Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02583540 2007-03-27
TITLE OF THE INVENTION
An Apparatus for Duct Cleaning
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to apparatus for brushing, scrabbing and general
cleaning and
attachments for a vacuum cleaner and pipe, tube or conduit cleaner and more
particularly
relates to an apparatus for duct cleaning.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Many homes in North America rely upon forced air heating and cooling systems.
Air is
distributed throughout the house by a network of ducts. These ducts are prone
to trapping
dirt and debris which can reduce the efficiency of the furnace, clog furnace
filters,
exacerbate allergies and generally make it difficult for the house owner to
maintain a dust
free environment. The frequency at which ducts should be cleaned varies from
once per
year to once every five years depending on conditions in and around the home.
Homes
near construction zones, homes with pets or homes where the owners have
allergies need
to be cleaned more often than usual. Recently renovated homes, new homes,
resale
homes and homes with new furnaces should also have their ducts cleaned. A duct
cleaning operation can remove several pounds of dust and debris from the duct
system.
A typical duct cleaning contractor may charge between $300 and $600 for a duct
cleaning
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operation. It requires the installation of bulky and noisy equipment and a
large truck to
carry the suction motor and filters. During such an operation, the home owner
is forced
out of the home due to noise. Numerous patents disclose attempts at providing
a duct
cleaning apparatus for use in the home that is both efficient and cost-
effective. However,
they fail to do so for a variety of reasons. For example, USP 5,107,568 Duct
Sweeper
issued to Wade on April 28, 1992 discloses a duct sweeper having a turbine and
motorized head. Such a device is expensive and heavy to operate and cannot be
used
with existing household vacuum cleaners. USP 5,802,667 Duct Cleaning Device
issued
to Williams on September 8, 1998 discloses a device comprising a brush
attached to the
end of a suction hose and then inserted into the duct and moved in a scrubbing
back-and-
forth motion. Such a device is not effective because much of the debris
remains in the
duct and outside the vacuum zone of the nozzle which is partially obscured by
the brush.
Therefore, there is a health and fmancial benefit to increasing the frequency
and reducing
the cost of duct cleaning by providing a duct cleaning apparatus that is
easily attached to
a household vacuum cleaner and easily used by the householder to clean dust
and debris
from ducts on a regular basis.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In one example of the invention there is provided a duct cleaning apparatus
comprising a
sealed container having a volume for collecting debris suctioned from the
duct. The
container contains a negative pressure. There is further provided a blower as
means for
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creating the negative pressure within said sealed container. A suction hose is
attached to
the container. A blower hose is attached to the blower exhaust connector.
Suction hose
pressure and blower hose pressure is regulated by a sliding valve on a body
connected
between the suction hose and the suction connection and between the blower
hose and the
blower connection. The blower hose and the suction hose are hold together in a
parallel
arrangement by a plurality of elastic bands spaced regularly along the length
of the hose.
The free end of the blower hose is equipped with a nozzle to direct air in a
radial manner
in to the duct. The end of the suction hose also has a nozzle for drawing
debris into the
hose. The blower nozzle and the suction nozzle are adjacent to each other. The
blower
nozzle is angled in such a manner so as to blow air radially into the vacuum
zone of the
suction nozzle. The vacuum zone is the zone of effective suction. Air blown
into the
vacuum zone has the effect of agitating free dust and dirt for suction into
the suction
hose.
In another example of the invention the suction and blower hoses may be
sectioned for
easy assembly, disassembly and storage.
In yet another example of the invention the blower nozzle comprises a first
part for
blowing air into the duct, a second part for permanently connecting to the
second end of
the second hose; and, a third part for temporarily attaching the first nozzle
to the second
nozzle during duct cleaning operations.
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In one example of the invention the first part of the blower nozzle comprises
a fiust tube
having an outside diameter, an inside diameter, a length, a lumen, a top
surface area, a
bottom surface area, a first tube first end and a fust tube second end. The
top and bottom
surface areas are perforated with a plurality of equally-sized holes. There
are more holes
on the top surface than the bottom surface. The first tube further comprises
an axis
inclined downward at a predetermined angle so that air exiting the apertures
impinges
within the vacuum zone of the second nozzle.
In another example of the invention the second part of the blower nozzle
comprises a
flange, a flange aperture and a second tube having an outside diameter, an
inside
diameter, a length, a lumen, a top surface area and a bottom surface area, a
second tube
first end and a second tube second end.
