SIDE WALL SEAL FOR PIPING

There is disclosed a side wall seal for piping comprising an annular ring adapted to be attached to a building sidewall, an annular wall extending outwardly from said annular ring and having a seam in said annular wall, a first ear extending outwardly from the annular wall adjacent a first side of the seam and a second ear extending outwardly from the annular wall adjacent a second side of the seam, and a closure mechanism for closing the seam around said piping. A wedge member may be used with the side wall seal to angle the piping downward.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a side wall seal for piping. More specifically, the invention relates to a side wall seal for piping for pipes exiting a building at a right angle to the side wall.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Pipes exit the side wall of buildings and require a water resistant seal. Such pipes may be for linesets, e.g. for an air conditioning system; for a gas line; for a drain line; or for similar pipes exiting the side wall of a building. The seal may be for a single pipe or for multiple pipes.

Seals for piping are known in the prior art such as the TSS575 Airex Titan GS30¾″ Gray Lineset Wall Seal System comprising a rectangular box covering an opening in a building side wall through which a pipe extends and having a rubber gasket fitted over the pipe and against the box to provide a seal. This seal includes a number of parts, cannot be used in retrofit installation and cannot be used in tight quarters because of its size.

While the prior art seals may provide some benefits, improvement is possible, including providing a water resistant seal which is inexpensive and easy to use. The present invention addresses these issues.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A primary object of the invention is to provide a side wall seal for piping.

Another primary object of the invention is to provide a water resistant seal for piping exiting from a side wall of a building, including for a single pipe or for multiple pipes.

Another primary object of the invention is to provide a side wall seal for piping which is water resistant and useful for pipes exiting a building side wall at a right angle.

Another primary object of the invention is to provide a side wall seal for piping which is water resistant and which may be used for retrofit installation for existing pipes or for pipes in new construction.

Another primary object of the invention is to provide a side wall seal for piping which is water resistant, one-piece and is made of plastic and overmolded with a flexible rubber and is minimally sized to fit into tight places.

The invention is directed to a side wall seal for piping comprising an annular ring adapted to be attached to a building sidewall, a wall extending outwardly from said annular ring and having a seam in said wall, a first ear extending outwardly from said wall adjacent a first side of the seam and a second ear extending outwardly from the wall adjacent a second side of the seam, and a closure mechanism for closing the seam around said piping. The side wall seal may also be used with a wedge member to angle the side wall seal downward. The wedge member is also useful when the building sidewall is not completely vertical, e.g. where the sidewall has a thatched siding.

These primary and other objects of the invention will be apparent from the following description of the preferred embodiments of the invention and from the accompanying drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The invention is directed to a side wall seal for piping. Specifically, a water resistant seal is required for piping exiting from a side wall from a building, including for a single pipe or for multiple pipes. The device is useful for pipes exiting a building side wall at a right angle to the side wall. The device may be used for retrofit installation for existing piping or for piping in new construction installation. The seal is made of plastic such as, but not limited to, ASA (acrylic-styrene-acrylonitrile copolymer), and overmolded with a flexible rubber such as, but not limited to, a thermoplastic elastomer such as Santoprene®. The seal is minimally sized to fit into tight spaces.

A first embodiment of the side wall seal is shown inFIGS.1A-1C. The seal10includes an annular ring12having a collar12A having an opening through which a pipe extends. The seal10is attached to a side wall of a building by fasteners (not shown) extending through apertures14. The seal10further includes an outwardly extending substantially annular wall16extending from ring12having an opening through which a pipe extends. Wall16includes a seam18and ears20and22extending outwardly from wall16. Seal10is easily installed by retrofit over existing piping extending from a building side wall because seam18may be pulled apart and slipped over an existing pipe or a bundle of pipes. After the seam18is installed over the piping, the ears20and22are grasped and squeezed to close the seal and seam18by bringing the ears20and22together. The seam is closed by a tongue23A and groove23B closure mechanism. In some instances, a band or hose clamp (not shown) may be used to further hold the seal10in a closed and sealed relation. The band or hose clamp extends around wall portion24and is secured by a retaining member26. In one preferred embodiment, the dimensions of the side wall seal are about 2.13 inches from the annular collar to the top of wall16with a diameter of the opening of about 2.35 inches when the seam18is open and 2.25 inches when the seam is closed. It is understood that these dimensions will vary depending on the piping.

