MOISTURE BARRIER HOLD-DOWN DEVICE, SYSTEM, AND METHOD
A hold-down nail includes two portions, a stake and a washer, that function in combination to secure a sheet or cover over some type of material, such as an earthen material, and thereby protects the material from the elements and prevents movement of the material due to wind, rain, snow, etc. or foot or other type of traffic over the material.
The present application claims the benefit of copending U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/220,805, filed Jun. 26, 2009, which application is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
TECHNICAL FIELDEmbodiments of the present invention relate generally to devices for securing a cover in place over some object to be protected by the cover.
BACKGROUNDSituations arise in a variety of different contexts where some object, such as a pile of dirt or some other material, is located outdoors and is to be protected from the elements, namely wind, rain, snow, etc. Standard hold-down or anchoring systems for the material consist of sandbags lined or connected together in a daisy-chain fashion with rope and placed at 8-10 foot centers across some sort of cover placed over the material to be protected. This sandbagging method requires: i) bags, rope, sand, and labor to fill and tie the bags; ii) labor to transport the heavy bags to the proper location; and iii) labor to tie the bags together to prevent the bags from sliding off the sometimes steep sides of the stockpile of material being protected. When the stockpile of material being protected is ready to be uncovered and used, the sandbags and cover are removed or disposed of due to ultra violet degradation. Typically at this point, however, the sandbags will have holes which make them unusable on another job during their time spent in position on the cover or due to wooden stakes being driven through them to hold them in position. Thus, the sandbags must typically be disposed of after only one use. Accordingly, improved methods and devices are needed to more easily and economically protect stockpiles of material.
SUMMARYA hold-down nail includes two portions, a stake and a washer, that function in combination to secure a sheet or cover over some type of material, such as an earthen material, and thereby protects the material from the elements and prevents movement of the material due to wind, rain, snow, etc., or foot or other type of traffic over the material.
According to one embodiment of the present invention, a hold-down nail includes a stake including a shaft having a longitudinal axis extending along a length of the shaft. The shaft also has a head end and a penetrating end and has at least one adjustment tab extending longitudinally along at least a portion of the length of the shaft. A hold-down washer includes an opening having at least one adjustment slot formed at a periphery of the opening. The hold-down washer receives the penetrating end of the shaft through the opening and slides along the longitudinal axis of the shaft towards the head end. Each adjustment slot of the hold-down washer engages or disengages a corresponding adjustment tab at defined points along the shaft and thereby enables the hold-down washer to be locked in multiple longitudinal positions along the shaft. Other embodiments include systems utilizing such nails in combination with a cover and methods of securing such covers to a material to be protected.
With the moisture barrier hold-down nail, the only tool required to install the cover 202 is a 2-pound hammer or other suitable tool that can be utilized to pound the stake 102 into the cover 202. The two-piece design of the moisture barrier hold-down nail 100 allows a large quantity of stakes 102 and washers 104 to be easily transported in a burlap or similar bag. Each moisture barrier hold-down nail 100 is easily installed with a few blows of the hammer. Removal of the moisture barrier hold-down nails 100 is also quick and easy, with the moisture barrier hold-down nails being pulled out and placed into the transport bags for easy transport to the next location or to a storage area for subsequent use. In this way, the moisture barrier hold-down nails 100 may be reused numerous times.
