Air-Conditioning
Cooling and dehumidifying the air in a building using a refrigeration unit driven by electricity or natural gas. This definition excludes fans, blowers, or evaporative cooling systems ("swamp coolers") that are not connected to a refrigeration unit. Air-conditioning units that are not currently in working condition or are not used are included if they are in place in the housing unit. (See Refrigeration Unit.)

Air-Conditioning Equipment
A system, either a central system or window or wall units, that cools the air in a housing unit using a refrigeration unit driven by electricity or natural gas. Excluded are fans, blowers, or evaporative cooling systems ("swamp coolers") that are not connected to a refrigeration unit. Air-conditioning units that were not in working condition or were not used are still included in RECS if they are in place in the housing unit. Some central air-conditioners are heat pumps.

Air-dried lumber     
Lumber that has been piled in yards or sheds for any length of time. For the United States as a whole, the minimum moisture content of thoroughly air dried lumber is 12 to 15 percent and the average is somewhat higher. In the South, air dried lumber may be no lower than 19 percent.

Acoustical tile         
Special tile for walls and ceilings made of mineral, wood, vegetable fibers, cork, or metal. Its purpose is to control sound volume, while providing cover.

Air duct
Pipes that carry warm air and cold air to rooms and back to furnace or air conditioning system.

Airway
A space between roof insulation and roof boards for movement of air.

Alligatoring
Coarse checking pattern characterized by a slipping of the new paint coating over the old coating to the extent that the old coating can be seen through the fissures.

Ampere
The rate of flow of electricity through electric wires.

Anchor bolts           
Bolts to secure a wooden sill plate to concrete , or masonry floor or wall.

Apron           
The flat member of the inside trim of a window placed against the wall immediately beneath the stool. Also, a paved area, such as the juncture of a driveway with the street or with a garage entrance.

Areaway       
An open subsurface space adjacent to a building used to admit light or air or as a means of access to a basement.

Asphalt         
Most native asphalt is a residue from evaporated petroleum. It is insoluble in water but soluble in gave. line when heated. Used widely in building for waterproofing roof coverings of many types, exterior wall coverings, flooring tile, and the like.

Astragal       
A molding, attached to one of a pair of swinging doors, against which the other door strikes.

Attic ventilators      
In houses, screened opening) provided to ventilate an attic space. They are located in the soffit area as inlet ventilators and in the gable end or along the ridge as outlet ventilators. They can also consist of power-driven fans used as an exhaust system. (See also Louver.)

Automatic Set-Back or Clock Thermostat
A thermostat that can be set to turn the heating/cooling system off and on at certain predetermined times.

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Backfill  
The gravel or earth replaced in the space around a building wall after foundations are in place.

Backhand
A simple molding sometimes used around the outer edge of plain rectangular casing as a decorative feature.

Balusters
Usually small vertical members in a railing used between a top rail and the stair treads or a bottom rail.

Balustrade  
A railing made up of balusters, top rail, and sometimes bottom rail, used on the edge of stairs, teal conies, and porches.

Balustrade  
A row of balusters topped by a rail, edging a balcony or a staircase.

Barge board           
A decorative board covering the projecting rafter (fly rafter) of the gable end. At the cornice, this member is a facie board.

Base molding
Molding used to trim the upper edge of interior baseboard.

Base shoe   
Molding used next to the floor on interior base board. Sometimes called a carpet strip.

Baseboard  
A board along the floor against walls and partitions to hid gaps.

Basement
An enclosed space in which a person can walk upright under all or part of the building.

Bathroom
A full bathroom contains a sink with running water, a flush toilet, and a bathtub or shower. A half bathroom contains a toilet or bathtub or shower.

Batt   
Insulation in the form of a blanket, rather than loose filling.

Batten 
Narrow strips of wood used to cover joints or as decorative vertical members over plywood or wide boards.

Batter board           
One of a pair of horizontal boards nailed to posts set at the corners of an excavation, used to indicate the desired level, also as a fastening for stretched strings to indicate outlines of foundation walls.

Bay window
Any window space projecting outward from the walls of a building, either square or polygonal in plan.

Beam
One of the principal horizontal wood or steel members of a building.

Bearing partition   
A partition that supports any vertical load in addition to its own weight.

Bearing wall
A wall that supports any vertical load in addition to its own weight.

Bed molding           
A molding in an angle, as between the over hanging cornice, or eaves, of a building and the side walls.

Bedroom
Room intended for sleeping. If not presently used for sleeping, number of bedrooms are those that would be listed as descriptive of the apartment or house if it were on the market for sale or rent. A one-room efficiency or studio apartment has no bedrooms.

Bib or Bibcock       
A water faucet to which a hose may be attached, also called a hose bib or sill cock.

Bleeding
Seeping of resin or gum from lumber. This term is also used in referring to the process of drawing air from water pipes.

Blind stop    
A rectangular molding, usually ¾ by 1-3/8 inches or more in width, used in the assembly of a window frame. Serves as a stop for storm and screen or combination windows and to resist air infiltration.

Blind-nailing 
Nailing in such a way that the nailheads are not visible on the face of the work—usually at the tongue of matched boards.

Blue stain    
A bluish or grayish discoloration of the sapwood caused by the growth of certain mold like fungi on the surface and in the interior of a piece, made possible by the same conditions that favor the growth of other fungi.

Bodied linseed oil 
Linseed oil that has been thickened in viscosity by suitable processing with heat or chemicals. Bodied oils are obtainable in a great range in viscosity from a little greater than that of raw oil to just short of a jellied condition.

Boiled linseed oil   
Linseed oil in which enough lead, manganese or cobalt salts have been incorporated to make the oil harden more rapidly when spread in thin coatings.

