FIRE HOSE FLUSHING DEVICE

DISPOSITIF DE RINCAGE DES TUYAUX SOUPLES DE LUTTE CONTRE LE FEU

English Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
The present invention relates to a fire hose
valve flushing device for replacing a standard dust cap on
a fire hose valve to enable testing of the valve. The
flushing device of the present invention is provided with
a controlled flow valve which allows complete opening of
the fire hose valve itself and permitting only a limited
flow of water which is easily directed to a container or
the like during testing and flushing of the fire hose
valve.

Claims

THE EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION IN WHICH AN EXCLUSIVE PROPERTY
OR PRIVILEGE IS CLAIMED ARE DEFINED AS FOLLOWS:
1. A flushing device for flushing water from a fire hose
valve to enable testing thereof, said flushing device
comprising a threaded valve cap for threading to a standard
dust cap housing of the valve and controlled flow valving means
on said threaded valve cap which when closed allows opening of
the valve while preventing flow of water therefrom and which
when opened permits only a limited flow of water through said
valve cap which is easily directed to a container or the like
from the fire hose valve.
2. A flushing device as claimed in claim 1 wherein said
controlled flow valving means comprises a quick connect male
valve component extending forwardly of said valve cap for
receiving a quick connect female valve component and
automatically opening said male valve component.
3. A flushing device as claimed in claim 2 including a
short length of small diameter flexible hose secured to said
quick connect female valve for controlled flow directing the
water to the container or the like.
4. A flushing device as claimed in claim 2 including an
air vent for opening said flushing device to atmospheric
pressure.

5. A flushing device as claimed in claim 4 wherein said
air vent is located generally diametrically opposite said male
valve component on said threaded body.
6. A flushing device as claimed in claim 5 including
finger grip projections on opposing sides of said valve caps
for manually installing and removing same.

Description

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1 FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a flushing device
as a replacement for a dust cap on a fire hose valve to
enable testing and flushing of the valve.
BACKGROUND OF T~IE INVENTION
The testing and flushing of fire hose valves is
usually an awkward and dirty job, especially with aged
buildings, so much so that it is often neglected.
According to normal practice a substantial amount of
sediment and stagnant water collects behind the valve
forming a seal which makes the valve extremely difficult
to open. Once the seal is cracked this same dirty
stagnant water flows from the valve in a relatively
uncontrolled manner which is particularly troublesome in
light of the fact that these fire hose valves are
generally found indoors in apartment, commercial and
industrial buildings and the like where the opening of the
valve can cause substantial damage when hose cabinet
valves do not seat properly.
SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
The present invention provides a flushing device
specifically designed to overcome the major problems
associated with testing and flushing of fire hose valves.
More particularly the flushing device of the present
invention comprises a threaded valve cap which replaces
the dust cap found on the fire hose valve and threads
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1 direc-tly to the dust cap housing of the valve. The
threaded valve cap is provided with a controlled flow
valving means which, when closed, allows opening of the
fire hose valve while preventing flow of the water
therefrom and which when opened permits only a limited
flow of water through the valve cap which is easily
controlled and directed to a container or the like from
the fire hose valve.
With the device of the present invention the fire
hose valve itself can be completely opened without having
to worry about control of the dirty stagnant water from
the valve. Furthermore, the flushing device is adapted to
allow closing of -the fire hose valve with the device still
fitted in position thereby assuring that if the fire hose
valve does not seat properly then the water is maintained
in a controlled flow until the valve is fully seated.
BRIEF DISCUSSION OF THE DRAWINGS
The above as well as other advantages and
features of the present invention will be described in
greater detail according to the preferred embodiments of
the present invention in which:
Figure 1 is a front plan view of a conventional
fire hose cabinet;
Figure 2 is a front perspective view of a
flushing device including both a quick connect coupling
check valve and an air vent according to a preferred
embodiment of the present invention;
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1 Figure 3 is a sectional view through the device
of Figure 2 with the quick connect fitting in a coupled
position;
Figure 4 is a perspective view of the fire hose
valve with the flushing device of Figure 2 in a fitted
position.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION ACCORDING TO THE PREFERRED
EMBODIMENTS OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
As mentioned above, Figure 1 shows a conventional
fire hose cabinet including a fire extinguisher, a fire
hose and a double valve arrangement including valves A and
B for selectively feeding water to the fire hose. As is
clearly shown in Figure 1, valve A is already connected to
the hose while valve B is fitted with a dust-cap C which
is removed when testing of the valve.
Figure 2 shows a preferred embodiment flushing
device generally indicated at 1. This flushing device
includes a valve cap 3 which is threaded internally at 7
as shown in Figure 3. The size of the valve cap with its
threading is adapted to be threaded directly to the dust
cap housing 8 of the fire hose valve.
The valve cap body is preferably made from a
material such as brass, or the like, making it both rugged
and durable. Provided on the outside of the body are a
pair of finger grip projections 5 diametrically opposed
from one another which enables threading and unthreading
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1 of the valve cap without requiring any special tools.
In the embodiment shown in the drawings, the
valve cap is provided with a controlled flow valving means
in the form of a quick connect check valve arrangement.
This check valve arrangement comprises a tubular member 9
which at one end is threaded into the valve body and which
at the other end is threaded to a valve housing 11 having
a male valve component 13 normally spring biased to a
closed position. A female coupling valve member 15 is
provided to snap over and connect onto the valve housing
11 as shown in Figure 3 whereby an in-ternal valve release
member 17 applies pressure and opens the male valve
component 13. Connected to the female valve member 15 is
a flexible hose 19.
Also provided is an air vent which is threaded
onto a further threaded conduit 21 which is in turn
threaded into the valve body 3. This air vent is located
opposite the quick connect valve system and includes a
turn key 23 for opening and closing the air vent.
The flushing device is used as follows. In the
testing and flushing of a fire hose valve with the valve
itself in a closed position the dust cap is removed and
replaced with threaded valve cap body 3. The valve cap
body is tightly threaded into position with the check
valve in the down position and the air vent in the up
position using the projecting lugs 5 to enable a leak-free
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1 opening of the fire hose valve. The dirty stagnant water
flows into the valve cap body and is flushed through the
quick connect valve arrangement. Typically, in a double
valve fire cabinet, as shown in Figure 1, it is often
difficult to get a pail or similar container in an
appropriate position to catch the dirty water in which
case the quick connect valving arrangement is extremely
beneficial using the flexible hose 19 to direct the water
to the pail by simply coupling the female and the male
components of the valving arrangement with one another.
Once the testing and flushing has been completed,
the fire hose valve is closed and the air vent is opened
causing the flushing device to rise to a-tmospheric
pressure and forcing all of the water trapped within the
flushing device to drain from the hose into the
container. The extreme upper and lower positioning of the
air vent and the hose coupling respectively help to ensure
that the flushing device drains completely. If the fire
hose valve does not fully seat, it is immediately apparent
as the water will continue to flow through the hose in a
controlled manner until the valve is properly seated.
After the flushing device itself is completely
drained, the quick connect coupling is removed and the
entire arrangement is removed from the dust cap housing
and replaced with the dust cap cover. The testing device
is then freed up for use in testing further fire hose
valves.
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1 The description above relates specifically to the
use of a quick connect coupling and pet cock type air
vent. It is to be appreciated however, that other types
of valving arrangements and vents can equally as well be
used to carry out the necessary flushing. Therefore
although various preferred embodiments of the present
invention have been described herein in detail, it will be
appreciated by those skilled in the art, that variations
may be made thereto without departing from the spirit of
the invention or the scope of the appended claims.
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