Support plate for installing tile
AssigneeLaticrete International, Inc.
InventorSean P. Boyle
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A support for installing facing materials such as ceramic tiles on a substrate such as floors, walls and ceilings wherein the support plate has a plurality of spaced apart recesses in the plate material, with the recesses being open at the top surface and have solid sidewalls and a base, and a plurality of slots in the non-recessed portions of the plate material extending through the top surface and bottom surface, the slots joining one or more adjacent recesses. The support plate of the invention is used for tile installations between the substrate and such tile. Thin-set mortar that is used to secure the tile to the support plate flows into the recesses and into the slots forming a continuous bond between the mortar and the adjacent slots providing for a strong bond between the support plate, mortar and the tiles.
Claims20
A support plate for installing facing materials on a substrate comprising:
- a sheet material having a top surface and a bottom surface;
- a continuous and contiguous planar top surface area of the sheet material top surface extending across the entire support plate;
- a plurality of spaced apart adjacent recesses residing across and extending down from the continuous and contiguous planar top surface area of the sheet material with adjacent recesses separated from one another by the continuous and contiguous planar top surface area of the sheet material top surface, each recess being open at the top and having a bottom and sidewalls comprising the sheet material, together the sheet material and the recesses define a plate having a thickness extending from a top surface to a bottom surface thereof;
- and the plurality of spaced apart adjacent recesses including at least a first recess comprising a first main body portion with at least a first outwardly extending protruding portion that is narrower than the first main body portion and a second recess comprising a second main body portion with at least a second outwardly extending protruding portion that is narrower than the second main body portion, whereby the first outwardly extending protruding portion of the first recess extends towards the second outwardly extending protruding portion of the second recess and are separated from one another by the continuous and contiguous planar top surface area of the sheet material to increase open surface area of the plurality of spaced apart adjacent recesses at the sheet material top surface.
A method of installing facing materials comprising:
- identifying a substrate;
- providing a support plate comprising, a sheet material having a top surface and a bottom surface, a continuous and contiguous planar top surface area of the sheet material top surface extending across the entire support plate, a plurality of adjacent recesses residing across and extending down from the continuous and contiguous planar top surface area of the sheet material adjacent recesses separated from one another by the continuous and contiguous planar top surface area of the sheet material top surface, at least two or more recesses each having a first geometric shape comprising a main body portion with a projecting portion extending outward from the main body portion, together the sheet material and the recesses define a plate having a thickness extending from a top surface to a bottom surface thereof, the projecting portions of the at least two or more recesses reside directly across from each other and are separated from one another at the continuous and contiguous planar top surface area of the sheet material to decrease the area of the empty cavity regions at the plate bottom surface thereby providing the plate with increased durability and strength;
- attaching the support plate to the substrate;
- depositing a cementitious material over the support plate, said cementitious material filling the plurality of plurality of adjacent recesses including projecting portions thereof to enhance attachment of the support plate to the substrate;
- and
- providing a facing material over the cementitious material.
A support plate for installing facing materials on a substrate comprising:
- a sheet material having a top surface and a bottom surface;
- a continuous and contiguous planar top surface area of the sheet material top surface extending across the entire support plate;
- a plurality of spaced apart adjacent raised portions residing across the bottom surface and a plurality of adjacent recesses residing across and extending down from the continuous and contiguous planar top surface area of the sheet material, each recess open at the top and having a bottom and sidewalls comprising the sheet material, at least two or more recesses each having a first geometric shape comprising a main body portion with a projecting portion extending outward from the main body portion, together the sheet material, the adjacent raised portions and the adjacent recesses define a support plate having a thickness extending from a top surface to a bottom surface thereof;
- an area of empty cavity regions at the plate bottom surface formed by the plurality of recesses, and
- whereby the projecting portions of the at least two or more recesses reside directly across from each other and are separated from one another at the continuous and contiguous planar top surface area of the sheet material to decrease the area of the empty cavity regions at the plate bottom surface thereby providing the plate with increased durability and strength.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.