MATERIAL AND METHOD FOR PROVIDING INSULATION TO A FOUNDATION WALL

Abstract

A material and method for insulating a top portion of a foundation wall which includes a non-woven thermoplastic board for insulating a foundation wall. The non-woven thermoplastic board has a thermal resistance of an R-value per inch thickness of at least 1.

Claims

1. A foundation wall insulation board that can be used to provide insulation to an exterior of a foundation wall; said foundation wall insulation board comprising a non-woven board and an outer skin layer; said non-woven board including a top surface, a bottom surface and a side edge; said outer skin layer located on said top surface and/or said bottom surface of said non-woven board; said outer skin layer formed of the same or substantially the same material as said non-woven board; said outer skin layer having a density that is greater than a density of the center or central portion of said non-woven board; said outer skin layer having a thickness that is less than a thickness of said non-woven board; said non-woven board at least partially formed of a plurality of fibers that are not woven together; said foundation wall insulation board has a thermal resistance having an R-value per inch thickness of at least 1.

2. The foundation wall insulation board as defined in claim 1, wherein said fibers include polymer fibers.

3. The foundation wall insulation board as defined in claim 1, wherein said polymer fibers include polyester fibers.

4. The foundation wall insulation board as defined in claim 1, wherein a plurality of said fibers are coated with a polymer coating; said polymer coating having a metaling point that is less than a melting point of said fiber.

5. The foundation wall insulation board as defined in claim 1, wherein said foundation wall insulation board includes shoddy, stiffeners and/or fillers.

6. The foundation wall insulation board as defined in claim 1, wherein said foundation wall insulation board includes one or more supplemental layers that are secured to at least a portion of a top surface of said outer skin layer; said one or more supplemental layers include woven fiber material, plastic sheet, and/or panels.

7. The foundation wall insulation board as defined in claim 1, wherein said foundation wall insulation board includes an outer coating on at least a portion of said foundation wall insulation board; said outer coating including one or more materials selected from the group consisting of waterproof material, sealant, UV protectant, and antimicrobial coating.

8. The foundation wall insulation board as defined in claim 1, wherein at least a portion of said side edge is chamfered.

9. A method for manufacturing a foundation wall insulation board comprising: providing a plurality of fibers; said fibers not woven together; laying said plurality of fibers so as to form a form of fibers; said form of fibers having an initial thickness; said form of fibers having a top surface and a bottom surface; compressing said form of fibers to reduce a thickness of said form of fibers from said initial thickness to a compressed thickness to produce a non-woven board; said compressed thickness less than said initial thickness; forming an outer skin layer on said top surface and/or said bottom surface of said non-woven board of fibers to form said foundation wall insulation board; said outer skin layer formed of the same or substantially the same material as said non-woven board; said outer skin layer having a density that is greater than a density of the center or central portion of said non-woven board; said outer skin layer having a thickness that is less than a thickness of said non-woven board; wherein said foundation wall insulation board has a thermal resistance having an R-value per inch thickness of at least 1.

10. The method as defined in claim 9, wherein said fibers include polymer fibers.

11. The method as defined in claim 9, wherein a plurality of said fibers are coated with a polymer coating; said polymer coating having a melting point that is less than a melting point of said fiber; and said step compressing causing at least a portion of said polymer coating on a plurality of said fibers having said polymer coating to soften or at least partially melt.

12. The method as defined in claim 9, wherein said step of compressing include applying heat to said form of fibers.

13. The method as defined in claim 9, wherein said form of fibers includes one or more of shoddy, stiffeners and/or fillers.

14. The method as defined in claim 9, further including the step of applying one or more supplemental layers to at least a portion of a top surface of said outer skin layer; said one or more supplemental layers includes woven fiber material, plastic sheet, and/or panels.

15. The method as defined in claim 9, wherein an outer surface of said foundation wall insulation board includes an outer coating; said outer coating including one or more materials selected from the group consisting of waterproof material, sealant, UV protectant, and antimicrobial coating.

16. The method as defined in claim 9, further including the step of chamfering at least a portion of a side edge of said foundation wall insulation board.

17. An insulated foundation for a building comprising: a foundation wall; and a foundation wall insulation board positioned adjacent to said foundation wall; said foundation wall insulation board comprising a non-woven board and an outer skin layer; said non-woven board including a top surface, a bottom surface and a side edge; said outer skin layer located on said top surface and/or said bottom surface of said non-woven board; said outer skin layer formed of the same or substantially the same material as said non-woven board; said outer skin layer having a density that is greater than a density of the center or central portion of said non-woven board; said outer skin layer having a thickness that is less than a thickness of said non-woven board; said non-woven board at least partially formed of a plurality of fibers that are not woven together; said foundation wall insulation board has a thermal resistance having an R-value per inch thickness of at least 1.

