GB2291455A

GB2291455A - Fitting window and door frames

Info

Publication number: GB2291455A
Application number: GB9514428A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Nigel Wilson
Original assignee: Caradon Duraflex Ltd
Current assignee: Wendland Roof Solutions Ltd
Priority date: 1994-07-15
Filing date: 1995-07-14
Publication date: 1996-01-24
Anticipated expiration: 2015-07-14
Also published as: GB9414280D0; GB9514428D0; GB2291455B

Abstract

Windows and doors are fitted to prepared apertures by using a former fabricated from cavity closing elements to prepare the aperture, the elements 1 having a frame retaining means in the form of a flange part 4 which engages hook shaped anchorages 8 which are attached to and project outwardly from the edge of the frame 2. The elements 1 may have a stop member 3 which abuts the leading edge of the frame 2. The anchorages 8 may be nailed to the structure beneath. Because the anchorages project away from the plane of the frame they may be subsequently located and cut through if the frame is required to be removed. <IMAGE>

Description

IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO DOORS AND WINDOWS This invention relates to doors and windows and to the components thereof and, more particularly but not exclusively to door frames and windows, and components adapted for installation into apertures formed in the cavity walls of buildings Conventionally, in new building construction, doors frames and windows are set in the required location, and are used as formers, around which the inner and outer leaves of a cavity wall, constructed of brick or block may be built.

This established method requires that door frames and glazed or unglazed windows are provided on the building site almost from the outset of construction, which substantially increases the risk of damage and loss to these components during storage on site or during the construction process.

Windows are frequently mounted so as to lie within the plane of the outer leaf of a cavity wall, to which the outer frame or sub-frame may conveniently be fixed. The wall cavity, which opens into a window reveal, or a door reveal is usually closed by returning the brickwork or blockwork around the reveal or, increasing by using insulating cavity closers for the purpose. Cavity closers usually comprise an elongate, hollow box-like GRP or PVC-u section having a flange-like extension on one side so that the box-like section may snugly fit between the leaves of the wall with the flange resting on the surface of the reveal.

Cavity closers may also be attached to the outer edges of a door frame or window frame prior to installation, as described above. While this improves the thermal efficiency of the building the disadvantages remain from the use of window and door frames as formers for brickwork. It is also know to fabricate rectangular formers using cavity closer sections which are used instead of a window frame or door frame. In this case a door frame or window is subsequently fitted to the door or window aperture which is thus formed This operation requires the outer fixed frame of the window or door to be drilled prior to fixing to the building structure or, alternatively, fixing may be achieved by the use of fixing lugs secured into the brickwork.

The drilling and fixing of windows and doors is a time consuming operation which normally requires access to portable power drills which cannot easily be securely stored on building sites.

In one aspect this invention consists in a door or window assembly or a kit of parts therefor comprising a window or door frame, anchorage means which can be mounted around the periphery of the frame to project outwardly from the plane of the frame, and frame retaining means which are dimensioned and arranged in use to project outwardly from the plane of the frame, the frame retaining means being fixed in use within the door or window reveal, the projecting anchorage means being adapted to engage the outwardly projecting portion of the frame retaining means when the door or window frame or the like is presented to the door or window opening Preferably the frame retaining means is a member which is adapted to close a cavity between inner and outer leaves of a cavity wall in which the door or window aperture is provided.

The frame retaining means may be in the form of a rectangular member at least two sides of which are adapted to close an adjacent cavity when located within a door or window reveal formed in a cavity wall.

At least hvo of the opposed sides of the rectangular member are advantageously formed from hollow extrusions of an insulating material which are dimensioned and arranged so as to fit between the inner and outer leaves of the cavity wall each of the said hollow extrusions being provided with flange means which at least partly lining a side of the reveal, the said flange means being disposed and arranged for engagement with the anchorage means projecting from an edge of a window or door frame.

The anchorage means are preferably in the form of hook formations attached to the periphery of the window or door frame and arranged to project towards the interior of the building so that the window or door frame may be moved towards engagement with the frame retaining means from a position within the interior of the building.

