U.S. patent application number 11/091946 was filed with the patent office on 2006-09-28 for retrofit shower system and method for installing same.
Invention is credited to Alan L. McWhorter, Robert Thomas JR. Rush.
Application Number | 20060213006 11/091946 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 36643767 |
Filed Date | 2006-09-28 |
United States Patent
Application |
20060213006 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Rush; Robert Thomas JR. ; et
al. |
September 28, 2006 |
RETROFIT SHOWER SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR INSTALLING SAME
Abstract
A retrofit shower system including a shower pan formed of a
drain hub having an aperture for receiving plumbing for a drain
hole and several separate quadrants. The quadrants are seamed
together and seamed to the drain hub to create a shower floor. Each
quadrants is formed with support rails on the bottom that get
smaller in depth as the support rails get closer to the drain hub.
The resulting shower floor has an angle towards the drain hub to
allow water to properly drain in the shower. Coved sidewall
components are provided including at least two corner-coved walls
and at least two coved wall connectors. The sidewall components are
seamed to the shower floor. Wall panels and a shower ceiling may
also be provided.
Inventors: |
Rush; Robert Thomas JR.;
(Charlotte, NC) ; McWhorter; Alan L.; (Highlands,
TX) |
Correspondence
Address: |
SMITH MOORE LLP
P.O. BOX 21927
GREENSBORO
NC
27420
US
|
Family ID: |
36643767 |
Appl. No.: |
11/091946 |
Filed: |
March 28, 2005 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
4/613 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A47K 3/40 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
004/613 |
International
Class: |
A47K 3/34 20060101
A47K003/34; A47K 3/36 20060101 A47K003/36 |
Claims
1. A pan for a retrofit shower system comprising: a drain hub
having an aperture for receiving plumbing for a drain hole; and a
plurality of separate quadrants; wherein the plurality of quadrants
are seamed together and seamed to the drain hub; and wherein the
seamed quadrants and the seamed drain hub form a waterproof shower
floor surface.
2. The pan of claim 1 wherein each quadrant comprises at least one
support rail on the bottom of the quadrant wherein the depth of the
support rail gets smaller as the support rail gets closer to the
location of the drain hub such that the resulting shower floor is
angled towards the drain hub.
3. The pan of claim 1 further comprising at least one seam support
rail that is configured to straddle a seam between two quadrants on
the bottom of the quadrants to provide support for the seam and
wherein the depth of the seam support rail gets smaller as the seam
support rail gets closer to the location of the drain hub such that
the resulting shower floor is angled towards the drain hub.
4. The pan of claim 1 further comprising sidewalls comprising at
least two corner-coved walls and at least two coved wall connectors
that are seamed to each other and to the shower floor.
5. The pan of claim 1 wherein the drain hub and quadrants are
formed of a solid surface material selected from the group
consisting of acrylic, polyester, and polyester-acrylic blend solid
surface material.
6. A method for retrofitting a shower comprising the steps of:
obtaining measurements of the existing shower; manufacturing new
shower components based on the measurements of the existing shower
comprising: a shower pan comprising: a drain hub having an aperture
for receiving plumbing for a drain hole; and at least two separate
quadrants; installing the drain hub over the drain hole of the
existing shower such that the aperture is aligned with the drain
hole; and seaming the at least two quadrants to each other and
seaming the at least two quadrants to the drain hub to form a
waterproof shower floor surface.
7. The method of claim 6 further comprising the steps of
manufacturing sidewalls comprising at least two corner-coved walls
and at least two coved wall connectors and installing the sidewalls
by seaming the at least two corner-coved walls and at least two
coved wall connectors to each other and to the shower pan.
8. A retrofit shower system comprising: a pan comprising: a drain
hub having an aperture for receiving plumbing for a drain hole; and
a plurality of separate quadrants; wherein the plurality of
quadrants are seamed together and seamed to the drain hub to create
a waterproof shower floor; sidewalls comprising at least two
corner-coved walls and at least two coved wall connectors that are
seamed to each other and to the shower floor; and wall panels that
are seamed to the sidewalls.
9. The retrofit shower system of claim 8 further comprising a dam
wall that extends up from the sidewalls and behind the wall panels
to prevent water from seeping into underlying structure behind the
wall panels and under the shower floor.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The present invention relates generally to shower pans, and
more particularly, towards a method and apparatus for retrofitting
a shower stall.
[0002] Over the past several decades, a common method of creating a
shower stall has been to tile the floor and walls of the stall. The
tiles may range in size and color, and they are generally held in
place with commonly used mortar and grout.
[0003] The owners of tiled shower stalls often become dissatisfied
with the stalls over time and desire a new look for the shower.
