The present invention relates to a vent for installation within an opening on the underside of a roof overhang of a building structure and to a method of its installation.
It is useful, and in many locales a building code requirement, that the attic area of a building underlying a roof be provided with a means to permit air exchange. Such ventilation prevents undue heat buildup, which can render the living quarters of the building uncomfortable and impose unreasonable energy requirements for cooling. Proper ventilation of the attic area also preserves the structural integrity of the roof and roof coverings.
A combination of ridge and soffit vents provides an example of a means for providing the desired ventilation. The ridge vent permits hot and/or humid air to rise up through the peak of the roof, and the soffit vent enables ambient air to be drawn into a lower part of the attic area to replace the hot and/or humid air escaping through the ridge vent.
Examples of ridge vents are provided by U.S. Pat. No. 5,960,595 issued to McCorsley et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,298,613 B1, U.S. Pat. No. 6,308,472 B1, U.S. Pat. No. 5,902,432 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,673,521 issued to Coulton et al., 6,277,024 B1 issued to Coulton, and 4,942,699 issued to Spinelli and U.S. Patent Application Publications Nos. 2005/0136831 A1 and 2005/0090197 A1 of Coulton. Each of the above referenced patents and published applications are owned, or co-owned, by Benjamin Obdyke, Inc., the assignee of the present application.
Examples of soffit vents are provided by U.S. Pat. No. 6,145,255 issued to Allaster, U.S. Pat. No. 5,937,592 issued to Tamlyn, U.S. Pat. No. 5,718,086 issued to Dunn, U.S. Pat. No. 6,718,699 B1 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,705,052 B1 issued to Larson, U.S. Pat. No. 5,560,158 issued to Norton, U.S. Pat. No. 4,347,691 issued to Lloyd-Jones, and D503,225 S issued to Rodolfo et al. and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2002/0124484 A1 of Martin. Also see U.S. Pat. No. 5,947,817 issued to Morris et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,468,453 B1 issued to Gaidjiergis et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 4,977,714 issued to Gregory, Jr. and U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0005649 A1 of Austin et al.
Typically, installation of a soffit vent includes measuring the width and length of an eave overhang, cutting one or more substantially-rigid perforated aluminum or PVC panels to a desired size, and installing the panel or panels to the eave overhang. If more than one panel is required, installation typically also requires the step of interlocking the ends of each adjacent pair of panels. Another method includes cutting circular or rectangular openings in sheets of plywood, oriented strand board, or other wooden material and placing individual vents or screens over the openings. However, this does not provide optimal intake ventilation and provides areas of exposed wood requiring periodic maintenance, such as painting, staining, cleaning, and the like.
While the soffit vents and vented eave assemblies disclosed in the above referenced patents and published applications may function in an acceptable manner, there continues to be a need for alternatives with respect to the design, materials, and installation of vented roof structures. To this end, a desired soffit vent and vented soffit assembly should provide an aesthetically-pleasing finish appearance and should permit improvements with respect to the time, labor and ease of vent installation. Further, a sufficient amount of intake air flow should be provided without compromising resistance to pest and weather infiltration, and the materials required to construct the soffit structure should be inexpensive and capable of efficient manufacture, storage, shipping, and handling.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, a method is provided for installing a vent within a soffit. A continuous, elongate, strip of openwork ventilation material is provided in roll form to a building site. The ventilation material is unrolled at the site, and positioned within an elongate opening in the soffit. The opposite edges of the ventilation material are secured to the soffit along the elongate opening so that the installed ventilation material forms a one-piece, continuous soffit vent.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, the ventilation material has opposite longitudinally-extending side edges that are inserted within opposed, spaced-apart channels extending along a least a part of the periphery of the opening to thereby secure the ventilation material to the soffit. For example, the method can include the steps of inserting the ventilation material into an open end of the channels and sliding the ventilation material along the full length of the elongate opening until the ventilation material is properly positioned to cover the opening.
According to an alternate embodiment, the ventilation material has opposite longitudinally-extending side edges provided in the form of fastening strips. In this case, the fastening strips are nailed, stapled, adhesively bonded, or secured by other means to the structure of the soffit surrounding the elongate opening.
According to yet another aspect of the present invention, a vented soffit assembly of a building structure is provided. The assembly includes an eave of a roof having an elongate, continuous ventilation opening extending between a sidewall of the building structure and a fascia board of the eave. A one-piece, continuous strip of openwork ventilation material spans a full length and width of the opening between the sidewall and the fascia board. The strip of ventilation material is sufficiently flexible to enable it to be stored and shipped in a spiral roll and to be unrolled for installation within the assembly.
