Flat drain for showers

Abstract

A flat shower is a drainage fitting for the evacuation of surface and weeping water arising from showering on a tiled surface, where the tiling installation method is thinset, that is, where the tiles are adhered directly to membrane placed on top of a sloping medium such as mortar or foam installed directly to the subfloor. The height of such tile installations being minimal, a novel, minimal height flat drain assembly comprised of angle bar at the shower wall or flat bar in the midst of the flat tile floor, and said bar(s) then made contiguous with a floor drain membrane, is described.

Claims

1. A flat linear floor drain assembly comprising: angle bar cut on-site for length, and a point floor drain mounting to the subfloor contiguous at a wall, wherein: a point floor drain is mounted to a shower room subfloor contiguous to a shower room wall and is the point of attachment for angle bar also contiguous to the shared wall, the angle bar and point drain being bounded by a run of floor tiles parallel to the same wall, and angle bar is set in a groove in the subfloor at the wall and also adhered to the floor waterproofing membrane along the largely horizontal edge of the bar, and the vertical plate of the angle bar is set against a vertical shower wall, and wall membrane or other tile support medium is adhered to the vertical surface of the angle bar facing the room to effect waterproofing as well as allow for adhesion of wall tiles.

2. The drain assembly of claim 1, wherein: a derivative assembly wherein the floor tile is continued to the wall boundary, and wall tile hung offset from the floor surface, and the drain base and insert are placed beyond the shower room floor perimeter in the base of shower wall, such that water drains horizontally into a gap formed by the offset wall tiles, the underlying angle bars, and the edge of the floor tiles reaching under the outer plane of the wall.

3. The drain assembly of claim 1, wherein: a flat linear drain leading to a point drain at the wall comprising a flat bar laid down the slope of the sloping mortar or foam, sealed to the mortar with liquid membrane, and one end of the flat bar ending in the point drain, with membrane attached along opposing lengths of the flat bar to either side of the flat bar, offering a waterproof course for surface and weeping water flow to the downstream point drain at the wall between two parallel rows of overlying tiles spaced at an appropriate distance.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] In the drawings, which illustrate embodiments of the invention:

[0014] FIG. 1 shows an isometric view of the shower room subfloor;

[0015] FIG. 2 shows an isometric view of a drain base being fitted to the subfloor;

[0016] FIG. 3 shows an isometric view of angle bar and flat bar;

[0017] FIG. 4 shows an isometric view angle bars fitted to the configured subfloor;

[0018] FIG. 5 shows an isometric view of sloping applied to the subfloor;

[0019] FIG. 6 shows an isometric view of membrane applied to the sloping;

[0020] FIG. 7 shows an isometric view of a drain superstructure inserted into the drain base;

[0021] FIG. 8 shows an isometric view of tiles being fitted to the floor and wall of a shower;

[0022] FIG. 9 shows an isometric view of endcaps being added to the linear drain.

[0023] FIG. 10 shows an isometric view of the underside of the shower installation.

[0024] FIG. 11 shows an isometric detail view of flat bar leading to a point drain.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0025] The Invention described in this Application is a novel drain fitting for a plurality of thinset tile shower installation types where the collecting arms of the linear drain(s) are above-membrane and range from an edge or linear drain along the wall to a diverse network of strips between tiles leading to a point drain base perforating the membrane and subfloor, further leading to a downstream sanitary drain.

[0026] An isometric view of the subfloor of a tile installation shown in FIG. 1 shows the subfloor 1 configured with a recess 5 for angle bar fitting at the edge of the subfloor 1 and with a cutaway 3 for a drain base that pierces the subfloor.

[0027] An isometric view of the same subfloor in FIG. 2 shows the fitting of the drain base 7, a backplate for wall membrane attachment 9, one of four posts 11 to support the drain superstructure to be added, flanges 13 for mounting the drain base onto the subfloor, and a fastener hole 15 through which a fastener may fasten the flanges 13 to the subfloor. A plurality of drain bases may be employed.

[0028] In FIG. 3, an isometric view of angle bar 17 shows a long lower portion for attaching membrane.