The stake 102 further includes a number of adjustment tabs 306 formed on a shaft 300 and extending longitudinally along a portion of the length L of the shaft. As seen referring back to
The hold-down washer 104 includes opening 305 and also has at least one adjustment slot 307 formed at the periphery of the opening The adjustments slots 307 are circumferentially spaced around the periphery of the opening 305 such that each of the adjustment slots 307 can be aligned with a corresponding adjustment tab 306 on the shaft 300. The hold-down washer 104 receives the penetrating end 304 of the shaft 300 through the opening 305 and slides along the longitudinal axis LA of the shaft towards the head portion 302 of the shaft. In the embodiment of
Conversely, the adjustment slots 307 of the hold-down washer 104 are said to “disengage” the adjustment tabs 306 on the shaft when aligned with the adjustment slots such that the washer, even upon reaching the second ends 308 of the adjustment tabs, continues sliding longitudinally towards the head portion 302 and finally stops upon reaching the head portion 302. In this way the adjustment tabs 306 and adjustment slots 307 operate in combination to enable the hold-down washer 104 to be locked in multiple longitudinal positions along the shaft 300. Note that in the embodiment of
The adjustment tabs 306 and adjustment slots 307 in the washer 104 (
In another embodiment the adjustment tabs 306 extend farther down the shaft 300 and include locking slots 314 formed in selected longitudinal locations along the shaft. Once again, this is illustrated in
The stakes and washers of the moisture barrier hold-down nail in embodiments of the present invention may be formed from a variety of different materials, such as steel, aluminum, or impact resistant plastic or any other suitable material. Impact resistant plastic would in many situations be advantageous due to its lighter weight and lower cost, particularly relative to sandbags. Furthermore, when the moisture barrier hold-down nails are formed from impact resistant plastic they can be stored in wet locations indefinitely without significant damage to the moisture barrier hold-down nail 100. The labor savings for installation and removal are substantial compared to the sandbag method and the moisture barrier hold-down nails are reusable.
The washer 104 may be manufactured in various sizes depending on the thickness and durability of the cover 202 (
Various sizes of the moisture barrier hold-down nail 100 can be formed for different applications. In one embodiment, a smaller version of the moisture barrier hold-down nail 100 is used for securing sheets of plastic of other covers in crawl spaces of homes and for “underslab” vapor barriers prior to placing rebar, insulation and concrete. The moisture barrier hold-down nail 100 in another application is used by landscapers to secure weed block fabrics or filter fabrics prior to installing topsoil or mulch. Note that the stake 102 and washer 104 may physically be two separate components as illustrated in the embodiment of
In the present description, certain details are set forth in conjunction with the described embodiments of the present invention to provide a sufficient understanding of the invention. One skilled in the art will appreciate, however, that the invention may be practiced without these particular details. Furthermore, one skilled in the art will appreciate that the example embodiments described herein do not limit the scope of the present invention, and will also understand that various modifications, equivalents, and combinations of the disclosed embodiments and components of such embodiments are within the scope of the present invention. Embodiments including fewer than all the components of any of the respective described embodiments may also be within the scope of the present invention although not expressly described in detail herein. Finally, the operation of well-known components and/or processes has not been shown or described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the present invention.
Claims
1. A hold-down nail, comprising:
- a stake including a shaft having a longitudinal axis extending along a length of the shaft, the shaft also having a head end and a penetrating end and having at least one adjustment tab extending longitudinally along at least a portion of the length of the shaft; and
- a hold-down washer including an opening having at least one adjustment slot formed at a periphery of the opening, the hold-down washer adapted to receive the penetrating end of the shaft through the opening and to slide along the longitudinal axis of the shaft towards the head end, and each adjustment slot of the hold-down washer being operable to engage or disengage a corresponding adjustment tab at defined points along the shaft and thereby enable the hold-down washer to be locked in multiple longitudinal positions along the shaft.
2. The hold-down nail of claim 1,
- wherein the shaft of the stake has a first diameter;
- wherein each adjustment tab has a first end proximate the head end and a second end nearer the penetrating end;
- wherein the stake includes a head portion at the head end of the shaft, the head portion having a second diameter that is greater than the first diameter; and
- wherein the opening of the hold-down washer has a third diameter that is greater than the first diameter and less than the second diameter, and wherein the hold-down washer is adapted to slide along the longitudinal axis of the shaft towards the head end and, when each adjustment slot of the hold-down washer is not aligned with a corresponding adjustment tab of the shaft, to engage the second end of each adjustment tab to lock the hold-down washer in a first longitudinal position and, when each adjustment slot is aligned with a corresponding adjustment tab of the shaft, to slide along the longitudinal axis of the shaft and engage the head portion to lock in a second longitudinal position.
3. The hold-down nail of claim 2,
- wherein the shaft of the stake is cylindrical, and
- wherein the adjustment tabs extend radially from a surface of the cylindrical shaft and have a fourth diameter that is less than the second diameter of the head portion.
