Patent Application
20070262227
The present invention generally concerns rustication forms and molding and methods of forming rustication and moldings. More specifically, the present invention concerns rustication forms for use in concrete slab formation for forming rustication and molding impressions in concrete wall slabs.
Molding or rustication forms are used in the construction industry for creating architectural moldings and elements in concrete slab formation. Building walls in constructions projects, whether residential or commercial, often use concrete slab, tilt-up walls. Such concrete walls are generally formed at the construction site during building construction.
Generally, construction crews form concrete slabs for use as tilt-up walls by first preparing a flat even surface. Leveled concrete slabs, anchored by the foundations, are often used as the formation surface for making such concrete slabs. Alternatively, a thin formation surface or slab can be poured on ground for forming such walls and concrete slabs. The formation surface is then prepared by positioning enclosure or retaining walls for forming the outer walls of such slabs and walls. Once the formation surface and the position or retaining walls are prepared, wet concrete is poured into the area formed by such enclosure walls and allowed to cure. When the concrete dries and cures, the cured concrete slab is generally tilted up for use. The present invention, however, is not limited to concrete slab walls. The present invention can be applied as known in the art to any molding or rustication formation using curable construction material and rustication or molding forms. In examples discussed below, however, the example of the concrete slab wall will be referenced.
Rustication is generally the molding or architectural formation left on the concrete walls. Rustication can be made by cutting or shaping masonry or concrete so as to create molding, architectural elements, and to otherwise shape the surface of such masonry or concrete formations.
In the construction industry, rustications are often used for design elements. For example, a variety of rustication forms, which are substrates that serve as the physical molds for forming such rustications, are used to create architectural design impressions and formations into the curing concrete walls. They are also used for functional purposes as known in the art. For example, a rustication form can be laid to create a molding or impression or shape the curing concrete for forming a functional wall ledge impression.
In forming such rustications, smooth and clean surfaced rustications are desired. Difficulties, however, arise from characteristics of concrete curing and formation. Because concrete is wet as it is poured, it takes time to settle, dry and cure. During the curing process, water in the concrete may seep into the rustication or molding forms. Depending on the characteristics of the rustication substrate, the final rustication form may not cure as desired.
For example, if the surface of the rustication form is porous or semi-porous, water may seep into the rustication form and cause it to swell, bloat, distort or cause other water damage. The resulting rustication in the dried concrete may have uneven, rough or otherwise unfinished look and/or form. In some instances, water seeping into the rustication form substrate may cause dusting, wherein the surface of the concrete formation has a dusty appearance due to the uneven curing of the concrete particles as water trickles into the substrate. Such imperfections on the concrete surface will require additional construction labor, material, handling and time, resulting in delay, increased costs and inconvenience.
Furthermore, as water penetrates the rustication substrate, concrete may also adhere to and stick to rustication forms. As the dried concrete wall is lifted up, rustication forms may come up with the wall. Additional time would then be required to separate the rustication forms from elevated concrete walls. Further, as rustication forms are removed, surface of rustication left on concrete wall may be damaged, requiring additional cost, labor and delay.
Additionally, rustication forms used in construction projects are often custom ordered and require short lead times from order to production. Special sizes may depend on architectural needs, and custom orders are often routine. There is a need for quick manufacture and a quick turnaround time. There is a need for a readily manufacturable product and a quick manufacturing process addressing the needs discussed.
Furthermore, in construction projects, rustication forms are preferably discarded after single use. Although there may be examples of reusable rustication forms, because of the needs for customized rustication forms based on individual building, architectural and design needs, inexpensive single-use rustication forms are needed.
Prior art rustications have used specialized materials or have used paint-style applied coatings. But these rustications are difficult to manufacture and consume additional costs associated with material or equipment set-up and they are more difficult to manufacture. For example, prior art rustications that use spray-on type of coating use difficult and time consuming manufacturing processes that require specialized equipment and set up. Furthermore, environmental hazards are associated with painting and spraying, requiring permitting and licensing.
Some of the preferred embodiments of the present invention are discussed below. As the present invention may be embodied in several forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof, it should also be understood that the description contained herein is not limited by the details of the foregoing description, unless otherwise stated. The present invention should be construed within its spirit and scope, and therefore all changes and modifications that fall within the meets and bounds of the claims, or equivalences of such meets and bounds are therefore intended to be embraced by the invention.
Generally, the present invention concerns rustication forms or moldings having covering (overlay or wrapping) that alleviate problems associated with concrete slab curing. The present invention also concerns methods for forming rustication in concrete walls. More specifically, the present invention comprises the rustication form substrate, wherein all or portions of the surface exposed to the curing concrete is covered with covering or layering, but only portions of surfaces not exposed to the curing concrete is covered.
Before the concrete is poured, rustication forms are laid down on the formation surface. Rustication forms come in a variety of sizes and shapes as known in the art. Some examples include chamfers, quarter rounds, half rounds, coves, and polygons, which refer generally to the shape of the cross sectional areas of such rustication forms. Generally, a rustication form has one or more surfaces that are not exposed to the poured concrete, and one or more surfaces that are exposed to poured concrete.
Rustication forms are generally attached to the formation surface to prevent movement during concrete pouring. Rustications forms may be attached to the formation surface using, for example, glue, double sided tape, or by nailing. Since formation surfaces are generally cured concrete surfaces, nailing is not the preferred option. Thus, glue and double sided tape is preferred
Once the concrete is poured to make a new concrete wall, it will be allowed to dry and cure, after which the concrete is tilted up as walls. It is desirable for the rustication forms to remain on the formation surfaces rather than sticking to the slab wall. Otherwise, the rustication forms will need to be manually removed and it may signal adhesion between the concrete wall and the rustication form.