Bolster 
A short horizontal timber or steel beam on top of a column to support and decrease the span of beams or girders.

Brace
A piece of wood or other material used to form a triangle and stiffen some part of a structure.

Braced Framing
Construction technique using posts and cross-bracing for greater rigidity.

Brick veneer
A facing of brick laid against and fastened to sheathing of a frame wall or tile wall construction.

Bridging
Small wood or metal pieces placed diagonally between floor joists.

Buck
Often used in reference to rough frame opening members. Door bucks used in reference to metal door frame.

Building Paper
Heavy paper used in walls or roofs to dampproof.

Built-Up Roof         
A roofing material applied in sealed, waterproof layers, where there is only a slight slope to the roof.

Butt joint
The junction where the ends of two timbers or other members meet in a square-cut joint.

Bx Cable
Electricity cable wrapped in rubber with a flexible steel outer covering.

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Cant strip
A triangular shaped piece of lumber used at the junction of a flat deck and a wall to prevent cracking of the roofing which is applied over it.

Cantilever    
A projecting beam or joist, not supported at one end, used to support an extension of a structure.

Cap   
The upper member of a column, pilaster, door cornice, molding, and the like.

Carriage
The member which supports the steps or treads of a stair.

Casement
A window sash that opens on hinges at the vertical edge.

Casement frames and sash       
Frames of wood or metal enclosing part or all of the sash, which may be opened by means of hinges affixed to the vertical edges.

Casing
Molding of various widths and thicknesses used to trim door and window openings at the jambs.

Cavity Wall  
A hollow wall formed by firmly linked masonry walls, providing an insulating air space between.

Ceiling Fan
Fans, installed on the ceiling, used to ventilate a room.

Cement, Keene ’s
A white finish plaster that produces an extremely durable wall. Because of its density, it excels for use in bathrooms and kitchens and is also used extensively for the finish coat in auditoriums, public buildings, and other places where walls may be subjected to unusually hard wear or abuse.

Central Warm-Air Furnace
A type of space-heating equipment in which a central combustor or resistance unit--generally using gas, fuel oil, or electricity--provides warm air that circulates through ducts leading to the various rooms. Heat pumps are not included in this category. A forced-air furnace is one in which a fan is used to force the air through the ducts. In a gravity furnace, air is circulated by gravity, relying on the natural flow of warm air up and cold air down; the warm air rises through ducts and the cold air falls through ducts that return it to the furnace to be reheated, thus completing the circulation cycle. (See Heating Equipment.)

Chair Rail
Wooden molding on a wall around a room at the level of a chair back.

Chamfered Edge
Molding with pared-off corners.

Chase
A groove in a masonry wall or through a floor to accommodate pipes or ducts.

Checking     
Fissures that appear with age in many exterior paint coatings, at first superficial, but which in time may penetrate entirely through the coating.

Checkrails
Meeting rails sufficiently thicker than a window to fill the opening between the top and bottom sash made by the parting stop in the frame of double hung windows. They are usually beveled.

Chimney Breast
The horizontal projection-usually inside a building-of a chimney from the wall in which it is built.

Chimney Cap
Concrete capping around the top of chimney bricks and around the floors to protect the masonry from the elements.

Circuit Breaker
A safety device which opens (breaks) an electric circuit automatically when it becomes overloaded.

Cistern
A tank to catch and store rain water.

Clapboard   
A long thin board, thicker on one edge, overlapped and nailed on for exterior siding.

Collar Beam
A horizontal beam fastened above the lower ends of rafters to add rigidity.

Column        
In architecture: A perpendicular supporting member, circular or rectangular in section, usually consisting of a base, shaft, and capital. In engineering: A vertical structural compression member which supports loads acting in the direction of its longitudinal axis.

Combination doors or windows
Combination doors or windows used over regular openings. They provide winter insulation and summer protection and often have self storing or removable glass and screen inserts. This eliminates the need for handling a different unit each season.

Concrete plain       
Concrete either without reinforcement, or reinforced only for shrinkage or temperature changes.

Condensation        
In a building: Beads or drops of water (and frequently frost in extremely cold weather) that accumulate on the inside of the exterior covering of a building when warm, moisture-laden air from the interior reaches a point where the temperature no longer permits the air to sustain the moisture it holds. Use of louvers or attic ventilators will reduce moisture condensation in attics. A vapor barrier under the gypsum lath or dry wall on exposed walls will reduce condensation in them.

Conduit, electrical
A pipe, usually metal, in which wire is installed.

Construction dry-wall      
A type of construction in which the interior wall finish is applied in a dry condition, generally in the form of sheet materials or wood paneling as contrasted to plaster.

Construction, frame
A type of construction in which the structural parts are wood or depend upon a wood frame for support. In codes, if masonry veneer is applied to the exterior walls, the classification of this type of construction is usually unchanged.

Coped joint 
See Scribing.

Coping
Tile or brick used to cap or cover the top of a masonry wall.

Corbel          
A horizontal projection from a wall, forming a ledge or supporting a structure above it.

Corbel out   
To build out one or more courses of brick or stone from the face of a wall, to form a support for timbers.

Corner Bead
A strip of wood or metal for protecting the external corners of plastered walls.

Corner boards
Used as trim for the external corners of a house or other frame structure against which the ends of the siding are finished.

Corner braces
Used as trim for the external corners of a house or other frame structure against which the ends of the siding are finished.

Cornerite
Metal-mesh lath cut into strips and bent to a right angle. Used in interior corners of walls and ceilings on lath to prevent cracks in plastering.

