Visual Dictionary

Air Barrier PaperThis is a thin film applied to the exterior sheathing of the house that allows water vapor to escape but resists liquid water or air from the exterior.

Attic VentilationVentilation of attics prevents the buildup of heat through the roof during hot summer months while also allowing water vapor to escape.

Gable Vent

Roof Turbine

Ridge Vent

Soffit Vent

BackhoeA hydraulic excavating machine consisting of atractor and an attachedhinged boom with a bucket at the end.

Used for excavation and digging holes on light to medium construction jobs.

This particular backhoe had a bucket 23 inches wide.

Brick Arches

Gothic Arch

Segmental Arch

Elliptical Arch With Keystone

Brick Bonds

Running BondThe courses are made up of a constant run of stretchers.

Flemish BondThe courses are made up of alternating headers and stretchers.

Brickwork Terms

Header Stretche

r SoldierRowlock

Large Bricks

3 ½ W x 3 ⅝ H x 11 ½ L 3 ½ W x 2 ¼ H x 11 ⅜ L

Utility Bricks Norman Bricks

BulldozerA large, powerful tractor with a vertical blade at the front end.

Used primarily for site preparation suchas moving earth, stumps, rocks, and other obstructions.

Exterior Cladding

Brick

Wood Boards

EIFS

Stone

Wood Shingles

Code RequirementsThis set of stairs had a rise of 7 ½ inches and a run of 11 ¼ inches which satisfies the requirements of code.

Expansion Joint

A dividing joint that provides space for expansion of a surface.

Isolation JointFunctions to completely isolate the slab from another object.

The driveway is being isolated from the garage floor.

Concrete Masonry Unit (CMU)A block of hardened concrete, with or without hollow cores, designed to be laid in the same manner as brick or stone.

Dimensions8H x 8W x 16L

Mortar Joints

Decorative CMU

Ribbed Face Block

Split Face Block

Exterior Doors

Flush Door

Panel Door

Top Rail

Panel

Stile

Lock RailBottom Rail

Transom & Sidelight

Transom

Sidelight

Electrical Components

Transformer BoxAn electrical device that changes the voltage of alternating current.

Service HeadThe assembly by which electricity is conducted from outdoor lines to the meter base.

Electricity Meter

A meter for measuring the amount of electric power used.

Service Panel

The main distribution of a houses electricity.The point where the local utility’s servicelines hook up to the individual circuits thatrun throughout the house.

Duplex ReceptacleA receptacle providing a place in a wiring system where current can be taken to run electrical devices. 

Framing Elements

1. Anchor Bolt

2. Sill Plate

3. Floor Joist

4. Subflooring

5. Sole Plate

6. Stud

7. Top Plate

8. Stringer

9. Ceiling Joist

10. Rafter

11. Roof Decking

12. Sheathing

Front End LoaderA tractor that has a front mounted, wide square bucket on the end of two booms.

Usually used to scoop up loose material from the ground and move it from one place to another without pushing it across the ground.

Gypsum Board

Heat Pump

Evaporator/Compressor

Moves outdoor air across coils containing refrigerant to change the temperature of the refrigerant.

Air Handling UnitResponsible for circulating the heated or cooled air throughout the home.

Insulation

Batt/Blanket

Loose Fill

Foamed

Rigid Board

Steel LintelA beam that carries the load of a wall across a window or door opening.

Mortar Joints

Concave JointTroweled3/8 InchMulti Story Commercial BuildingType M

Raked JointTooled3/8 InchResidential HomeType S

Oriented Strand Board (OSB)A building panel composed of long shreds of wood fiber oriented in specific directions and bonded together under pressure.

Plumbing

Lavatory

1 ½ Inch Drain Pipe

Water Closet

3 Inch Drain Pipe

Manufactured Tub Unit

Plumbing VentSupplies air so that draining water cannot create a suction and pull water out of the P-trap in sinks and toilets.

Drop-in Kitchen Sink

PlywoodA wood panel composed of an odd number of layers of rotary sliced wood veneers bonded together under pressure.

Veneer is a thin layer, sheet, or facing.

Steep Roof Drainage

GutterA channel that collects rainwater and snowmelt at the eave of the roof.

DownspoutA vertical pipe for conducting water from a roof to a lower level.

SplashblockA small precast block of concrete or plastic used to divert water at the bottom of a downspout.

Steep Roofing Materials

UnderlaymentA layer of 15 to 30 pound building felt.

Serves to protect the building from precipitation before the roofing is applied.

Clay Tile Roof

Slate Shingle Roof

Shingle - A small unit of water resistant material nailed in overlapping fashion with many other such units to render a wall or sloping roof watertight.

Metal Panel Roof

Roof panels can be made of enamel-coated galvanized steel, copper, lead-coated copper, stainless steel, terne, or terne coated stainless steel.

Steep Roof Shapes

Gabel Roof

Gambrel Roof

Hip Roof

Steep Roof Terms

RidgeRake

ValleyHip

Eave

Fascia Soffit

Random Rubble

Coursed Rubble

Random Ashlar

Coursed Ashlar

Weep Hole

A small opening whose purpose is to permit drainage of water that accumulates inside a building component or assembly.

Windows

Sliding WindowThis unit is a sliding window because it has one fixed sash and another that moves horizontally on tracks.

Casement WindowThis unit is a casement window because it pivots on an axis near a vertical edge of the sash.

Single Hung WindowThis unit is a single hung window because it has two overlapping sashes, the lower of which can slide vertically in tracks while the upper is fixed.