Spigot freeze prevention apparatus and method
OwnerDwayne A. Tieszeninventor
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Abstract
Apparatus and method to prevent water spigot freezing, which utilizes a mounting collar to engage a discharge spout of a spigot, an incandescent lamp holder that locates the lamp within the discharge spout, and an intrinsically safe low voltage power supply, which may utilize a battery or utility power, to thereby couple thermal energy from the incandescent lamp into the spigot.
Claims18
An apparatus to prevent water freezing in a spigot that has a discharge spout that presents a male garden hose thread, comprising:
- a mounting collar that includes a female garden hose thread configured to engage the the male garden, hose thread of the spigot about the discharge spout;
- a lamp holder coupled to said mounting collar, which accepts an incandescent lamp, and locates said incandescent lamp within the discharge spout while said mounting collar is engaged with the spigot, and having an electrical interface coupled to said lamp holder and which extends from an exterior surface of said mounting collar, and
- a power supply coupled to said electrical interface to selectively illuminate said incandescent lamp, and thereby coupled thermal energy from said incandescent lamp into the spigot.
A method of preventing water from freezing in a spigot that has a discharge spout that presents a male garden hose thread using a mounting collar that includes a female garden hose thread, a lamp holder that accepts an incandescent lamp that is coupled to an electrical interface extending from an exterior surface of the mounting collar, and a power supply, comprising the steps of:
- attaching the mounting collar to the spout by engaging the female garden hose thread with the male garden hose thread;
- coupling the lamp holder to the mounting collar, thereby locating the incandescent lamp within the discharge spout;
- coupling the power supply to the electrical interface, thereby selectively illuminating the incandescent lamp, and thereby coupling thermal energy from the incandescent lamp into the spigot.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.