Cornice
Horizontal projection at the top of a wall or under the overhanging part of the roof.

Cornice return
That portion of the cornice that returns on the gable end of a house.

Counterflashing
A flashing usually used on chimneys at the roofline to cover shingle flashing and to prevent moisture entry.

Course         
A horizontal row of bricks, cinder blocks or other masonry materials.

Cove Lighting
Concealed light sources behind a cornice or horizontal recess which direct the light upon a reflecting ceiling.

Cove molding
A molding with a concave face used as trim or to finish interior corners.

Crawl Space           
A shallow, unfinished space beneath the first floor of a house which has no basement, used for visual inspection and access to pipes and ducts. Also, a shallow space in the attic, immediately under the roof.

Cricket          
A shallow space below the living quarters of a basementless house, normally enclosed by the foundation wall.

Cripples  
Cut-off framing members above and below windows.

Cross-bridging
Diagonal bracing between adjacent floor joists, placed near the center of the joist span to prevent joists from twisting.

Crown molding
A molding used on cornice or wherever an interior angle is to be covered.

Cut-in brace
Nominal 2-inch-thick members, usually 2 by 4’s, cut in between each stud diagonally.

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d
See Penny.

Dado 
A rectangular groove across the width of a board or plank. In interior decoration, a special type of wall treatment.

Decay           
Disintegration of wood or other substance through the action of fungi,

Deck paint   
An enamel with a high degree of resistance to mechanical wear, designed for use on such surfaces as porch floors.

Density         
The mass of substance in a unit volume. When expressed in the metric system, it is numerically equal to the specific gravity of the same substance.

Dewpoint 
Temperature at which a vapor begins to deposit as a liquid. Applies especially to water in the atmosphere.

Dimension
See Lumber dimension.

Direct nailing
To nail perpendicular to the initial surface or to the junction of the pieces joined. Also termed face nailing.

Door Buck
The rough frame of a door.

Doorjamb, interior
The surrounding case into which and out of which a door closes and opens. It consists of two upright pieces, called side jambs, and a horizontal head jamb.

Dormer         
An opening in a sloping roof, the framing of which projects out to form a vertical wall suitable for windows or other openings.

Double Glazing
An insulating window pane formed of two thicknesses of glass with a sealed air space between them.

Double Hung Windows   
Windows with an upper and lower sash, each supported by cords and weights.

Downspout
A spout or pipe to carry rain water down from a roof or gutters.

Downspout Strap
A piece of metal which secures the downspout to the eaves or wall of a building.

Dressed and matched (tongued and grooved)
Boards or planks machined in such a matter that there is a groove on one edge and a corresponding tongue on the other.

Drip   
(a) A member of a cornice or other horizontal exterior finish course that has a projection beyond the other parts for throwing off water. (b) A groove in the under. side of a sill or drip cap to cause water to drop off on the outer edge instead of drawing back and running down the face of the building.

Drip cap       
A molding placed on the exterior top side of a door or window frame to cause water to drip beyond the outside of the frame.

Drywall         
Interior covering material, such as gypsum board or plywood, which is applied in large sheets or panels.

Ducts
In a house, usually round or rectangular metal pipes for distributing warm air from the heating plant to rooms, or air from a conditioning device or as cold air returns. Ducts are also made of asbestos and composition materials.

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Eaves  
The extension of roof beyond house walls.

Efflorescence
White powder that forms on the surface of brick.

Effluent
Treated sewage from a septic tank or sewage treatment plant.

Expansion joint
A bituminous fiber strip used to separate blocks or units of concrete to prevent cracking due to expansion as a result of temperature changes. Also used on concrete slabs.

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Facia or fascia        
A flat board, band, or face, used sometimes by itself but usually in combination with moldings, often located at the outer face of the cornice.

Filler (wood)
A heavily pigmented preparation used for fining and leveling off the pores in open-pored woods.

Fill-Type Insulation
Loose insulating material which is applied by hand or blown into wall spaces mechanically.

Fire retardant chemical 
A chemical or preparation of chemicals used to reduce flammability or to retard spread of flame.

Fire stop      
A solid, tight closure of a concealed space, placed to prevent the spread of fire and smoke through such a space. In a frame wall, this will usually consist of 2 by 4 cross blocking between studs.

Fire-resistive           
In the absence of a specific ruling by the authority having jurisdiction, applies to materials for construction not combustible in the temperatures of ordinary fires and that will withstand such fires without serious impairment of their usefulness for at least 1 hour.

Fishplate
A wood or plywood piece used to fasten the ends of two members together at a butt joint with nails or bolts. Sometimes used at the junction of opposite rafters near the ridge line.

Flagstone (flagging or flags)      
Flat stones, from 1 to 4 inches thick, used for rustic walks, steps, floors, and the like.

Flashing
Noncorrosive metal used around angles or junctions in roofs and exterior walls to prevent leaks.

Flat paint
An interior paint that contains a high proportion of pigment and dries to a flat or lusterless finish.

Floor Joists
Framing pieces which rest on outer foundation walls and interior beams or girders.

Flue   
A passageway in a chimney for conveying smoke, gases or fumes to the outside air.

Flue lining   
Fire clay or terra-cotta pipe, round or square, usually made in all ordinary flue sizes and in 2-foot lengths, used for the inner lining of chimneys with the brick or masonry work around the outside. Flue lining in chimneys runs from about a foot below the flue connection to the top of the chimney.

Fly rafters
End rafters of the gable overhang supported by roof sheathing and lookouts.

Footing        
A masonry section, usually concrete, in a rectangular form wider than the bottom of the foundation wall or pier it supports.

