Static structures (e.g. – buildings) – Cover with surface water receiver at eave or valley – With downspout
Reexamination Certificate
1999-06-28
2001-05-22
Callo, Laura A. (Department: 3635)
Static structures (e.g., buildings)
Cover with surface water receiver at eave or valley
With downspout
C052S011000, C248S048200
Reexamination Certificate
active
06233876
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a pivotable gutter assembly and a kit for the same. The gutter assembly is pivoted to a horizontal position to receive the rainwater falling from the roof and direct the rainwater to down-spout to evacuate it away from the house. The pivotable gutter assembly can be pivoted to a vertical position in order to permit cleaning thereof, or to hide the gutter assembly under the roof's cornice in the winter months.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
It is estimated that on average, 5000 gallons of rainwater fall on the roof of a typical house in Canada, during a year. To collect this rainwater from the roof, a system of gutters and down-spouts are installed, and permanently affixed to the roof cornice's fascia plate, and to the house. It should be understood at the outset that the word “house” is intended to include any structure having a roof and which requires a gutter system to evacuate the water therefrom. Likewise, the expression “homeowner” is meant to include any person in charge of maintenance of a house or any like structure.
Presently, the gutters are nailed to the fascia, as shown in
FIG. 3
, labelled “Prior Art”, where a sleeve maintains the width of the gutter. The nail perforates the fascia and the resulting hole promotes water seepage along the nail's hook, when the gutter is full of water, particularly during the winter thaw.
FIG. 4
shows various cross-sections of fascias and cornices in today's houses. It can be clearly appreciated that the fascia element is the appropriate element to fasten any type of gutter assembly, as is presently done.
However, all gutters and down-spouts should be inspected and cleaned periodically by homeowners. Leaky, damaged and partially clogged gutters give unsatisfactory services, and can also be a direct cause of other more serious troubles, such as water getting in the attic or seeping into the walls near the cornices. For this reason, regular servicing of the gutters is required.
Difficulty may arise from the accumulation of leaves, rubbish and bird's nests in gutters. Such debris, if not promptly removed, may clog the opening to the down-spout and cause the water to back-up and flow over the edge of the gutter. Accordingly, the gutter, as well as the down-spout must be periodically cleaned.
One solution has been to propose leaf guards or strainers, installed along the gutter or over the down-spout. Even if leaf guards or strainers have been installed at the down-spout opening, an accumulation of wet leaves will prevent proper drainage and may cause water to overflow and seep into walls of the house. It is thus essential to remove the debris from gutters as soon as possible after they collect, and flush the gutter system with a hose.
If the gutters are not fitted with leaf strainers, leaves may accumulate in the gutter system and completely close the passage to water. In cold weather, water may accumulate and freeze in clogged down-spouts. These conditions, as mentioned above, may be avoided if the homeowner will remember to clean out the gutters regularly, especially in autumn, after the leaves have fallen. It is also important and advisable to remove heavy snow and ice from gutters to permit proper roof drainage and prevent damage to the gutters by the excessive weight of such masses. The accumulated snow and ice in the gutter will prevent, during the spring thaw, the roof run-off from being properly drained, and water may seep into the roof and wall of the house, causing considerable and expensive damage to the roofs and wall structures near the cornice. Also, water may collect and freeze in clogged elbows and down-spouts, causing considerable damage to these parts due to the expansion of the water when it freezes.
For these reasons, regular servicing of the gutter system is a sure way of reducing time-consuming upkeep and costly repairs.
However, it is not easy to clean the presently installed gutters. The homeowners must climb the ladder, or go on the roof to clean the gutters and down-spouts. In some cases, even an auger must be used to clean obstructions in such drains or down-spouts. These cleaning procedures are not only difficult but can also be dangerous, and often homeowners will call upon professionals to clean the gutters, which can be costly.
Gutters which are not regularly cleaned will deteriorate and will require replacements, and also will cause damage to the fascia and to the cornices and wall of the house.
In the prior art, there are many devices disclosed to attempt to resolve this problem. Reference can be made, for example, to U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,141,204; 2,631,801; 3,616,582; 4,019,290, 4,185,420; 4,446,658 and 4,813,190. However, those devices do not disclose a mechanical construction which can adequately and completely empty the gutter. These devices also describe an intricate mechanism in response to the accumulated overflow of snow, ice or debris and to partially empty the gutter. The disclosed mechanisms are exposed to weather elements and would become inoperative should ice accumulate in or on the moving parts.
A significant absence in the prior art is the lack of any description regarding the gutter pitch, i.e. the slope of the gutter which permits water to drain downwardly, and also how those gutters are disconnected from the down-spout when the gutter is pivoted from the horizontal to the vertical position.
Most of the above-mentioned prior art devices require, to move the gutter from one position to another, a step ladder to reach the moving mechanism, which can be a complicated and dangerous operation, particularly when the gutters are at a substantial distance above ground level, as is the case with highrise buildings.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to provide a pivotable gutter system and a kit therefor, which facilitates maintenance and cleaning of the gutter assembly. The gutter system can be swung out from the horizontal, or summer position, to a vertical, or winter position, below the cornice, facilitating the removal of accumulated debris, by simply rinsing the gutters from the ground level, using a nozzle at full water pressure.
In accordance with the invention, this object is achieved with a pivotable gutter system for a roof, having a fascia. The system comprises:
a plurality of hangers having a top and a bottom, the top being fastened to the fascia, the bottom including a bearing having a rotational axis, said hangers spanning a length of said fascia and being spaced from each other by a predetermined distance;
a shaft rotatably mounted in said bearings of said hangers, said shaft having a rotational axis coincident with the rotational axis of the bearings;
a gutter mounted along said shaft, said gutter being provided with at least one down-spout; and
means to pivot said shaft.
The gutter assembly is pivoted between an operative position, where the gutter is adjacent and below the roof in order to collect rainwater and direct it to the down-spout for evacuation, to an inoperative position, where the gutter is at least at a 90° angle with respect to the operative position, in order to permit easy cleaning of the gutter with a stream of water. This position can also be used to “hide” the gutter under the roof during the winter months so that there is no accumulation of water (and ice) or other debris therein, which would otherwise damage the gutter, or cause damage to the roof or to the walls of the house.
Preferably, the hangers have a fixed length and lowered by a distance between L and L+X, so that the hangers are installed from one end of the fascia to the other end of the fascia with a gradually increasing (or decreasing) distance from fascia, as the case may be, as long as the down-spout of the gutter is located adjacent the lowest gutter position (having a length L+X). This gradual increase in hanger position gives the shaft, and therefor the gutter, a downward pitch, permitting easier evacuation of the water. Preferably, the hangers are sold as a set with a predete
Callo Laura A.
Marshall & Gould P.C.
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