The present invention concerns a rustication form having covering (overlay or wrapping) that alleviates problems associated with concrete slab curing comprising architectural molding substrate or rustication form having covering or layering over surfaces exposed to the curing concrete and having cover or layering over only portions of surfaces not exposed to curing concrete. In an alternative embodiment, the present invention comprises rustication for having covering or layering over portions of surfaces exposed to the curing concrete and having covering or layering over portions of surfaces not exposed to the curing concrete.
Some architectural molding substrates (rustication form) have rough surfaces or water absorptive surfaces. Substrates can be one or more of any rigid material such as lumber, plywood, MDF or medium density fiberboard, HDF or high density fiberboard, OSB or oriented strand board, foam, particle board, wheat board, sheet rock, dry wall, or other substrates as known in the art.
Size and shape can vary as known in the art. They may also be flat or have surface shapes as may be required for the project at hand. Referring to
As can be seen in
Similarly, in
The rustication form of the present invention further comprises a wrapping, covering or overlay.
The covering 60 can be made of variety of paper-backed or other coated paper material. The covering 60 can also be made of plastic, vinyl or other sheeting material as known in the art. Although the covering 60 is preferably water-resistant or water proof, the present invention contemplates embodiments that may not necessarily be water proof or water-resistant, as in the case of using paper-backed or other coated paper material. But generally, the covering 60 preferably has a continuous and smooth surface as opposed to uneven or rough surfaces. The covering 60 also preferably is of material and construction that does not disintegrate and substantially maintains its form without rupturing when wet concrete is poured over it.
Thus, the wrapping or covering 60 can be water-porous, but it will preferably have relatively smooth and continuous surface. The covering 60 also preferably has structural integrity to not break down substantially while the wet concrete cures. This will also prevent the curing concrete from dusting. Thus, as an example, although the covering 60 may be substantially be made of water-porous material such as paper based products, it can not be substantially devoid of structural integrity, such as toilet paper or paper towel, which would break down when in contact with wet concrete. The covering 60 preferably has sufficient structural integrity to allow for the concrete surface to set correctly.
The covering is preferably made of inexpensive material, suitable for single-use rustication forms. As known in the art, glue or adhesive is used for attaching the rustication substrate to the covering 60. Laminating or covering processes and machines as known in the art may be used.
As seen in
Referring to the example in
Referring back to
The rustication form of the present invention, having only portions of the unexposed surfaces covered while covering all of the exposed surfaces, allows for easily attaching the rustication form to concrete forming slab or to the retaining walls. Generally, as discussed, rustication forms may be affixed or attached to the slab forming surface using adhesives or other attachment methods as known in the art. For example, glue and double sided tape are preferably used and nails are not as preferred since the slab forming surface is hard concrete. Also, because the covering is preferably smooth, tape and glue does not stick well to such smooth surfaces. Thus, a portion of the bottom surface 2 (surface not facing the curing concrete) is intentionally left uncovered to allow for adhesives to better adhere to the substrate of the rustication form.
Referring back to
Referring to
By having the bottom edges 54 and 56 covered, water is prevented from entering into the substrate. As concrete weighs down on the rustication form, the weight presses down on the bottom edges 54 and 56 of the rustication form—trapping the covering 60 over the bottom edges 54 and 56—to form a better seal against water seepage. Since the portions of the bottom surface 2 near the bottom edges 54 and 56 have the added laying of the covering 60, the middle portion of the bottom surface 2 may slightly elevated from the forming surface. As the weight of the curing concrete presses down, a seal is formed by the covering 60 near the bottom edges 54 and 56, which sandwiches the covering 60 at these areas, creating a tighter water seal and further preventing water from seeping into the rustication form substrate.
In another embodiment of the present invention, only sides with rough edges are covered entirely by the covering. Generally, in such embodiment, angled surfaces are covered. More specifically, outer surfaces that have rough or uneven surfaces are covered in their entirety.
Generally, when rustication substrates are cut from starting material, they are cut at an angle. For example, the example seen in
As shown in
In
In an alternative embodiment as seen in
Only partially covering certain surfaces, whether exposed to the concrete or not, is further advantageous in that such embodiments further save on costs associated with covering. Additional advantages are that the covering can be made of inexpensive material, for example from recycled or scrapped paper. Because of the low cost of the covering as well as the material used for the substrate, inexpensive one-time use disposable rustication forms can be used.
The present invention is preferably environmentally friendly, in that there is no need for harmful spraying or painting and that preferably it is made of biodegradable material.
The present invention also contemplates a method of forming architectural moldings or rustications in concrete slab walls comprising, placing rustication form of the present invention on a slab forming surface, wherein the substrate of the rustication form may be porous or semi-porous or have sides that are porous or rough, wherein said substrate, which has one or more surfaces exposed to curing concrete while having one or more surfaces not exposed to curing concrete, wherein wrapping or covering covers all of the surfaces exposed to curing concrete and only portions outer edges of the surfaces not exposed to curing concrete, wherein said wrapping or covering is a continuous sheet, wherein a portion of surface not exposed to curing concrete is not covered with said wrapping or covering to allow for use of adhesive.
Optionally, wherein only the rough surfaces of said substrate exposed to curing concrete is covered along with portions of surfaces not exposed to curing concrete. According to the method of the present invention, said rustication form is held in place on slab forming surface by affixing said rustication form to said slab forming surfacing. The concrete is then poured over said rustication form within retaining walls for forming said concrete slab. Once the concrete has been allowed to cure, the concrete slab wall is tilted up.