Foundation
Lower parts of walls on which the structure is built. Foundation walls of masonry or concrete are mainly below ground level.

Framing       
The rough lumber of a house-joists, studs, rafters, and beams.

Framing, balloon
A system of framing a building in which all vertical structural elements of the bearing walls and partitions consist of single pieces extending from the top of the foundation sin plate to the roofplate and to which all floor joists are fastened.

Framing, platform
A system of framing a building in which floor joists of each story rest on the top plates of the story below or on the foundation sill for the first story, and the bearing walls and partitions rest on the subfloor of each story.

Frieze
In house construction a horizontal member connecting the top of the siding with the soffit of the cornice.

Frostline
The depth of frost penetration in soil. This depth varies in different parts of the country. Footings should be placed below this depth to prevent movement.

Fungi, wood
Microscopic plants that live in damp wood and cause mold, stain, and decay.

Fungicide
A chemical that is poisonous to fungi

Furring
Strips of wood or metal applied to a wall or other surface to even it and normally to serve as a fastening base for finish material.

Fuse
A short plug in an electric panel box which opens (breaks) an electrical circuit when it becomes overloaded.

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Gable
The triangular part of a wall under the inverted v  of the roof line.

Gable end    
An end wall having a gable.

Gambrel Roof         
A roof with two pitches, designed to provide more space on upper floors. The roof is steeper on its lower slope and flatter toward the ridge.

Girder
A main member in a framed floor supporting the joists which carry the flooring boards. It carries the weight of a floor or partition.

Glazing
Fitting glass into windows or doors.

Gloss (paint or enamel)
A paint or enamel that contains a relatively low proportion of pigment and dries to a sheen or luster.

Gloss enamel         
A finishing material made of varnish and sufficient pigments to provide opacity and color, but little or no pigment of low opacity. Such an enamel forms a hard coating with maximum smoothness of surface and a high degree of gloss.

Grade Line
The point at which the ground rests against the foundation wall.

Grain 
The direction, size, arrangement, appearance, or quality of the fibers in wood.

Grain, edge (vertical)
Edge-grain lumber has been sawed parallel to the pith of the log and approximately at right angles to the growth rings; i.e., the rings form an angle of 45° or more with the surface of the piece.

Grain, flat
Flat-grain lumber has been sawed parallel to the pith of the log and approximately tangent to the growth rings, i.e., the rings form an angle of less than 45° with the surface of the piece.

Green Lumber        
Lumber which has been inadequately dried and which tends to warp or bleed resin.

Grounds
Pieces of wood embedded in plaster of walls to which skirtings are attached. Also wood pieces used to stop the plaster work around doors and windows.

Grout
Mortar made of such consistency (by adding water) that it will just flow into the joints and cavities of the masonry work and fill them solid.

Gusset          
A flat wood, plywood, or similar type member used to provide a connection at intersection of wood members. Most commonly used at joints of wood trusses. They are fastened by nails, screws, bolts, or adhesives.

Gutter
A channel at the eaves for conveying away rain water.

Gypsum plaster
Gypsum formulated to be used with the addition of sand and water for base-coat plaster.

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Hardwood

The close-grained wood from broad-leaved trees such as oak or maple.

Header         
(a) A beam placed perpendicular to joists and to which joists are nailed in framing for chimney, stairway, or other opening. (b) A wood lintel.

Headers
Double wood pieces supporting joists in a floor or double wood members placed on edge over windows and doors to transfer the roof and floor weight to the studs.

Hearth          
The inner or outer floor of a fireplace, usually made of brick, tile, or stone.

Heartwood  
The wood extending from the pith to the sapwood, the cells of which no longer participate in the life processes of the tree.

Heat Pump (Reverse-Cycle System)
A year-round heating and air-conditioning system in which refrigeration equipment supplies both heating and cooling through ducts leading to individual rooms. A heat pump generally consists of a compressor, both indoor and outdoor coils, and a thermostat. In the RECS, all heat pumps are considered to be electric.

Heel
The end of a rafter that rests on the wall plate.

Hip
The external angle formed by the meeting of two sloping sides of a roof.

Hip Roof
A roof that slants upward on three or four sides.

Humidifier
A device designed to increase the humidity within a room or a house by means of the discharge of water vapor. They may consist of individual room size units or larger units attached to the heating plant to condition the entire house.

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I-beam          
A steel beam with a cross section resembling the letter I. It is used for long spans as basement beams or over wide wall openings, such as a double garage door, when wall and roof loads are imposed on the opening.

IIC
A new system utilized in the Federal Housing Administration recommended criteria for impact sound insulation.

INR (Impact Noise Rating) 
A single figure rating which provides an estimate of the impact sound insulating performance of a floor-ceiling assembly.

Insulation board, rigid
A structural building board made of coarse wood or cane fiber in ½- and 25/32-inch thickness It can be obtained in various size sheets, in various densities, and with several treatments.

Insulation, thermal
Any material high in resistance to heat transmission that, when placed in the walls, ceiling, or floors of a structure, will reduce the rate of heat flow.

Interior finish          
Material used to cover the interior framed areas, or materials of walls and ceilings

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Jack rafter   
A rafter that spans the distance from the wall plate to a hip, or from a valley to a ridge.

Jalousies     
Windows with movable, horizontal glass slats angled to admit-ventilation and keep out rain. This term is also used for outside shutters of wood constructed in this way.

Jamb 
The side and head lining of a doorway, window, or other opening.

Joint  
The space between the adjacent surfaces of two members or components joined and held together by nails, glue, cement, mortar, or other means.

Joint cement           
A powder that is usually mixed with water and used for joint treatment in gypsum-wallboard finish. Often called spackle.

