FLOOR RETENTION

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to edge finishing options for flooring installations.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A known challenge with replacing carpet flooring in an existing indoor space is fitting and securing the edge of the carpet in place around the perimeter of the room. In a room with baseboards running along the bottom of the walls, typical carpet installation involves attaching tack strips to the subfloor around the perimeter of the roof a short distance inward from the baseboards, stretching the edges of the carpet over the tack strips, trimming back the carpet edge, and then tucking the carpet edge between the baseboard and subfloor to conceal the trimmed edges beneath the baseboards.

Applicant has developed a unique carpet edging solution notably simplifying the carpet installation process, and also usable for edging of other flooring types.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a flooring installation comprising:

flooring laid atop a subfloor in a position leaving a gap between at least one perimeter edge of said flooring and a respectively adjacent wall structure standing upright from said subfloor; an edge moulding having a base stem and a cap disposed atop said base stem, said base stem reaching downwardly into the gap between the flooring and the adjacent wall structure, said cap having an inner lip jutting inwardly over the flooring from said base stem; and

double sided tape disposed between, and adhered to both, the base stem and the wall structure to adhesively secure said edge moulding to the wall structure.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of flooring installation, said method comprising:

in a gap between left between a wall structure standing upright from a subfloor and a perimeter edge of flooring laid atop said subfloor, inserting a base stem of an edge moulding that has a cap disposed atop said base stem; and

using double sided tape sandwiched between said base stem and said wall structure to provide an adhered connection of said edge moulding to the wall structure in an installed position placing an inner lip of said cap in overlying relation to the flooring, thereby using said inner lip of the cap to respectively conceal the perimeter edge of the flooring.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate exemplary embodiments of the present invention:

Figure 1 is a perspective end view of an edge moulding used in a flooring installation technique of the present invention. Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view of the edge moulding of Figure 1 during insertion thereof into a gap between a wall structure and a perimeter edge of flooring that is laid adjacent to said wall structure.

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of the edge moulding of Figure 2 being pressed against the wall structure once inserted into the gap to adhere the edge moulding to the wall structure using double sided tape.

Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of the edge moulding of Figure 3 in the fully installed position adhered to the wall structure, where the moulding conceals both the flooring edge and the double sided tape, and pinches an edge- proximate area of the flooring in place between the moulding and the subfloor.

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view similar to Figure 4, but illustrating optional attachment of the moulding directly to a wallboard of the wall structure in instances where the wall structure lacks a baseboard installed over said wallboard. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Figure 1 shows an extruded moulding 10 formed of polyvinyl chloride

(PVC) or other extrudable material. The moulding 10 has an elongated length in a longitudinal direction thereof denoted by longitudinal axis L. Over the entirety of its length, the moulding has a uniform shape in cross-sectional planes normal to the longitudinal axis L.

The cross-sectional shape of the moulding in these planes features a rectangular base stem 12 having an inner side 14, an opposing outer side 16, and a free bottom end 18. Integrally attached to the opposing end of the rectangular stem or base 12, which is shown in broken lines at E, is a cap 20 having a larger inner lip 22 that projects a notable distance to the inner side of the base stem 12, and a smaller outer lip 24 that juts a shorter distance from the base stem 12 to the outer side thereof. The moulding of the illustrated embodiment features a unitary body that defines the rectangular base stem and the cap as seamlessly integral parts of a whole. The illustrated embodiment of the moulding features a uniform material composition throughout, but co-extruded embodiments employing material variations in different layers or portions are contemplated within the scope of the present invention.

A bottom face 26 of the inner lip 22 slopes downwardly toward the innermost tip 22a of the outer lip 22 that lies distally of the base stem 12. The bottom face 26 of the inner lip 22 is thus obliquely sloped relative to the flat inner side 14 of the base stem 12. As shown, this bottom face 26 of the inner lip 22 may have a concave curvature spanning the majority of its width between the tip 22a of the inner lip 22 and the inner side 14 of the base stem 12. Whether concave or flat, the sloped configuration of the inner lip’s bottom face 26 creates a raised area 26a of the bottom face 28 of greater elevation than the distal tip 22a of the inner lip 22. An upper face 30 of the cap 20 convexly joins the distal tip 22a of the inner lip 22 to an outer end 32 of the outer lip 24, giving the cap a shape that widens from the point-like tip 22a of the inner lip 22 toward the base stem and outer lip 24. In the illustrated embodiment, the outer end 32 of the outer lip 24 has a stepped configuration, initially forming a flush continuation of the outer side 16 of the rectangular base stem 12, before stepping outwardly therefrom to form the jutting extent of the outer lip 24 at an upper portion thereof adjacent the upper face 30. Double sided foam tape 34 features adhesive at both of its opposing inner and outer surfaces 36, 38. The inner surface 36 of the tape is adhered to the outer side 16 of the base stem 12 of the moulding 10 over the full length thereof. In the illustrated embodiment, where the outer end 32 of the outer lip 24 has a stepped configuration, the width of the tape 34 is sufficient to fully span the combined height of the outer side 16 of the base stem 12 and the flush portion of the outer that lies flush with the outer side 16 of the base stem 12. The inner side 14 of the base stem 12 is free of any such tape or other adhesive. The adhesive outer surface 38 of the tape 34 is initially concealed and protected by a suitable liner (not shown), which is subsequently removed to prepare the moulding for installation in the manner described below.