Aligned holes are conveniently provided in limbs of the hook formation through which nail or other fixing may pass The anchorage means are provided with means which are adapted to retain the said anchorage means in a formation provided on the edge portion of the window or door frame.

Preferably the frame retaining means include stop means which in use abut the marginal edge portion of the frame on the side of the frame opposite the side from which the anchorage means project The stop means is preferably in the form of a member provided with an upstanding lip for abutment with the marginal edge of the frame, and a web portion which in use extends between the frame and the frame retaining means The position of the lip may be varied by fixing the web to the frame retaining means by welding, for example, when the lip is in a desired position.

In a further aspect this invention consists in a method of installing a door or window frame or the like in a door or window opening comprising: securing frame-retaining means to at least two opposed sides of a door or window opening, mounting anchorage means around the perimeter of the frame to project away from the plane of the frame, whereby on presenting the door, or window frame or the like to the aperture the anchorage means engage the frame retaining means.

Preferably the door or window frame or the like is fixed into position by means of a fixing passing through the anchorage means to penetrate the building structure.

The frame-retaining means may in the form of an elongate flange member which is adapted to engage with, and project from a box-like section suitable for providing an insulating cavity. Alternatively the frame-retaining means may be formed integrally with a cavity closer or may be provided independently of any cavity closer means A cavity closer and associated flange member may be fitted around the reveal of an existing cavity wall In the case of new building construction a rectangular or other shaped former may be constructed using a box-like cavity closer section to close each cavity which would othenvise be exposed within the reveal In order that the invention may be more clearly understood one embodiment will now be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings in which;; Figure 1 is a cross sectional drawing of a window frame and a cavity closer connected together with an anchorage member.

Figure la is a view similar to Figure 1 , the assembly including a stop member on one side of the frame Figure 2 is a perspective view of a part of a window frame and cavity closer.

Figures 3 and 4 are, respectively, a plan view and a side view of the anchorage shoznn in Figures 1 and 2 and; Figure 5 is a side view of a flange adapted to engage which and extend from the cavity closer shown in Figure 1 Referring to Figure 1, the cavity closer member is in the form of a PVC-U profile 1 which has a frame-retaining means in the form of integral projecting flange member 4. for retaining window frame 2 As may be more clearly seen in Figure 2, the cavity closer members closes the cavity around the window reveal, only part of which is shown in Figure 2.

Referring to Figure la, a stop member in the form of bar 3 ofT shaped cross section has an upstanding lip 3a for abutment with the marginal edge portion of the frame 2 on the side opposite the side from which the anchorage members 8 extend. the member 3 has a web 3b which extends between the cavity closer 1 and the edge of frame 2. The web 3b may be fixed to the closer 1 in various positions in accordance with the predetermined position required for the lip 3a.

In the case of new building construction the cavity closer elements 1 are conveniently assembled into a rectangular former which may be set at the required position of a window or door aperture, the former being used as a guide to delineate the edges of brickwork or blockwork around the aperture.

In the usual case where the aperture for a window or door is bridged on the uppermost side by a lintel supporting the brickwork above, the cavity between the inner and outer leaves of the cavity wall is exposed on three sides of the reveal, In this case, the former comprises a rectangular frame having three sides, each of which is in the form of a cavity closer element I and forth side adjacent to the position ofthe lintel which can either be dispensed with when the brickwork has reached the level of the lintel or which alternatively, may be a member which can seat against the lintel (not shown) Following the closure of the cavities, the window may be fitted to the prepared aperture, in accordance with the invention As may be seen from Figure 1 a PVC-U window frame member 2 has a channel 6 formed along the outer edge which retains the horns 7 of a steel anchorage member 8 which is more clearly illustrated in Figures 3 and 4 The end portion of the anchorage member remote from the horns 7 is provided with a returned edge to provide a substantially U-shaped formation 9.Prior to assembly the mouth of-the U-shaped formation is open as illustrated in Figure 4 Aligned holes 10 are pre-formed through the returned end portion of the limbs of the anchorage member for receiving fixings as hereafter described When a window aperture has been prepared using a former made up of cavity closer members 1 as described, it follows that in order to close the cavities exposed within the window reveal the associated flange members 4 are arranged to project towards the interior of the building to permit the window to be installed from the inside The direction of the flange may be reversed if it is desired to install the window from the exterior side.

