Claims
- 1. A partially prefabricated masonry fence comprising:
- at least two footings spaced apart from one another;
- structurally rigid support posts extending upwardly from said footings; and
- at least one prefabricated fence panel unit mounted over said support posts and supported by said footings, said fence panel unit comprising a base support beam extending substantially throughout the length of said panel for supporting said panel, said base support beam having a receptacle near each end region thereof for receiving said support posts, wherein only said end regions contact said footings;
- said fence panel unit further comprising a plurality of courses of masonry units laid on said support beam, wherein each masonry unit has a length less than the length of said base support beam.
- 2. The partially prefabricated masonry fence of claim 1, wherein said fence panel unit further comprises a pilaster at each end thereof, said pilaster including a plurality of pilaster masonry units laid integrally with said plurality of courses of masonry units.
- 3. The partially prefabricated masonry fence of claim 2, wherein each said pilaster masonry unit comprises a main body portion broader than said adjacent unit masonry courses and a receptacle in said main body portion for receiving said support posts.
- 4. The partially prefabricated masonry fence of claim 3, wherein said base support beam consists essentially of concrete, the uppermost of said unit masonry courses is covered by a top member extending between said pilasters, and the tops of said pilasters are covered by respective caps.
- 5. The partially prefabricated masonry fence of claim 4, wherein said top member and said caps comprise at least one material selected from the group consisting of concrete, metal, stone, brick and block.
- 6. The partially prefabricated masonry fence of claim 1, wherein said base support beam consists essentially of pre-cast concrete.
- 7. The partially prefabricated masonry fence of claim 1, wherein said base support beam comprises at least one material selected from the group consisting of pre-cast concrete, pre-stressed concrete, and post tensioned concrete.
- 8. The partially prefabricated masonry fence of claim 1, wherein said structurally rigid support posts are tubular steel.
- 9. The partially prefabricated masonry fence of claim 3, wherein said support posts are tubular steel, and are dimensionally smaller than said receptacles in said pilaster masonry units and said base support beam to leave a space between said support posts and said receptacles.
- 10. The partially prefabricated fence of claim 1, wherein said at least two footings include a plurality of footings spaced apart from each other, and a prefabricated fence panel unit is supported by each pair of adjacent footings.
- 11. A prefabricated fence panel unit to be installed on at least two spaced apart footings, said panel unit comprising:
- a base support beam extending substantially throughout the length of said panel unit and having a receptacle near each end region thereof for receiving at least one generally vertically extending structurally rigid support post;
- a plurality of courses of masonry units laid upon said base support beam; and
- a pilaster at each end of said fence panel unit, said pilaster including a plurality of pilaster masonry units laid integrally with said plurality of courses of masonry units, each said pilaster masonry unit having a main body portion broader than said courses of masonry units and at least some of said pilaster masonry units having a receptacle in said main body portion for receiving said support post.
- 12. The prefabricated masonry fence panel unit of claim 11, wherein said base support beam consists essentially of pre-cast concrete.
- 13. The prefabricated masonry fence panel unit of claim 11, wherein said base support beam comprises at least one material selected from the group consisting of pre-cast concrete, pre-stressed concrete, and post tensioned concrete.
- 14. The prefabricated masonry fence panel unit of claim 11, further comprising a top member extending along and covering the uppermost face of said unit masonry courses.
- 15. The prefabricated masonry fence panel unit of claim 11, further comprising a top member of at least one material selected from the group consisting of concrete, metal, stone brick and block, extending along and covering the uppermost face of said unit masonry courses.
- 16. A method of installing a masonry fence including a plurality of masonry fence panel units prefabricated off-site, wherein each fence panel unit includes a base support beam extending substantially throughout the length of the fence panel unit and having a receptacle near each end region thereof, and each fence panel unit further includes a plurality of courses of masonry units laid upon the base support beam, said method comprising performing the following steps on-site:
- a) pouring at least two concrete footings spaced apart from one another;
- b) incorporating at least one generally vertically extending structurally rigid support post in each said footing;
- c) lifting the fence panel units above said support posts to align the receptacles of each fence panel unit with said support posts; and
- d) lowering each fence panel unit onto said footings such that at least one of said support posts is received in each receptacle formed in each fence panel unit.
- 17. The method of claim 16 wherein each fence panel unit further comprises a pilaster at each end thereof, said pilaster including a plurality of pilaster masonry units laid integrally with said plurality of courses of masonry units, each said pilaster masonry unit having a main body portion broader than said unit masonry courses and at least some of said pilaster masonry units having a receptacle in said main body portion for receiving said support post.
- 18. The method of claim 16, wherein said fence panel unit is installed by placing only the end regions of said base support beam on said footings.
- 19. The method of claim 16, further comprising the steps of:
- d) filling any space between said support posts and said receptacles with grout; and
- e) securing a cap over said pilasters.
- 20. The method of claim 19, further comprising the step of covering the upper face of the top course of said unit masonry courses with a top member extending along said top course between said pilasters.
Parent Case Info
This is a Continuation of application Ser. No. 08/002,363 filed Jan. 6, 1993, now abandoned.
US Referenced Citations (15)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
607539 |
Aug 1960 |
ITX |
Non-Patent Literature Citations (1)
Entry |
Brick Fences, Masonary Advantage, vol. 1, Issue I, Mar. 1989. |
Continuations (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
2363 |
Jan 1993 |
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