PREFABRICATED AND MODULAR CHIMNEY FACADE

Abstract: A prefabricated and modular chimney facade (10) is provided for enclosing a chimney stack (12) on the exterior of a building (14). The chimney facade includes a first one-piece module (18) e.g. of moulded plastics material, which is fastened to a foundation (20) and to the external wall (16) of the building (14). The base module (18) is vertically aligned with and coupled to a transition module (44) which is fixed to the external wall (16) of the building structure (14) above the base module. Additional modules (74, 102, 120) may be coupled to the transition housing (44) to provide a complete enclosure for smoke stack (12). The housings (18, 44) as well as additional housing units (74, 102) and cap housing (120) are all formed as integral one-piece plastics mouldings, to give a lightweight, inexpensive facade.

Description: This invention relates to prefabricated and modular chimney facades which may be assembled on-site in a construction project. One prior art system for prefabricated sectional chimney stacks is disclosed in US-A-3,538,656. That chimney stack consists of a multiplicity of one storey high pre-fabricated sectional elements. However, such sectional elements require an outer jacket formed of a concrete composition with a reinforcing steel mat. Prior art systems of that type are therefore formed of relatively heavy type material compositions and do not provide weight saving and cost effectiveness. In other prior art systems such as that shown in US-A-2,539,177, there are provided prefabricated flues comprising a plurality of super-­ imposed blocks depending upon the height of the overall building. However, such blocks are generally formed of a refractory or fireproof material, such as cement of firebrick clay. Such blocks and materials, however, do not allow easy on-site variation of the height and dimensions of the particular chimney under construction. According to this invention there is provided a lightweight prefabri­ cated and modular chimney facade for enclosing a chimney stack passing therethrough. The chimney facade is adapted to be fixedly secured to an external wall of a building and to enclose within it a separate flue or chimney stack. The chimney facade includes a one-piece base housing which is fixedly secured to a base and to the external wall of the building. The base housing further defines a through passage having a first cross-sectional area substantially greater than that of the chimney stack. The chimney facade further includes a one-piece transition housing which is fixedly secured to the one-piece base housing and to the external wall of the building to enclose an upper part of the chimney stack. The one-piece transition housing defines a through passage of diminishing cross-sectional area from a first section substantially equal in area to the through opening in the base housing to a second, lesser cross-sectional area. Additional modular units may be provided if necessary to fit above the transition housing so as to enclose the upper part of the stack. The modules are preferably all one-piece plastics mouldings. The invention is further described with reference to the accom­ panying drawings in which: Figure 1 is an elevational view partially cut-away of a chimney facade according to this invention; Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the chimney facade of Figure 1; Figure 3 is a perspective partially cut-away exploded view of the chimney facade of Figure 1; Figure 4 is a sectional view of a portion of the chimney facade taken along the Section Line 4-4 of Figure 1; Figure 5 is a sectional view of a portion of the chimney facade taken along the Section Line 5-5 of Figure 1; Figure 6 is a sectional view of a portion of the chimney facade taken along the Section Line 6-6 of Figure 1; Figure 7 is a sectional view of the chimney facade partially cut-away taken along the Section Line 7-7 of Figure 2; Figure 7A is an exploded view of a portion of Figure 7; Figure 8 is a sectional view of a portion of a cap housing of the chimney facade showing the coupling of an upper cap housing member to a lower cap housing member; and, Figure 9 is a perspective view of a base housing structure partially cut-away of the chimney facade. Referring now to Figures 1-3, there is shown a prefabricated and modular chimney facade 10 according to this invention for enclosing chimney stack 12 passing therethrough. As can be seen, chimney facade 10 is adapted to be fixedly secured to external wall 16 of building 14. In general, chimney facade 10 may be utilized in connection with an internal fireplace or other heating apparatus used in commercial and/or domestic environments. Chimney facade 10 is composed of a plurality of one-piece housings to be described in following paragraphs. Facade 10 extends generally in vertical direction 22 and is easily mountable to building structure 14. In prior art systems, various chimney facades have been utilized and formed out of varying structural materials, such a brick, wood, and other like construction compositions. Chimney facade 10 of the present invention provides for a modular system which is pre-fabricated off-site. Addition­ ally, the lightweight characteristics of the facade allow for on-site place­ ment by one person. Additionally, since facade 10 is formed by a relatively