Such dissatisfaction generally comes from the colors and shapes of
the tiles being outdated and/or the grout becoming discolored and
cracked.
[0004] A commonly used product for renovating old shower stalls is
a one-piece shower pan. The one-piece pans are designed to fit over
existing shower surfaces, such as tile, to minimize the amount of
demolition necessary to create the new stalls. Thus, it is
generally cheaper to use such one-piece pans instead of completely
demolishing and retiling the stall. These one-piece units, however,
have several drawbacks.
[0005] First, typical hand-built showers, such as tiled showers,
lack uniformity, squareness, and standardized drain locations. For
example, hand-built showers may be in non-standard sizes and may
have angled corners, depending on the configuration of the space
that was used to create the shower. The prior art one-piece pans
come in limited size ranges and have standard drain locations.
Thus, if the hand built shower is an irregular size, there may not
be a one-piece pan available for the job. The undesirable
alternative is to make the existing stall much smaller in order to
accommodate a one-piece unit. Also, because the prior art one-piece
pans have standard drain locations, significant demolition of the
shower pan and/or walls is still required if the existing stall's
drain is not in the standard location. Particularly, the shower
drain plumbing system has to be relocated in order to align with
and connect to the new shower pan drain. This requires significant
labor, and therefore, money.
[0006] In addition, in circumstances where the existing shower has
a large footprint, it is unlikely that a one-piece pan is
available. If available, the significant weight of the one-piece
pan makes it extremely difficult, if not impossible, for an
installer to handle and install in a confined space. In the event
that the one-piece pan exceeds the dimensions of the existing cased
opening or door opening to the stall, the one-piece pan cannot be
brought to the installation location without demolition of the
restricted areas.
[0007] The forgoing problems are particularly relevant in buildings
where there are a large number of shower stalls, such as
dormitories, apartments, and hospitals, and all of the stalls
require renovation. In order to avoid the high costs of demolition,
the owners may desire to use the one-piece shower pan units.
However, the sizes of the stalls in these types of buildings are
typically irregular with small access openings, such that one-piece
units are not available or are too heavy for an installer to
maneuver in the confined spaces.
[0008] Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a new method of
retrofitting a shower stall that does not require significant
demolition of the existing shower surface and is able to
accommodate stalls with varying shapes, sizes, and drain
locations.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0009] The present invention is better understood by a reading of
the Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments along with a
review of the drawings in which:
[0010] FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a shower manufactured and
installed in accordance with the present invention.
[0011] FIGS. 2A and 2B are schematic views of alternate embodiments
of the shower pan components of the present invention.
[0012] FIGS. 3A and 3B are schematic top views of alternate
embodiments of the coved sidewall components of the shower system
of the present invention.
[0013] FIG. 4 is a schematic bottom view of the shower pan of the
present invention.
[0014] FIG. 5 is a schematic side view of a quadrant with a support
rail and a drain hub in accordance with the present invention.
[0015] FIG. 6 is a schematic bottom view of seamed quadrants and
seam support rails in accordance with the present invention.
[0016] FIG. 7 is a schematic side view of a dam wall in accordance
with the present invention.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
[0017] The present invention solves this need in the art by
providing a pan for a retrofit shower system including a drain hub
having an aperture for receiving plumbing for a drain hole and
several separate quadrants. The quadrants are seamed together and
seamed to the drain hub to create a shower floor. Each quadrant
includes at least one support rail on the bottom of the quadrant
wherein the depth of the support rail gets smaller as the support
rail gets closer to the location of the drain hub such that the
resulting shower floor is angled towards the drain hub. The pan
also includes at least one seam support rail that is configured to
straddle the underside of two quadrants to provide support for the
seam and wherein the depth of the seam support rail gets smaller as
the seam support rail gets closer to the location of the drain hub
such that the resulting shower floor is angled towards the drain
hub. Sidewalls are also provided that include at least two
corner-coved walls and at least two coved wall connectors that are
seamed to each other and to the shower floor. The drain hub and
quadrants are preferably formed of an acrylic, polyester, or
polyester-acrylic blend solid surface material.
[0018] A method for retrofitting a shower is provided including the
steps of obtaining measurements of the existing shower and
manufacturing new shower components based on the measurements of
the existing shower. The shower components include a shower pan
including a drain hub having an aperture for receiving plumbing for
a drain hole and at least two separate quadrants. The method also
includes installing the drain hub over the drain hole of the
existing shower such that the aperture is aligned with the drain
hole, seaming the quadrants to each other, and seaming the
quadrants to the drain hub. The method further includes the steps
of manufacturing sidewalls including at least two corner-coved
walls and at least two coved wall connectors and installing the
sidewalls by seaming the at least two corner-coved walls and at
least two-coved wall connectors to each other and to the shower
pan.