18. The insulated foundation as defined in claim 17, wherein said foundation wall insulation board located adjacent to an exterior surface of said foundation wall.

19. The insulated foundation as defined in claim 17, wherein said foundation wall insulation board is connected to said foundation wall by a connection arrangement; said connection arrangement including one or more of adhesive, staple, nail, screw, clip, clamp, rivet, hook, strap, cord, wire, and/or tape.

20. The insulated foundation as defined in claim 17, wherein at least a portion of said foundation wall insulation board is located above a ground surface.

21. The insulated foundation as defined in claim 17, wherein one or more intermediate layers are positioned between said foundation wall and said foundation wall insulation board; said one or more intermediate layers including a waterproof coating, waterproofing membrane, adhesive strips or tape, a sealant coating, an adhesive coating, a UV coating, a drainage board, a dimpled plastic sheet, a panel, drainage pipe, paint, antimicrobial coating, and/or an insulation material.

22. A method for forming an insulated foundation comprising: providing a foundation wall; providing a foundation wall insulation board; said foundation wall insulation board comprising a non-woven board and an outer skin layer; said non-woven board including a top surface, a bottom surface and a side edge; said outer skin layer located on said top surface and/or said bottom surface of said non-woven board; said outer skin layer formed of the same or substantially the same material as said non-woven board; said outer skin layer having a density that is greater than a density of the center or central portion of said non-woven board; said outer skin layer having a thickness that is less than a thickness of said non-woven board; said non-woven board at least partially formed of a plurality of fibers that are not woven together; said foundation wall insulation board has a thermal resistance having an R-value per inch thickness of at least 1; positioning said foundation wall insulation board adjacent to said foundation wall.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0061] Reference may now be made to the drawings, which illustrate various non-limiting aspects of embodiments that the disclosure may take in physical form and in certain parts and arrangements of parts wherein:

[0062] FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a non-limiting foundation wall insulation board in accordance with the present disclosure.

[0063] FIG. 2 is a side end view of the foundation wall insulation board of FIG. 1.

[0064] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of a portion of the foundation wall insulation board of FIG. 1.

[0065] FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of an edge portion of the foundation wall insulation board of FIG. 1.

[0066] FIG. 5 is a partial side view of a portion of a foundation wall that includes the foundation wall insulation board of FIG. 1 positioned on a portion of the outer surface of the foundation wall.

[0067] FIG. 6 is an enlarge view of a portion of the foundation wall insulation board of FIG. 1 positioned adjacent to the foundation wall, and wherein one or more optional intermediate layers are positioned between the foundation wall and the foundation wall insulation board.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF NON-LIMITING EMBODIMENTS

[0068] A more complete understanding of the articles/devices, processes and components disclosed herein can be obtained by reference to the accompanying drawings. These figures are merely schematic representations based on convenience and the ease of demonstrating the present disclosure, and are, therefore, not intended to indicate relative size and dimensions of the devices or components thereof and/or to define or limit the scope of the exemplary embodiments.

[0069] Although specific terms are used in the following description for the sake of clarity, these terms are intended to refer only to the particular structure of the embodiments selected for illustration in the drawings and are not intended to define or limit the scope of the disclosure. In the drawings and the following description below, it is to be understood that like numeric designations refer to components of like function.

[0070] The singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” include plural referents unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

[0071] As used in the specification and in the claims, the term “comprising” may include the embodiments “consisting of” and “consisting essentially of.” The terms “comprise(s),” “include(s),” “having,” “has,” “can,” “contain(s),” and variants thereof, as used herein, are intended to be open-ended transitional phrases, terms, or words that require the presence of the named ingredients/steps and permit the presence of other ingredients/steps. However, such description should be construed as also describing compositions or processes as “consisting of” and “consisting essentially of” the enumerated ingredients/steps, which allows the presence of only the named ingredients/steps, along with any unavoidable impurities that might result therefrom, and excludes other ingredients/steps.

[0072] Numerical values in the specification and claims of this application should be understood to include numerical values which are the same when reduced to the same number of significant figures and numerical values which differ from the stated value by less than the experimental error of conventional measurement technique of the type described in the present application to determine the value.

[0073] All ranges disclosed herein are inclusive of the recited endpoint and independently combinable (for example, the range of “from 2 grams to 10 grams” is inclusive of the endpoints, 2 grams and 10 grams, and all the intermediate values).

