US2341645A - Tiling - Google Patents

Description

F eb. 15, '1944.

c. G. MUENCH TILING Filed May 16, 1940 Patented Feb. 15, 1944 TILING Carl G. Muench, New Orleans, La., assigner to The Celotex Corporation, Chicago, Ill., a corporation oi' Delaware Application May 16, 1940, Serial No. 335,437

1 Claim.

This invention relates to tile, particularly to tiling for an ornamental ceiling or wall surface, and has for its principal object to provide a tile vand structure made therewith which will be cheap to manufacture and more convenient in use than v those heretofore proposed.

Another object of the invention is to provide a and the front lip a support for the complementally formed tongue which also provides a protective edge for the member, and when contiguous members are erected a concealed nailing or securing joint is formed.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel tile having an inclined nailing surface and a horizontal supported surface at an opposite edge thereof, whereby a complementary tongue comprising the horizontal supported surface which is formed is adapted to be readily inserted into a V shaped groove of a contiguous tile provided by the inclined nailing plane and a horizontal supporting surface similarly formed as the horizontal supported surface to support the contiguous tile in its erected position.

A further object'of the invention is to provide a novel tile construction'wherein the elongated lip providing the inclined nailing surface as well as thetongue and itsv horizontal supporting plane provides a protective edge about the ornamental face of the tile, as well'as a concealed or blind nailing joint when erected in abutting relation- .l

ship with contiguous tile.

With these and other objects in view, the invention resides in the novel details of construction and combination of parts as will be disclosed more fully hereinafter and particularly pointed out in the claim.

Referring to the accompanying drawing forming a part of the specification and in which like numerals designate like parts in all the views:

Figure 1 is a'viewv in elevation illustrating tile applied by the use of furring strips to joists or to a plastered wall construction:

Figure 2 is a perspective view, partlyI in section, of the tile looking at'the'tile as applied to a ceiling;v

Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view along the line 3 3 of Figure 1 and looking in the direction oi the arrows showing the details oi' the blind nailing joint construction; and,

Figure 4 is an enlarged sectional view illus- (Cl. 144-309) Y trating the blind nailing joint construction and the indurationat the joint.

This invention is directed to a tile so constructed that a plurality of similar tile may be laid in edge abutting relation in the construction of floors and walls, each tile having a blind nailing joint construction whereby each tile may be aillxed into the floor, wall, ceiling construction or the like without the securing-means showing at the surface of the tile. It is preferred that each tile has an interlocking and/or wedging joint construction about the edges thereof so that contiguous tile-when in abutting relation, will form a concealed or blind nailing joint construction.

Another important feature of the invention is that in erecting the tile theymay -be started either from the edge of the room or from the center of the room, depending upon the pattern to be laid. Each tile may be vof any suitable material, either of one piece construction or made as a laminated structure, and may be of dimenf sions preferably multiples of 12" or 16", whereby with the use of different sizes of tile, variegated patterns may be formed for an ornamental wall or ceiling.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, tile I0 are erected preferably, as best illustrated in Figure 1, Aby rst erecting furring strips' H to jolsts I2 in a new' ceiling or a wall construction or the tile may `be' directly affixed to furring stripsll which are directly affixed to plaster .I3 or the like construction, the latter, particularly where thetile are used for renovating the surface of a room. Although this form of tile is used particularly for providing ornamental surfaces of the walls and ceiling of a room, obviously the same construction may be used equally aswell for laying tile on a flioor construction. It is preferred that the tile 0 shapes may be used or the tile may be in various multiples of a unit dimension such as 6' or 8" and suitably combined for forming various geometrical patterns. The upper or exposedv face of each tile may be plain or ornamented and either planar or embossed, and thetilef illustrated in Figure 1 are formed with a chamfered edge |4- to make a more pleasing appearance while reducing to a minimum the possibilityfof chipping of the edges or of presenting sharp edges in the finished surface of the tiling.

