Device for preventing flooding in sliding patio doors

Abstract

A device prevents flooding under sliding patio doors by blocking the space between a bottom of a sliding door panel and the top of the sliding door track. The device includes a reshapeable base that fills an external portion of a track of the sliding door to prevent water from pooling in the track and then from being driven by wind under the door panel. The shapeable base is made of a heavy material such as a sandbag that prevents the shapeable base from being blown out of the track, even during hurricane force winds. The device further includes a declined portion that directs rainwater away from the outer surface of the door panel, beyond the outer rim of the track. The declined portion thereby prevents rainwater from collecting within the track by directing the rainwater outward, beyond the outer rim of the track. An assembly of a plurality of devices can be utilized to protect a sliding door that has multiple panels, In the case of the assembly, a respective device is provided for each of the door panels in the sliding door.

Claims

1. A device for preventing flooding under a sliding door, the device comprising: the sliding door having an external face, the sliding door being laterally slideable within a track, the track having a base plate and an outer rim being disposed on the base plate external to the external face; a base being configured to rest in the track outside the external face, said base being reshapeable to conform to at least one rail in the track; and a declined portion being supported by and connected to said base, wherein an inner surface of said declined portion being configured to rest flush against the external face of the sliding door, said declined portion having a declined outer surface, said declined outer surface being configured to decline from the external face when said base is resting in the track and said declined portion is resting against the outer face.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein said base and said declined portion are impervious to water.

3. The device according to claim 1, wherein said base is reshapeable to conform to a plurality of rails.

4. The device according to claim 1, wherein said base includes a bag and particles filling said bag.

5. The device according to claim 4, wherein said particles include sand.

6. The device according to claim 1, wherein said base has a depth, said depth being at least as great as a depth between the external face of the sliding door and the outer rim.

7. The device according to claim 1, wherein said base has a width equal to a width of the sliding door.

8. The device according to claim 1, wherein said base and said declined portion have a combined height greater than a height of a gap between the track and a bottom of the sliding door.

9. An assembly for preventing flooding under a sliding door, the assembly comprising: the sliding door having an inner panel and an outer panel, the inner panel having an external face, and the outer panel having an external face, the inner panel and the outer panel being laterally slideable relative to each other within a track, the track having a base plate and an outer rim being disposed on the base plate external to the external face of the outer panel and to the external face of the inner panel; a first device for preventing flooding under the inner panel, said first device including: a base being configured to rest in the track outside the external face of the inner panel, said base being reshapeable to conform to at least one rail in the track; and a declined portion being supported by and connected to said base, wherein an inner surface of said declined portion being configured to rest flush against the external face of the inner panel, said declined portion having a declined outer surface, said declined outer surface being configured to decline from the external face of the inner panel when said base is resting in the track and said declined portion is resting against the outer face of the inner panel; and a second device for preventing flooding under the outer panel, said second device including: a base being configured to rest in the track outside the external face of the outer panel, said base being reshapeable to conform to at least one rail in the track; and a declined portion being supported by and connected to said base, wherein an inner surface of said declined portion being configured to rest flush against the external face of the outer panel, said declined portion having a declined outer surface, said declined outer surface being configured to decline from the external face of the outer panel when said base is resting in the track and said declined portion is resting against the outer face of the outer panel.

10. A method for preventing flooding under a sliding door, the method which comprises: providing a device having a base and a declined portion, said base being reshapeable to conform to at least one rail in a track, wherein the sliding door has an external surface and being configured to travel laterally within the track, and said declined portion being supported by and connected to said base, said declined portion having a declined outer surface; placing said base in the track against the external surface of the sliding door, wherein an inner surface of said declined portion being configured to rest flush against the external face of the sliding door, while aligning said declined portion to decline from the external surface of the sliding door.

11. The method according to claim 10, which further comprises filling a space between the external surface of the sliding door to an outer rim of the track with said base when placing said base.

12. The method according to claim 10, which further comprises resting an inner surface of said declined portion against the external surface of the sliding door when placing said base.

13. The method according to claim 10, which further comprises conforming a bottom surface of said base to a shape of a portion of the track underlying said base when placing said base in the track.

14. The method according to claim 10, wherein said declined portion has a depth at least as great as a distance from the external surface of the sliding door to an outer rim of the track.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING

(1) FIG. 1 is a right side sectional view of a device according to the invention for preventing flooding through a sliding patio door.

(2) FIG. 2 is a left side view of a sliding door according to the prior art.