VHB™ RP45(F) or other tapes from the RP series of VHB tapes commercially available from the 3M Company of St. Paul Minnesota may be used as the double sided tape of the moulding. This particular tape is a double sided, pressure sensitive, acrylic foam tape with a 0.045-inch thickness and a film-liner, although VHB tapes of other thicknesses and liner materials would likewise be suitable for use within the context of the present invention, as would tapes of comparable properties and performance, whether from 3M or other manufacturers.

The process of using the edge moulding 10 during installation of new floor carpeting is shown in Figures 2 through 4. Figure 2 shows carpet 40 laid atop a subfloor 42 in a position approaching, but stopping short of, a vertical wall structure 44 standing perpendicularly upward from the horizontal subfloor 42. In conventional fashion, the wall structure may feature a framework made up of horizontally running top and bottom plates intermittently connected by vertically standing studs, of which only the bottom plate 46 is shown in the drawings. Wall board 48, for example drywall sheeting, is laid over and fastened to the framework to form an exterior finishing layer of the wall structure. Baseboards 50 are fastened to the room-facing exterior surface of the wall board 48 at the bottom thereof to run horizontally along the joint between the wall structure 44 and subfloor 42.

In the present flooring installation technique, instead of cutting the carpet to a conventional size large enough to reach under the baseboard 50 at each wall structure of the room, the carpet is cut to an undersized dimension that stops slightly short of each wall structure 44 to leave a small gap G between the perimeter edge 52 of the carpet 40 and the wall structure 44. In the case of a baseboard equipped wall structure like that of the illustrated embodiment, this gap G resides between the perimeter edge 52 of the carpet 40 and the room-facing side of the baseboard 50. In embodiments where no baseboards are present, the gap is instead measured between the perimeter edge 52 of the carpet and the room-facing side of the wall board 48. The carpet is suitably cut so that the gap is width enough to accommodates the width dimension of the edge moulding’s base stem 12, as measured between the opposing inner and outer sides 14, 16 thereof. The inner side 14 of the base stem refers to the side thereof that faces inwardly into the room and away from the wall structure 44 in the installed position of the edge moulding, while the outer side 16 of the base stem refers to the side thereof that faces outwardly of the room toward the wall structure 44. A minimum clearance space S measured between the distal end 22a of the moulding’s inner lip 22 and a reference plane P occupied by the free bottom end 18 of the base stem 12 is less than an uncompressed thickness of the carpet. The uncompressed thickness refers to a thickness of the carpet T when in a default relaxed state free of any compressional loading in its thickness direction. The thickness of the illustrated carpet is a combined thickness of its backing 40a and pile 40b, whereas the carpet thickness in other embodiments may also include the added thickness of a carpet underlayment residing between the carpet backing 40a and the subfloor 42

With reference to Figure 2, the carpet is laid out in in position atop the subfloor 42. The lining is peeled off the wall-facing outer side 38 of the double sided tape 34 that was pre-applied to the moulding (either during factory production, or during installer preparation of the moulding), and the base stem 12 of the edge moulding 10 is inserted downwardly into the gap G between the carpet edge 52 and the wall structure 44 until the free bottom end 18 of the base stem reaches the subfloor, as shown in Figure 3. Now, the edge moulding is pushed outwardly away from the carpet edge 52 into abutment with the room-facing side of the wall structure 44, and more particularly into the room-facing side of the baseboard 50 in the illustrated embodiment. Over the full length of the moulding, which is cut to fully span the carpet edge and wall structure from one end of wall structure to the other (e.g. corner-to-corner of the room in question), the moulding is pressed firmly against the wall structure 44 to impart a tight bond between the double sided tape 34 and the wall structure 44, thereby securing the moulding in place in its installed position shown in Figure 4.

Since the minimum clearance space S between the reference plane P and the distal tip 22a of the inner lip 22 is less than the uncompressed carpet thickness, and because the moulding is pressed down into the gap G to achieve seated contact of the base stem against the subfloor, the available clearance space between the subfloor 42 of the tip 22a of the moulding’s inner lip 22 is also less than the uncompressed carpet thickness. As a result, an edge-proximate area of the carpet near, but spaced inwardly from, the perimeter edge 52 of the carpet is pinched into a compressed state between the subfloor 42 and the distal tip 22a of the moulding’s inner lip 22. This effectively clamps this edge-proximate area of the carpet downwardly against the subfloor to hold the carpet stationary.

