Adjustable height bathtub and shower drain assembly

Abstract

The present invention provides a drain assembly for use with bathroom/shower renovations, the drain assembly providing for the adjustment of the drain grate to match the height of surrounding flooring and including a grate holder component with a floor-level flange to connect to the surrounding flooring and a threaded inner surface that connects with the counter-threaded outer surface of a grate-height adjuster component including means for accessing and rotating the grate-height adjuster component relative to the grate holder component to adjust the height of the grate holder component without uninstalling or disassembling the drain assembly.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A drain assembly comprising:
 a bonding flange component comprising a central bore portion and a centripetal flange portion, the central bore portion comprising a central bore and one or more centripetal shelves;   a grate leveler component comprising a central bore portion and a centripetal flange portion sized to fit within the one or more centripetal shelves of the central bore portion of the bonding flange component, the central bore portion of the grate leveler component comprising a centripetal shelf and a central bore and being sized to fit within the central bore of the bonding flange component;   a grate-height adjustor component comprising a shoulder at an upper end sized to fit within the centripetal shelf of the grate leveler component, the grate height adjustor component further comprising a central bore portion with a threaded inner surface surrounding a central bore and means for rotating the grate-height adjustor component relative to the other components of the drain assembly, the central bore portion being sized to fit within the central bore of the grate leveler component;   a grate holder component comprising a central bore portion and a floor-level flange, the central bore portion comprising a threaded outer surface surrounding a central bore, the threaded outer surface of the grate holder component being counter-threaded to the threaded inner surface of the grate-height adjustor such that, by rotating the grate-height adjustor component relative to the grate holder component, the grate holder component may be raised or lowered to match the level of surrounding flooring.   
     
     
         2 . The drain assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the centripetal flange portion of the bonding flange component further comprises a textured material on one or both of the centripetal flange portion's top and a bottom surfaces. 
     
     
         3 . The drain assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the centripetal flange portion of the bonding flange component further comprises one or more apertures adjacent to an outer edge of the centripetal flange portion. 
     
     
         4 . The drain assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the one or more centripetal shelves of the bonding flange component are located below the centripetal flange portion and comprise a depth sufficient to retain the grate leveler component at or below the level of the centripetal flange portion of the bonding flange component. 
     
     
         5 . The drain assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the central bore portion of the grate leveler component comprises a smooth inner surface facilitating the free rotation of the grate-height adjuster component relative thereto. 
     
     
         6 . The drain assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the centripetal flange portion of the grate leveler component comprises one or more cutouts adjacent to an outer edge of the centripetal flange portion. 
     
     
         7 . The drain assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the central bore portion of the grate-height adjustor component comprises a smooth outer surface facilitating the free rotation of the grate-height adjuster component relative to the grate leveler component. 
     
     
         8 . The drain assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the central bore portion of the grate-height adjustor component comprises a lower edge comprising a series of peaks and valleys forming one or more teeth. 
     
     
         9 . The drain assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the floor-level flange of the grate holder component comprises a centripetal edge, the centripetal edge comprising one or more grooves extending along at least a portion of the centripetal edge. 
     
     
         10 . The drain assembly of  claim 9 , wherein the centripetal edge is tapered and the grate holder component comprises a cross-sectional shape to facilitate connection to the surrounding flooring. 
     
     
         11 . The drain assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the floor-level flange of the grate holder component comprises a ridge adjacent to a centripetal edge of the floor level flange, the ridge extending up from an upper surface of the floor-level flange and operating to hold a drainage grate in place upon the floor-level flange's upper surface. 
     
     
         12 . The drain assembly of  claim 1 , further comprising a drain adaptor component comprising a disk portion and a central bore portion surrounding a central bore, the central bore portion comprising a centripetal trench sized and oriented to receive at least a portion of the central bore portion of the bonding flange component, and the disk portion having a radius sized to cover the top of a drainage pipe when the drain assembly is installed. 
     
     
         13 . The drain assembly of  claim 12 , wherein an outer surface of the central bore portion of the drain adaptor component is tapered to facilitate insertion into the drainage pipe and an upper edge of the central bore portion of the drain adaptor component extends above a top surface of the disk portion of the drain adaptor component. 
     
     
         14 . The drain assembly of  claim 1 , wherein the means for rotating the grate-height adjustor component relative to the other components of the drain assembly comprises one or more tabs located adjacent to a lower edge of the central bore portion of the grate-height adjustor component. 
     
     
         15 . The drain assembly of  claim 14 , further comprising a grate-height adjustment tool sized to be inserted into the central bore of the grate holder component, the grate-height adjustment tool comprising a lower edge with one or more notches located to match the location(s) of the one or more tabs of the grate-height adjustor component such that the grate-height adjustment tool is operable to connect with the grate-height adjustor component and rotate the grate-height adjustor component relative to the grate holder component to raise and lower the grate holder component without disassembling the drain assembly. 
     
     
         16 . The drain assembly of  claim 15 , wherein the grate-height adjustment tool further comprises a handle located near an upper end of the grate-height adjustment tool for the user to grip during use. 
     
     
         17 . A drain assembly, comprising:
 a grate leveler component comprising a central bore portion and a centripetal flange portion, the central bore portion comprising a central bore and being sized to fit within a drainage pipe, the centripetal flange portion being sized to cover an upper end opening of the drainage pipe;   a grate-height adjustor component sized to fit within and be retained by the central bore of the grate leveler component, the grate height adjustor component comprising a threaded inner surface surrounding a central bore and means for rotating the grate-height adjustor component relative to the other components of the drain assembly;   a grate holder component comprising a central bore portion and a floor-level flange, the central bore portion comprising a threaded outer surface surrounding a central bore, the threaded outer surface of the grate holder component being counter-threaded to the threaded inner surface of the grate-height adjustor such that, by rotating the grate-height adjustor component relative to the grate holder component, the grate holder component may be raised or lowered to match the level of surrounding flooring.   
     
     
         18 . The drain assembly of  claim 17 , further comprising a bonding flange component comprising a central bore portion and a centripetal flange portion, the central bore portion comprising a central bore sized to receive and retain the central bore portion of the grate leveler component. 
     
     
         19 . The drain assembly of  claim 17 , wherein the means for rotating the grate-height adjustor component relative to the other components of the drain assembly comprises one or more tabs located adjacent to a lower edge of the grate-height adjustor component. 
     
     
         20 . The drain assembly of  claim 19 , further comprising a grate-height adjustment tool sized to be inserted into the central bore of the grate holder component, the grate-height adjustment tool comprising a lower edge with one or more notches located to match the location(s) of the one or more tabs of the grate-height adjustor component such that the grate-height adjustment tool is operable to connect with the grate-height adjustor component and rotate the grate-height adjustor component relative to the grate holder component to raise and lower the grate holder component without disassembling the drain assembly, the grate-height adjustment tool further comprising a handle for the user to grip during use.