[0074] The terms “about” and “approximately” can be used to include any numerical value that can vary without changing the basic function of that value. When used with a range, “about” and “approximately” also disclose the range defined by the absolute values of the two endpoints, e.g., “about 2 to about 4” also discloses the range “from 2 to 4.” Generally, the terms “about” and “approximately” may refer to plus or minus 10% of the indicated number.

[0075] Percentages of elements should be assumed to be percent by weight of the stated element, unless expressly stated otherwise.

[0076] Referring now to the drawings, wherein the showings are for the purpose of illustrating non-limiting embodiments of the disclosure only and not for the purpose of limiting the same, FIGS. 1-4 illustrate a non-limiting embodiment of a foundation wall insulation board 100 in accordance with the present disclosure.

[0077] The foundation wall insulation board 100 is particularly designed for insulating a foundation of a house, building, or other type of structure. The foundation wall insulation board 100 may be used for insulating any portion of a building's structure, including, but not limited to, walls, roofs, foundations, and/or retaining walls.

[0078] The foundation wall insulation board 100 is illustrated in FIG. 1 as a rectangular-shaped board; however, it will be appreciated that the foundation wall insulation board 100 can have other shapes. As illustrated in FIG. 1, the foundation wall insulation board 100 includes a top side 110, a bottom side 120, a front edge 130, a rear edge 140, a first side edge 150 and a second side edge 160. One or more of the edges can optionally include a chamfered portion 170 as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 4. The length L of the foundation wall insulation board 100 is generally 4-6 feet; however, other lengths can be used. The width W of foundation wall insulation board 100 is generally 1.5-3 feet; however, other widths can be used. The thickness T of foundation wall insulation board 100 is generally 2-4 in.; however, other thicknesses can be used. The depth D of the optional chamfered edge 170 is generally 10-100% the thickness T of foundation wall insulation board 100, and typically 30-65% the thickness T of foundation wall insulation board 100. The width of the optional chamfered edge 170 is generally less than 5% of the length L of the foundation wall insulation board 100.

[0079] Referring now to FIG. 3, there is illustrated a cross-section of a non-limiting configuration of the foundation wall insulation board 100. The foundation wall insulation board 100 is illustrated as including three layers, namely a non-woven thermoplastic board layer 200, an outer skin layer 210, and an optional outer coating layer 220. The thickness of the non-woven thermoplastic board layer 200 is generally greater than the thickness of the outer skin layer 210. The thickness of the non-woven thermoplastic board layer 200 is also generally greater than the thickness of the optional outer coating layer 230. The thickness of the non-woven thermoplastic board layer 200 is generally greater than the combined thickness of the outer skin layer 210 and the optional outer coating layer 230. The composition of the non-woven thermoplastic board layer 200 is generally the same as the composition of the outer skin layer 210; however, the density of the outer skin layer 210 is greater than the density of the non-woven thermoplastic board layer 200. The composition of the optional outer coating layer 220 is different from the composition of the non-woven thermoplastic board layer 200 and the composition of the outer skin layer 210.

[0080] The non-woven thermoplastic board layer 200 is partially or fully formed of non-woven fibers. The non-woven fibers can be partially or fully formed of polymer fibers. A portion or all of the fibers can optionally be coated with a polymer material that has a different composition from the fiber. The non-woven thermoplastic board layer 200 can optionally include a) shoddy (e.g., shredded fibers that are typically recycled fibers—the shoddy can include woven and/or non-woven fibers), b) one or more stiffener (e.g., resin, woven fabric, etc.), and/or c) one or more fillers (e.g., carbon fibers, boron fibers, glass balls, etc.). In one non-limiting embodiment, the non-woven thermoplastic board layer 200 is partially or fully formed of non-woven polyester fibers wherein a portion or all of the polyester fibers are coated with a polymer having a melting point that is less than the melting point of the polyester fiber. In another non-limiting embodiment, the non-woven thermoplastic board layer 200 is partially formed of non-woven polyester fibers wherein a portion or all of the polyester fibers are coated with a polymer having a melting point that is less than the melting point of the polyester fiber, and wherein the non-woven thermoplastic board layer 200 also includes one or more of shoddy, stiffener and/or filler.