Joist  
One of a series of parallel beams, usually 2 inches in thickness, used to support floor and ceiling loads, and supported in turn by larger beams, girders, or bearing walls.

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Kiln-Dried    
Artificial drying of lumber, superior to most lumber that is air dried.

King-Post    
The middle post of a truss. Large, heavy screws, used where great strength is required, as in heavy framing or when attaching ironwork to wood.

Knot  
In lumber, the portion of a branch or limb of a tree that appears on the edge or face of the piece.

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Lag-Screws or Coach-Screws  
Large, heavy screws, used where great strength is required, as in heavy framing or when attaching ironwork to wood.

Lally Column          
A steel tube sometimes filled with concrete, used to support girders or other floor beams.

Landing
A platform between flights of stairs or at the termination of a flight of stairs.

Lath   
One of a number of thin narrow strips of wood nailed to rafters, ceiling joists, wall studs, etc. to make a groundwork or key for slates, tiles, or plastering.

Lattice
A framework of crossed wood or metal strips.

Leaching Bed
Tiles in the trenches carrying treated wastes from septic tanks.

Ledger
A piece of wood which is attached to a beam to support joists.

Ledger strip
A strip of lumber nailed along the bottom of the side of a girder on which joists rest.

Let-in brace
Nominal 1 inch-thick boards applied into notched studs diagonally.

Light
Space in a window sash for a single pane of glass. Also, a pane of glass.

Linseed oil, raw
The crude product processed from flaxseed and usually without much subsequent treatment.

Lintel
The top piece over a door or window which supports walls above the opening.

Load-Bearing Wall
A strong wall capable of supporting weight.

Lookout       
A short wood bracket or cantilever to support an overhang portion of a roof or the like, usually concealed from view.

Louver          
An opening with horizontal slats to permit passage of air, but excluding rain, sunlight and view.

Lumber        
Lumber is the product of the sawmill and planing mill not further manufactured other than by sawing, resawing, and passing lengthwise through a standard planing machine, crosscutting to length, and matching.

Lumber, boards
Yard lumber less than 2 inches thick and 2 or more inches wide.

Lumber, dimension
Yard lumber from 2 inches to, but not including, 5 inches thick and 2 or more inches wide. Includes joists, rafters, studs, plank, and small timbers.

Lumber, dressed size
The dimension of lumber after shrinking from green dimension and after machining to size or pattern.

Lumber, matched
Lumber that is dressed and shaped on one edge in a grooved pattern and on the other in a tongued pattern.

Lumber, shiplap
Lumber that is edge-dressed to make a close rabbeted or lapped joint.

Lumber, timbers
Yard lumber 5 or more inches in least dimension. Includes beams, stringers, posts, caps, sills, girders, and purlins

Lumber, yard
Lumber of those grades, sizes, and patterns which are generally intended for ordinary construction, such as framework and rough coverage of houses.

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Mantel
The shelf above a fireplace. Also used in referring to the decorative trim around a fireplace opening.

Masonry       
Stone, brick, concrete, hollow-tile, concrete block, gypsum block, or other similar building units or materials or a combination of the same, bonded together with mortar to form a wall, pier, buttress, or similar mass

Mastic
A pasty material used as a cement (as for setting tile) or a protective coating (as for thermal insulation or waterproofing)

Metal lath
Sheets of metal that are slit and drawn out to form openings. Used as a plaster base for walls and ceilings and as reinforcing over other forms of plaster base.

Millwork       
Generally all building materials made of finished wood and manufactured in millwork plants and planing mills are included under the term millwork.   It includes such items as inside and outside doors, window and doorframes, blinds, porchwork, mantels, panelwork, stairways, moldings, and interior trim. It normally does not include flooring, ceiling, or siding.

Miter joint     
The joint of two pieces at an angle that bisects the joining angle. For example, the miter joint at the side and head casing at a door opening is made at a 45° angle.

Moisture Barrier     
Treated paper or metal that retards or bars water vapor, used to keep moisture from passing into walls or floors.

Moisture content of wood           
Weight of the water contained in the wood, usually expressed as a percentage of the weight of the ovendry wood.

Molding
A strip of decorative material having a plane or curved narrow surface prepared for ornamental application. These strips are often used to hide gaps at wall junctures.

Mortise         
A slot cut into a board, plank, or timber, usually edgewise, to receive tenon of another board, plank, or timber to form a joint.

Mullion         
A vertical bar or divider in the frame between windows, doors, or other openings.

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Natural finish          
A transparent finish which does not seriously alter the original color or grain of the natural wood. Natural finishes are usually provided by sealers, oils, varnishes, water-repellent preservatives, and other similar materials.

Newel           
A post to which the end of a stair railing or balustrade is fastened. Also, any post to which a railing or balustrade is fastened.

Nonbearing wall
A wall supporting no load other than its own weight.

Nosing
The rounded edge of a stair tread.

Notch
A crosswise rabbet at the end of a board.

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O. C., on center
The measurement of spacing for studs, rafters, joists, and the like in a building from the center of one member to the center of the next.

O. G., or ogee
A molding with a profile in the form of a letter S; having the outline of a reversed curve.

Outrigger
An extension of a rafter beyond the wall line. Usually a smaller member nailed to a larger rafter to form a cornice or roof overhang.

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Paint
A combination of pigments with suitable thinners or oils to provide decorative and protective coatings.

Panel            
In house construction, a thin flat piece of wood, ply. wood, or similar material, framed by stiles and rails as in a door or fitted into grooves of thicker material with molded edges for decorative wall treatment.

Paper, building
A general term for papers, felts, and similar sheet materials used in buildings without reference to their properties or uses.