In still another example of the invention the third part of the blower nozzle
comprises a
resilient member projecting rearward from the flange. The member comprises an
aperture. The member cooperates with the encircling pointed band so that end
of the
second nozzle may be placed between the resilient member and the encircling
pointed
band in abutment against the flange and held compressively thereby temporarily
fixing
the first nozzle to the second nozzle during duct cleaning operations.
In one example of the invention the hoses are attached to each other in
parallel by
plurality of elastic bands adapted to encircle the first and second hoses at
regularly spaced
intervals.
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OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to overcome the problems and
difficulties
associated with the prior art.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a duct cleaning
apparatus that is
easy to use and store.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a duct cleaning
apparatus that is
inexpensive to purchase and adaptable to household vacuum cleaners.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a duct cleaning
apparatus that
is able to agitate dirt with compressed air within the vacuum zone of a
suction hose.
Still further objects and advantages of our invention will become apparent
from a
consideration of the following diagrams and detailed description.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Figure 1 comprises various views of one example of my invention.
Figure 2 shows one view of a typical industrial vacuum cleaner that may be
used with
one example of my invention.
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Figure 3 is view of one example of my invention as it would appear with the
nozzle
within a duct.
Figure 4 is a more detailed view of the nozzle of one example of my invention
operating
within a duct.
Figure 5 is a plurality of views of the suction and blower hoses in adjacent
and parallel
relationship and the position of the nozzle in one example of my invention.
Figure 6 is a variety of views of the nozzle of one example of my invention.
Figure 7 is a variety of views of the nozzle in another example of my
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Referring to Figure 1 views A to F, my invention (10) is a duct cleaning
apparatus for
cleaning debris from household ducts (12) commonly located beneath flooring
(14). The
invention is adapted for use for forced air heating and cooling systems in
residential and
commercial applications using a standard 5 inch duct. However, the invention
can be
adapted for larger or smaller ducts. My invention can be used with a portable
household
or light industrial shop vacuum cleaner (16) as illustrated.
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Referring to Figure 2, a typical light industrial shop vacuum cleaner (16)
generally has a
2.5 inch vacuum or suction connection (18) and a 2.5 inch blower exhaust or
blower
connection (20). The vacuum source of my invention comprises a sealed
container (22)
having a volume (24) for collecting debris from duct (12). The volume (24)
within the
container (22) is under a negative pressure induced by means for creating
negative
pressure (26) comprising a motor and blower assembly (28) contained in housing
(30).
The means for creating negative pressure (26) is typically located within the
housing (30)
but in other examples of my invention it could be located outside of the
sealed container
but in communication with the sealed container. Typically the motor and blower
assembly (28) further comprises a suction plenum (32) surrounded by a filter
(34).
Still referring to Figure 2, blowei output pressure (21) is controlled by a
blower controller
as attachment (36) that fits over the blower connection (20) and comprises a
body (38),
an aperture (40) and a sliding gate (42) over the aperture. The sliding gate
acts to bleed
pressure from the hose as it is opened from a first closed position to a fully
open position.
The body is connected the blower hose. The attachment body (38) reduces the
blower
hose size from 2 1/2" to 1'/4". The positioning of the sliding gate determines
the air
volume and air pressure delivered to the blower nozzle at the end of the 1
1/4" hose. The
purpose of the vent is to adjust the volume of air being delivered at the end
of the blower
hose (or the envelope area) so that this area maintains a negative air
pressure environment
thereby preventing airborne dust from escaping this area. To adjust the blower
hose
output to the correct pressure at the end of the blower hose, the suction and
blower hose
ends are put into the duct about 2 feet and the vacuum is turned on. If there
is air blowing
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out of the duct, the blower hose vent is adjusted until the air stops blowing
out of the
floor vent.
Referring to Figure 3, the invention further comprises a first hose (46) being
a blower
hose connected to the blower connection (20) through a blower controller (36).
There is
also a second hose being a suction hose (44) connected to the suction
connection (18).
Circled area "A" in Figure 3 is shown in greater detail in Figure 4.
Referring to Figure 4, there is shown the circled area "A" in Figure 3 in
greater detail.
Suction hose (44) is shown in a parallel configuration with blower hose (46).