Referring to Figures 2 and 4, the preferred form of the tile I0 and its joint construction will be described in detail. The edges of the tile are preferably formed with a modiiied form of tongue shall be square in shape, though tile of other and groove. as best illustrated in Figure 4, so that a blind nailing joint construction is formed. It is preferred that each tile shall have two adjacent edges with a modified tongue construction I while the other two adjacent and opposite edges are formed with a modified groove construction I6. In the preferred form of the tile construction, the thickness of the tile is substantially one-half of an inch. In describing the various layers making up the modified tongue and groove construction, for the purpose of description, each tile will be described as formed in three layers, and each layer may be considered as substantially onethird of the thickness of the tile. The tile is preferably bevelled along its face edges to a depth of one-third the thickness of the tile, as illustrated at I4, Figures 1, 3 and 4. The tongue construction and the groove construction I5 and I6 respectively, each form another one-third of the thickness of the tileto give rigidity to the tongue and groove construction. The tongue construction I5 has a tongue I1 having one face, that construction serves as a support lfor contiguous tile when erected in this manner. As the contiguous tile are erected in-place, as illustrated in the enlarged view, Figure 4, the face I8 of the tongue I1 slides over the horizontal surface 2l of the groove 23 so that the surface 2| of the groove 23 serves to support the contiguous tile due. to surface I8 resting on the surface 2| and is therefore supported by the groove construction of the tile which is alxed to the furring strip. The description which has been given obviously refers to a construction where the tile are applied to a ceiling construction, and obviously when directed toward the exposed face of the tile formed to provide a horizontal supported surface I8, parallel to but rearwardly of the tile face. The opposite face or rear face of the tongue I1 has an inclined notch portion I9 rabbeted or recessed inwardly from the rear face of the tile and complementally formed with respect to the inclined nailing Vsurface 20 constituting the front face of the rear lip defining the groove I6. The surface of the front lip opposite to the rear lip providing the inclined nailing surface of the groove construction I6 is horizontally formed as at 2| to provide a horizontal supporting surface for the tongue I1 of the contiguous tile and ls complementally formed with respect to the horizontal surface I8 thereof. The increased thickness formed at the blind nailing joint, as at 20. allows for the necessary frictional gripping of the material to the nails 22. When erected as illustrated in Figure 3 with the nails 22 driven through this portion of the increased thickness, the nail 22 and the tile IIJ are aixed to a furring strip II.

On tile, the modified groove constructions I6 are formed so that they are complemental with the tongue constructions I5 which are opposite to and adjacent to each other so that when contiguous tile are abutted together form what is known as a blindnailing construction. The modified groove construction I6 is chamfered as at I4 similar to the chamfer formed at the tongue construction I5. The groove construction I6 has a groove 23 complementally formed with respect to the tongue I1, that is, there is the horizontal surface 2l corresponding to the similarly formed horizontal surface I8 of the tongue construction I5. The inclined blind nailing surface 20 of the groove 23 is complementally formed with respect to the notch or recess I9 of the tongue construction I5. As illustrated in Figure 4, it is obvious that with the construction illustrated, a neat as well as concealed joint is formed when contigu-4 ous tile with complemental edges are abutted together.

With this novel form of joint construction, it

' is evident that, as the tile I0 is erected in place they are supported in a floor construction, the inclined nailing surface 20 will support the complementing surface of a tongue of a contiguous tile while it is being nailed in position by means of the groove construction opposite thereto.

I'n connection with tile provided with the novel tongue and groove described, it is evident that the tile may be rapidly applied and that when erected, the securing means are concealed; and, at the same time, any expansion or contraction occurring in individual tile is free to take place due to the construction involving the unsecured edges opposite to those which are secured. Also the novel tongue and groove construction prevents breathing of the joints because of the intertting tongue and groove construction, and it also provides an ornamental joint in'that there are no open spaces where the tile are abutted together and shadows from the bevels tend to conceal the joints. A s illustrated in Figure 4, the tile have been shown as formed at the edges which are grooved with the bevels I4 meeting the horizontal surface 2l of the groove 23 in a sharp edge. When used` with materials such as felted fibre board, this feather edge is somewhat objectionable and this may be overcome by having the chamfer stop before it meets the respective horizontal surfaces 2I and IB of the complementally formed tongue and groove constructions I5 and I6 respectively. With certain forms of material, however, this feather edge is not objectionable.

The tile which has been described with reference to Figures 2 and 4 may be applied using furring strips Il spaced on the same centers as the dimensions of the tile and these are preferably 12"l or 16", or multiples thereof, depending upon the geometrical pattern desired. In applying the tile, the center lines of the wall or ceiling are first found and the odd dimensions from the edges are laid out so that the tile may -be laid beginning with the odd dimension size tile, that is, the tile are so laid that the tile are started from the edges of the wall or ceiling surface rather than started fromthe center of the room. In laying the tile in this manner, it would then be necessary to apply the tile as illustrated in Figure 3, beginning from the right hand side of the room and working to the left across the entire surface to which the tile are being applied, ending up with the tile as illustrated in the left hand side of Figure 3, if the dimensions of the room are such that the tile come out even. If thc width of the surface is not a multiple of the dir menslon of the tile, the outer or edge rows of the tile may be suitably cut to the proper width and provide a suitable border along the edges of the installation.

