated in
Alternatively, in certain aspects, the drain/cleanout body 110 may include cover base 160 integrated therewith and/or connected thereto, such as by having the side wall of cover base 160 extending upwardly therefrom
At block 706, operations 700 proceed with threading a finish drain/cleanout through the first opening and the second opening to retain the cover base on the drain/cleanout body. For example, as illustrated in
At block 708, operations 700 proceed with engaging an upper portion of the drain/cleanout cover assembly with the cover base of the drain/cleanout cover assembly, wherein engaging the upper portion with the cover base defines an enclosed void space above the finish drain/cleanout. For example, as illustrated in
In certain aspects, prior to engaging upper portion 170 with cover base 160, upper portion 170 may be cut to a desired height. The desired height may be a height desired for the floor when flooring material is installed.
At block 710, operations 700 proceed with installing a flooring material around at least the upper portion. For example, as illustrated in
At block 712, operations 700 proceed with removing the upper portion of the drain/cleanout cover assembly from the cover base of the drain/cleanout cover assembly to expose the void space. For example, as illustrated in
At block 714, operations 700 proceed with positioning the finish drain/cleanout at a desired height. For example, as illustrated in
Optionally, in some cases at block 716, operations 700 proceed with filling the void space (e.g., remaining void space for which finish/drain/cleanout 120 does not fill) with a finishing material subsequent to positioning the finish drain/cleanout at the desired height. For example, as illustrated in
Optionally, in some cases at block 718, operations 700 proceed with installing a floor covering at a height equal to the desired height of the finish drain/cleanout subsequent to filling the void space with the finishing material. For example, as illustrated in
The present invention has been discussed primarily with reference to drain structures. As will be clear to those of skill in the art, the invention also applies to cleanouts. A cleanout is structurally similar to a drain but the upper portion lacks drain holes. The cleanout has a body like with a drain and an upper portion that typically screws into the body. The upper portion of the cleanout is removed to access the drain pipe below the cleanout.
As will be clear to those of skill in the art, the embodiments of the inventive apparatus and method disclosed herein may be altered in various ways without departing from the scope or teaching of the present invention. As such, this disclosure should be interpreted broadly.
This Application claims the benefit of and priority to U.S. Provisional Pat. Application Serial No. 63/247,833, entitled “Floor Drain/Cleanout Protector,” filed Sep. 24, 2021, the contents of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
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63247833 | Sep 2021 | US |