Patent Publication Number: US-2022228384-A1

Title: Stem Wall Bracket System and Method

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present application is related to and claims priority from prior provisional patent application Ser. No. 63/140,103 filed on Jan. 21, 2021, entitled “STEM WALL BRACKET DEVICE”, the contents of all of which are incorporated herein by this reference and are not admitted to be prior art with respect to the present invention by the mention in this cross reference section. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to the field of foundation and stem walls. In particular, the present invention relates to a stem wall bracket system configured to assist in setting up stem wall forms around foundations when building homes. 
     One foundation technique frequently used in home building is to construct a stem wall. A stem wall anchors a home firmly in the ground, working like roots to hold a house down and tie it into the ground below. Further, the stem wall, being positioned around the perimeter of the house, provides support for the exterior load bearing walls of the home. It should be noted the stem wall can also provide support for interior load bearing walls or any non-load bearing walls. 
     A stem wall is constructed in place at the home site. Stem walls can be constructed of masonry or cinder block reinforced with concrete and rebar. Stems walls can also be poured concrete reinforced with rebar as part of the foundation. When pouring the stem wall, a form of wooden boards is constructed around the periphery of the foundation. 
     In the normal site preparation practice, a desired building site would be plotted and excavated as required for the construction of perimeter concrete footing forms to be constructed and foundation wall footings poured. Conventional concrete wall forms are then erected on the footings and the concrete walls poured; the concrete forms later being removed and the outer periphery being backfilled to specified grade. A concrete foundation slab is then poured within the excavated inner confines of the concrete perimeter wall. 
     From the foregoing however, it is readily apparent that the preparation and construction of the foundation pad and concrete skirting encompasses an unduly substantial amount of concrete work. Stem walls formed in such a way provide a very stable foundation which protects from damage even in rising waters, seismic events, and high winds. However, it is desirable to improve the efficiency of forming stem walls as this is typically very time-consuming. 
     Any discussion of prior art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such prior art is widely known or forms part of the common general knowledge in the field. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     According to the present invention there is provided a stem wall bracket comprising a horizontal member, a short vertical member extending downward from a first edge of the horizontal member, and a long vertical member extending downward from a second edge of the horizontal member, where the first edge is opposite the second edge. The stem wall bracket further comprises a pin holder configured to extend through a hole in the horizontal member. 
     The pin holder comprises a vertical portion and a horizontal portion extending from the vertical portion, where the horizontal portion is configured to hold a horizontally oriented rebar. 
     The short vertical member further comprises a plurality of holes to allow a first form board to be removably attached to the short vertical member using a plurality of fasteners. The long vertical member further comprises a plurality of holes to allow a second form board to be removably attached to the long vertical member using a plurality of fasteners. The stem wall bracket is configured such that the first form board will be parallel to the second form board when removably attached. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: 
         FIG. 1  shows a perspective view of a Stem Wall Bracket Device according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  shows a side cut-away view of the Stem Wall Bracket System and Method according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 3  shows a perspective view of one vertical member of the Stem Wall Bracket 
       System and Method according to the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  shows a top view of a horizontal member of the Stem Wall Bracket System and Method according to the present invention; and 
         FIG. 5  shows a perspective view of the Stem Wall Bracket System according to the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The foregoing and other objectives, features, and advantages of the invention will be more readily understood upon consideration of the following description of the invention taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. 
     Now referring to the drawings,  FIG. 1  shows the present invention is a stem wall bracket  110  comprising a horizontal member  120 , a short vertical member  130  extending downward from a first edge  122  of the horizontal member, and a long vertical member  140  extending downward from a second edge  124  of the horizontal member. Preferably, the horizontal member first edge  122  is opposite the horizontal member second edge  124  lengthwise. 
     In one embodiment as shown in  FIG. 1 , the short vertical member  130  and long vertical member  140  are integrated into the horizontal member  120  such that the stem wall bracket  110  is one piece. In an alternate embodiment, the short vertical member  130  is coupled to the first edge  122  of the horizontal member  120  and the long vertical member  140  is coupled to the second edge  124  of the horizontal member  120 . 
     As further shown in  FIG. 2 , the short vertical member  130  preferably comprises a first plurality of holes  136  configured to removably attach a first form board  132  to the short vertical member  130  using a plurality of fasteners  160 . The first form board  132  is preferably located on a short inside surface  134  of the short vertical member  130  such that the width of the first form board  132  is flat against the short inside surface  134  of the short vertical member  130 . The plurality of fasteners  160  are inserted through the first plurality of holes  136  on the short vertical member  130  into the first form board  132 . 