[0081] The non-woven thermoplastic board 200 used to partially or fully form the improved foundation wall insulation board 100 can be partially formed by an airlay line process; however; other processes can be used to partially or fully form the non-woven thermoplastic board 200. During the airlay line process, the non-woven fibers and the optional shoddy, stiffener and/or filler are used to form non-woven thermoplastic board 200 having a thickness of 4-8 in. Thereafter, the non-woven thermoplastic board 200 is subjected to one or more heat press processes and/or compression processes to reduce the thickness of the non-woven thermoplastic board 200 by 20-200%. When the non-woven fibers include an outer coating having a melting point that is less than the core fiber, the outer coating can be caused to partially or fully melt during the one or more heat press processes and/or compression processes. Such partial or fully melting of the coating results in the bonding of the partially- or fully-melted coating with surrounding fibers and/or the optional shoddy, stiffener, and/or filler. When the partially- or fully-melted coating cools and resolidifies, the coating facilitates in the bonding together of one or more of the components of the formed non-woven thermoplastic board 200. If the non-woven thermoplastic board 200 includes optional stiffener in the form of a resin or other type of adhesive material, the resin or other type of adhesive material can also facilitate in the bonding together of one or more of the components of the formed non-woven thermoplastic board 200.

[0082] During one or more one or more heat press processes and/or compression processes, the outer skin layer 210 is formed on the top and/or bottom surface of the non-woven thermoplastic board 200 to thereby form the improved foundation wall insulation board 100. The improved foundation wall insulation board 100 can then be optionally punched or otherwise cut into blanks of a certain size and shape. Prior to or after the improved foundation wall insulation board 100 is optionally punched or otherwise cut into blanks, the improved foundation wall insulation board 100 can optionally a) be coated on one or more portions of the improved foundation wall insulation board 100 to form an outer coating layer 220, and/or b) have one or more edges chamfered 170.

[0083] Referring now to FIG. 5, there is illustrated a non-limiting arrangement for using the improved foundation wall insulation board 100 on an exterior surface of a foundation wall F. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the foundation wall F is partially positioned in the ground G. The improved foundation wall insulation board 100 is illustrated as positioned on the exterior of the foundation wall F such that all or a majority of the improved foundation wall insulation board 100 is located above the ground surface GS. Generally at least 55-100% (and all values and ranges therebetween) of the improved foundation wall insulation board 100 is located above the ground surface GS.

[0084] Referring now to FIG. 6, there is illustrated a non-limiting arrangement for positioning the improved foundation wall insulation board 100 on an exterior surface of a foundation wall F. As illustrated in FIG. 6, one or more intermediate layers Il, 12 can be optionally positioned between the improved foundation wall insulation board 100 on an exterior surface of a foundation wall F. Such one or more intermediate layers Il, 12 can include a waterproof coating, waterproofing membrane, adhesive strips or tape, a sealant coating, an adhesive coating, a UV coating, a drainage board, a dimpled plastic sheet, a panel, drainage pipe, paint, antimicrobial coating, and/or an insulation material. As can be appreciated, the one or more intermediate layers Il, 12 can optionally be used to facilitate in securing the improved foundation wall insulation board 100 in position relative to the foundation wall F.

[0085] As also illustrated in FIG. 6, the improved foundation wall insulation board 100 can optionally be at least partially secured to the one or more intermediate layers Il, 12 and/or to the foundation wall F by one or more mechanical connectors 300 (e.g., staple, nail, screw, clip, clamp, rivet, hook, strap, cord, wire, etc.).

[0086] The top edge and/or front surface of the improved foundation wall insulation board 100 can optionally include an outer coating layer 220 to inhibit or prevent liquids (e.g., water, paint, etc.) from penetrating into the non-woven thermoplastic board 200 portion of the improved foundation wall insulation board 100.

[0087] The improved foundation wall insulation board 100 can extend up to or near the top edge of the foundation wall F; however, this is not required. Although not shown, it will be readily understood by one skilled in the art that one or more other materials can optionally be positioned between the exterior surface of the foundation wall F and the improved foundation wall insulation board 100, namely a) an adhesive layer, b) a waterproofing layer and/or sealant, c) a drainage board, d) insulation, e) waterproofing membrane, f) adhesive strips or tape, g) a UV coating, h) a dimpled plastic sheet, i) a panel, j) drainage pipe, k) paint, and/or l) antimicrobial coating.

[0088] To aid the Patent Office and any readers of this application and any resulting patent in interpreting the claims appended hereto, Applicant does not intend any of the appended claims or claim elements to invoke 35 U.S.C. 112(f) unless the words “means for” or “step for” are explicitly used in the particular claim.

[0089] It will thus be seen that the objects set forth above, among those made apparent from the preceding description, are efficiently attained, and since certain changes may be made in the constructions set forth without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description and shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense. The invention has been described with reference to preferred and alternate embodiments. Modifications and alterations will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading and understanding the detailed discussion of the invention provided herein. This invention is intended to include all such modifications and alterations insofar as they come within the scope of the present invention. It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described and all statements of the scope of the invention, which, as a matter of language, might be said to fall therebetween.