The furring strips should be carefully laid out so that the Joints as the tile are applied fall over furring strip. A disadvantage in applying a ceiling or wall laid in this manner is that usually due to inaccurate measurements and because of dimculties inherent in application, the dimensions are not maintained and the pattern will be poorly applied particularly if an ornate geometrical pattern is being applied. In applying the tile,-the

or the edges of the tile may be individually dipped and indurated after fabrication bythe usual tile is firmly nailed along the inclined nailing surface 20 of the modied groove construction I6 as illustrated in Figure 3. It is only necessary to nali along the groove construction of one edge of the tile since the groove construction along the edge of the tile is sufficiently strong to support the tile because of the short span of 12" or 16 between the furrowing strips. If, however, tile of multiples of these 'dimensions are used for some of the tile, it would be preferred to apply additional furring strips'between those extending across the room and ax the tile thereto, the remaining tile may then be erected in the same manner previously described. Although the erection of -the tile has been described with reference to nailing it is apparent that the tile may be equally as well applied by the use of a suitable adhesive by the methods well known in the art. It is obvious that the construction illustrated and described provides a novel tile which is simple and cheap to manufacture as well as to install.

The tile may also be formed into other patterns than that'illustrated in Figure 1,*particularly in what is known as a diamond pattern wherein the center lines of the room are struck, and the tile are applied in end to end relationship 'with the diagonal of the tile in alignment with the center line struck and in end to end relationship at the opposite corners. The furring strips for this pattern are also laid on 12" and 16" centers at an angle of 45 with respect to the center line struck'if the tile are square in shape, and the tile are nailed to the furring strips in the double and tenoner or tile machine. VIn the usual process, individualsquares from which the tile are fabricated, are stacked ia'nd'then automatically run through a double end tenoner or tile machine to form the bevels and joints thereof in successive passes through the machine, or through successive machines. v

As illustrated in Figures 3 and-4, a hardening and toughening material as this induration 24 may be with a glue size, shellac, or resin-and is preferably such so that it extends a substantial distance from the edge of the tile and vpreferably struction of the tile.

comprises the impregnation along the-edges of as illustrated in Figures 3 and 4, so that it straightens the entire tongue and groove con- This induration preferably dilute glue solution brought into the felted fibrous same manner as previuosly described. It is ob-` vious that other methods of applying the tile are equally applicable with this novel form' of blind nailing joint construction.

The novel blind nailing joint construction has preferably been generally `described without regard to the material used for ,the tile but when the tile are fabricated from felted fibrous ligno-.

cellulosematerial a `weakened joint is formed because of the nature of the material.' This par- I ticular form of joint, however, has been primarily developed for the use of tile or panels fabricated from felted fibrous ligno-cellulose materiaLjpreferably bagasse, theligno-cellulo'se material .being sized and "treated against fungus and insects by any of the methods and'treatments Well known in the art and which vare .not necessary to be described here'forthe understanding of this in'- l vention.` It has been;found, however, that the material when manufactured commercially, and particularly because ,of the character of the felted fibrous material after the tongues and grooves have been` formedL there is some'tendency for the material forming the tile by means of a suitable wetting agent.

The following solution has been found to give satisfactory hardness and strength to the tongue and groove structure forming the edges of the tile, and it comprises the following ingredients and is compounded. as follows. First, 1 part of Armour #3 grade ground bone pearl glue is dissolved in 5 parts ofwater. In order to bring the ground glue into solution, it'is preferred to first soak the glue in 1 part of cold water for a few hours and then add-the remaining 4 parts of water. The temperature of the solution should be raised to about A165 F. and' should be maintained at this point. To the above solution is added a wetting agent preferablya 2% Duponal W. A. which is a sodium lauryl sulphate. This wetting agent has a active agent and the 2% which is added is basedupon the water content of the glue.

The indurating solution as itis applied must be maintained at a temperature above 150 F. and

edges of the tongues and grooves to become upset and rough. and ragged because of the thinness of.` I

the material but morefso because of the charac'- ter of the material from which it is formed.` -It has been found also that this structural difficulty in the joint construction due tothe nature of the materialforming the tile may be readily overcome byy indurating the edges where the tongue and grooves are formed with shellac, glue size, or` resin. This-induration ofthe material may be done by impregnating the sheets from which the tile are fabricated, such impregnation being in relatively narrow intersecting strips forming the squares where the tile are to be cut,

durated by applying the solution to the tongues and grooves of the tile by dipping the edges into the. indurating solution for from 5 to 10 seconds or by spraying with a continuous stream for the same period of time. lIn order to avoid a difference in texture at the joint between the contiguous tiles, it is preferred to indurate onlythe tongue construction and the groove construction of 'the tile without indurating the surface layer of the material forming the tile.. method of induration is preferred, it is not essential and the edge of thetile may be indurated so that thechamfered edges are-indurated. A preferredpractice'in order to avoid a tendency to reduce the widthV of the groove when the indurating solution shrinks on the inside faces is to indurate the lower lip ofthe groove completely while leav- 'Y ing the face which is-exposed at the tongue construction free from the indurating solution. The cross hatched area of- Figure 3 illustrates the preferred depth of the induration 'on both the tongue and groove and this .induration may extend c ompletely across the tongue and groove construction from' one face of the tile to another or the face which is exposed may have the induration Although this extendito within a short distance from the face of the tile.

