C Stevens Roofing

Glossary of Roofing & Building Terms...

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Architrave - Moulding round opening such as door or window

Arris - Sharp external angle - usually 90 degrees

Baluster - Alternative term for Banister

Barge Board - Wide board fitted on edge of tiles following the slope of the roof

Bead - Small convex moulding

Bib Tap - Tap fed by horizontal supply - as in a garden tap

Blown or Live - Plaster that has lost its bond with the wall

Bond - Arrangement of bricks to ensure stability of brickwork

Buttress or Pier - Thickening of wall to form a vertical projection to strengthen it

Cavity Wall - Usual construction for external walls comprising an inner and outer leaf with a space between for insulation

Cistern - Tank for storing water - usually located in the attic

Cleat - cable fixing for phone wire, etc

Coping - Protective finish to the top of a wall

Corbelling - Successive projecting courses of brickwork

Cove or Cornice - Moulding around room at junction of wall and ceiling

Dado Rail - Horizontal moulding part way up a wall

Deal - Term for piece of square-sawn softwood

Distemper - Wall paint made from water, pigment and glue (traditional)

Drip - Moulding or groove in overhanging member to prevent water creeping back

Eaves - Overhang of roof beyond wall below

Efflorescence - Unsightly powdery white salts brought to surface of brickwork

Flashing - Metal sheet used to deflect water at junction between roof and wall

Flat Arch - An arch that is almost completely horizontal

Flaunching - Cement mortar filler round the top of a chimney stack

Flue - Tube conveying smoke or fumes from fireplaces or appliances

Flush Door - Door with completely flat faces

Footlifter - Wedge used to lift boards for nailing to wall

Formation Level - The deep point in an excavation for a drive or path

Frog - Indent on bed face of a brick

Gauged Brickwork - Fine brickwork with very thin joints

Gable or Verge - Upper part of an outer wall at the end of a pitched roof

Glazing Bar - Thin bar shaped to receive pane of glass

Gravity Fed System - Central heating system that circulates water by gravity and water expansion

Header - The end face of a brick

Header Tank - Small open cistern (tank) that feeds water to central heating system

Herringbone - Zigzag pattern of brickwork

Hip - Line of adjoining sections of pitched roof at external angle of building

Hipped Roof - Pitched roof, the ends of which are also sloped

Hip Tile - Roof tile shaped to cover hip of roof

Jamb - The side of an opening in a wall for a door or window

Joist - Support for floor and ceiling

Knotting - Varnish to stabilise knots in wood

Lean-to Roof - Sloping roof supported along its highest part by a taller adjoining wall

Light - Subdivision of a window - fixed or opening. Opening light can be top or side hung

Lintel - Concrete or steel beam over opening to support wall above

Loose-Fill Insulation - loose material for insulating cavity walls and lofts

Mansard Roof - Form of pitched roof designed to provide more space for rooms

Megger - Test meter used by electricians

Mezzanine - Extra floor - possibly inserted between floor and ceiling of very tall room

Mitre - Angled joint (similar to joint in picture frame)

Module - Dimensional co-ordination of components

Muck - Brickie term for mortar

Mullion - Upright post in window

Newel - Vertical post at top and bottom of staircase

Nogging - Short wooden stiffeners inserted between joists

Nosing - Rounded edge of a stair tread projecting beyond the riser

Parapet - Low wall at the edge of a roof

Pebble Dash - Roughcast wall finish with stones bedded in rendered wall

Pilaster - Projecting part of a square column which is attached to wall

Pitch - Slope of roof - expressed as an angle or ratio

Plain tile - Rectangular "flat" roofing tile

Plaster - Applied wall finish

Plasterboard - Prefabricated sheets of plaster for walls and ceilings

Plinth - Projecting base to external walls

Purlin - Horizontal beam, part way up a rafter to prevent sagging

Rafters - Series of structural timbers rising from eaves to ridge to support pitched roof covering

Rail - Horizontal member in door or fence

Relieving Arch - An arch constructed above a lintel or beam to take weight of wall above

Render - External sand-cement coating for walls

Reveal - Vertical side of door or window opening

Ridge - Top of a pitched roof

Ring Main - Power circuit for sockets

Rise - Vertical distance between two adjacent stair treads

Riser - Upright part of a stair OR vertical water pipe from the mains

Roof Truss - Prefabricated structural timer framework to support roof

RSJ - Rolled steel joist

Sash - Framework for glass - in particular double-hung sliding sash window

Screed - Layer of fine concrete used to provide smooth surface prior to floor finish

Sarking Felt - Waterproof felt under roof tile battens

Second Fix - Items fitted following plastering - including joiner, cupboards and plumbing/electrical fittings

Sill - Bottom horizontal member of a door or window frame

Skim - Finishing coat of plaster

Skirting - Horizontal board at junction between floor and wall

Soffit - Visible underside of a projecting surface

Span - Horizontal distance covered by a beam or lintel etc.

Spoil - Material dug out during excavation

Stack - Vertical pipe carrying waste from sinks and toilets

Stocks - Hand or machine-made bricks made in a mould

Stretcher - The side face of a brick

String - Sloping board carrying the treads and risers of a staircase

Tarmac - Bitumen macadam coating aggregate for drive/path surfaces

Timber Frame - Type of house construction usually finished with brickwork outer skin

Tread - Horizontal part of a stair

TRV - Thermostatic radiator valve

Voussoir - Wedge-shaped brick used in arch construction

Wainscot - Wooden lining to the walls of a room (traditional)