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Surface treatment of floorboards to eliminate panelizationSurface treatment of floorboards to eliminate panelization description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20060037270, Surface treatment of floorboards to eliminate panelization. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] This invention relates to hardwood floor systems. More particularly, this invention relates to a method for eliminating panelization of the floorboards of hardwood flooring. [0003] 2. Background of the Invention [0004] A typical hardwood floor system includes an upper wear layer, or wear surface of elongated tongue-and-groove floorboards. The floorboards are laid end to end in parallel rows, with adjacent rows interlocked by a tongue-and-groove connection. After installation of the floorboards, but prior to use, hardwood floors of this type are usually sanded and then surface treated to protect the wood and to provide an aesthetically pleasing appearance. This surface treatment involves the application of a finish coating. In the past, shellacs, moisture cured and oil-modified urethane, etc., have been used as finish coatings for hardwood floors. However, due to environmental concerns, the EPA, OSHA, and other governmental agencies have indicated a preference for water bourne finishes for hardwood floors, rather than a variety of other non-water bourne finishes. As a result, the use of water bourne finishes for hardwood floors has increased tremendously in recent years. [0005] Any type of finishing solution may present potential problems for hardwood floors, with water being the most problematic. During surface treating, some of the applied finishing solution can work its way downward between the edges of adjacent floorboards. When located between adjacently situated floorboards, the finish coating often causes the floorboards to stick or adhere together along the edges. The degree of adhesion or edge bonding may depend upon the shapes of the floorboards, the amount of finishing solution residing therebetween and the strength of the finish solution being used. Although under certain circumstances edge bonding may be a problem when an oil-modified urethane finish solution is used, it normally does not create a problem, most likely due to this product's lower tensile properties. Edge bonding seems to have become more prevalent with the increased usage of water based finishing solutions. The appears to be due to this product's low viscosity and its relatively higher tensile properties compared to the oil-modified solutions. [0006] By itself, edge bonding of floor components does not constitute a major problem. However, because of the inherent properties of wood, edge bonding can produce disastrous results. The wooden components in floor systems undergo substantial expansion and contraction with variations of moisture in the air. The greatest variations occur with the changing seasons of the year. As a result of this expansion and contraction, the floorboards of a floor system typically move relative to each other. [0007] If this relative movement is inhibited in some areas because of edge bonding between adjoining floorboards, the corresponding surface forces upon other areas of the floor system will be increased. If several floorboards are adhered firmly together, they act as a single panel which is susceptible to unitary movement away from floorboards bordering the "panel" which are not so strongly adhered thereto. Gaps may appear between adjacent "panels" of floorboards, where little or no edge bonding has occurred. In some instances, these gaps may be large enough for a pencil to fall in. In short, with localized edge bonding forming a plurality of "panels", cumulative expansion and contraction forces must be dissipated between or along floorboards where edge bonding is weakest, or at the border of the "panel". This effect of localized edge bonding is referred to a panelization. [0008] Because there is no way to guarantee uniformity in edge bonding between adjacently situated floorboards for the entire surface area of the floor, a significant number of floor systems will eventually succumb to panelization. To date, numerous lawsuits have resulted from defects in floor systems which result from panelization. In some instances, the problem must be solved by installing a new floor system. In other instances, the problem of panelization has not even been acknowledged. [0009] It is an objective of this invention to mitigate panelization of the floorboards of a hardwood floor system. [0010] It is another objective of the invention to mitigate surface bonding between floorboards which causes panelization of a hardwood floor system, particularly a hardwood floor system which has been treated with a water bourne finish. [0011] It is still another objective of invention to mitigate the adverse effects which result from the surface finishing of a hardwood floor system. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0012] In accordance with the invention, the above stated objectives are met by applying a release agent to at least one longitudinal side surface of the floorboards of a floor system prior to application of the finish coating. The release agent effectively neutralizes or minimizes the adhesive properties of the finishing solution so that adjacent floorboards will not stick together. If all adhesion between floorboards is eliminated, expansion and contraction from moisture will not cause panelization, i.e., edge bonding. [0013] Applicant's tests show that paraffin wax, acrylic, liquid paste wax, paste wax, urethane, epoxy, polyfilm with pressure sensitive adhesive, teflon, silicon, and other compounds such as oil and petroleum gel, have proved successful in eliminating or significantly minimizing the surface bonding between adjacently situated floorboards of a hardwood floor system. [0014] Typically, edge bonding occurs most frequently along the longitudinal side surfaces of elongated floorboards. Therefore, the release agent should be applied in an effective amount along one or both longitudinal side surfaces of floorboards, above the tongue-and-groove interconnection. This is the location between the floorboards where the finishing solution is most likely to seep into and cause edge bonding. [0015] Nevertheless, it may also prove useful to apply the release agent to one or both of the transverse end surfaces of the floorboards. Moreover, in some cases it may also be necessary or desirable to prevent bottom bonding. In these cases, the release agent may also be applied in an effective amount to the bottom surfaces of the floorboards. [0016] This release agent may be applied to the floorboards in the factory or at the job site. If applied in the factory, the release agent may be applied immediately after exit from a profiling machine which molds or shapes a desired cross-sectional shape, such as a tongue-and-groove configuration, in the longitudinal side surfaces of the elongated floorboards. In this embodiment, the invention contemplates equipping a profiling machine, at its exit, with fixtures necessary to meter a uniform flow of liquid paste or other release agent onto an upper portion of one or both longitudinal side surfaces of the floorboards immediately upon exit from the molding or shaping stage. Metering of the solution assures uniformity in coating. [0017] Alternatively, the release agent may be applied by roller coating, spray application, wick application or even by friction coating, depending upon the release agent. Other methods may also prove successful. [0018] Another advantage achieved by the use of a release agent between adjacent floorboards relates to lubrication of the commonly used tongue-and-groove interconnection between adjacently situated floorboards. Because the release agent can serve as a lubricant, a closer tolerance may be used in manufacturing the floorboards, thereby providing tighter and more uniform tongue-and-groove fits between adjacently situated floorboards. While features of the present invention apply equally to embodiments having beveling along the tops of the longitudinal side surfaces of the floorboards, the tighter fit between adjacent floorboards mitigates any need for undesired beveling. The overall tighter fit of the installed floor may thus necessitate considerably less sanding prior to application of the finish coating. [0019] The use of a release agent will prove beneficial with solid floorboards, such as maple or oak, floorboards formed from laminated wood, as well as floors that include plastic, rubber, laminate or other synthetic materials. It should further be understood that features of the present invention also benefit modular floors made from interconnecting sections of flooring, such as portable floors. In the context of the present invention, the outside edges of such sections may be treated with a surface release agent in a manner analogous to the maple floorboards described herein. For purposes of this specification, the term "floorboard" is thus meant to encompass floor sections, as well as boards comprising synthetic materials, i.e., boards made from material other than wood. In short, this invention contemplates the use of surface treatment to mitigate panelization and/or undesirable frictional effects for all species of floors. [0020] These and other features of the invention will be more readily understood in view of the following detailed description and the drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0021] FIG. 1 is a partial cross-sectional perspective view of a floor system that illustrates the advantageous features of the invention. Continue reading about Surface treatment of floorboards to eliminate panelization... Full patent description for Surface treatment of floorboards to eliminate panelization Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Surface treatment of floorboards to eliminate panelization patent application. ###  How KEYWORD MONITOR works... a FREE service from FreshPatents1. Sign up (takes 30 seconds). 2. Fill in the keywords to be monitored. 3. Each week you receive an email with patent applications related to your keywords. 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