The hoses
are held in a parallel configuration by a plurality of elastic bands (48). The
suction hose
generally has a diameter of 2.5 inches whereas the blower hose has a diameter
of 1.25
inches which increases the velocity of the air through the hose. Attached to
the end (50)
of the blower hose (46) is a blower nozzle (52). Attached to the end of the
suction hose
(44) is a suction nozzle (54). The blower nozzle directs air radially (56) in
order to
disturb dust and debris within the suction zone (58) of the suction nozzle so
that it can be
sucked into the suction hose and directed to the vacuum cleaner (16). The
suction zone
(58) is where the most active suction will occur within the duct (12) in order
to displace
dust and debris into the suction hose. For that reason, the bulk of air from
the blower
nozzle (52) is directed (56) by the depressed angle of the nozzle into the
suction zone.
Referring to Figure 5 A to C, there is shown the two parallel hoses, suction
(44) and
blower (46) in parallel alignment in one example of my invention. Attached to
the end of
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the blower hose is the blower nozzle (52). The two hoses are of equal length
and may be
segmented so that it can be disassembled for easy tzansportation and storage.
The nozzle
is angled downward in order to direct air into the suction zone. View C
illustrates how
member (64) and flange (100) on the blower nozzle (52) cooperate with the end
of the
suction hose to hold the nozzle in place.
Now referring to Figure 6 A to G there are shown various views of the blower
nozzle
(52) of the invention. Blower nozzle (52) comprises a first part (60) for
blowing air
radially into the duct; a second part (62) for connecting to the second end of
the suction
hose; and, a third part (64) for attaching the nozzle to the blower hose.
Referring to Figure 7 A to G there is shown various views of the blower nozzle
with
dimensions suited to one preferred example of the inventions. These dimensions
can be
changed to suit the application of the nozzle. The fiust part of the nozzle
(60) comprises a
first tube (70) having a closed first tube first end (84) an outside diameter
(72), an inside
diameter (74), a length (76), a lumen (78), a top surface area (80), a bottom
surface area
(82) and a first tube second end (86). The first tube first end has a rounded
surface (92)
to move over duct joints without snagging. The top (80) and bottom (82)
surface areas
are perforated with a plurality of equally-sized holes (94) for blowing
compressed air into
the suction zone of the suction hose. There are more holes on the top surface
than the
bottom surface. The first tube fuither comprises an axis (96) inclined
downward at a
predetermined angle (98) so that air exiting the apertures impinges within the
vacuum
zone of the suction hose.
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Still referring to Figure 7 A to F, the second part (62) comprises a flange
(100), a flange
aperture (102) and a second tube (104) having an outside diameter (106), an
inside
diameter (108), a length (120), a lumen (122), a top surface area (124) and a
bottom
surface area (126), a second tube first end (128) and a second tube second end
(130). The
flange aperture has a diameter (132) equal to the first tube inside diameter
(74) and the
second tube inside diameter (108). The first tube and the second tube are
joined at the
flange aperture (132). The second tube comprises an encircling pointed band
(140)
disposed between the second tube second end (128) and the flange (100). The
band has
an outside diameter (142) which is greater than the outside diameter (106) of
the second
tube second end. The band is adapted for connection with the end of the blower
hose to
permanently fix the blower nozzle in place. The third part (64) comprises a
resilient
member (144) projecting rearward from the flange (100). The member (144)
comprises
an aperture (146). The member (144) cooperates with the encircling pointed
band (140)
so that end of the second nozzle may be placed between the resilient member
and the
encircling pointed band in abutment against the flange and held compressively
thereby
permanently fixing the blower nozzle to the suction nozzle.
Referring to back to Figure 3, the suction hose and the blower hose are held
in adjacent
and parallel relationship by a plurality of elastic bands (48) adapted to
encircle the first
(44) and second (46) hoses at regularly spaced intervals when adjacent to each
other and
hold them together. The elastics are generally 0.25 inches in thickness and
are placed
about 5 inches apart along the length of the hoses commencing about 3 feet
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CA 02583540 2007-03-27
end of the hoses. The outside diameter of the suction hose is generally larger
than the
outside diameter of the blower hose but this may vary depending on the
application.
Hose lengths vary but may be as long as 40 feet with effective suction
although 30 feet is
generally optimum. Once inserted into the duct, the hose and nozzles may be
rotated
within the duct and pushed forward slowly to capture loose dirt and dust which
may
become airborne into the home during heating and cooling. The apparatus is
easily
assembled and disassembled for storage.
Although the description above contains much specificity, these should not be
construed
as limiting the scope of the invention but as merely providing illustrations
of some of the
presently preferred examples of this invention. Thus the scope of the
invention should be
determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents.
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