Drainage receptacle

A drainage receptacle for collecting used water during washing of a vehicle having at least one pair of side wheels. The drainage receptacle including three individual rectangular elongated ground strips for installation on the ground and two individual rectangular elongated cover strips for installation over each pair of side wheels thereby allowing water to drain over the cover strips and directly onto the ground strips. Each ground strip having a bottom sheet and four sidewalls for retaining used water therein. Each cover strip being formed of a bottom sheet. The ground strips and cover strips are made of an impermeable material, such as vinyl.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION
 The present invention is concerned with a receptacle for use for heavy duty
 equipment washing.
 BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
 Commercial car and truck washing has become a focus of public concern and
 government regulation recently over the disposal of used wash water into
 municipal sewer systems or directly into the ground. The combination of
 oil, water, soap, dirt and other chemicals in the used wash water can be
 harmful to the environment if allowed to drain into a sewer or seep into
 the earth.
 It is now known to have mobile washers for washing cars, trucks and any
 other type of machinery on site. These washers are equipped with water
 treatment systems and are well described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,669.982.
 Typically the trucks are self-sufficient in that they contain all the
 equipment needed for the cleaning purposes, for instance, water reservoir,
 soap injector, sprayers, hoses, a nacelle or carriage and a drainage
 receptacle. During the washing, the used water is drained onto the
 drainage receptacle and forwarded back inside the washer in order to be
 recycled.
 U.S. Pat. No. 5,423,339 is concerned with an apparatus for treating
 articles with wash water. This patent discloses the use of a wash pad
 comprising three unconnected portions. However, this patent does not
 disclose the use of longitudinal cover strips for fitting over the wheels
 of a vehicle, so as to further guide the water collected on the wheels of
 the vehicle onto the wash pads on the ground. The wash pads that are
 described in this patent only include a centre portion and side portions.
 No pads are provided for covering the wheels of the vehicle. Hence, the
 water that is collected on the wheels will directly seep in the ground.
 SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
 It is an object of the present invention to provide a drainage receptacle
 that is designed to maximize the recycling of the water used for washing
 the vehicle.
 It is also an object of the present invention to provide a drainage
 receptacle for use in the washing of heavy-duty vehicles.
 It is another object of the present invention to provide a drainage
 receptacle that is designed to reduce the risk of tear by heavy-duty
 vehicles during installation of same.
 More precisely, the present invention is concerned with a drainage
 receptacle for collecting used water during washing of a vehicle, the
 vehicle having at least one pair of side wheels, the drainage receptacle
 comprising:
 individual substantially rectangular elongated ground strips for
 installation in parallel and spaced apart to each other on the ground so
 to form there between a passage for each pair of side wheels of the
 vehicle, each ground strip being made of an impermeable material and
 having a bottom sheet and four side walls for retaining used water
 therein, and
 individual substantially rectangular elongated cover strips for
 installation over each pair of side wheels respectively thereby allowing
 water to drain over the cover strips and onto the ground strips.
 The present invention is also concerned with a drainage receptacle kit and
 a method for using the drainage receptacle of the present invention.
 An advantage of the drainage receptacle of the present invention, is that
 it is now possible to execute on-site washing of heavy-duty truck such as
 a tractor, tracked vehicles, forest machinery and the like without running
 the risk of tearing the receptacle.
 The drainage receptacle of the present invention also maximizes the
 recycling of the waste water resulting from the washing of the equipment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
 The drainage receptacle of the present invention comprises at least two
 individual strips that are elongated and substantially rectangular in
 shape. The strips are made of a suitable material that allows collecting
 the used water for recycling purposes. Each of these strips has four side
 edges 5, that is two side edges extending along a longitudinal axis and
 two opposite side edges defining the width.
 As can be seen in FIG. 1, the drainage receptacle 1 according to the
 present invention comprises three individual substantially rectangular
 elongated ground strips 3 for installation in parallel. The ground strips
 3 are spaced apart on the ground, so to form therebetween a passage 13 for
 each pair of side wheels of the vehicle 2. Each ground strip has a bottom
 sheet 7 and four sidewalls 5 for retaining used water therein. Each cover
 strip 11 has two opposite ends, each of which comprises a sidewall 13 for
 preventing the used water to seep on the ground. The ground strips and
 cover strips are made of an impermeable material.
 The drainage receptacle 17 according to the illustrated embodiment further
 comprises two individual substantially rectangular elongated cover strips
 11. The cover strips 11 are being adapted for installation over each pair
 of side wheels respectively there by allowing water to drain over the
 cover strips 11 and directly on to the ground strips 3.
 Preferably, the ground strips 3 and the cover strips 11 are made of a
 resilient and flexible material, which may be vinyl.
 FIGS. 2 and 3 are top views of the drainage receptacle according to the
 present invention.
 As best seen in FIG. 4, the sidewalls 5 may be integrally formed with the
 bottom sheet 7. The sidewalls 5 and the bottom sheet 7 provide a
 trough-like configuration to define a containment area.
 The present invention is also concerned with a drainage receptacle kit,
 which may be formed of at least two individual strips that are elongated
 and substantially rectangular. According to the present invention, the
 drainage receptacle kit comprises three individual rectangular elongated
 ground strips for installation and parallel and spaced apart to each other
 on the ground, so to form therebetween a passage for receiving a wheel of
 a vehicle, and two individual rectangular elongated cover strips for
 installation over the wheels of the vehicle thereby allowing water to
 drain over the cover strips and on to the ground strips The drainage
 receptacle kit of the present invention is formed of ground strips and
 cover strips shown in anyone of FIGS. 1 to 4.
 In use, the strips are spaced apart and placed parallel to each other along
 a longitudinal axis. Three ground strips 3 are placed so to form a passage
 13 for receiving the side wheels of the vehicle 2. The vehicle 2 is then
 moved in position between the ground strips 3 and the cover strips 11 are
 placed over the side wheels in such a way to allow the water to leak from
 the cover strips 11 to the ground strips 3 placed on each side of each
 side wheels.
 In an alternative embodiment, the strips are spaced apart and placed
 parallel to each other along the longitudinal axis of the receptacle. The
 middle ground strip 3 is not laid flat on the ground before the vehicle 2
 is installed above the drainage receptacle 1. The two side edges of the
 middle ground strip 3 are rolled up. Once the vehicle 2 is in place, that
 is the wheels between the ground strip 3, the side edges are flapped down.
 This creates a containment area to better hold the used water that will be
 eventually forwarded in the water treatment unit.
 As mentioned above, the strips are placed in such a way to create spacing
 between each receptacle portions. Indeed, the spacing must allow the
 wheels of the vehicle to roll between the receptacle portions so that it
 does not come in direct contact with same and thereby significantly
 reducing the risk of tear by the wheels of the vehicle.
 Although the present invention has been explained hereinabove by way of a
 preferred embodiment thereof, it should be pointed out that any
 modifications to this preferred embodiment within the scope of the present
 invention is not deemed to alter or change the nature and the scope of the
 present invention.