small number of sectional housings, the volume is minimized for shipping and provides for easy transportability to the site of construction. Once at the construction site, entire sections may be carried by a single person and installed in a minimum amount of time to decrease the labour costs. Additionally, since the housing sections of facade 10 are formed by general moulding techniques to provide a small number of overall construction pieces, the cost of materials is further minimized. Chimney facade 10 includes one-piece base housing 18 which is fixedly secured to a foundation 20, as is clearly seen in Figures 1-3. Additionally, housing 18 is further secured to external wall 16 of building 14. Base housing 18 defines through passage 24 passing in vertical direction 22, and having a first cross-sectional area greater than a cross-sectional area of chimney stack 12. Through passage 24, as is clearly seen in Figure 3, is defined by the walls of the housing 18 in combination with external wall 16 of the building 14. As is the case of all of the housings to be described in following paragraphs, base housing 18 may have an external surface of simulated brick as is shown by element 26. Brick-like covering 26 is formed of the same materials as the remaining portions of base housing 18, and may be moulded to provide the aesthetic appeal of a conventional brick-like appearance. Chimney stack 12 may be formed of a conventional metallic compo­ sition, e.g. stainless steel, and since air is a thermal insulator, the temperatures of the base housing 18 have been found to be minimal, even when the fireplace is being used giving rise to high temperatures on the exterior surface of chimney stack 12. Base housing 18 as can be seen in Figure 3, is substantially U-shaped in contour and includes two opposing wall sections 28, 30 which are integrally connected to the front wall section 32. Chimney facade 10 includes a means for coupling the base housing 18 to external wall 16 of building 14. As seen in Figures 1 and 3, these means comprise flanges 34 extending in vertical direction 22 throughout the vertical height of housing 18. Flanges 34 extend laterally and external to housing 18 for connecting to the external wall 16 of building 14. Flanges 34 may include vertically displaced openings 36 through which nails, bolts, or other fastening means may be inserted to connect the housing 18 to the wall 16. Housing 18 further includes means for connecting the housing 18 to foundation 20 and comprising internally directed flanges 38, shown in Figure 7, fixedly secured to at least one of the wall sections 28, 30 and/or to the front wall section 32. Flanges 38 are connected to the foundation 20 by the bolts 40, or by some other fixing means not important to the inventive concept as herein described. In this manner, housing 18 is seen to be securely fixed to both the foundation 20 and external wall 16. Of extreme importance in the inventive concept of this invention is the fact that base housing 18 may be moulded in one piece. Thus, base housing 18 may be formed of a plastic closed-cell composition well known in the art. Flanges 38 and 34 are formed generally of the same plastic composition and are formed integrally in the base housing. The housing 18 may be transported to the construction site and installed on a previously formed foundation 20 and either nailed or bolted to external wall 16 of building 14 in minimum time. Base housing 18 further may include a plurality of internal flanges 42, as is clearly seen in Figure 9, and which are integral with the wall sections 28, 30 and the front wall section 32. The internal flanges 42 are vertically spaced from each other by a set amount and serve, inter alia, to increase the rigidity of base housing 18. Additionally, since base housing 18 is formed of a plastic-like composition, the vertical height of base housing 18 can easily be adjusted to suit any building merely by cutting the housing in a horizontal plane along or adjacent to one of integral flanges 42 which can then be used to bolt the housing to the foundation, as hereinbefore described. Chimney facade 10 further includes one-piece transition housing 44 which is fixedly secured to the base housing 18 and to the external wall 16 of building 14. One-piece transition housing 44 defines a through passage 46 of diminishing cross-sectional area extending from a first or lower section 48 of the transition housing to a second or upper section 50. The through opening in lower section 48 of the transition housing is substantially equal to the through opening or passage 24 in the base housing in order to allow alignment between transition housing 44 and base housing 16. As can be seen, transition housing 44 is vertically aligned with base housing 18 to provide an overall through passage for chimney stack 12. Transition housing 44 is substantially U-shaped in cross-sectional contour and includes two opposing transition wall sections 52 and 54 and a transition front wall section 56. As is seen in Figure 7, transition housing 44 includes internal lower flange 58 which may be bolted to internal upper base housing flange 60 by bolts 62 passing through openings 64 formed in the upper flange 60 of the base housing 18 which align with similar openings formed through the lower flange 58 of the transition housing 44. Transition housing 44 is