Patent Abstract:
A floatable skimmer apparatus is movably attached in a storm water filter box with a pair of tracks attached in the housing chamber of the filter box. A floatable skimmer has a skimmer panel having floatation members attached to the inlet side of the storm water filter box for raising and lowering the skimmer panel responsive to the rise and fall of storm water in the housing chamber. Storm water is forced under the bottom of the floatable skimmer panel while blocking floatable debris from entering the housing chamber outlet. A floatable hydrocarbon absorbing boom is attached to the skimmer panel and floated independent thereof.

Full Description:
This patent application is a continuation-in-part application of my U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/315,820, filed Dec. 8, 2008 now U.S. Pat. No. 7,846,327 for a Storm Water Filter System Having a Floating Skimmer Apparatus, and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 61/009,086, filed Dec. 27, 2007 for a Floating Skimmer Apparatus. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is a storm water filter system for skimming debris from storm water passing through a storm water drain system and more specifically, the present invention is directed towards a storm water filter box having a floatable skimmer therein for capturing floatable debris and trash in the storm water system. 
     Drain water, which is frequently laden with trash, grass clippings, tree limbs, sand, gravel and other forms of sediment, as well as floatable trash and floatable oil is collected from streets, parking lots and other areas into a storm drain inlet where it is directed into a storm drain pipe system. The drain water laden with trash collected from the streets is fed through an entrance into a storm water catch basin and into a lake or retention pond or the like. The retention pond can tolerate a certain amount of grass clippings collected from parking lots along the streets but debris left in water for a long period of time decays and allows a build up of soluble nutrients, such as nitrates and phosphates, in the water. Thus, it is desirable to remove organic debris from the water collected from the drain water before it enters lakes and retention ponds. At the same time, drain water collects residue oil, and floatable hydrocarbons and organic materials from parking lots and streets and it is also desirable to prevent the floating hydrocarbons being discharged into the lakes or retention ponds. Typically, a skimmer is utilized to capture hydrocarbons and floating liquids within a baffle box to prevent their passing into the outlet. 
     The present invention is directed towards a skimmer to prevent floatable trash and floatable hydrocarbons from passing out the outlet of a storm water drain system baffle box. 
     In my prior U.S. Pat. No. 6,869,525 for a Storm Drain Filter System I show a storm drain filter system which includes a skimmer for collecting floating hydrocarbons and for absorbing the hydrocarbons in a hydrocarbon absorbing boom while preventing them from passing out of the skimmer. In my prior U.S. Pat. No. 7,294,256 for a Storm Water Filter System, a storm water filter system is provided for filtering storm water being fed into an in-ground well and uses a fixed skimmer to prevent floating organic debris from entering the discharge into the in-ground recharge well. 
     The present invention is directed towards an improvement in storm water filter systems in which a filter box has a skimmer for capturing debris and floating organic matter in a storm water filter box and blocking the floating debris from the outlet. Drain water entering a baffle box sometimes flows in very fast and allows the water to rise above a fixed skimmer. This allows floating trash and floating oil and hydrocarbons to go over the top of the skimmer and out the outflow pipe into rivers, lakes or retention ponds. The present invention provides for a floating skimmer that prevents this overflow and forces the drain water passing through the filter box to go under the skimmer and into the outlet. 