Paper, sheathing
A building material, generally paper or felt, used in wall and roof construction as a protection against the passage of air and sometimes moisture.

Parging
A rough coat of mortar applied over a masonry wall as protection or finish; may also serve as a base for an asphaltic waterproofing compound below grade.

Parting stop or strip
A small wood piece used in the side and head jambs of double-hung windows to separate upper and lower sash.

Partition
A wall that subdivides spaces within any story of a building.

Penny           
As applied to nails, it originally indicated the price per hundred. The term now series as a measure of nail length and is abbreviated by the letter d.

Perm
A measure of water vapor movement through a material (grains per square foot per hour per inch of mercury difference in vapor pressure).

Pier    
A column of masonry, usually rectangular in horizontal cross section, used to support other structural members.

Pigment
A powdered solid in suitable degree of subdivision for use in paint or enamel.

Pilaster
A projection or the foundation wall used to support a floor girder or stiffen the wall.

Pitch 
The incline slope of a roof or the ratio of the total rise to the total width of a house, i.e., an 8-foot rise and 24-foot width is a one-third pitch roof. Roof slope is expressed in the inches of rise per foot of run.

Pitch pocket           
An opening extending parallel to the annual rings of growth, that usually contains, or has contained, either solid or liquid pitch.

Pith    
The small, soft core at the original center of a tree around which wood formation takes place.

Plaster grounds
Strips of wood used as guides or strike off edges around window and door openings and at base of walls.

Plasterboard (See Dry Wall)       
Gypsum board, used instead of plaster.

Plate  
Sill plate: a horizontal member anchored to a masonry wall. Sole plate: bottom horizontal member of a frame wall. Top plate: top horizontal member of a frame wall supporting ceiling joists, rafters, or other members.

Plates
Pieces of wood placed on wall surfaces as fastening devices. The bottom member of the wall is the sole plate and the top member is the rafter plate.

Plenum         
A chamber which can serve as a distribution area for heating or cooling systems, generally between a false ceiling and the actual ceiling.

Plough
To cut a lengthwise groove in a board or plank.

Plumb
Exactly perpendicular; vertical.

Ply     
A term to denote the number of thicknesses or layers of roofing felt, veneer in plywood, or layers in built-up materials, in any finished piece of such material.

Plywood      
A piece of wood made of three or more layers of veneer joined with glue, and usually laid with the grain of adjoining plies at right angles. Almost always an odd number of plies are used to provide balanced construction.

Pointing
Treatment of joints in masonry by filling with mortar to improve appearance or protect against weather.

Pores
Wood cells of comparatively large diameter that have open ends and are set one above the other to form continuous tubes. The openings of the vessels on the surface of a piece of wood are referred to as pores.

Post-And-Beam Construction
Wall construction in which beams are supported by heavy posts rather than many smaller studs.

Prefabrication        
Construction of components such as walls, trusses, or doors, before delivery to the building site.

Preservative           
Any substance that, for a reasonable length of time, will prevent the action of wood-destroying fungi, borers of various kinds, and similar destructive agents when the wood has been properly coated or impregnated with it.

Primer
The first coat of paint in a paint job that consists of two or more coats; also the paint used for such a first coat.

Putty 
A type of cement usually made of whiting and boiled linseed oil, beaten or kneaded to the consistency of dough, and used in sealing glass in sash, filling small holes and crevices in wood, and for similar purposes.

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Quarter round
A small molding that has the cross section of a quarter circle.

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Rabbet
A groove cut in a board to receive another board.

Radiant Heat           
Coils of electricity, hot water or steam pipes embedded in floors, ceilings, or walls to heat rooms.

Rafter
One of a series of structural members of a roof designed to support roof loads. The rafters of a flat roof are sometimes called roof joists.

Rafter, hip
A rafter that forms the intersection of an external roof angle.

Rafter, valley
A rafter that forms the intersection of an internal roof angle. The valley rafter is normally made of double 2-inch-thick members.

Rail    
Cross members of panel doors or of a sash. Also the upper and lower members of a balustrade or staircase extending from one vertical support, such as a post, to another.

Rake
Trim members that run parallel to the roof slope and form the finish between the wall and a gable roof extension.

Reflective insulation         
Sheet material with one or both sun faces of comparatively low heat emissivity, such as aluminum foil. When used in building construction the surfaces face air spaces, reducing the radiation across the air space.

Reinforced Concrete
Concrete strengthened with wire or metal bars.

Reinforcing 
Steel rods or metal fabric placed in concrete slabs, beams, or columns to increase their strength.

Relative humidity
The amount of water vapor in the atmosphere, expressed as a percentage of the maximum quantity that could be present at a given temperature. (The actual amount of water vapor that can be held in space increases with the temperature.)

Resorcinol Glue
A glue that is high in both wet and dry strength and resistant to high temperatures. It is used for gluing lumber or assembly joints that must withstand severe service conditions.

Ribbon (Girt)
Normally a 1- by 4-inch board let into the studs horizontally to support ceiling or second-floor joists.

Ridge
The horizontal line at the junction of the top edges of two sloping roof surfaces.

Ridge board
The board placed on edge at the ridge of the roof into which the upper ends of the rafters are fastened.

Ridge Pole
A thick longitudinal plank to which the ridge rafters of a roof are attached.

Rise   
In stairs, the vertical height of a step or flight of stairs.

Riser 
The upright piece of a stair step, from tread to tread.

Roll roofing 
Roofing material, composed of fiber and satin rated with asphalt, that is supplied in 36-inch wide rolls with 108 square feet of material. Weights are generally 45 to 90 pounds per roll.

