An approximately level building area.

A metal form used to form the cavities between joists in cast-in-place concrete floors and roofs.

A panel that includes fuses or circuit breakers used to protect the circuits in a building from overloads.

Construction that uses preassembled panels for walls, floors, and roof.

Lumber made from lengths of wood veneer bonded to produce a solid member.

Extension of an exterior wall above and/or through the roof surface.

The application of a portland cement plaster on masonry and concrete walls to make them less permeable to water.

A sheet product manufactured from wood particles and a synthetic resin or other binder.

A non-load-bearing interior wall.

A wall built on the dividing line between two adjoining parcels, in which each owner has an equal share of ownership.

A heating or cooling system that collects and moves solar heat whiout using mechanical power.

A thin brick used as the finished floor covering.

Suffix designating the size of nails, such as 6d (penny) nail, originally indicating the price, in English pence, per 100 nails. Does not designate a constant length or size, and will vary by type (e.g., common and box nails).

States how a building element must perform as opposed to describing equipment, products or systems by name.

A lightweight material made from volcanic rock.

A unit of measurement of Water Vapor Permenance (ASTM).

A class of acid organic compounds used in the manufacture of various resins, plastics, and wood preservatives.

A synthetic resin made by the reaction of a phenol with an aldehyde.

Thin, flat semiconductors that convert light energy into direct-current electricity.

The properties associated with the physical characteristics of a material, such as thermal expansion and density.

A column designed to support a load.

An ingot of cast iron.

A high-carbon-content iron produced by the blast furnace and used to produce cast iron and steel.

Paint ingredients mainly used to provide color and hiding power.

Projecting, square column or stiffener forming part of a wall.

A wood, steel, or concrete column usually driven into the soil to be used to carry a vertical load.

A concrete slab or beam that covers the head of several piles, tying them together.

A machine for delivering blows to the top of a pile, driving it into the earth.

Column supporting a structure.

The part of the hoistway that extends below the floor of the lowest landing to the floor at the bottom of the hoistway.

(1) The slope of a roof or other plane surface.

(2) Related to carpets, the number of tufts in a 27-inch width of carpet.

Slope of the surface, generally expressed in inches of vertical rise per 12" horizontal distance, such as "4-in-12 pitch."

A cementitious material, usually a mixture of Portland cement, lime or gypsum, sand, and water. Used to finish interior walls and ceilings.

Any material suitable for the application of plaster.

A calcined gypsum mixed with water to form a thick, pastelike mixture.

An organic material that is solid in its finished state but is capable of being molded or of receiving form.

The ability of a material to become soft and formed into desired shapes.

The deformation of a material beyond the point at which it will recover its original shape.

Related to soils, the percent moisture content at which the soil begins to crumble when it is rolled into a thread 1/2 inch (3mm) in diameter.

The ability of a material to be deformed into a different shape.

Liquid material added to some plastics to reduce their hardness and increase pliability. Also, an additive to concrete and mortar to increase plasticity.

"Top" plate is the horizontal member fastened to the top of the studs or wall on which the rafters, joists or trusses rest; "sole" plate is positioned at bottom of studs or wall.

A high-quality glass sheet that has both surfaces ground flat and carefully polished.

Floor surface raised above the ground or floor level.

A wood structural frame for light construction with the studs extending only one floor high upon which the second floor is constructed.

Technique of framing where walls can be built and tilted-up on a platform floor, and in multi-story construction are erected sequentially from one platform to another. Also known as "Western" framing.

(1) The space above a suspended ceiling.

(2) Chamber in which the pressure of the air is higher (as in a forced-air furnace system) than that of the surrounding air.

One of a number of layers in a layered construction.

A glued wood panel made up of thin layers of wood veneer with the grain of adjacent layers at right angles to each other or of outer veneers glued to a core of solid wood or reconstituted wood.

A structural panel constructed with outer skins of plywood applied over an internal frame of wood members forming a rigid panel.

Interior type plywood manufactured in a press without external applications of heat.

Plywood bonded with a type of adhesive that is highly resistant to moisture and heat.

Plywood manufactured for indoor use or in locations in which it would be subject to moisture for only a brief time.

Plywood panels with the same glue as exterior plywood but with more restrictive veneer specifications.

Plywood that is glued to the desired shape either between curved forms or by fluid pressure applied with flexible bags or blankets.

Panels formed when flat plywood sheets are reshaped into a curved configuration by steaming or the use of plasticizing agents.

Construction using large-diameter log poles in a vertical position to carry the loads of the floors and roof.

A polyester made by linking certain phenols through carbonate groups.

A linear polymer mad by linear linking of oxybenzoyl units.

A thermoplastic resin made by polymerizing ethylene.

A polymer based on the combination of certain anhydrides with aromatic diamines.

A chemical compound formed by the union of simple molecules to form more complex molecules.

A chemical reaction in which molecules of a monomer are linked together to form large molecules whose molecular weight is a multiple of that of the original substance.

A polymer composed of open-chain hydrocarbons having double bonds.

A polymer produced by the linking of repeated propylene monomers.

A clear, colorless plastic resin made by polymerizing styrene.

A thermoplastic or thermosetting resin derived by the condensation reaction of a polyisocyanate and a hydroxyl.

A thermoplastic resin derived by the polymerizatoin of vinyl and acetate.

The collection of waters in shallow pools on the top surface of a roof.

A strong vitreous material bonded to metal at high temperature.

An inorganic metal oxide coating bonded to metal by fusion at a high temperature.

Hydraulic cement produced by pulverizing clinker consisting essentially of hydraulic calcium silicates, usually containing one or more forms of calcium sulfate as an interground addition.

A wood-framing system using beams for horizontal structural members that rest on posts, forming the vertical members.

A method used to place concrete under tension in which steel tenons are tensioned after the concrete has been poured and hardened.

The rate at which work is performed, expressed in watts or horsepower.

A siliceous or siliceous and aluminous material blended with portland cement that chemically reacts with calcium hydroxide to form compounds possessing cementitious properties.

A cement made from volcanic rock that contains considerable silica.

Concrete cast in a form and cured before it is lifted into its intended position.

Traditional procedure used on building projects to describe by name products, equipment or systems to be used.

Lumber that has chemicals forced into it under pressure to slow decay and provide resistance to fire.

Concrete that has been pre-tensioned or post-tensioned.

A method used to place a concrete member under tension by pouring concrete over steel tendons that are under tension before the concrete is poured.

A base coat in a paint system. It is applied before the finish coats.

A legal boundary of a land parcel.

The upper limit at which stress is proportional to strain.

Horizontal member in a roof supporting common rafters, such as at the break in a gambrel roof. Also, horizontal structural member perpendicular to main beams in a flat roof.