     In the present invention a relative short floating skimmer is used and has the same performance of a much taller fixed skimmer without the head loss associated with a taller skimmer by opening up a larger passageway under the skimmer. A storm water treatment structure that makes use of a floating skimmer can be more easily retrofitted to an existing water shed storm drain system due to the minimal head loss of the shorter skimmer. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A floatable skimmer apparatus is provided for a storm water filter box for capturing floatable debris and preventing the debris from entering the filter box outlet. The storm water filter box has a housing having a chamber having an inlet thereinto and an outlet therefrom. A skimmer panel is mounted in the housing chamber with a pair of skimmer tracks which allow the skimmer panel to move in the tracks. The skimmer panel has a top and a bottom and is positioned in the housing chamber between the inlet and outlet of the housing chamber and is positioned to form a channel under the skimmer panel as the storm water moves from the inlet through the storm water filter box to the outlet. One or more floatation members are mounted on the skimmer panel on the inlet side of the skimmer panel and each is spaced from the skimmer panel to allow water in the housing chamber between each floatation member and the skimmer panel. The floatation raises and lowers the skimmer panel within the skimmer tracks as the storm water in the housing chamber rises and falls. The storm water is thus forced under the bottom of the floatable skimmer panel while blocking floatable debris from entering the housing chamber outlet. The skimmer panel has a niche formed on the top thereof with each floatation member mounted in the niche. The niche has an angled base to allow debris between a floatation member and the skimmer panel to egress therefrom. Each floatation member has a plurality of studs or spacers to space the floatation member from the skimmer panel. The skimmer panel also has core buoyancy material, such as polystyrene foam, formed in the panel. The skimmer panel has a pair of side edge portions, each having a plurality of rollers mounted thereto for the skimmer panel to roll in the skimmer tracks. The skimmer rollers have a plurality of load bearing rollers and a pair of center rollers for movably holding the skimmer panel in the tracks. The skimmer panel also has a skimmer seal attached to the side edge and extending against each track to seal the space between the skimmer panel and the tracks. The panel also has a floatable hydrocarbon absorbing boom removably attached to the skimmer panel adjacent the bottom thereof. The absorbing boom is attached with a pair of boom supporting brackets attached to the skimmer panel which allows the boom to rise and fall with the water level and independent of the movement of the skimmer panel. Floatation members may be polymer members sealed to form floats. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the written description and the drawings in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a floatable skimmer apparatus mounted in side tracks; 
         FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the skimmer apparatus of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a top elevation of the skimmer apparatus of  FIG. 1  mounted in tracks; 
         FIG. 4  is a front elevation of the skimmer apparatus of  FIGS. 1 and 2 ; 
         FIG. 5  is a rear elevation of the portable skimmer of  FIGS. 1 through 4 ; 
         FIG. 6  is a sectional view taken through the floatable skimmer of  FIGS. 1 through 5 ; 
         FIG. 7  is a side sectional view of the skimmer apparatus of  FIGS. 1 through 5  mounted in a storm water filter box with the water therein at a lower level; and 
         FIG. 8  is a side sectional view of the floatable skimmer and storm water filter box of  FIG. 7  having a raised water level. 
     
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     Referring to the drawings,  FIGS. 1 through 6 , a floatable skimmer  10  is movably supported in a pair of skimmer tracks  11  having track channels  12  therein. The floatable skimmer  10  has a skimmer panel  13  having a plurality of floats  14  attached thereto. Floats  14  may be sealed hollow members or may be made of a lightweight flotation material and are attached within a niche or recessed area  15  within the skimmer panel  13 . The skimmer panel  13  niche area  15  has an angled base  16 , as more clearly seen in  FIG. 6 . Each float  14  is mounted within niche  15  and has an angled base  17  which parallels the angled base  16  of the skimmer panel  13 . Each float  14  has a plurality of spacers  18  for spacing the float from the skimmer panel  13 . The floats may also be seen as having spacers  20 , as more clearly seen in  FIG. 3 , between the rear of the float and the skimmer panel  13 . As can also be seen in  FIG. 3 , a plurality of bolts  21  bolts through the rear of the skimmer panel  13  and through the spacers  20  to attach the floats to the skimmer panel  13  to hold the floats within the niche or recessed area of the skimmer panel  13 . Spacing the floats from the skimmer panel has the advantage of allowing water to pass around the floats to raise and lower the floats with the water level while allowing debris that may be caught between the float  14  and the skimmer panel  13  to egress from underneath the float. 
     It should be noted at this point that the floats  14  are mounted facing the storm water filter box inlet so as to raise the skimmer panel in a manner to ease some of the water pressure from the incoming storm water pressing the skimmer panel against the side of the track channel  12  of the tracks  11 , as can be seen in  FIGS. 7 and 8 . 