Roof Sheathing     
Sheets, usually of plywood, which are nailed to the top edges of trusses or rafters to tie the roof together and support the roofing material.

Run   
In stairs, the net width of a step or the horizontal distance covered by a flight of stairs.

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Saddle          
Two sloping surfaces meeting in a horizontal ridge, used between the back side of a chimney, or other vertical surface, and a sloping roof.

Sand float finish    
Lime mixed with sand, resulting in a textured finish.

Sandwich Panel    
A panel with plastic, paper, or other material enclosed between two layers of a different material.

Sapwood     
The outer zone of wood, next to the bark. In the living tree it contains some living cells (the heartwood contains none), as well as dead and dying cells. In most species, it is lighter colored than the heartwood. In all species, it is lacking in decay resistance.

Sash
The movable part of a window-the frame in which panes of glass are set in a window or door.

Sash balance         
A device, usually operated by a spring or tensioned weather-stripping designed to counterbalance double-hung window sash.

Saturated felt
A felt which is impregnated with tar or asphalt.

Scotia
A concave molding.

Scratch coat           
The first coat of plaster, which is scratched to form a bond for the second coat.

Screed          
A small strip of wood, usually the thickness of the plaster coat, used as a guide for plastering.

Scribing       
Fitting woodwork to an irregular surface. In moldings, cutting the end of one piece to fit the molded face of the other at an interior angle to replace a miter joint.

Scuttle Hole
A small opening either to the attic, to the crawl space or to the plumbing pipes.

Sealer           
A finishing material, either clear or pigmented, that is usually applied directly over uncoated wood for the purpose of sealing the surface.

Seasoning
Removing moisture from green wood in order to improve its serviceability.

Seepage Pit 
A sewage disposal system composed of a septic tank and a connected cesspool.

Semigloss paint or enamel         
A paint or enamel made with a slight insufficiency of nonvolatile vehicle so that its coating, when dry, has some luster but is not very glossy.

Septic Tank
A sewage settling tank in which part of the sewage is converted into gas and sludge before the remaining waste is discharged by gravity into a leaching bed underground.

Shakes
Handcut wood shingles.

Sheathing    
The structural covering, usually wood boards or plywood, used over studs or rafters of a structure. Structural building board is normally wed only as wall sheathing.

Sheathing paper    
See Paper, sheathing.

Sheet metal work  
All components of a house employing sheet metal, such as flashing, gutters, and downspouts.

Shellac         
A transparent coating made by dissolving lac, a resinous secretion of the lac bug (a scale insect that thrives in tropical countries, especially India ), in alcohol.

Shim
Thin tapered piece of wood used for leveling or tightening a stair or other building element.

Shingles      
Pieces of wood, asbestos or other material used as an overlapping outer covering on walls or roofs.

Shingles, siding
Various kinds of shingles, such as wood shingles or shakes and nonwood shingles, that are used over sheathing for exterior sidewall covering of a structure.

Shiplap
Siding Boards of special design nailed horizontally to vertical studs with or without intervening sheathing to form the exposed surface of outside walls of frame buildings. See also Lumber, shiplap.

Shutter
Usually lightweight louvered or flush wood or nonwood frames in the form of doors located at each side of a window. Some are made to close over the window for protection; others are fastened to the wall as a decorative device.

Siding           
The finish covering of the outside wall of a frame building, whether made of horizontal weatherboards, vertical boards with battens, shingles, or other material.

Siding, bevel (lap siding)
Wedge-shaped boards used as horizontal siding in a lapped pattern. This siding varies in butt thickness from ½ to ¾ inch and in widths up to 12 inches. Normally used over some type of sheathing.

Siding, Dolly Varden
Beveled wood siding which is rabbeted on the bottom edge.

Siding, drop
Usually ¾ inch thick and 6 and 8 inches wide with tongued-and-grooved or shiplap edges. Often used as siding without sheathing in secondary buildings.

Sill
The lowest member of the frame of a structure, resting on the foundation and supporting the floor joists or the uprights of the wall. The member forming the lower side of an opening, as a door sill. window sill. etc.

Sill Plate
The lowest member of the house framing resting on top of the foundation wall. Also called the mud sill.

Skirtings
Narrow boards around the margin of a floor; baseboards.

Slab
Concrete floor placed directly on earth or a gravel base and usually about four inches thick.

Sleeper         
Usually, a wood member embedded in concrete, as in a floor, that serves to support and to fasten subfloor or flooring.

Soffit 
The visible underside of structural members such as staircases, cornices, beams, a roof overhang or eave.

Softwood 
Easily worked wood or wood from a cone-bearing tree.

Soil cover (ground cover)           
A light covering of plastic film, roll roofing, or similar material used over the soil in crawl spaces of buildings to minimize moisture permeation of the area.

Soil stack     
A general term for the vertical main of a system of soil, waste, or vent piping.

Sole or sole plate 
See Plate.

Solid bridging
A solid member placed between adjacent floor joists near the center of the span to prevent joists from twisting.

Span 
The distance between structural supports such as walls, columns, piers, beams, girders, and trusses.

Splash block
A small masonry block laid with the top close to the ground surface to receive roof drainage from downspouts and to carry it away from the building.

Square
A unit of measure—100 square feet—usually applied to roofing material. Sidewall coverings are sometimes packed to cover 100 square feet and are sold on that basis.

Stain, shingle
A form of oil paint, very thin in consistency, intended for coloring wood with rough surfaces, such as shingles, without forming a coating of significant thickness or gloss.

Stair carriage          
Supporting member for stair treads. Usually a 2-inch plank notched to receive the treads; sometimes called a rough horse.

