Patent Application
20240068709
The embodiment(s) described herein is/are generally directed to water heater braces and supports.
Accordingly, an aspect of the present disclosure involves a water heater support that supports and braces a water heater from falling backwards and damaging the adjacent firewall, helping to prevent any damage to the home. The water heater support includes an extendable support arm including a cylinder shaft that extends relative to a cylinder sleeve base with a press-and-release button and lock that locks. The cylinder sleeve base terminates at an opposite end from the cylinder in a plate that is mounted via a bracket to the wall behind the water heater. Once the bracket is mounted to the wall, the plate of the cylinder sleeve base slides into the mounted bracket. The extendable support arm can be extended an additional length with the press-and-release button and lock that allows the cylinder shaft to extend from the cylinder sleeve base. The cylinder shaft has a U-shaped tip to brace the water heater. The U-shaped tip braces the upper rear wall of the water heater, inhibiting any movement or damage to the home in the event of an earthquake.
Another aspect of the disclosure involves a water heater support that supports and braces a water heater having a curved outer surface from falling backwards and damaging an adjacent firewall comprising an extendable support arm; a mount configured to mount the extendable support arm to the adjacent firewall; and a tip configured to engage the curbed outer surface of the water heater so that the extendable support arm supports and braces the water heater from falling backwards and damaging an adjacent firewall.
One or more implementations of the aspect of the invention described immediately above includes one or more of the following: the tip includes a curved tip; the curved tip includes a curved engagement surface with a contour that matches a curved contour of the curved outer surface of the water heater; the curved engagement surface is U-shaped; the curved engagement surface includes a material to inhibit slippage between the curved engagement surface and the curved outer surface of the water heater; the mount includes a bracket mountable to the adjacent firewall and a plate coupled to the extendable support arm, the plate configured to slide within the bracket, once mounted to the adjacent firewall; the extendable support arm includes a cylinder shaft and a cylinder sleeve base, the cylinder shaft extending within and from the cylinder sleeve base; the extendable support arm includes a locking mechanism that allows the cylinder shaft to extend further from or retract further within the cylinder sleeve base and lock into position; and/or the extendable support arm is adjustable in length between four or more inches and nine or less inches.
Another aspect of the disclosure involves a method of using a water heater support that supports and braces a water heater having a curved outer surface from falling backwards and damaging an adjacent firewall comprising an extendable support arm; a mount configured to mount the extendable support arm to the adjacent firewall; and a tip configured to engage the curbed outer surface of the water heater so that the extendable support arm supports and braces the water heater from falling backwards and damaging an adjacent firewall, the method comprising mounting the mount of the extendable support arm to the adjacent firewall; and engaging the curbed outer surface of the water heater with the tip of the extendable support arm so that the extendable support arm supports and braces the water heater from falling backwards and damaging an adjacent firewall.
One or more implementations of the aspect of the invention described immediately above includes one or more of the following: the tip includes a curved tip, and engaging includes engaging the curbed outer surface of the water heater with the curved tip; the curved tip includes a curved engagement surface with a contour that matches a curved contour of the curved outer surface of the water heater, and engaging includes engaging the curbed outer surface of the water heater with the curved engagement surface with the contour that matches the curved contour of the curved outer surface of the water heater; the curved engagement surface is U-shaped, and engaging includes engaging the curbed outer surface of the water heater with the U-shaped curved engagement surface; the curved engagement surface includes a material to inhibit slippage between the curved engagement surface and the curved outer surface of the water heater, and engaging includes engaging the curbed outer surface of the water heater with the material to inhibit slippage between the curved engagement surface and the curved outer surface of the water heater; the mount includes a bracket mountable to the adjacent firewall and a plate coupled to the extendable support arm, the plate configured to slide within the bracket, once mounted to the adjacent firewall, and mounting the mount of the extendable support arm to the adjacent firewall includes mounting the bracket to the adjacent firewall and sliding the plate with the coupled extendable support arm within the mounted bracket; the extendable support arm includes a cylinder shaft and a cylinder sleeve base, the cylinder shaft extending within and from the cylinder sleeve base, and the method further comprising adjusting a length of the extendable support by extending the cylinder shaft further from or retracting the cylinder shaft further within the cylinder sleeve base; the extendable support arm includes a locking mechanism that allows the cylinder shaft to extend further from or retract further within the cylinder sleeve base and lock into position, and the method further comprising engaging the lock to allow the cylinder shaft to extend further from or retract further within the cylinder sleeve base and lock into position; and/or the extendable support arm is adjustable in length between four or more inches and nine or less inches, and the method further comprising adjusting the length of the extendable support arm between four or more inches and nine or less inches.
The details of the present invention, both as to its structure and operation, may be gleaned in part by study of the accompanying drawings, in which like reference numerals refer to like parts, and in which:
With reference to
The water heater support 100 includes an extendable support arm 130 having a cylinder shaft 140 that extends relative to and from a cylinder sleeve base 150 with a press-and-release button and lock 160. The cylinder sleeve base 150 terminates at an opposite end from the cylinder extending therefrom in a mount 162 including a plate 170 and a bracket 180, and the plate 170 is mounted via the bracket 180 to the wall 120 behind the water heater 110. Once the bracket 180 is mounted to the wall 120, the plate 170 of the cylinder sleeve base 150 slides into the mounted bracket 180. The extendable support arm 130 can be extended an additional length with the press-and-release button and lock 160 that allows the cylinder shaft 140 to extend from the cylinder sleeve base 150. The cylinder shaft 140 has a metal U-shaped tip 200 with a curved engagement surface 202 having a contour 204 matching the curved contour 124 of the curved outer surface 122 to brace the water heater 110. The U-shaped tip 200 includes a rubber material 210 glued to curved engagement surface 202 of U-shaped tip 200. The rubber material 210 inhibits slippage between the curved engagement surface 202 and the curved outer surface 122 of the water heater 110 to inhibit slippage when braced against the water heater 110. The U-shaped tip 200 braces the upper rear wall of the water heater 110, inhibiting any movement or damage to the home in the event of an earthquake. In the embodiment shown, the extendable support arm 130 is 5 inches in length when the cylinder shaft 140 is fully received in the cylinder sleeve base 150, and may extend up to an additional 4 inches when the press-and-release button and lock 160 is actuated.
With reference to
The above description of the disclosed embodiments is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the invention. Various modifications to these embodiments will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles described herein can be applied to other embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention. Thus, it is to be understood that the description and drawings presented herein represent a presently preferred embodiment of the invention and are therefore representative of the subject matter which is broadly contemplated by the present invention. It is further understood that the scope of the present invention fully encompasses other embodiments that may become obvious to those skilled in the art and that the scope of the present invention is accordingly not limited.
Combinations, described herein, such as “at least one of A, B, or C,” “one or more of A, B, or C,” “at least one of A, B, and C,” “one or more of A, B, and C,” and “A, B, C, or any combination thereof” include any combination of A, B, and/or C, and may include multiples of A, multiples of B, or multiples of C. Specifically, combinations such as “at least one of A, B, or C,” “one or more of A, B, or C,” “at least one of A, B, and C,” “one or more of A, B, and C,” and “A, B, C, or any combination thereof” may be A only, B only, C only, A and B, A and C, B and C, or A and B and C, and any such combination may contain one or more members of its constituents A, B, and/or C. For example, a combination of A and B may comprise one A and multiple B's, multiple A's and one B, or multiple A's and multiple B's.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 63401875 | Aug 2022 | US |
