Gutter Guard

Abstract

A guard for a gutter having an outer flange extending inwardly toward a roof has a substantially U-shaped clip for locking same upon the flange, a looped member carried by an upper portion of the clip extending over the flange, and an aperture adjacent a hem carried by an elongated screen section forming a hinge for opening the gutter easily for cleaning.

Description

This invention relates to an improved gutter guard which is easy to open for cleaning the gutter.

Attempts have been made to provide screen guards or covers for gutters for minimizing leaves, pine needles and the like, which tend to enter gutters mounted at the edge of a roof. While such guards are successful in keeping the larger foreign elements out of gutters, some trash eventually must be cleaned. Efforts to solve the problem of providing an effective, yet sightly, gutter guard have been made in such U.S. Pat. Nos. as 2,734,467, H.M. Steele, 1956, and 3,420,378, E.L. Turner, 1969. Such guards are either fixed in place and relatively unsightly, flimsy, and difficult to open, resulting in binding and ineffectiveness of the guard.

Accordingly, it is an important object of this invention to provide an improved gutter guard which presents a minimum of surface for viewing so as to avoid an unsightly appearance. In fact, the gutter guard of the present invention cannot be seen from below the gutter.

A very important object of the invention is to provide effective means for attaching the guard to the gutter and affixing same properly to the roof.

Another important object of the invention is to provide a construction providing hinges for easy opening of the gutter guard for the purpose of cleaning the gutter.

Still another important object of the invention is to provide a gutter guard which is sturdy and rigid, which does not bind and is easy to install.

Another important object of the invention is to provide a gutter guard having a fastening means including a hinge which fits essentially under the flange of the gutter and is easy to install and relatively easy to fabricate.

It is also an important object of this invention to provide a gutter guard which locks on the flange of the gutter so as not to come off and yet, which is removable when the resilient force of the locking member is overcome, permitting the gutter guard to be replaced after painting the gutter.

The construction designed to carry out the invention will be hereinafter described, together with other features thereof.

The invention will be more readily understood from a reading of the following specification and by reference to the accompanying drawing forming a part thereof, wherein an example of the invention is shown and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a gutter guard constructed in accordance with the present invention installed upon a gutter,

FIG. 2 is a transverse sectional elevation taken on the line 2--2 in FIG. 1 further illustrating the positioning of the gutter guard with respect to the gutter and the roof, and

FIG. 3 is an enlarged perspective view taken substantially on the line 3--3 in FIG. 1, illustrating the attachment of the guard to the gutter in detail.

The drawing illustrates a guard for a gutter having a flange extending inwardly toward a roof and carried by an outer portion of the gutter remote from the roof. The guard has an elongated screen section A extending along the gutter and substantially thereacross. A substantially U-shaped hem B is carried by the screen on an edge thereof adjacent the flange and extending therealong. A second substantially U-shaped hem C is carried by an opposite edge of the screen. A substantially U-shaped clip D is received upon the flange in locking relation thereto. A looped member E is carried by an upper portion of the clip extending over the flange away from the roof, and an aperture adjacent the U-shaped hem B defines a hinge member F received within the looped member. Thus, the guard is easy to open by turning same back away from the gutter on the hinge, as illustrated in broken lines in FIGS. 1 and 2, leaving the gutter open.

The flange preferably has a bead carried at its free end and an inwardly extending cam portion preferably forms a part of a lower clip portion resiliently biased upwardly for passing over the bead confining same within the clip.

The gutter 10 includes a flange 11 extending inwardly toward the roof 12. The gutter 10 is illustrated as being attached to a roof portion just below the overhang 12a as by nails 13. The flange 11 has a bead or folded back portion 14 which forms a free edge for the flange 11.

The elongated screen section A preferably has 1/4-inch square 23 gauge mesh construction. Such a section may conveniently be as long as 48 inches.

The U-shaped hem portions B and C are carried by the elongated edges and face each other gripping the screen between the legs thereof, and are constructed of a suitable gauge of metal for clampingly engaging the screen and providing desired rigidity to the section.

The substantially U-shaped clip D includes an upper portion 15 and a lower portion 16. The looped members E are integrally carried by the free edge of the upper portion 15 and extends upwardly therefrom to form a part of a hinge for embracing the hinge member F formed by the aperture 17 (FIG. 3) within the U-shaped hem adjacent the bite thereof. The clips D are preferably spaced along a given section of screen sufficient to properly fasten same to the gutter and permit opening of the guard as described herein.

It will be observed that the guard may be easily opened by raising same so as to turn the guard about the hinge. No binding occurs as a result of the rigidity afforded by the hem and the convenient hinge arrangement of which the hem forms a part. Normally, the guard overlies the roof overhang 12a of the roof, as illustrated in FIG. 2.

Preferably the clip is formed of suitable material to provide resiliency, such as spring steel. The lower clip portion 16 includes an inwardly extending cam portion 16a so as to define a looped portion for encompassing the bead 14 and a downwardly tapering lip for urging the upper and lower members 15 and 16 apart when clamping the guard upon the gutter. Thus, the gutter snaps on and is rigidly attached in a manner which will permit the guard to pivot open for easy cleaning of the gutter.

Claims

While a preferred embodiment of the invention has been described using specific terms, such description is for illustrative purposes only, and it is to be understood that changes and variations may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the following claims.

1. A guard for a gutter having a flange extending inwardly toward a roof with a bead carried at its free end and carried by an outer portion of the gutter remote from the roof including:

A. an elongated screen section extending along the gutter and substantially thereacross;

B. a substantially U-shaped hem carried by the screen on an edge thereof adjacent said flange and extending therealong;

C. a second substantially U-shaped hem carried by an opposite edge of said screen;

D. a plurality of spaced substantially U-shaped clips being received upon said flange;

E. a looped member carried by an upper portion of each of said clips extending over said flange away from the roof;

F. a plurality of spaced apertures provided in said U-shaped hem adjacent said flange, each receiving one of said looped members for defining a hinge member; and

G. an inwardly extending cam portion forming a part of each lower clip portion resiliently biased upwardly for passing over said bead and confining same within said clip;

whereby said guard is easy to open by turning same back away from the gutter on said hinge leaving said gutter open.