Gutter protector

Abstract

A gutter protector for keeping debris and insects out of the interior of a gutter comprises a plurality of flexible elongated gutter protector members formed of a porous open-cell foam, the foam incorporating therein an anti-microbial agent and a UV inhibitor. The members are formed in sections of predetermined length that are shaped to fit in predetermined gutter shapes. Each member has a recessed portion in a lower side that is spaced away from the gutter. The recessed portion is substantially isolated from the exterior of the protector member so as to permit water to flow unobstructed through the gutter without admitting insects to the interior of the recessed portion. For a conventional gutter shape, the gutter protector desirably has a generally right triangular cross section with a flat top and a tapered edge that fits under a front lip of the gutter.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is based on and claims the benefit of the filing date of Applicant's co-pending application Ser. No. 60/541,637, filed Feb. 4, 2004, which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an improved gutter protector that permits water to flow freely through the gutter but prevents accumulation of debris in the gutter and prevents birds, mosquitoes, wasps, and other insects from nesting in the gutter.

The clogging of rain gutters with leaves and other debris is a perennial problem. A number of devices have been developed to fit in or cover the top of a gutter to prevent leaves from falling in the gutter, while at the same time admitting water into the gutter. Many of these are expensive or difficult to install or both. In addition, some require attachment to the roof structure, which can void the warranty of a new roof. Others provide incomplete protection. Most gutter protectors do not prevent mosquitoes from breeding in standing water in the gutter. In addition, most gutter protectors do not restrict the growth of mildew and mold in the gutter. Many gutter protectors deteriorate relatively rapidly over time.

The object of the present invention is to provide a cost effective, easy to install gutter protector that both eliminates the accumulation of debris in the gutter and shields the interior of the gutter from access by birds or insects and restricts the development of mold, mildew, and the like.

The advantages of the present invention are that the product is cost effective and can be installed by an ordinary homeowner easily and quickly with no special tools. The product does not require attachment to a roof structure, which can void a roof warranty. The anti-microbial agent incorporated in the foam restricts the development of mildew and mold in the foam, and the UV protection limits sun damage. The interior of the gutter is shielded from access by birds, mosquitoes, wasps, and other insects. A major location for mosquito breeding is thus denied with the present invention. This is of particular significance with the more serious illnesses, such as West Nile virus, that are propagated by mosquitoes.

These and other advantages and features of the present invention will become apparent from a description of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, which is described in detail below and shown in the appended drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a gutter system in which the gutter protector of the present invention is being installed.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along lines 2-2 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of one block of the gutter protector of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is an end view of the gutter protector of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is an end view of a modified gutter protection member.

FIG. 6 is an end view of another modified gutter projector member.

FIG. 7 is a cross sectional view of a gutter protector member used in a semicircular gutter supported by a bottom bracket.

FIG. 8 is an end view of another modified gutter protector.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with the present invention, an improved gutter protector for protecting the interior of a gutter comprises a plurality of elongated, flexible, porous, open-cell foam members adapted to fit end to end in the interior of the gutter. The foam members have an upper surface that extends over the upper surface of the gutter, preventing debris from accumulating in the gutter and denying access to the interior of the gutter to mosquitoes, wasps, and other insects, while at the same time readily admitting water through the foam members into the interior of the gutter. In one aspect of the invention, the foam members have a generally triangular cross section, with a wedge-shape front edge that wedges under the front edge of the gutter while providing an open passageway at the bottom of the foam members for water to flow unobstructed through the gutter. The foam members have a lower surface or edge that contacts a portion of the bottom of the gutter, with the bottom surface preferably being no more than about one half of the width of the bottom surface of the gutter, leaving the other portion free for unobstructed flow of water therethrough.

The foam members are formed of a resilient, readily flexible open-cell foam. The foam is soft and pliable, and readily can be conformed to fit under or over gutter attachment devices employed for attaching the gutter to a house or other structure. The foam members are desirably shaped to conform with gutters of particular sizes, with the foam being readily compressible when necessary to fit under or around gutter brackets and into gutters of different sizes. An exterior grade polyurethane foam is preferred.

The polyurethane foam desirably includes an anti-microbial agent that is incorporated in the foam during manufacture. This restricts the development of mold, mildew, and the like.

The foam members of the present invention also include a UV protective agent that reduces UV radiation damage to the exposed foam.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring to the drawings, a gutter protection system 10 is shown in FIG. 1 in the process of being installed in a gutter 12 attached to a structure 14, such as a house at a lower edge of a roof 16. A downspout 18 extends downwardly from an end of a gutter through a hole 20 in the bottom of the gutter.