4. The hold-down nail of claim 3, wherein each adjustment tab is tapered at the second end of the adjustment tab.
5. The hold-down nail of claim 3,
- wherein each adjustment tab has the fourth diameter for a first longitudinal portion of the adjustment tab, and
- wherein each adjustment tab has a fifth diameter for a second longitudinal portion of the adjustment tab, the fifth diameter being less than the fourth diameter.
6. The hold-down nail of claim 4, wherein the head portion of the shaft of the stake is a circular-shaped disk having a thickness, and wherein the head portion includes a plurality of holes extending through the circular-shaped disk from one end to the other, the diameters of these holes being less than the thickness of the disk.
7. The hold-down nail of claim 1, wherein the penetrating end of the shaft includes a tapered end portion.
8. The hold-down nail of claim 1, wherein the hold-down washer is circular-shaped with the opening formed in the center of the circular-shaped washer.
9. The hold-down nail of claim 8, wherein the hold-down washer comprises:
- an outer circumferential ring at a first radial distance from the center of the hold-down washer and having an outer radial edge defining a diameter of the hold-down washer and having an inner radial edge;
- an inner circumferential ring at a second radial distance that is less than the first radial distance; and
- a plurality of radial projections, each radial projection extending between the opening in the center of the circular-shaped washer and the inner radial edge of the outer circumferential ring.
10. The hold-down nail of claim 1, wherein the shaft of the stake further includes tapered retaining projections formed at selected points along the length of the shaft.
11. The hold-down nail of claim 1, wherein the stake is formed from a single molded plastic material and wherein the hold-down washer is also formed from a single molded piece of plastic material.
12. The hold-down nail of claim 1,
- wherein the hold-down washer is circular-shaped and the opening is circular-shaped and at the center of the hold-down washer;
- wherein the hold-down washer includes a plurality of adjustment slots formed around the periphery of the circular-shaped opening, each adjustment slot being a rectangular-shaped slot extending through a thickness of the hold-down washer; and
- wherein each of the adjustment tabs is also rectangular-shaped and adapted to fit within a corresponding adjustment slot.
13. A protection system for protecting a material from the elements, the system comprising:
- a protective cover; and
- a plurality of hold-down nails, each hold-down nail being adapted to penetrate through the cover to secure the cover in a desired position, and each hold-down nail comprising: a stake including a shaft having a longitudinal axis extending along a length of the shaft, the shaft also having a head end and a penetrating end and having at least one adjustment tab extending longitudinally along at least a portion of the length of the shaft; and a hold-down washer including an opening having at least one adjustment slot formed at a periphery of the opening, the hold-down washer adapted to receive the penetrating end of the shaft through the opening and to slide along the longitudinal axis of the shaft towards the head end, and each adjustment slot of the hold-down washer being operable to engage or disengage a corresponding adjustment tab at defined points along the shaft and thereby enable the hold-down washer to be locked in multiple longitudinal positions along the shaft.
14. The protection system of claim 13, wherein the protective cover includes a plurality of holes, each hole adapted to receive the stake of a respective hold-down nail to thereby allow the hold-down nails to penetrate through the cover in this way.
15. The protection system of claim 13, wherein the protective cover is placed over a material and secured in place over the material through the hold-down nails.
16. The protection system of claim 13, wherein the protective cover is plastic or other material.
17. A method of protecting a material from the elements, the method comprising:
- placing a protective cover over the material to be protected;
- adjusting the length of a plurality of hold-down nails; and
- forcing each of the hold-down nails through the cover and into the material to thereby secure the cover over the material and protect the cover from the elements.
18. The method of claim 17, wherein adjusting the length of a plurality of hold-down nails comprises:
- selecting a stake of each hold-down nail; and
- inserting a hold-down washer in a desired position along the length of the stake to thereby define effective length of the stake.
19. The method of claim 17, wherein forcing each of the hold-down nails through the cover and into the material comprises applying a force to a head end of each hold-down nail via a hammer.
20. The method of claim 17, wherein the elements comprise wind, rain, snow, and so on that may be present in an outdoor environment.
Type: Application
Filed: Jun 25, 2010
Publication Date: Dec 30, 2010
Inventor: Paul Duane KOSKOVICH (Sammamish, WA)
Application Number: 12/824,101
International Classification: E04B 1/92 (20060101); E02D 5/80 (20060101);