Patent ID: 8596589

Claim:
A pipe supporting apparatus comprising: a grommet block having an upper grommet and a lower grommet fabricated from an elastomeric material that define a pipe passage therebetween to support a pipe; at least one post provided on one of the upper and lower grommets; at least one receiving port provided on the opposing corresponding one of the upper and lower grommets for receiving the at least one post; at least one bolt hole extending through the upper and lower grommets; a first state wherein the post and port are provided solely with a mating friction fit so that the upper and lower grommet blocks can be initially removably secured to one another without any corresponding hardware, framework or support around the pipe; and a second state wherein a framework is provided for supporting the grommet block about the pipe and the framework includes a rigid upper attachment plate and a rigid lower attachment plate, each upper and lower attachment plate having a planar contact surface to mate with a respective substantially planar surface of each of the elastomeric upper and lower grommets, and a protrusion is provided on one or each of the respective mating surfaces to maintain the upper and lower attachment plates and upper and lower grommets in planar alignment when the pipe slides axially relative to the grommet block.