Abstract:
An apparatus for creating a water-tight seal around roof pipes extending upward on a roof surface is disclosed. Also disclosed is a method for sealing a joint around a roof pipe by securing the apparatus to the roof around the pipe.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     The present invention relates to roofing accessories. More particularly, the present invention relates to a roofing accessory for preventing water leakage around roofing pipes.  
       BACKGROUND  
       [0002]     Water tunnels or channels are problematic around pipes extending out of a roof Often times, the seal around the pipes are not completely sealed, or if they were sealed initially, the sealant has eroded due to weather or other environmental factors. To correct this generally requires a roofer to ascend upon the roof to patch and/or re-seal around the pipe to curtail water leakage at the seam around the pipe.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0003]     The invention provides a circular accessory having a hole or bore through its center that fits around the pipe and is secured to the roof with an adhesive so as to provide a water-tight barrier around the pipe. The apparatus for creating a water tight seal around roof pipes comprises a donut-like structure that fits around a pipe extending upwards on a roof. The donut-like structure having an upper surface and a lower surface; one or more layers of adhesive applied on the lower surface of the donut-like structure, and a release liner applied upon the one or more adhesive layers.  
         [0004]     In an alternative embodiment, the apparatus is a donut-like structure that fits around a pipe extending upwards on a roof, the donut-like structure having an upper surface and a lower surface, and double sided adhesive tape applied on the lower surface of the structure, the tape having a release liner on the exposed side.  
         [0005]     The invention also relates to a method for sealing a joint around a pipe extending upwards on a roof surface, the method comprising the steps of: 
        a. a fitting a donut-like structure around the pipe, the structure having an upper surface and a lower surface, the lower surface having one or more layers of adhesive layers and a release liner applied thereon     b. lifting the donut-like structure and peeling the release layer from the lower surface of the donut-like structure to expose the one or more adhesive layers;     c. repositioning the donut-like structure around the roof pipe such that the one or more adhesive layers adhere to the roof surface;     d. applying pressure on the donut-like structure to create a tight seal around the pipe.        
 
         [0010]     The above and other features of the invention, including various novel details of construction and combinations of parts, will now be more particularly described with reference to the accompanying drawings and pointed out in the claims. It will be understood that the particular device embodying the invention is shown by way of illustration only and not as a limitation of the invention. The principles and features of this invention may be employed in various and numerous embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES  
       [0011]     These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the apparatus and methods of the present invention will become better understood with regard to the following description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings where:  
         [0012]      FIG. 1  illustrates a perspective view of the underside of the embodiment in accordance with the present invention;  
         [0013]      FIG. 2  provides a partial view of the underside of the embodiment in accordance with the present invention as illustrated in  FIG. 1   
         [0014]      FIG. 3  illustrates an alternative perspective view of the underside of the embodiment in accordance with the present invention as illustrated in  FIG. 1 ;  
         [0015]      FIG. 4  illustrates a top view of one embodiment in accordance with the present invention positioned around a pipe;  
         [0016]      FIG. 5  illustrates a perspective view of the underside of an alternative embodiment in accordance with the present invention.  
         [0017]      FIG. 6  illustrates a top view of an alternative embodiment in accordance with the present invention positioned around a pipe; and  
         [0018]      FIG. 7  illustrates a perspective view of an alternative embodiment in accordance with the present invention positioned around a pipe.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0019]      FIGS. 1-4  illustrate one embodiment of the inventive apparatus in accordance with the present invention. In  FIG. 1 , a substantially circular or donut-like structure  12  is shown having an upper surface  14  (roof side) and a lower surface  16  (deck side) as well as a center bore or hole  15  (see also  FIG. 4 ). Lower surface  16  is the side which adheres to the surface of a roof. Lower surface  16  is provided with one or more adhesive layers  18  applied thereon. A release liner  20  is provided on adhesive layers  18  and remains thereon until structure  12  is to be applied on a roof surface. Alternatively, lower surface  16  of structure  12  may be provided with double sided tape. The exposed side of the double sided tape also has a release liner thereon.  
         [0020]     As  FIGS. 1-3  illustrate, donut-like structure  12  is bisected to create a first curved donut half  22  and a second curved donut half  24 . First and second halves  22 ,  24  have first ends  28  and second ends  30 . As shown in  FIG. 4 , when creating a water-tight seal around a roof pipe  26 , first and second donut halves  22 ,  24  are positioned around pipe  26  and secured to the roof surface such that the bisected ends of first and second halves  22 ,  24  meet and fit together. In an alternative embodiment, first and second ends  28 ,  30  respectively of first and second donut halves  22 ,  24  are also provided with double sided tape or an adhesive layer, both having a release liner thereon. In this manner, first and second ends  28 ,  30  also adhere to each other when lower surface  16  of donut-like structure  12  adheres to the roof surface. Donut-like structure  12  having a first donut half  22  and a second donut half  24  facilitates positioning around pipe  26  and permits an enhanced seal around pipe  26 , particularly when the roof surface to which donut-like structure  12  adheres is uneven.  
         [0021]     Donut-like structure  12  may be formed by die press, injection molding, extrusion or other commonly known methods of forming plastics or rubber blocks and may be comprised of metal, urethene, plastics, rubber or other known materials that can be formed or molded to form a rigid or flexible structure. Furthermore, it is to be understood that donut-like structure  12  is not limited to a particular size, and structure  12  may be large or small and have a bore  15  of a size to accommodate any roof pipe diameter.  
         [0022]     The adhesive used in accordance with the present invention may include of polyisobutenes (PIB), polybutenes, polyisoprene, butyl rubber, styrene-isoprene-styrene (SIS), styrene-butadiene-styrene (SBS), styrene-ethylene-butadiene-styrene (SEBS), acrylics, polyurethanes, atactic polypropylene (APP) or other similar adhesives and/or suitable mixtures thereof.  
         [0023]     In accordance with the alternative embodiment of the present invention, the double-sided adhesive tape has a thickness in the range of approximately 2 to 90 mils. Preferably, the double-sided tape has a thickness of approximately 50 mils. Donut-like structure  12  has a width in the range from approximately ½″ to 36″, a height in the range from approximately 1 inch to 4 inches, and inside diameter in the range from approximately 2 inches to 36 inches.  
         [0024]     In an alternative embodiment illustrated in  FIGS. 5-7 , Donut-like structure  12  is monolithic or non-bisected having an upper surface  14  and lower surface  16  with a center bore or hole  15  extending there through. Non-bisected donut-like structure  12  will be used for positioning around short roof pipes (such as pipe  26  in  FIGS. 6 and 7 ). Bisected donut like structure  12  having first and second halves  22 ,  24  will be useful when placing it around a very long roof pipe. With long roof pipes, the bisected donut-like structure  12  will permit a roofer to easily adjust and resize around the roof pipe to create an effective water-tight seal.  
         [0025]     Oftentimes due to the variety of different size roof pipes there is some spacing between the roof pipe and the donut-like structure  12  (as shown in  FIGS. 4, 6  and  7 ). This spacing is generally filled with a pourable sealant (not shown) such as those commercially available from Ashland Chemicals Inc., M-Weld®, Firestone, JM, and Genflex®, all of which are water resistant.  
         [0026]     While there has been shown and described what is considered to be preferred embodiments of the invention, it will, of course, be understood that various modifications and changes in form or detail could readily be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. It is therefore intended that the invention be not limited to the exact forms described and illustrated, but should be constructed to cover all modifications that may fall within the scope of the appended claims.