     The floatable skimmer  10  has a plurality of load bearing rollers  22  on each side thereof as well as a pair of centering rollers  23  on each side. Each of the rollers  22  and  23  ride within the channel  12  of each track  11 . Tracks  11  are mounted to the sides of a housing chamber of a storm water filter box, as shown in  FIGS. 7 and 8 . 
     The floatable skimmer  10  also has a floatable hydrocarbon absorbing boom  24 , which boom may have a fabric cover and filled with a material for absorbing oil or other hydrocarbon products in the water as the water impinges there against. The absorption boom  24  is supported in a pair of boom brackets  25  which are bolted to the floatable skimmer panel with bolts  29  on the top and bottom thereof. The brackets allow the boom  24  to float up and down relative to the skimmer panel  13  within the brackets  25  to keep them on the level of the water within the storm water filter box. It also allows for the booms to be removed and replaced once they become saturated with hydrocarbons. 
     The floatable skimmer  10  has a pair of edge seals  26  which are attached to the edge of the skimmer panel  13 . Seals  26  extend from the skimmer panel  13  to overlap edge  27  of the skimmer track  11 . The seals  26  may be made of a self-lubricating polymer smoothing the slide over the edge  27  to prevent floatable debris from passing along the edges of the floatable skimmer  10  as it moves up and down within the tracks  11 . It also protects the rollers  22  and  23  from unnecessary trash getting caught in the tracks within the rollers. 
     As more clearly seen in  FIG. 6 , additional floatation material  28  is formed in a portion of the skimmer panel  13  to add additional floatation as desired. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 7 and 8 , the operation of the floatable skimmer panel  10  can be seen in which the floatable skimmer panel  10  is mounted in side tracks  11  within a storm water filter box  30 . The storm water filter box  30  has a housing  31  and housing chamber  32  and a plurality of openings  33  for cleaning out debris and trash captured within the filter box  30 . The filter box also has an inlet  34  and an outlet  35  so that storm water enters the inlet  34  and exits the outlet  35 . In this storm water filter box, a pair of baffles  36  are mounted along the bottom for capturing sand, gravel or non-floatable trash but it should be clear that these baffles may or may not be included within the filter box  30 . In  FIG. 7 , the floatable skimmer  10  can be seen in a rest position resting on the bottom of the tracks  11  with the water level  37  being at a low point even with or below the level of the outlet  35 . In  FIG. 8 , the water level  37  has risen, such as during a high flow rain event, so that water entering the inlet passes under the skimmer panel  13  and egresses from the outlet  35 . The floatable skimmer  10  has been raised in the tracks  11  in  FIG. 8  to raise the skimmer panel and block any floating debris as well as oil or other hydrocarbons from passing into the outlet  35 . The hydrocarbon absorbing boom  24  can be seen as having been raised to follow the water level within its supporting brackets for absorbing any floating hydrocarbons. 
     The floating boom thus allows a larger passageway under the skimmer panel  13  while still blocking any floating debris from entering the outlet  35 . This has been accomplished in the past by having a fixed skimmer which inherently requires a smaller channel area there beneath and which can overflow the top if the water level reaches a sufficiently high point. Thus, the present floating skimmer maintains a larger water channel through the storm water filter box  30  to handle a greater flow capacity while at all times capturing floatable debris and also captures hydrocarbons with the floatable hydrocarbon absorbing boom  24 . The floatable skimmer advantageously has the main floatation attached facing the inlet  34  and has the floats mounted for the water to extend around the floats so that they lift the skimmer panel  13  in a manner to relieve the force of the water pressure from the inflow of water from the inlet  34  against the skimmer panel  13  to make for a smoother movement of the skimmer panel in the tracks  11  as the floatable skimmer moves up and down in the tracks  11 . 
     It should be clear at this time that a floatable skimmer for a storm water system has been provided which advantageously allows the capture of floatable debris and hydrocarbons in the entering storm water while allowing a larger channel for the passage of the storm water by the skimmer and into the outlet of the storm water filter box. However, the present invention is not to be limited to the forms shown which are to be considered illustrative rather than restrictive.

Technology Classification (CPC): 2