The assembly and vent is suited for use in pre-fabricated modular housing in which the eave overhang is typically of a constant width enabling the vent to be readily slid along the length of the eave overhang, or nailed thereto, during initial construction of the modular house. The assembly and vent can also be used during the initial construction or renovation of conventional building structures.
The strip of ventilation material can have opposite faces with alternating, transversely-extending ridges and grooves that, when installed, extend substantially perpendicular to the sidewall and fascia board. As an example, the strip of ventilation material can be an undulating perforated web of thermoplastic material or an undulating mat of fibers. Alternatively, a dimpled sheet of thermoplastic material or mat of fibers can be utilized. In some contemplated embodiments, the strip of ventilation material has substantially-planar fastening strips or tabs extending laterally therefrom.
The present invention should become apparent from the following description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
The present invention is a system for providing a flow of ventilating air beneath a roof structure 10 of a building. As best illustrated in
The eave 14 includes a fascia board 18 that extends substantially parallel to the wall 12 a spaced distance therefrom. By definition, the soffit 20 is the underside of the eave 14 that extends between wall 12 and fascia board 18. An elongate opening 22 is formed in the soffit 20 between the wall 12 and fascia board 18 and provides a path of ventilation therethrough. See arrows “A” in
A strip of openwork ventilation material is installed within the mouth of the soffit opening 22. The ventilation material prevents debris, birds and other animals, insects, rain, snow and the like from infiltrating into the attic space. The ventilation material according to the present invention extends the full length and width of the opening 22 and is provided as one continuous piece without interruption and without the need for cutting, overlapping, interlocking, and/or joining of separate sections in an end-to-end or like configuration.
As best illustrated in
In the embodiment illustrated in
In the embodiment illustrated in
The channels 38 in
Preferably, the height “B” of the channels 38 is slightly shorter than the height “H” of the undulating strip of ventilation material 24. Thus, when the ventilation material 24 is positioned within the channels 38, the flexible, resilient undulations are slightly tensioned by the walls of the channels 38 and are thereby secured thereto without the use of fasteners or the like. Alternatively, staples, nails, adhesives or like fasteners can by used to secure the ventilation material 24 to the channels 38.
Other alternatives for providing channels 38 within the soffit 20 are illustrated in
An alternate embodiment of a strip of ventilation material 48 according to the present invention is illustrated in
Turning to another aspect of the present invention, a method of installing a soffit vent includes supplying a continuous, elongate, strip of openwork ventilation material, 24, 24a, or 48, in roll form to a building site or like construction area. The ventilation material is unrolled and its opposite longitudinally-extending side edges are positioned and supported within an opening 22 of the soffit 20. The ventilation material forms a one-piece, continuous soffit vent along the full length of the soffit opening 22.
The method can include the step of forming an opposed, parallel, spaced-apart pair of elongate, longitudinally-extending channels 38 along a predetermined length of the soffit 20. The ventilation material is unrolled and its opposite longitudinally-extending side edges 40 are positioned and supported within the channels 38. For example, the ventilation material can be inserted into an open end of the channels 38 and slid along the full length of the channels 38. Alternatively, the ventilation material can be bowed to permit its side edges 40 to be simultaneously inserted laterally into the channels 38 until the ventilation material resiliently expands to its full width.
As an alternative to the use of channels, the strip of ventilation material 48 can have fastening strips 50 that are nailed or stapled to a confronting surface of the soffit 20. For example, the laterally extending fastening strips 50 can be supported on top of the boards 54 or the like, or can be nailed or stapled to the board 54 from underneath the board 54.
Preferably, the ventilation material has ridges 30 and grooves 32 that extend substantially perpendicular to the wall 12 and fascia board 18 when the vent is installed to the soffit. The strip of ventilation material can be provided in an indefinite length and can be cut to a desired length that matches the length of the soffit opening 22.
The soffit vent of the present invention can be utilized in new construction as well as in existing soffit structures. For example, in an existing structure, an elongate, continuous opening 22 can be cut in the soffit and channels 38 or boards 52 can be installed. Thereafter, the ventilation material can be installed as discussed above. In new construction, such as the construction of a pre-fabricated modular structure, a continuous overhang can be provided at a constant width and the soffit vent of the present invention can be readily installed therein.
While a preferred soffit vent, assembly, and method of installation have been described in detail, various modifications, alterations, and changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the vent, assembly, and method according to the present invention as defined in the appended claims.
This application claims the benefit under 35 USC §119(e) of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/743,809, filed Mar. 27, 2006.
Number | Date | Country | |
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60743809 | Mar 2006 | US |