[0029] The isometric drawing in FIG. 4 shows two angle bars 17 fitted to the subfloor 1. Note the angle bars may be cut on site to fit the width of the drain install, usually between two walls, and the drain may be placed asymmetrically to avoid floor joists and services.

[0030] FIG. 5 shows an isometric view of the same installation with a sloping medium such as mortar or foam 19 adhered to the subfloor. The slope is set by building codes to encourage the flow of water toward the drain.

[0031] FIG. 6 shows an isometric view of the same installation with a waterproof membrane adhered to the sloping medium.

[0032] FIG. 7 shows an isometric view of a drainage superstructure 23 with a grate 25 and hair catcher 27 inserted into the drain base in between the two angle bars attached to the drain base by a plurality of fastening methods including adhesive or a plurality of fasteners passing through complementary holes 29 drilled in the ends of the angle bars.

[0033] FIG. 8 shows an isometric view of the same shower drain installation with floor tiles 33 adhered to the floor membrane and wall tiles 31 adhered to the wall membrane. In so doing, a linear drain tray is created by the tiles and the underlying angle bar, in which both surface water and water weeping through the tiles and grout to the membrane underlying the tile and toward the drain are collected.

[0034] FIG. 9 shows an isometric view of the same shower drain installation with end caps 39 fitted to the ends of the angle bar channels, completing the sides of the drainage tray.

[0035] FIG. 10 shows the isometric view of the underside of a shower drain installation wherein the subfloor underside 41 is penetrated by a hub 43 for attachment of pipe attached by a plurality of methods and leading to a sanitary drain.

[0036] FIG. 11 shows an isometric view of a flat bar linear drain where a flat bar 43 is contiguous with membrane 45 underlying tile 47 leading to a juncture 49 between the flat bar end leading to the drain structures 51 at the wall.

[0037] In this Application, a Design is presented for a flat linear floor drain for thinset tiling, in specific, an edge drain, that is, a linear floor drain abutting a wall. Angle bar is set into a recess cut into the wall edge of the subfloor. The edge of the shower room waterproofing membrane is adhered to the horizontal upper inner surface of an angle bar placed with its outer vertex-line snugged in the line between floor and wall. Similarly, an edge of a wall membrane or equivalent tiling medium applied to a wall is continued downward and attached to the vertical inmost surface of the vertical leg of the angle bar. Alternatives include continuing the floor membrane up the wall but still adhering to interior of the L-bar and snugged to the floor-wall line, or various liquid membrane and sheet membrane combinations. In the case of the angle bar at the wall, the groove in the subfloor in which the angle bar is placed is cut into the subfloor such that the upper inner surface of the angle bar is flush with the thin end of a wedge of sloping material set on top of the subfloor, the other end of the sloping material rising by a standard value, for example, one quarter inch in twelve inches, to be achieved within the rise of 1″, a representative thickness of surrounding thinset mortar or foam. This allows for a sufficiently large showering room slope to be achieved without lowering the subfloor or notching joists.

[0038] A great advantage of angle bar is that it may be cut on-site to match drainage capture basin requirements. A plurality of end caps may terminate the distal ends of the branches of a flat edge drain as described in this Application. Said end caps may be attached to the angle bar by a plurality of means. In the example of a flat edge drain, the drainage hole superstructure and drain base may be located adjacent to the wall in a position that does not interfere with underlying floor joists and other structures and services. The branches of the drain formed by angle bar may be lain atop the membrane to either side, often of different length, along the wall.

[0039] Once angle bar is laid out, thinset tile adhesive is applied to the membrane. Tile or a plurality of other continuous floor coverings is laid atop the thinset adhesive, except where angle bar is positioned. At the wall, the edge of the tile adhered halfway into angle bar along with an inner vertical wall of angle bar form the wall of a drainage tray of a linear edge drain abutting the wall. An end cap may be placed on the distal end of branches of angle bar. Said angle bar is attached to a floor point drain superstructure by a plurality of means including fasteners and adhesives. The superstructure of the point drain can be one of a plurality of designs.