further provided with external flanges 68 shown in Figures 3, 7 and 1, for fixing to the external wall 16 by bolts, nails or similar fastening devices passing through openings 70 formed in the flanges 68. The flanges 68 are integrally formed with walls 52 and 54 to provide a one-piece unitary structure. Transition housing 44 as in the case of base housing 18 may be moulded in one piece and may particularly be formed of a closed-cell plastic composition. In this manner, transition housing 44 may be vertically aligned and bolted to base housing 18 by mere alignment of openings 64 in the super-­ imposed flanges 58 and 60 and insertion of the bolts 62, which are not apparent from the exterior of the facade. Additionally, the transition housing 44 is securely fixed to external wall 16 by nails or bolts thorugh the flanges 68. Chimney facade 10 further includes upper housing 72 enclosing chimney stack 12. Upper housing 72 is coupled to the transition housing 44 and may also be secured to external wall 16 of building 14. Upper housing 72 defines a through passage 74 having a cross-sectional area substantially equal to the opening 46 of transition housing 44. Upper housing 72 includes an upper box member 74 formed in one piece and including opposingly displaced sidewalls 76 and 78, a front wall member 80 and a rear wall member 82. The upper box housing 74 is connected to the transition housing 44 via an upper flange 86 formed at the upper end of transition housing 44, and an internal flange 90 on the lower end of the box housing 74. As seen in Figure 7A, the flange 90 on the box housing is secured to the flange 86 on the transition housing by bolts 62 passing through aligned openings 88 in the flanges and secured by the nuts 66. Additionally, as seen in Figure 7A, glue or other adhesive may be inserted into areas 94 between the flanges to increase the coupling of one housing member with respect to another. The flange 90 is integral with and extends totally around the sidewalls 76, 78 as well as the front wall 80 and the rear wall 82 of the box housing 74. The box housing 74 is also connected to the external wall 16 via flanges 96 with openings 98 therethrough for the passage of nails 100, bolts or other fastening means which secure the housing 74 to the external wall 16. The flanges may be formed of the same material as the walls 76, 78, 80 and 82 of the box housing so that the housing member 74 can be formed in one piece. Like the base housing 18 and the transition housing 44, the upper box housing 74 may be moulded in one piece and formed of a closed-cell plastic composition. The upper housing 72 of the facade also includes second upper box housing 102 which is fixedly secured to the upper end of the first box housing 74. Second upper box housing 102 is formed of a pair of L-shaped cross-sectional contour members 104, 106 which in combination, form a cross-sectionally closed contour as is seen in Figure 5. Second upper box housing 102 is in substantial vertical alignment with first upper box housing member 74 to form continued through passage 92 having chimney stack 12 contained therein, as is further seen in Figure 5. Referring now to Figure 5, it is clearly seen that L-shaped contour members 104, 106 may be secured each to the other through a tongue in groove insert coupling 108. The tongue in groove 108 may then be adhesively secured each to the other, or bolted, or otherwise secured to form the substantially closed contour cross-sectional envelope as shown in Figure 5. Second upper box housing 102 further includes internal flanges 110 and 112 formed integrally with the respective L-shaped wall member 106 or 104. Internal flanges 110 and 112 are vertically aligned with flanges 114 on the first box housing 74 and provide means by which the two can be fastened together by bolts passing through the openings 116 and the openings 118 formed through the superimposed flanges. Each of L-shaped wall members 104 and 106 may be moulded in one piece of a plastic-like material, similar to that previously described for other sections of chimney facade 10. Upper housing 72 further includes a cap housing 120 which is securely fixed to the upper end of the second box housing 102 by bolting flange member 112 on the cap to the flanges 124 and 126 shown in Figure 3, and in a manner similar to that previously described for coupling together the other sections of chimney facade 10, i.e. by bolts passing through the aligned holes 128 and 130 in the superimposed flanges. As seen in Figure 4, chimney stack 12 is vertically oriented within cap housing 120 and there is formed continuous through passage 92, as has previously been described. Cap housing 120 may be formed in two parts as shown in Figure 8. These comprise a lower cap housing member 132 and upper cap housing member 134, which are snap-fitted together by cap tongue 136 being inserted within groove 138. Lower cap member 132 and upper cap member 134 each may be formed in one piece and may be moulded from a plastic composition such as that previously described for other sections of chimney facade 10 and together provide the overall contour and general aesthetic effect of an upper chimney section as is commonly recongized. Upper cap member 134 may include a further internal flange 140 at its upper end in the event that other sectional elements need be mounted thereon.