A number of anchorage members 8 are secured at various positions by the engagement of the horns 7 in channel 6, the extending portions of the members 8 projecting towards the interior side of the frame.

The window may then be fitted by positioning the window in the window aperture until the returned end portions of the anchorage members 8 are engaged around the inwardly projecting edge of the flange 4 thus ensuring that the window is held truly and squarely within the window aperture The positioning of the window within the reveal may be readily adjusted be selecting the appropriate width of flange 4, which may be supplied as a wide component for trimming as required.

Alternatively, or in addition, the anchorage members 8 may be supplied in different lengths to accommodate different wall thickness or which may also be used to determine the depth of the window (or door) setting within a reveal When fitted as described the window unit may be simply fixed in position by means of masonry nails 11 which are inserted through apertures to in the anchorage members 8 to penetrate the structure beneath The anchorage members 8 are also furnished with tangs 11 within the returned end portion the limbs of which may be hammered or other vise urged together whereby the tangs are caused to pierce and grip the edge of flange 4 to provide a quick and easy method of fixing without the use of nails or screws. An installed window or other article may if necessary be removed simplv by locating and cutting through the various anchorage means to permit the unit to be lifted away

Claims

What we claim is: 1. A door or window assembly or a kit of parts therefor comprising a window or door frame, anchorage means which can be mounted around the periphery of the frame to project outwardly from the plane of the frame, and frame retaining means which are dimensioned and arranged in use to project outwardly from the plane of the frame, the frame retaining means being fixed in use within the door or window reveal, the projecting anchorage means being adapted to engage the outwardly projecting portion of the frame retaining means when the door or window frame or the like is presented to the door or window opening
2. A door or window assembly as claimed in claim 1 in which the frame retaining means is a member which is adapted to close a cavity between inner and outer leaves of a cavity wall in which the door or window aperture is provided.
3. A door or window assembly as claimed in Claim 2 in which the frame retaining means is in the form of a rectangular member at least two sides of which are each adapted to close an adjacent cavity when located within a door or window reveal formed in a cavity wall.
4. A door or window assembly as claimed in claim 3 in which at least two of the opposed sides of the rectangular member are formed from hollow extrusions of an insulating material which are dimensioned and arranged so as to fit between the inner and outer leaves of the cavity wall each of the said hollow extrusions being provided with flange means which at least partly lining a side of the reveal, the said flange means being disposed and arranged for engagement with the anchorage means projecting from an edge of a window or door frame.
5 A window or door assembly as claimed in claim 4 in which the anchorage means are in the form of hook formations attached to the periphery of the window or door frame and arranged to project towards the interior of the building so that the window or door frame may be moved towards engagement with the frame retaining means from a position within the interior of the building.
6. An assembly as claimed in Claim 5 in which aligned holes are provided in limbs of the hook formation through which nail or other fixing may pass
7. An assembly as claimed in claim 5 or 6 in which the anchorage means are provided with means which are adapted to retain the said anchorage means in a formation provided on the edge portion of the window or door frame.

8 An assembly as claimed in any preceding claim in which the frame retaining means include stop means which in use abut the marginal edge portion of the frame on the side of the frame opposite the side from which the anchorage means project 9. An assembly as claimed in Claim 8 in which the stop means is in the form of a member provided with an upstanding lip for abutment with the marginal edge of the frame, and a web portion which in use extends between the frame and the frame retaining means 10. An assembly as claimed in claim 9 in which the position of the lip may be varied by fixing the web to the frame retaining means when the lip is in a desired position.

11 An assembly substantially as described and illustrated with reference to the accompanying drawings