[0019] Further provided is a retrofit shower system including a pan
including a drain hub having an aperture for receiving plumbing for
a drain hole and several separate quadrants. The quadrants are
seamed together and seamed to the drain hub to create a shower
floor. Sidewalls are provided that include at least two
corner-coved walls and at least two coved wall connectors that are
seamed to each other and to the shower floor. Wall panels are
further provided that are seamed to the sidewalls to create the
shower stall. A dam wall extends up from the sidewalls and behind
the wall panels to prevent water from seeping into the underlying
structure behind the wall panels.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0020] The present invention provides a retrofit shower system and
method for installing the same that overcomes the disadvantages of
the prior art. In particular, FIG. 1 shows a shower 5 including a
pan 10, a plurality of separate quadrants 12, a drain hub 14 having
an aperture for receiving plumbing for a drain hole, a plurality of
coved sidewalls 20, a threshold 26, and a plurality of wall panels
28 wherein the plurality of quadrants 12 are seamed together and
seamed to the drain hub 14 to create a shower floor.
[0021] When the owner of a shower stall desires renovation of a
stall using the retrofit system of the present invention, the first
step includes obtaining the measurements of the existing shower,
including the floor, side walls, ceiling, angles at the corners,
location of the drain hole, and location and orientation of the
doorway. This may be done by manually measuring and/or creating a
template of the stall using known methods. Once the measurements
are obtained, the dimensions are interpreted and used to create
specifications and drawings of the proposed new shower. The
drawings may be created manually or with computer aided design
(CAD) software, and the like. The proposed new shower pan 10 is
drawn so that the pan is broken into a plurality of quadrants 12
that abut a drain hub 14, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B. The drain
hub 14 is intended to be positioned directly over the drain hole of
the existing shower, and includes an aperture 15 for receiving the
plumbing for the drain hole, as discussed in more detail below. In
a preferred embodiment, the drain hub 14 may include one or more
angled corners 14a to aid in the installation process, which is
also discussed further below. The number of quadrants 12 that the
pan 10 is broken into and the shape of the quadrants 12 depends on
the size and shape of the existing stall and its access opening,
however, typically, no more than four quadrants 12 are
necessary.
[0022] Drawings are also rendered for the coved sidewalls 20 of the
new shower. The sidewalls of a shower stall extend up from the
shower pan and are generally about three inches tall, with some
variation to accommodate a two percent slope necessary for the
shower floor to drain water towards the drain hole. Considering a
generally rectangular shaped shower stall, there are typically four
sidewall units, one for each side. When the sidewalls are installed
at the job site, it takes a substantial amount of labor time to
seam the corners of shower stall where the ends of sidewall units
meet. Therefore, it is preferred that in the present invention, the
sidewalls be broken into coved sidewall units that include
corner-coved wall connectors 22 and coved wall connectors 24, as
shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B. By using corner-coved wall connectors 22,
about five to six hours of labor can be saved on the jobsite
because less time is required to seam the coved wall connectors 22
to the corner-coved walls 24 than seaming the corners of the
sidewalls at the jobsite.
[0023] Once the drawings of the proposed new shower 5 are complete,
the components of the shower stall 5 are manufactured and cut to
size. The shower pan 10 components, namely the quadrants 12, are
preferably manufactured by pouring a mold with a known polyester,
acrylic, or polyester-acrylic blend solid surface material. This
material provides strength and flexibility for the pan 10. Also in
a preferred embodiment, a non-skid surface is built into the mold
for the floor of the pan 10 to make it safer for the user. As
mentioned above, it is necessary for the shower pan 10 to have
about a two percent slope towards the drain hole so that water will
flow down from the shower floor into the drain. In order to create
that angle in the pan 10, support rails 16 are manufactured to go
underneath the pan 10, as shown in FIG. 4. Particularly, the depths
of the support rails 16 get smaller as the rails 16 get closer to
the drain hub 14, as shown in FIG. 5. These support rails 16 may be
attached to the various quadrants 12 at the factory to save labor
time at the jobsite. However, it is most preferred that the support
rails 16 be integrated with the quadrants 12 during the
manufacturing process, such as by building them into the mold for
the quadrants 12. Seam support rails 18 are also manufactured,
however, these seam support 18 rails are generally not molded with
the quadrants 12 to provide for easier installation, as described
below.