     As further shown in  FIG. 2 , the long vertical member  140  preferably comprises a second plurality of holes  146  configured to removably attach a second form board  142  to the long vertical member  140  using a plurality of fasteners  160 . The second form board  142  is preferably located on a long inside surface  144  of the long vertical member  140  such that the width of the second form board  142  is flat against the long inside surface  144  of the long vertical member  140 . The plurality of fasteners  160  are inserted through the second plurality of holes  146  on the long vertical member  140  into the second form board  142 . The plurality of fasteners  160  are preferably nails or screws, however, other types of fasteners not enumerated herein may be considered. 
     The stem wall bracket  110  is configured to hold a first form board  132  that is a standard two inch by six inch (2″×6″) lumber. Additionally, the stem wall bracket  110  is further configured to hold a second form board  142  that is a standard one inch by ten inch (1″×10″) lumber. Preferably, the stem wall bracket  110  holds the first form board  132  parallel to the second form board  142 . Preferably, the stem wall bracket  110  positions the first form board  132  on what will be the inner stem wall side and positions the second form board  142  on what will be the outer stem wall side. The sizes of the first and second form boards are specified for example purposes only, the stem wall bracket  110  is configured to accommodate other sizes of lumber for the first and second form boards as dictated by the size and width of the resultant stem wall. 
     As further shown in  FIGS. 1-4 , the horizontal member  120 , the short vertical member  130 , and the long vertical member  140  are all preferably relatively flat and rectangular. Preferably, the stem wall bracket  110  is comprised of steel, or other stiff material such that the stem wall bracket  110  won&#39;t bend or move during use. 
     As further shown in  FIG. 2 , the stem wall bracket  110  preferably further comprises a pin holder  150  configured to extend downward from the horizontal member  120  and hold a horizontally placed rebar  158 . The pin holder  150  preferably comprises a vertical portion  152  configured to removably attach to the horizontal member  120  and a horizontal portion  154  extending away from the vertical portion  152 . 
     In another embodiment, the pin holder  150  comprises a plurality of horizontal portions  154  spaced along the vertical portion  152 . In this embodiment, the pin holder  150  may retain a plurality of horizontally oriented rebar  158 . Additionally, in this embodiment, the plurality of horizontal portions  154  extend away from the vertical portion  152  along the same plane such that after pouring the concrete for the stem wall, the pin holder  150  is rotated at least ninety degrees to be removed, thus releasing the plurality of horizontally oriented rebar  158  into the concrete. In another embodiment, the plurality of horizontal portions  154  may extend away from the vertical portion  152  in any direction. 
     The vertical portion  152  of the pin holder  150  preferably comprises a top  156  configured to prevent the pin holder  150  from falling through a second hole  128  in the horizontal member  120 . The top  156  is preferably configured to be larger than the second hole  128  in the horizontal member  120 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 4 , the horizontal member comprises a first hole  126  for configured to allow standard sized rebar  158  to fit through the horizontal member  120  and down in between the first form board  132  and second form board  142  in a vertical position. The horizontal member  120  further comprises a second hole  128  configured to allow the pin holder  150  to fit down through the horizontal member  120 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 5 , a stem wall bracket system  100  comprises a first form board and a second form board positioned parallel to each other and a plurality of stem wall brackets  110  wherein the short vertical member  130  is removably attached to the first form board  132  and the long vertical member  140  is removably attached to the second form board  142 . Preferably, the plurality of stem wall brackets  110  are spaced evenly along the length of the first and second form boards. The first and second form boards are set-up such that the width of the first and second form boards are vertical. 
     A method of using a stem wall bracket, comprising the steps of placing a first form board along an inner perimeter of a stem wall; attaching a stem wall bracket to the first form board using a plurality of fasteners, wherein each stem wall bracket comprises a horizontal member, a short vertical member extending downward from a first edge of the horizontal member, and a long vertical member extending downward from a second edge of the horizontal member, wherein the first edge is opposite the second edge; and attaching a second form board to the stem wall bracket using a plurality of fasteners to form an outer perimeter of a stem wall. 
     The method further comprises the steps of arranging rebar in between the first form board and second form board, inserting a pin holder through a hole in the horizontal member of the stem wall bracket, pouring concrete in between the first form board and second form board, and removing the pin holder from the stem wall bracket by turning and pulling the pin holder out of a hole in the horizontal member. 
     Finally, after the concrete stem wall has cured or hardened, the last step is removing the plurality of fasteners to remove the stem wall bracket from the first form board and second form board. 
     Although the present invention has been described by way of example, it should be appreciated that variations and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention. Furthermore, where known equivalents exist to specific features, such equivalents are incorporated as if specifically referred to in this specification.