Due to the sloped configuration of the inner lip’s bottom face 26, the amount of clearance space between the inner lip 22 and the reference plane P where the base stem 12 meets the subfloor 42 increases as you move away from the distal tip 22a toward the base stem 12. Accordingly, an edge-adjacent area of the carpet disposed between the pinched and the perimeter edge 52 is less compressed than the pinched area. The clearance space near the base stem of the moulding may actually exceed the carpet thickness, whereby the edge-adjacent area of the carpet is fully uncompressed, i.e. in a default relaxed state free of any compressive loading by the inner lip of the wall-mounted edge moulding 10. The less-compressed, or fully uncompressed, edge-adjacent area of the carpet thus has a greater thickness than the pinched area of the carpet, and this greater carpet thickness at the edge-adjacent area prevents the carpet edge from being pulled out from under the inner lip 22 of the edge moulding 10.

In the installed position of the edge moulding, the inner lip 22 reaches inwardly over the carpet from the perimeter edge 52 thereof, thus concealing the carpet edge 52 from site. At the same time, the upper portion of the outer lip 24 of the edge moulding projects outwardly from the base stem 12 by a distance equal to the thickness of the double sided tape 34. Accordingly, the outwardly stepped area 32a of the outer lip 24 abuts tightly against the wall structure 44 to also conceal the double sided tape 34 from sight. The moulding 10 thus provides a clean finished edge to the carpet without the hassle of cutting the carpet to fit in a tucked manner beneath the baseboard. The pinched state of the carpet beneath the inner lip 22 of the edge moulding and the subfloor 42 may be sufficient to also eliminate or reduce the need for tack strips, thus further simplifying the carpet installation process.

The illustrated embodiment shows the baseboard 50 as reaching fully down to the subfloor, thus demonstrating that the installation technique disclosed herein may be used regardless of whether the carpet is being installed in the presence of existing baseboards beneath which a vertical gap has been left by removal of prior flooring. The height of the tape-lined area of the edge moulding is sufficient to exceed any such vertical gap that would be expected in a typical flooring removal context so that the edge moulding can be adhered to the baseboard regardless of the presence of a vertical gap between the baseboard and subfloor. In addition, the moulding can alternatively be adhered directly to the wallboard 48, as shown in Figure 5, for example in instances where the baseboard has been removed with the prior flooring, or in instances where no baseboard was ever present. The edge moulding can also be used in the context of new builds, where no prior flooring has been removed, or in cases where the new flooring is laid down over previously installed flooring.

The extruded material of the moulding has a degree of flexibility allowing curving or bending thereof across its longitudinal axis so that it can conform to non-planar deviations in the wall structure to avoid any gaps between the edge moulding and the wall structure over the length thereof. Similarly, this flexibility enables the moulding to conform with the subfloor, even where gradually sloped dips or rises may occur due to subfloor imperfections, whereby the moulding can close off any gaps between the bottom of the baseboard/wallboard and the subfloor at such areas, thus being helpful to prevent admission of insects, air drafts, etc.

As non-limiting examples of suitable materials, the extruded moulding of the present invention may be made of Geon™ Vinyl Dry Blend E7456 rigid polyvinyl chloride or Geon™ Vinyl Rigid Extrusion 87416 rigid polyvinyal chloride, both available from PolyOne Corporation of Avon Lake Ohio and each having a durometer hardness of 82 on the Shore D scale. These materials are High impact, gloss, UV, chemical resistant, window grade PVC materials, that are very weather, mildew, mold, and chemical resistant compounds. While it is possible that mold can grow on this compound, it will not seep into, saturate, or stain the material. Any accumulation can be thoroughly removed simply by disinfecting and wiping off the material to remove mold, mildew etc. The material can be used with household cleaners such as Mr. Clean™, Windex™, Lysol™ etc, without harming the material characteristics.

While the illustrated embodiment is described in terms of carpeting, the same edge moulding may be used with other types of flooring, including both compressible types of flooring where the minimum clearance space of the molding can be made intentionally less than the flooring thickness to impart a pinch-exerting compression force for fully or partially holding the flooring in place, or non- compressible flooring types (stone, tile, etc.) where the inner lip sits atop, or in close proximity to the topside of the flooring, but exerts no compressive pinching action, and instead exerts minimal or zero compressive force on the flooring. In such instances, the clearance space may intentionally equal or exceed the flooring thickness so that the base stem still rests on the subfloor, or the tape-equipped outer side of the base stem may simply be adhered to the wall in a position elevating the bottom end of the base stem up off the subfloor.

Since various modifications can be made in my invention as herein above described, and many apparently widely different embodiments of same made within the scope of the claims without departure from such scope, it is intended that all matter contained in the accompanying specification shall be interpreted as illustrative only and not in a limiting sense.