Patent Application
20140026387
The present invention relates to faucet mounts and, more particularly, to a method and device for incorporating wall-mount faucets to modular/furniture bath sink vanities.
Wall-mount faucets are very difficult to install. Not only does the wall need to be cut out, plumbing needs to be installed between the studs. This eliminates the potential to be able to use a furniture style vanity cabinet.
Therefore, custom cabinetry is needed to use wall-mount faucets, which further increases the expenditure. The effort with the installation and the extra spending on the faucet and custom vanity prevents this type of wall-mount faucets from becoming more popular than it is today.
Current wall-mount faucet installation locations are limited to the locations and distances of the wall studs. With a double vanity, this problem is compounded, as both wall-mount faucets need to line up not only with the vanity sinks, but also with adequate space between the wall studs.
As can be seen, there is a need for an improved apparatus and method for installing wall-mount faucets in modular/furniture/prefabricated bath sink vanities.
In one aspect of the present invention, a method for mounting a wall-mount faucet on a furniture/modular/prefabricated bath sink vanity comprises extending fixture feed lines into a cavity of a back splash case disposed atop a vanity, the fixture feed lines extending into the cavity through holes in the back splash case; and mounting a fixture inside the cavity with knobs and a faucet stem accessible from a front face of the back splash case.
In another aspect of the present invention, a method for mounting a wall-mount faucet on a furniture/modular/prefabricated bath sink vanity comprises extending fixture feed lines into a cavity of a back splash case disposed atop a vanity, the fixture feed lines extending into the cavity through holes in the back splash case; mounting a fixture inside the cavity with knobs and a faucet stem accessible from a front face of the back splash case; attaching upper and lower spacer blocks to a fixture protrusion disposed within the cavity; and mounting a fixture plate to the spacer blocks.
In a further aspect of the present invention, a back splash case comprises a cavity accessible from a back side of the back splash case; a plurality of case fixture holes communicating the cavity with a front side of the back splash case; a fixture protrusion disposed about the plurality of case fixture holes; a plurality of spacer block fitting holes disposed in the fixture protrusion for mounting spacer blocks; and plumbing holes disposed in a bottom side of the back splash case, the plumbing holes permitting fixture feed lines to extend into the cavity.
These and other features, aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings, description and claims.
The following detailed description is of the best currently contemplated modes of carrying out exemplary embodiments of the invention. The description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made merely for the purpose of illustrating the general principles of the invention, since the scope of the invention is best defined by the appended claims.
Broadly, an embodiment of the present invention provides a method and apparatus for bringing the wall-mount faucet installation outside of the wall to the bath vanity cabinet itself. Therefore, the plumbing is not confined by the wall stud location and distances, yielding all plumbing to be within the furniture sink vanity cabinet. The methods and apparatus of the present invention enable the installation and future maintenance of wall-mount faucets to be at a minimum effort. The methods and apparatus of the present invention can substantially reduce the cost of bathroom re-modeling. The methods and apparatus of the present invention also enable modular/furniture/prefabricated styles of bath sink vanities to be used with wall-mount faucets.
Referring now to
In some embodiments, the back splash case 10 can be formed integrally with a vanity top 48. In other embodiments, as shown in
Upper and lower spacer blocks can be attached to the fixture protrusion 22. In some embodiments, as shown in
In some embodiments, instead of two upper spacer blocks 24, 26 and two lower spacer blocks 28, 30, a single upper and lower spacer block (not shown) with a counterbore hole and a through hole extending from the counterbore hole can be used. In other embodiments, the spacer blocks can attach to the fixture protrusion 22 by a mechanism other than screws, such as locking tabs, keyhole slots, or the like.
In some embodiments, the spacer blocks can be integral with the back splash case 10. In this embodiment, a through hole and counterbore hole would not be necessary. Typically, with integral spacer blocks, the back splash case would be designed for specific brands of fixtures or for fixtures with certain specifications.
The fixture plate 36 can include fixture plate securement holes 38 formed therein for attaching the fixture plate 36 to the spacer blocks. Fixture plate securement screws 44 can affix the fixture plate 36 to the spacer blocks.
To use the present invention, a user can connect the back splash case 10 to the vanity top 48, align the opening for plumbing at the bottom of the case opening and the top of the base cabinet. Since there is no standard template for the wall mount of a wall-mount faucet, locations can be found where it is appropriate to install the spacing block onto the fixture protrusion 22. The wall-mount faucet fixture 46 can then be positioned so the valve stems 40 and spigot can come out of the fixture holes 18. The fixture plate 36 can then be affixed to the spacer blocks. The flow control knobs 50 and the faucet stem 52 can be attached to the fixture 46 as is known in the art.
In some embodiments, such as with deck mount fixtures, the spacer blocks may not be needed. In these embodiments, the fixture can simply attach through the fixture holes 18 onto the fixture protrusion 22.
While the Figures show the cavity 12 being open along the entire back splash case 10, the cavity 12 may be open only along a portion of the back splash case 10, provided that there is room to affix the fixture 46 within the cavity 12.
The back splash case 10 can be made from various materials, including wood, concrete, composite, engineered solid surface materials (such as Corian®, acrylic, or the like), natural solid surface materials (such as quartz, granite, or the like), or the like. The front of the back splash case 10 can form the back splash itself, or can serve as a substrate for additional material to be added to form the back splash.
It should be understood, of course, that the foregoing relates to exemplary embodiments of the invention and that modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.
This application claims the benefit of priority of U.S. provisional application No. 61/676,320, filed Jul. 26, 2012, the contents of which are herein incorporated by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61676320 | Jul 2012 | US |