Claims: 1. A prefabricated, modular chimney facade for attachment to the external wall of a building to enclose a chimney stack (12) extending up the wall outside the building, characterised in that the facade comprises, as a first module, a one-piece base housing (18) provided with means (34, 38) for fixing the base housing (18) to the external wall (16) of the building (14) and to a prepared foundation (20) adjacent said wall, said base housing (18) being generally channel-shaped in cross-section to enclose the chimney stack (12) and having a cross-setional area substantially greater than the cross-­ sectional area of said stack (12), and, as a second module, a one-piece transition housing (44) provided with means (68, 58) for fixing the transition housing (44) to the external wall (16) of the building (14) and to the base housing (18), said transition housing (44) likewise having a channel-shaped cross-section to enclose the stack (12) above the level of the base housing (18) but which tapers in an upward direction from a first cross-sectional area which is substantially equal to the cross-sectional area of the base housing (18) to a lesser cross-sectional area at its upper end, which lesser cross-sectional area is still sufficient to accommodate said stack (12). 2. A prefabricated, modular chimney facade according to claim 1, characterised in that it comprises at least one other module (72) provided with means (96, 90) for fixing that module to the external wall (16) of the building (14) and to the transition housing (44), said other module likewise having a channel-shaped cross-section to enclose the stack (12) above the level of the transition housing (44), and having a cross-sectional area that is substantially equal to that of the transitional housing (44) at its upper end. 3. A prefabricated, modular chimney facade according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that it comprises a further module (102) provided with means (110, 112) for fixing that further module to another module located immediately therebelow, said further module (102) having a rectangular box section to enclose the stack (12) above the level of the roof of the building, said box section having a cross-sectional area that is substantially equal to that of the transitional housing at its upper end. 4. A prefabricated, modular chimney facade according to claim 3, characterised in that the said further module is constructed of two L-shaped interlocking panels (104, 106). 5. A prefabricated, modular chimney facade according to any one of claims 1-4, characterised in that it comprises a capping module (120) provided with means (122) for fixing that capping module to the upper end of the assembled facade, said capping module having a rectangular box section to enclose the upper end of the stack (12), said box section having a cross-­ sectional area that is substantially equal to that of the transitional housing at its upper end. 6. A prefabricated, modular chimney facade according to any one of claims 1-5, characterised in that the means for attaching the modules (18, 44, 74) to the building comprise flanges, (34, 68, 96) projecting laterally outwards from the vertical edges of each module (18, 44, 74) and provided with holes (36, 70, 96) for the passage of nails, bolts or other fixing devices into the wall of the building. 7. A prefabricated, modular chimney facade according to any one of claims 1-6, characterised in that the means for attaching the modules (18, 44, 74, 104, 120) to each other, and/or to the prepared foundation (20) comprise inwardly directed flanges (58, 60, 86, 90, 110, 112, 114, 122, 124, 126) having aligned bolt holes (64, 88, 116, 118, 128, 130) for the passage of fastening bolts (62). 8. A prefabricated, modular chimney facade according to any one of claims 1-7, characterised in that the base housing module (18) has a plurality of vertically spaced, internal flanges (42). 9. A prefabricated chimney facade according to any one of claims 1-8, characterised in that the modules are each constructed of moulded plastics material.

Inventors: NEWSOME, R. WAYNE
Applicants: NEWSOME, R. WAYNE
Application year: 1986
Main classification: E04F17
IPC codes: F24B1, E04F19, E04F17