(3) FIG. 3 is a top elevational view of an assembly of device installed to prevent flooding under a sliding door.

(4) FIG. 4 is a left front perspective view of an assembly for preventing flooding, which is installed in a sliding door.

(5) FIG. 5 is a left elevational view of the device shown in FIG. 1.

(6) FIG. 6 is a front, left, top elevational view of the device shown in FIG. 5.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

(7) FIG. 1 shows a device 10 for preventing flooding under a panel 21 of a sliding patio door 20. The device 10 includes a shapeable base 11 and a declined portion 12 that is supported by the shapeable base 11.

(8) In the preferred embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the shapeable base 11 is a sandbag. A bottom surface 17 (see FIG. 5) of the shapeable base 11 conforms to the underlying portion of a top surface 36 (see FIG. 2) of the track 30 to fill the space in the track 30 between the outer face 23 of the door panel 21 and the outer rim 33.

(9) Alternate preferred embodiments of the shapeable base 11, which are not shown, include a bag filled with lead pellets, and a block of clay.

(10) The declined portion 12 is connected to and supported by the shapeable base 11. The declined portion 12 is shaped like a triangular prism running across the width of the sliding door 20 or the door panel 21. A preferred embodiment of the declined portion 12 is a polystyrene foam block. The foam block can be covered with cloth. The declined portion 12 has an inside surface 14 that is a vertical plane that abuts the outer face 23 of the door panel 21. The declined outer surface 13 declines from the top of the inside surface 14 outward and downward toward the outer rim 33 of the track 30. The declined outer surface 13 directs water that would otherwise strike the door panel 21 outward beyond the outer rim 34 to prevent rainwater from accumulating in the track 30.

(11) FIGS. 3-4 show an assembly for preventing flooding through a door 20 seated between walls 70 of a building. In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 3-4, the assembly includes four (4) devices 10A, 10B, 10C, and 10D. The devices 10A, 10B, 10C, and 10D each abut a respective one of the door panel 21A, 21B, 21C, and 21D. The devices 10A, 10B, 10C, and 10D are placed with their vertical inner surfaces against the outer faces of the door panels 21A, 21B, 21C, and 21D. The bottom of the reshapeable base of the device is seated on the track.

(12) Device 13D has a depth that equals the distance from the outer surface of door panel 21 to the outer rim 33. When the device 13D is placed in the track 30, the device 13D fills the portion of the track between the outer face of the door panel 21D and the outer rim 33. The declined outer surfaces 13A, 13B, 13C, and 13D of the devices 10A, 10B, 10C, and 10D extend at least to the outer rim 33. As a result, the declined outer surfaces 13A, 13B, and 13C, and 13D divert any rainwater striking the outer surface of the door panels 21A, 21B, 21C, and 21D outside the track, beyond the outer rim 33.

(13) In the case of devices 13A, 13B, and 13C, the devices 13A, 13B, and 13C have a depth greater than a distance from an outer surface of the respective door panels 21A, 21B, and 21C to the outer rim 33. As a result, when the devices 13A, 13B, and 13C are placed on the track with their vertical inner surfaces contacting the outer face of the door panels 21A, 21B, and 21C, a front edge of the devices 21A, 21B, and 21C extends outward, beyond the outer rail 33. Because the base of the devices 13A, 13B, and 13C is a sandbag, which is a reshapeable material, the devices can cover the outer rail 33 and rails 32 and still conform to the underlying portion of the top surface of the track 30.

(14) FIGS. 5 and 6 show a preferred embodiment of the device 10. The device 10 has a bottom surface 17 that is reshapeable to allow the bottom surface 17 to conform to the shape of any underlying surface. The base includes a sandbag that weighs eighteen kilograms. In a preferred embodiment, the depth (i.e. front to back) of the bottom surface 17 is at least equal to the distance from the outer surface of a door panel to the outer rim of a track.

(15) The device includes a vertical inner surface 14. The vertical inner surface 14 is configured to abut the outer face of a door panel when installed. In a preferred embodiment of the device, the vertical inner surface 14 is sixty centimeters (60 cm) tall.

(16) The device 10 has a front surface 16. A width (i.e. right to left) of the front surface 16 in one preferred embodiment is as wide as sliding door to be protected. In an embodiment, that utilizes an assembly of multiples devices, where each device is to protect a respective door panel of a sliding door, the width of each device is approximately equal to the width of the door panel being protected. Approximately is used to recognize that the device might be slightly narrower than its panel because the panels in a sliding door overlap each other slightly.