Stair landing
See Landing.

Stair rise
See Rise.

Stile
An upright framing member in a panel door.

Stool
A flat molding fitted over the window sill between jambs and contacting the bottom rail of the lower sash.

Storm sash or storm window    
An extra window usually placed outside of an existing one, as additional protection against cold weather.

Story
That part of a building between any floor and the floor or roof next above.

String, stringer
(a) A timber or other support for cross members in floors or ceilings. In stairs, the support on which the stair treads rest; also stringboard. (b) A long, horizontal member which connects uprights in a frame or supports a floor or the like. One of the enclosed sides of a stair supporting the treads and risers.

Strip flooring          
Wood flooring consisting of narrow, matched strips.

Stucco
Most commonly refers to an outside plaster made with Portland cement as its base.

Studs
In wall framing, the vertical members to which horizontal pieces are nailed. Studs are spaced either 16 inches or 24 inches apart.

Subfloor       
Usually, plywood sheets that are nailed directly to the floor joists and that receive the finish flooring.

Subfloor
Boards or plywood laid on joists over which a finish floor is to be laid.

Sump
A pit in the basement in which water collects to be pumped out with a sump pump.

Suspended ceiling
A ceiling system supported by hanging it from the overhead structural framing.

Swale
A wide shallow depression in the ground to form a channel for storm water drainage.

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Tail beam
A relatively short beam or joist supported in a wall on one end and by a header at the other.

Termite shield        
A shield, usually of noncorrodible metal, placed in or on a foundation wall or other mass of masonry or around pipes to prevent passage of termites.

Termites       
Insects that superficially resemble ants in size, general appearance, and habit of living in colonies; hence, they are frequently called white ants.  Subterranean termites establish themselves in buildings not by being carried in with lumber, but by entering from ground nests after the building has been constructed. If unmolested, they eat out the woodwork, leaving a shell of sound wood to conceal their activities, and damage may proceed so far as to cause collapse of parts of a structure before discovery. There are about 56 species of termites known in the United States ; but the two major ones, classified by the manner in which they attack wood, are ground inhabiting or subterranean termites (the most common) and dry wood termites, which are found almost exclusively along the extreme southern border and the Gulf of Mexico in the United States .

Terneplate
Sheet iron or steel coated with an alloy of lead and tin.

Threshold
A strip of wood or metal with beveled edges used over the finish floor and the sill of exterior doors.

Tie
A wood member which binds a pair of principal rafters at the bottom.

Tile Field
Open-joint drain tiles laid to distribute septic tank effluent over an absorption area or to provide subsoil drainage in wet areas.

Toenail
Driving nails at an angle into corners or other joints.

Toenailing
To drive a nail at a slant with the initial surface in order to permit it to penetrate into a second member.]

Tongue-And-Groove
Carpentry joint in which the jutting edge of one board fits into the grooved end of a similar board.  See also Dressed and matched.

Trap
A bend in a water pipe to hold water so gases will not escape from the plumbing system into the house.

Tread
The horizontal board in a stairway on which the foot is placed.

Trimmer       
A beam or joist to which a header is nailed in framing for a chimney, stairway, or other opening.

Truss
A combination of structural members usually arranged in triangular units to form a rigid framework for spanning between load-bearing walls.

Turpentine  
A volatile oil used as a thinner in paints and as a solvent in varnishes. Chemically, it is a mixture of terpenes.

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Undercoat   
A coating applied prior to the finishing or top coats of a paint job. It may be the first of two or the second of three coats. In some usage of the word it may, become synonymous with priming coat.

Underlayment        
A material placed under finish coverings, such as flooring, or shingles, to provide a smooth, even surface for applying the finish.

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Valley
The internal angle formed by the junction of two sloping sides of a roof.

Vapor Barrier          
Material such as paper, metal or paint which is used to prevent vapor from passing from rooms into the outside walls.

Varnish        
A thickened preparation of drying oil or drying oil and resin suitable for spreading on surfaces to form continuous, transparent coatings, or for mixing with pigments to make enamels.

Veneer
Thin sheets of wood made by rotary cutting or slicing of a log.

Venetian Window
A window with one large fixed central pane and smaller panes at each side.

Vent  
Various kinds of shingles, such as wood shingles or shakes and nonwood shingles, that are used over sheathing for exterior sidewall covering of a structure.

Verge
The edge of tiles, slates or shingles, projecting over the gable of a roof.

Vermiculite  
A mineral closely related to mica, with the faculty of expanding on heating to form lightweight material with insulation quality. Used as bulk insulation and also as aggregate in insulating and acoustical plaster and in insulating concrete floors.

Volatile thinner
A liquid that evaporates readily and is used to thin or reduce the consistency of finishes without altering the relative volumes of pigment and nonvolatile vehicles.

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Wainscoting           
The lower three or four feet of an interior wall when lined with paneling, tile or other material different from the rest of the wall.

Wall Sheathing       
Sheets of plywood, gypsum board, or other material nailed to the outside face of studs as a base for exterior siding.

Wane
Bark, or lack of wood from any cause, on edge or corner of a piece of wood.

Water-repellent preservative      
A liquid designed to penetrate into wood and impart water repellency and a moderate preservative protection. It is used for millwork, such as sash and frames, and is usually applied by dipping.

Weather Stripping 
Metal, wood, plastic or other material installed around door and window openings to prevent air infiltration.

Weatherstrip           
Narrower or jamb-width sections of thin metal or other material to prevent infiltration of air and moisture around windows and doors. Compression weather stripping prevents air infiltration, provides tension, and acts as a counter balance.

Weep Hole
A small hole in a wall which permits water to drain off.

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