[0024] All of the other components for the new stall 5 are also
created at the factory, including, a threshold 26 which is located
at the entrance into the shower 5 and the sidewall units 20,
including the coved units (22,24). These components are also
preferably manufactured from acrylic, polyester, or
polyester-acrylic blend solid surface materials that are known in
the art. Other components which may be manufactured for the stall
as specified by the client are wall panels 28, a shower ceiling,
cased opening, trim at the cased opening, and trim at the ceiling
to allow access to the shower.
[0025] At the jobsite, in order for the existing shower to be
prepared to receive the new pan 10, a plumber must raise the
drainpipe about two to three inches to bring it up to where the new
surface will be. This is a relatively simple and non-time consuming
process. Then, the existing shower floor is leveled by preferably
using a cement thinset mortar that is known in the art. The
installer then begins to fit the "puzzle pieces" of the new shower
pan 10 together. The first component to be installed is the drain
hub 14 such that the aperture 15 is directly aligned over the newly
raised drain hole. Next, the installer sets two quadrants 12 and a
seam support 18 in place. The seam support rail 18, as shown in
FIG. 6, is similar to the other support rails 16, except that it is
centered underneath the seam of two quadrants 12. The preferred
angled corners 14a of the drain hub 14 allow the ends of the seam
support rails 18 to abut the drain hub 14 with a flat surface.
[0026] The installer then begins seaming the parts together using
known methods and preferably using an epoxy-based adhesive, which
is very strong. Particularly, the installer seams the two quadrants
12 to each other and to the seam support rail 16. The seam support
rail 18 and the quadrants 12 are also seamed to the drain hub 14.
Once all of the seams are complete, the installer adds the
additional quadrants 12 one-by-one and seams them to the abutting
quadrants 12, the seam support rails 18, and the drain hub 14,
until the "puzzle" of the shower pan 10 is complete.
[0027] Next, the installer installs the coved sidewalls 20 of the
shower 5. The coved units (22,24) are set in place and seamed to
one another and to the shower pan 10 using the same process
described above. However, it is preferred that a typical acrylic
blend seam adhesive be used for the sidewalls 20 because the
sidewalls 20 do not require as strong a seam adhesive as the seams
in the shower pan 10. It is generally easier to obtain a color
match between the solid surface material and the seam adhesive when
using an acrylic based seam adhesive versus an epoxy-based
adhesive. Thus, the sidewall seams in the finished stall are
generally inconspicuous where as the quadrant seams in the pan 10,
which are the stronger epoxy based adhesive, are more visible but
still compatible.
[0028] Next, the installer installs and seams together the
threshold 26 for the shower 5, the ceiling, and wall panels 28, if
so specified. If the new shower stall is specified for wall panels
28, then the installer adds those panels 28 to the stall and seams
them to the sidewalls 20. In preferred embodiment, the sidewalls 20
are seamed to, and even more preferably, molded to, a small dam
wall 30 that fits against the underlying walls of the shower and
behind the wall panels 28, as shown in FIG. 7. This dam wall 30
prevents any water that may get behind the panels 28 from getting
into the underlying wall and floor, which could cause mold and
rotting. Finally, the installer installs the cased opening, trim at
the cased opening, and trim at the ceiling, if specified.
[0029] Once all of the seams are dry, they are sanded and finished
in accordance with prior art procedures for finishing solid surface
seams. Also, any soft seams in the shower stall 5 are caulked and
the unit is cleaned. The resulting product is a brand new shower
stall that encloses the original floor, walls, and ceiling in new
solid surface material.
[0030] In view of the forgoing, the retrofit shower system of the
present invention provides a new shower that can be installed in a
matter of hours without requiring demolition of the old shower
surface. Thus, the owner saves time and money and does not have to
deal with the noise, vibration, debris, and extended loss
associated with demolition of the existing shower when installing
prior art one-piece shower pans. Further, unlike prior art shower
pans, the retrofit shower system of the present invention can
accommodate any shower regardless of its size, shape, squareness,
or plumbness, and can accommodate any existing drain location. The
shower system of the present invention also allows for unusually
shaped shower designs and very large showers wherein one-piece
units are too heavy to be installed.
[0031] Certain modifications and improvements will occur to those
skilled in the art upon a reading of the forgoing description of
the present invention. For example, the present invention is not
limited to installation over tiled surfaces. Rather, the shower
stall of the present invention may be installed over any type of
floor and panel surface, including, but not limited to, tile,
stone, solid surface, plastic laminate, and fiber reinforced
plastic, etc. Also, the shower stall of the present invention is
not limited to retrofit applications. Rather, the shower stall may
be installed as a brand new shower in the first instance. All such
modifications and improvements of the present invention have been
deleted herein for the sake of conciseness and readability but are
properly within the scope of the following claims.
* * * * *