Referring toFIGS.2-4, there is shown a side wall seal assembly40for angling the seal10downward by using a wedge member50with seal10. Wedge50is an accessory to the side wall seal10. It is useful in angling the seal downwards for better water resistance. Wedge50is also useful when the building side wall is not completely vertical, e.g. where the building has a thatched siding, thereby allowing the side wall seal10to extend from the building side wall at a substantially 90 degree angle. The wedge member50may be attached to the building side wall and the seal10attached to the wedge50. Wedge50includes a front wall52, a side wall54, a rear wall56, a top portion58and a bottom portion60. There is a split seam62in bottom portion60such that the wedge50may be pulled apart to fit around the pipe exiting the building side wall and then closed and held in place by seam closure members64and66. The side wall seal10is first aligned with wedge50by lugs68of the wedge which are inserted into openings68A of the seal10. The seal10is then attached to wedge50by fasteners (not shown) extending through apertures14of side wall seal10and apertures14A of wedge50then into the building side wall. In one preferred embodiment, the dimensions of the wedge member are about 1.12 inches from the back wall to the front wall at the top portion and about 0.15 inches at the bottom portion. It is understood that these dimensions will vary depending on the piping.

A second embodiment of side wall seal100is shown inFIGS.5-8. The seal100is substantially similar to the first embodiment10and further includes an additional closure mechanism180. The seal100includes an annular ring112having a collar112A having an opening through which a pipe extends. The seal100is attached to a side wall of a building by fasteners (not shown) extending through apertures114. The seal100further includes an outwardly extending substantially annular wall116extending from ring112having an opening through which a pipe extends. Wall116includes a seam118and ears120and122. Seal100is easily installed by retrofit over existing piping extending from a building side wall because seam118may be pulled apart and slipped over an existing pipe or a bundle of pipes. After the seam118is installed over the piping, the ears120and122are grasped and squeezed to close the seal and seam118by bringing the ears120and122together. The seam is closed by closure180as discussed below. In some instances, a band or hose clamp (not shown) may be used to further hold the seal100in a closed and sealed relation. The band or hose clamp extends around wall portion124and is secured by a retaining member126. Closure180comprises a snap connection having snap182and aperture184in ear122for receiving snap182. Snap182includes arms186,188for engaging an outside wall of aperture184of ear122.

Referring toFIGS.6-8, there is shown a side wall seal assembly140for angling the seal100downward by using a wedge member150with seal100. Wedge150is an accessory to the side wall seal100. It is useful in angling the seal downwards for better water resistance. Wedge150is also useful when the building side wall is not completely vertical, e.g. where the building has a thatched siding, thereby allowing the side wall seal100to extend from the building side wall at a substantially 90 degree angle. The wedge member150may be attached to the building side wall and the seal100attached to the wedge150. Wedge150includes a front wall152, a side wall154, a rear wall156, a top portion158and a bottom portion160. There is a split seam162in bottom portion160such that the wedge150may be pulled apart to fit around the pipe exiting the building side wall and then closed and held in place by members164and166. The side wall seal100is first aligned with wedge140by lugs168of the wedge which are inserted into openings168A of the seal100. The seal100is then attached to wedge140by fasteners (not shown) extending through apertures114of side wall seal100and apertures114A of wedge150then into the building side wall. Additionally, split seam162may be held together by fasteners (not shown) extending through apertures114A.

The exemplary embodiments herein disclosed are not intended to be exhaustive or to unnecessarily limit the scope of the invention. The exemplary embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain the principles of the present invention so that others skilled in the art may practice the invention. As will be apparent to one skilled in the art, various modifications can be made within the scope of the aforesaid description. Such modifications being within the ability of one skilled in the art form a part of the present invention and are embraced by the appended claims.