Commode ventilator

Abstract

Apparatus for collecting and disposing of air from the vicinity of a commode, utilizing a room exhaust fan. The apparatus may comprise an air intake member mountable to the commode, a conduit extending to the inlet grille of the exhaust fan, and an adapter housing which fits over the intake of the fan and constrains the exhaust fan to draw exclusively or almost exclusively from the conduit. The conduit may comprise flat sided plural sections, with connecting sleeves and right angled elbow connectors. The adapter housing may bear closable louvers. The air intake member may be mounted to the commode using an adhesive bearing anchor, occupying the space between the bowl and the toilet seat. The apparatus may include clips for securing the conduit to a wall surface. The air intake member may be rigid or flaccid.

1 . A method of collecting and discharging odoriferous air from the vicinity of a commode located in a room provided with an exhaust fan, comprising the steps of:
 providing an air intake member at the immediate vicinity of the commode;   providing a conduit disposed to conduct air from the air inlet to the immediate vicinity of the exhaust fan;   providing an adapter housing which covers the inlet of the exhaust fan and which receives the distal end of the conduit, and which substantially seals the inlet of the exhaust fan to infiltration of ambient air of the room; and   operating the exhaust fan;   transporting collected air to the exhaust fan; and   discharging collected air using the exhaust fan as the only air propulsion device acting to evacuate air from the vicinity of the commode and to the exterior of the room.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising the further step of causing the conduit to extend from the commode to a vertical surface of the room. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , comprising the further step of causing the conduit to extend along the ceiling of the room to the adapter housing. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising the further step of anchoring the intake member to the commode. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , comprising the further step of installing the intake member between the rim of the commode and the seat of the commode. 
     
     
         6 . Apparatus for collecting and discharging odoriferous air from the vicinity of a commode located in a room provided with an exhaust fan having an inlet, comprising:
 an intake member having an intake end and a discharge end of configuration different from that of the intake end;   a conduit which is insertably compatible with the discharge end of the intake member;   an adapter housing which is disposed to connect the elongated conduit to the inlet of the exhaust fan and to substantially seal against draw of air by the exhaust fan from the atmosphere outside the adapter housing, comprising an enclosure which is large enough to cover the inlet of the exhaust fan of the room, an inlet opening formed in the housing which is connectably compatible with the conduit, and an outlet opening formed in the adapter housing of cross sectional area at least about as great as that of the inlet of the exhaust fan of the room.   
     
     
         7 . The apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the conduit comprises at least one section which has at least one flat, planar side so as to be flushly mountable to a flat, planar wall or partition of the room. 
     
     
         8 . The apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the conduit comprises plural sections and at least one connector sleeve which enables one of the plural sections to be connected to another one of the plural sections, whereby the conduit may be built up in overall length by connecting the plural sections serially so as to be able to span the distance from the intake member to the adapter housing. 
     
     
         9 . The apparatus of  claim 8 , further comprising at least one elbow fitting disposed to receive therein and to mutually connect two adjacent sections of the conduit disposed at a right angle to one another, whereby the conduit may be mounted flushly to a ceiling of the room and to a wall or partition while making transition between vertical orientation and horizontal orientation. 
     
     
         10 . The apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the adapter housing comprises a louvered zone bearing openable and closable louvers and a manual control for opening and closing the louvers, whereby the fan may be used to evacuate air from the vicinity of the housing without drawing through the conduit. 
     
     
         11 . The apparatus of  claim 10 , wherein the adapter housing is formed in a first component and a second component bearing the louvers, which second component is removable from the first component. 
     
     
         12 . The apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the intake member is dimensioned and configured to fit between a toilet seat and the upper surface of the bowl of the commode, whereby the intake member may be installed between the toilet seat and the upper surface of the bowl of the commode without displacing the toilet seat from its normal position when in use. 
     
     
         13 . The apparatus of  claim 6 , further comprising an anchor which is retainably engageable with the mounting structure of the toilet seat, and has a holding element for engaging and holding the intake member, whereby the intake member may be secured to the commode by engagement with the mounting structure of the toilet seat. 
     
     
         14 . The apparatus of  claim 13 , wherein the anchor comprises a first section bearing a central opening for passing a threaded fastening shaft of the mounting structure of the toilet seat therethrough, a neck projecting from the first section, and a second section connected to the neck, wherein the second section bears a fastening element for engaging and securing the intake member. 
     
     
         15 . The apparatus of  claim 14 , wherein the fastening element comprises adhesive. 
     
     
         16 . The apparatus of  claim 14 , wherein the first section of the anchor has a thickness, and wherein the apparatus further comprises a washer of thickness equal to that of the first section of the anchor, whereby when the anchor and washer are mounted to the commode, the toilet seat is symmetrically displaced from the upper surface of the bowl of the commode. 
     
     
         17 . The apparatus of  claim 6 , further comprising a three sided clip for mounting the conduit to a wall, partition, or ceiling surface of the room, comprising a base section, a first side grip section extending from the base section at a substantially right angle thereto, and a second side grip section spaced apart from the first side grip section and extending from the base section at a substantially right angle thereto. 
     
     
         18 . The apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the intake member is sufficiently rigid as hold its form in the absence of forces which would distort its form. 
     
     
         19 . The apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the intake member comprises a flaccid constituent material.