Gutter 12 is attached to the roof structure in the exemplary embodiment by gutter spikes 22. In a typical installation, gutter spikes or gutter support brackets are positioned about 18-24 inches apart and extend from a lip 24 at an upper edge of a front side 26 of the gutter to an upper edge of a rear side 28 of the gutter. A bottom of the gutter connects lower edges of the front and rear sides of the gutter and forms a trough. In the explemplary embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2, the backside of the gutter is substantially vertical and the front side is provided with a contoured arch, shaped for decorative purposes. A semicircular gutter 71 is shown in FIG. 7. Gutters are formed in a wide range of shapes and sizes, and the gutters disclosed herein are merely exemplary of the types of gutters in which the present invention can be used.

Other types of gutter attachment devices are brackets that either extend over the top of the gutter or fit under the gutter or extend inside the gutter. The present invention will work with any type of gutter or gutter bracket. The size and shape of the gutter members can be modified for any particular gutter shapes and sizes.

The gutter protector system comprises a series of individual elongated members 32 formed of resilient, flexible open-cell foam material, preferably a commercially available exterior grade polyurethane foam. This polyurethane foam has the characteristics of cushion material and is contrasted with a rigid foam material, which is undesirable in the present invention.

The foam material of the present invention is readily porous. This will permit a very high flow rate of water, equivalent to over 24 inches of rain per hour. This is twice the highest-ever recorded rainfall and much more than other gutter systems can handle.

Members 32 of the gutter protector of the present invention desirably are about twice the length of the attachment devices for holding the gutter to the roof. Because normal gutter spike spacing is about 18-24 inches, gutter protector members normally are formed in 48-inch lengths. Thus, a gutter protector can be installed as in FIG. 2 under two gutter spikes or other attachment devices, so that the gutter attachment devices hold both ends of the protector members in place. The extreme pliability of the protector members make them easily deformable so that they can be bent and deformed as desired to be wedged into place under the attachment devices in a gutter.

While the sections desirably are pre-formed at desired lengths, they could be formed in a continuous length and packaged in a roll, with the individual sections of desired length being cut to length at the work site.

Members 32 are shaped so that they cover the entire upper surface of the gutter, while the bottom portion of the gutter remains relatively unobstructed for water flow along the bottom of the gutter. Members 32 each include an upper surface 34, a rear surface 36 extending downwardly from the rear edge of the upper surface, a lower surface 38 extending along the bottom 30 of the gutter, and a front surface 40 extending upwardly and outwardly from the front edge of the bottom surface to the front edge of the top surface. The lower surface desirably extends only a portion of the way across the bottom of the gutter, and then extends upwardly at an angle to the front edge of the gutter, leaving an unobstructed open space 42 on the underside of the front portion of the gutter protector for unobstructed water flow through the gutter. As shown in FIG. 2, the lower surface of the protector extends over only about one half the hole 20 for the downspout, thus assuring that water will always have an unobstructed path to the downspout.

The upwardly inclined, wedge-shaped front edge of gutter member 32 ensures that the protector will cover the top of the gutter, while providing a somewhat thinner front edge of the protector member. This provides improved water flow characteristics through the trough. However, the porosity of the polyurethane is sufficient to permit adequate water to flow through the protector members, even if the protector members were to be substantially thicker.

As stated previously, a commercial grade exterior polyurethane foam is employed in the present invention. An anti-microbial additive desirably is incorporated in the foam. This restricts the development of mildew, moss, and other fungi in the gutter. The additive is available commercially in the urethane product.

In the present invention, the foam also incorporates an additive to restrict the effects of ultraviolet (UV) rays on the product. A UV protection additive usually is not present in polyurethane foam but provides an advantage in the present invention, retarding the deterioration of the foam from sunlight exposure.

With the wedge-shaped front edge of the gutter, the front edge 44 is relatively narrow. This flexible, narrow edge fits in the interior of concave lip 24 of the front edge of the gutter, thus ensuring that the gutter protector covers the entire upper surface of the gutter. The gutter protector desirably is formed so that it just fills the gutter and is not substantially compressed. Excess compression can reduce porosity. While the gutter protector could be somewhat larger so that it is compressed somewhat in installation, this is not necessary.

Two other embodiments of the wedge shaped gutter protector are shown in FIGS. 5 and 6. Gutter protector 50, shown in FIG. 5, is similar to protector member 32 of FIG. 1 but the lower edge 52 is narrower than lower surface 38 of member 32. This lower edge is wide enough that it provides some base support for the member but it leaves most of the bottom of the gutter unobstructed. This lower edge 52 may be narrow enough such that it fits on gutter ridge 54 adjacent downspout opening 20 without extending over and obstructing the downspout opening and minimizing the obstruction of the bottom of the gutter. This lower edge preferably has some width so that the lower edge supports the protector member without undue compression of the edge. The lower edge desirably is about 0.5 to 1.0 inches wide for most common installations.