The apparatus for spraying the tile preferably comprises a pipe or other similar apparatus from which the solution is sprayed from a series of 15- inch holes spaced 3A of an inch apart. The indurating solution may be kept away from the exposed surface of the .tile or ornamented face of the tile by means of a suitable gasket which presses against the edge of the tile as they are being sprayed. It is important that the edges of the tile shall be kept in firm contact with the gasket during the spraying period of from 5 to 10 seconds. The indurating solution is preferably maintained at the desired temperature of 160 F.

to 165 F. by means of a water bath, the excess solution draining off into the reservoir of the pump which forms part of the apparatus for spraying the solution.

The opposite edges of the tile may be lsimultaneously and continuously sprayed in a separate operation from that of coating the tongues and grooves on the tile or it may form a part of the apparatus of the double end tenoner machine for forming the tongues and grooves. In this case, the cost of spraying is reduced as the indurating `may simultaneously take place as the modified tongues and grooves are formed. The edges of the board may also be suitably'protected by a. gasket in the same manner as that previously de scribed above only that the exposed edges of the tile are blocked on and the spray is kept away. Any excess solution in this continuous method is carried off and may run into a suitable trough where it is carried into the reservoir of the pump which distributes the solution.

After the indurating solution has b een applied, the tile may be stacked as the edges will not stick together. It is, however, preferred to stagger them to permit better access of the air for drying the indurating solution. To satisfactorily airdry the edges, it takes substantially two days to thoroughly dry the indurated tongue and groove edges of the tile. y v

It has been found that by so indurating the tongue and groove construction of felted fibreboard, preferably of felted bagasse fibres, that there is obtained a tensile strength in the tongue equal to substantially three-quarters of the tensile strength of the full thickness of the felted breboard. Without induration, the joints shear at a load that is. generally less than one-third of that required to rupture the felted fibreboard. It is therefore obvious from the above disclosure with respect to the method and solution for intile using this novel construction.- it is obvious that a simple form of tile has been disclosed which may be cheaply manufactured and easily installed` without the use of highly skilled labor. Furthermore, a novelfmethod has been disclosed lfor impregnating or`indurating the edges of the tile so that it will not be damaged in shipment or in erection, and particularly to strengthen the tongue and groove construction of tiles formed from felted ligno-cellulose material, so that the edges will not be damaged in shipment or erection to detract from the appearance of the finished tiling construction after erection. Tile manufactured in this manner are usually fabricated from large sheets of felted fibrous material and particularly after the material has been painted, that is, the surface of the material is painted as the material is being fabricated in continuous sheets, but before it has been conveyed through the drier for drying in the preferred process of fabricating the material. In

durating the tongue and groove construction of the tile that adequate shear strength at the joints has been obtained to particularly resist the shrinkage stresses of the tile, particularly if the edges of the tile-besides being blind nailed are adhesively secured together.

Having thus described the invention, particularly with respect to the novel form of blind nailing joint construction and method of erecting the this method of painting and fabrication, an ornamental prepainted surface is provided but the bevels I4 are in the natural color of the material although it is obvious that tile may be fabricated with the surface in the natural color of the material. It is obvious, however, that the bevels may be painted after the tile are fabricated and also that additional coats of paint may be applied to the surface of the tile after the fabrication of the edges which form the blind nailing joints. This is particularly necessary when the edges of the tile are indurated, although not essential.

It is also obvious that those skilled in the art may vary the details of the construction and arrangement of the tile without departing from f comprises: indurating in a predetermined intersecting geometrical pattern narrow linear sections of a width in excess of the overall width of the complementally formed interfltting edges throughout the thickness of the felted fibrous material forming indurated, intersecting sections in a predetermined geometrical pattern, severing the material substantially medially of the width of the indurated narrow linear; sections and forming complementally formed interfltting edges along the edges of the indurated sections whereby the complementally formed interfitting edges of the structural member are indurated, the structural member having the aforesaid edges strengthened and rigidiiled by the indurationv thereof and adapted to be erected with its edges complementally engaged with complementally formed structural members,

naar.. G. Mumien.

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