Abstract:
The present invention provides a removable sealing member associated with a shower drain or bathtub overflow fitting having a grip positioned and contoured to facilitate handling during removal and to resist passage into and through any downstream drainage plumbing.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61,814,515 filed Apr. 22, 2013. The entire disclosure of the above application is incorporation herein by reference. 
     
    
     FIELD OF INVENTION 
       [0002]    This invention relates to plumbing fixture fittings with removable sealing members used for pressure testing of plumbing installations. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    In new home construction, it is becoming common to pressure test plumbing fittings prior to exposure to water. Generally, certain fixtures such as drain and overflow fixtures are sealed and the associated system is pressurized with air. The air pressure (typically on the order of 15 psi) is monitored over a period of time. If it remains constant then it is reasonable to conclude that there are no fluid leaks within the system. 
         [0004]    Sealing is effected in various ways. For example, a removable membrane or test cap may be adhesively or mechanically secured to the relevant fixtures, which are typically bath overflows and shower drains. Alternatively, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,901,611 B2, an internal break out test plug may be provided. A disadvantage to the former is the risk of rupture during installation. A disadvantage of the latter is difficulty in manipulating the break out plug (which is basically in the “throat” of the fitting) to avoid it inadvertently falling into the associated drainage plumbing necessitating significant encroachment upon already installed walls and floors to access and remove the offending plug. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    The present invention provides a removable sealing member associated with a shower drain or bathtub overflow fitting having a grip positioned and contoured to facilitate handling during removal and to resist passage into and through any downstream drainage plumbing. 
         [0006]    A tieplate is provided for threaded securement to a head fitting through an overflow hole in a wall of a vessel. The tieplate has a pipe for extending through the hole and a tieplate flange extending radially outwardly about a first end of the pipe for engaging the wall about the hole. The tieplate has a second end opposite the first end, the second end has threads for the threaded securement to the head fitting. A sealing member extends across the pipe adjacent the first end and is sealingly coupled to the pipe through a frangible joint. The sealing member has a grip extending therefrom outwardly of the pipe for facilitating manipulation of the sealing member to sever the frangible membrane for removal of the sealing member. 
         [0007]    The grip is preferably dimensioned to prevent passage of the grip and the sealing member through the head fitting. 
         [0008]    The tieplate may be provided with a mating flange extending radially outwardly from the tieplate flange away from the pipe to define a gap between the mating flange and the wall of the fixture to slidably register with a groove in a faceplate mountable over the mounting flange. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0009]    Preferred embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying illustrations wherein: 
           [0010]      FIG. 1  is a partially cutaway perspective view illustrating a tieplate according to the present invention mounted to a head fitting; 
           [0011]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of a tieplate according to the present invention; 
           [0012]      FIG. 3  is a front elevation corresponding to  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0013]      FIG. 4  is a section on line A-A of  FIG. 3 ; and, 
           [0014]      FIG. 5  is a detail of the encircled area B in  FIG. 4 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0015]    One aspect of the present invention relates to a tieplate for use in association with a slide-on groove and flange faceplate-tieplate overflow sub-assembly of a sink or bath drain assembly of the type described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,266,735 B2, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein. 
         [0016]    The tieplate according to the present invention is generally illustrated by reference  10  in the accompanying illustrations. The tieplate is designed for threaded securement to a head fitting  100  illustrated in  FIG. 1 . The tieplate  10  and head fitting  100  assembly would typically be used as an overflow for a bathtub although a similar arrangement might find application as a drain for a shower. 
         [0017]    The tieplate  10  has a pipe  12  for extending through a hole in a wall of vessel such as a bathtub or a floor such as in a shower. The tieplate has a flange  14  extending radially outwardly about a first end  16  of the pipe  12 . The head fitting  100  has a corresponding flange  114 . The head fitting flange  114  and flange  14  capture the wall of the vessel therebetween about the periphery of the hole to secure the tieplate and head fitting assembly to the vessel (not illustrated). Suitable seals may be interspersed between the vessel and the flange  14  (and possibly also the flange  114 ). 
         [0018]    The pipe may have a second end  18  opposite the first end  16  which is threaded, as illustrated, for threaded securement to the head fitting  100 . Typically, the pipe will have external threads and the head fitting will be provided with internal threads. 
         [0019]    A sealing member  20  extends across the pipe  12  adjacent the first end  16 . The sealing member is sealingly coupled to the pipe through a frangible joint  22  so as to provide an air tight seal. 
         [0020]    The sealing member  20  has a grip  30  extending therefrom outwardly of the pipe  12  for facilitating manipulation of the sealing member  20  to sever the frangible joints  22  for removal of the sealing member  20 . 
         [0021]    As the grip  30  projects outwardly from the tieplate  10 , it can be grasped with pliers or another suitable tool for removal with little risk of the sealing member and the grip falling into the head fitting, which might require the cutting of walls or floors to access the installation for removal of the sealing member from the head fitting or downstream drainage plumbing. 
         [0022]    Given that removal of the sealing member  20  will typically leave a rough or jagged edge, fittings of the present type are best suited for applications where a faceplate (bathtub overflow) or drainage grate (shower drain) is mounted over the opening into the pipe which would inhibit visual and tactile access to the rough or jagged edge portions. 
         [0023]    In order to facilitate the mounting of a faceplate over the tieplate  10  of the present invention an arrangement such as taught by U.S. Pat. No. 8,266,735 B2 may be utilized. The arrangement provides for a mating flange  40  which extends radially outwardly from the tieplate flange  14  away from the pipe  12  to define a gap  42  between the mating flange  40  and the wall of the fixture to slidably register with a groove in a faceplate of the type described in the above U.S. patent which is mountable over the mounting flange  40 . 
         [0024]    The tieplate  10  may be provided with a protrusion  50  for engaging a wrench to facilitate tightening of the tieplate  50  into the head fitting  100 . The protrusion  50  has hexagonally disposed flats for registering with the wrench. 
         [0025]    An “O” ring  60  may be provided between the tieplate  10  and the head fitting  100  to avoid fluid leakage therebetween. Use of the “O” ring would avoid the need of a seal between the flange  114  and the wall of the vessel as long as a seal is present between the flange  14  and the wall of the vessel. Alternatively, sealing of the tieplate to the head fitting may be accomplished with a suitable sealant such as a silicone based sealant. 
         [0026]    The foregoing description of the preferred embodiments and examples of the apparatus and process of the invention have been presented to illustrate the principles of the invention and not to limit the invention to the particular embodiments illustrated. It is intended that the scope of the invention be defined by all of the embodiments encompassed within the claims and/or their equivalents.