In FIG. 6, protector member 60 is similar in shaped to member 50, except that the front vertical edge has a narrow flat portion 62. This facilitates the installation or enhances the fit of the member in certain gutters, such as a 5 inch K style, a 6 inch K style, or a 5 inch fascia style. Portion 62 typically may be about one-quarter (¼) to three eighths (⅜) inches wide in common installations. All of the members 32, 50, and 60 are considered to be generally triangular in cross section, even though the edges may have flat portions.

Another protector member configuration 70 is shown in FIG. 7. This is for a half-round gutter 71. Generally, such gutters are supported by half-round brackets 72 from underneath the gutter. Member 70 has a generally flat upper surface 74 and a half-round lower surface 76 that mates with the interior of gutter 71. An arcuate channel 78 is provided in the bottom of the member to permit unobstructed water flow along the gutter. Because the gutter support bracket is under the gutter and the gutter therefore does not have upper gutter spikes or support brackets to hold the protector member in the gutter, the protector member is held in place with intermittent spots 79 of silicon adhesive or construction adhesive. These hold the members in place.

Still another gutter protector member configuration 80 is shown in FIG. 8. Member 80 is shaped to fit in a 4-inch U-shaped gutter. Member 80 has a flat top 82 and spaced legs 84, with inwardly tapered surfaces 86 on the outside of the legs. The legs have bases 88 at lower ends of the legs, and an arcuate open channel 90 is formed in the bottom side of the member.

While the present invention is disclosed herein in connection with typical gutter installations, it should be understood that the present invention can be employed with virtually any type of style of gutter. In order to install the present invention, a gutter is first cleaned. Then, the gutter protector members are installed in the gutter. To do this, the ends of the gutter protector are wedged under the supports (if the supports are on the top ridge of the gutter) at each end of the members, so that the gutter protector is held in place by two gutter supports and extends past the supports about halfway toward the next gutter supports. The process is repeated down the gutter, with each gutter protector being easily wedged into place by deforming the foam as necessary in order to fit the members into place in end-to-end contact alignment.

When the gutter protectors are all installed, they provide a protective cover is provided to the gutter that is not visible from the street. Moreover, the protector cannot be damaged by bending, denting, or cracking, like aluminum, and cannot be damaged by ice and snow, falling tree limbs, or high winds. No nails or screws are required, and there is no danger of losing a roof warranty. Moreover, homeowners can re-shingle a house without removing or destroying the gutter protection.

The filtering effects of the gutter protector are sufficient to protect even the smallest debris from passing through the gutter protector. Thus, this also protects downspouts from accumulation or clogs caused by gutter sludge. This saves plumbing fees that are often incurred by homeowners.

It should be understood that the foregoing is merely representative of the preferred practice of the present invention and that various changes and modifications may be made in the arrangements and details of construction of the embodiments disclosed herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A gutter protector for keeping debris and insects out of the interior of a gutter comprising:

a plurality of flexible elongated gutter protector members formed of a porous open-cell foam, the foam incorporating therein an anti-microbial agent and a UV inhibitor, the members being formed in sections of predetermined length, the members being shaped to fit in a predetermined gutter shape, each member having a recessed portion in a lower side thereof that is spaced away from the gutter and allows water to flow unobstructed therethrough, the recessed portion being substantially isolated from the exterior of the protector member so as to permit water to flow unobstructed through the gutter without admitting insects to the interior of the recessed portion.

2. A gutter protector as in claim 1 wherein the protector members have generally triangular cross sections.

3. A gutter protector as in claim 2 wherein the protector members have right triangular cross sections, with a right angle edge being at an upper rear edge of the gutter.

4. A gutter protector as in claim 1 wherein the protector members have half-round lower sides with recesses in the lower sides.

5. A gutter protector for restricting leaf accumulation in a gutter, wherein the gutter includes an enclosed bottom portion and an open top, the gutter being suspended on a structure by attachment devices that are spaced a predetermined distance apart and extend between front and back upper edges of the gutters and are attached to the structure, the gutter protector comprising a plurality of elongated, flexible, porous, open-cell foam members shaped to fit end-to-end in the interior of the gutter, each member having an upper surface, a lower surface, a rear surface, and a front surface, the lower surface being substantially narrower than the bottom of the gutter so that the lower surface abuts only a portion of a bottom of the gutter, leaving an open portion of the gutter that is at least substantially unobstructed for liquid flow, the lower surface being positioned adjacent a rear side of the gutter, the top surface extending across the top of the gutter between the front and rear sides thereof, the rear side extending downwardly between rear ends of the upper and lower surfaces in abutment with a rear side of the gutter, the front surface of the member extending upwardly and outwardly at an inclined angle from a front edge of the bottom surface to a front edge of the upper surface of the member, the portion of the front surface of the member below the upper front edge being spaced away from a front side of the gutter, providing a rain flow cavity between the member and front side of the gutter, the member being formed of a readily deformable flexible foam material that can be deformed to fit in the gutter and under the support structure therein and to adapt to the shape of the gutter at the upper surface thereof.