Glossary of Terms

The A to Z of Building Terminology
To follow is a simple guide to assist you in understanding some of the standard building terms and “jargon” you are likely to encounter at various stages throughout construction.

A
ACC – Authority to Commence Construction. The stage reached when all necessary approvals have been received and we are in a position to start on site.
Access & Handling – A monetary allowance for the use of additional machinery and labour required when working on restrictive and/or difficult sites.
Alfresco – An under roof outside entertaining area.
Architrave – The moulding that seals the join between wall and window/door frame.
AG LINE – A perforated pipe (usually covered with a geo-textile fabric) laid behind retaining walls and other areas to catch seeping stormwater.

B
BA – Building Approval. The formal permit  issued by the local governing council which outlines the terms and conditions to be followed throughout construction.
BAGGING – A method of finishing brickwork involving the application of a thin mortar slurry using a hessian bag or sponge. Can be painted over or left to fade in an oxide finish. Usually completed by the bricklayer. Bagging varies in texture & colour greatly and is not uniform like render.
BALUSTRADE – A series of vertical members supporting a handrail of a stair, landing, platform or bridge.
Barge Tile – The angular concrete tile that is used to finish off the front of a gable roof.
Batts – Insulation used in walls or ceilings
BEARER – A sub-floor structural timber member which supports the floor joists.BERS; Building Energy Rating Scheme. Computer based program used to calculate the energy used to cool or heat the house.
BOS – Build Over Sewer. The application that is made to council for building within the Zone of Influence of a sewer main or easement.(See Zone of Influence)
Boundary  –The official line separating the outer edges of your block of land from neighbouring properties.
Bracing – Frame strengthening and additional reinforcing and/or use of stronger materials in high wind areas.
BRICK VENEER – A method of construction in which a single leaf of non-load bearing wall of brickwork is tied to a timber or metal framed load bearing structure to form the external enclosure.
Building Envelope  – A “zone” within a parcel of land in which you are permitted to build. You cannot build outside the envelope.

C
Capped Upstand – A “capped-off” 100mm stormwater pipe hooked into the homes stormwater system used to catch and divert yard surface water run-off to be hooked into yard gully during landscaping.
Colour Selection – A meeting with the Colour Consultant to record all internal and external colours to accompany the orders for materials etc. for the home.
Contour Survey – A survey used to determine the site fall/slope of the block. displayed  as a series of contour lines at differing levels.
Contract – The signed building agreement outlining the legal terms, conditions and obligations of the owner and the builder
Cornice – The curved or decorative plaster moulding that covers the join between wall and ceiling sheet.
Covenant – The design requirements of a sub-division.
Cut & Fill – the process of constructing a railway, road or canal whereby the amount of material from cuts roughly matches the amount of fill needed to make nearby embankments, so minimizing the amount of construction labour.

D
DADO – The lower portion of a wall above the skirting when finished in contrast to the remainder of the wall e.g. with wood paneling.
DAMP-PROOF COURSE (DPC) – A continuous layer of an impervious material placed in a masonry wall or between a floor and wall to prevent the upward or downward migration of moisture.
Downpipe – The pipe that conducts roof water via guttering to the stormwater lines
Dutch Gable – A perpendicular triangle of roof that sits above a hip. Used as a feature.
Dwarf Wall – A wall of lesser height than a full height wall ie) one shorter than 2440mm.

E
Earthworks – The act of preparing a block of land to be made ready for home construction.
Easement – Area of land within a site containing a pipe (sewer/stormwater) or right of access or other right granted by a government body. Cannot be built within or over.
Eaves– The lining under a roof overhang. Also known as a soffit.
Envelope– See Building Envelope.

F
Façade – The frontal detail and styling of a home.
Fall – The amount of site slope on a block of land.
Fascia – The colorbond metal finishing strip that covers the end of the roof trusses and sits under the guttering.
FINIAL – A decorative fitting used at the junction of ridges and hips and at the top of conical, pyramid or domed roofs.
Fixing Stage – Completion of the internal fit-out of the home.
Flickmixer – A tap fitting with one handle that controls the blending and delivery of hot and cold water simultaneously.
FOOTING – That part of a construction designed to transfer loads to the supporting foundation, usually constructed of reinforced concrete to support base brickwork.
Footprint – The outline of a home on the site/ the space it occupies.
FOUNDATION – The natural or built-up formation of soil, sub-soil or rock upon which a building or structure is supported.
Frame Stage – Completion of the erection of the frame.
FURRING CHANNEL – Battens fixed to the underside of trusses, rafters or ceiling joists to produce an even level ceiling.

G
Gable Roof – A perpendicular triangle of roof often used as a feature. May display “gable ornament” on it.
GAUGE – An indicating device usually in brickwork setting out the number of bricks to a certain measurement. E.g. 7 brick courses per 600mm in height. This gauge is adjusted to suit the brick and the site conditions.
GIRDER TRUSS – A truss that runs in the opposite direction to other trusses and has brackets (shoes) to carry and support the other trusses. The girder truss is often a double truss, made of hardwood in part or has bigger elements than other trusses.
GOING – In a stair the horizontal distance from the face of one riser to that of the next.
Gradient – The degree of site slope. Often used when referring to the steepness of a driveway.
Guttering – The metal channels that conduct roof water from roof to downpipes.

H
Handover – The stage where the home is completed and the keys are exchanged for the final payment.
HANGING BEAM – A beam above the ceiling used to support ceiling joists.
HEAD – The upper horizontal member at the top of an opening or frame.
HEADER – A brick laid with its greatest dimension across a wall usually used to tie two skins together or under a door sill or window.
Hip Roof – An angled section of roof that runs from a ridge or valley to a barge or guttering.See also Barge and Guttering.
HEARTH – The floor of a fireplace and immediately adjacent area.
HERRINGBONE BOND – A brick bond giving a diagonal pattern in the form of a series of vees or inverted vees.
Hob – The tiled flat area surrounding a bathtub.
HSTP – Household Sewerage Treatment Plant. Sewer holding tank with associated treatment and dispersal plumbing required on “non-mains” sewered building allotments (usually acreage).
HIP – The meeting line of two inclined surfaces.
HIP ROOF – A roof which is pyramidal in shape with sloping surfaces and level edges all round.
HOOP IRON STRAP – A strip of thin steel (usually about 25mm wide) which is usually built into brickwork or nailed to frames as a tie-down for wind.

I
IN-FILL CONCRETE SLAB – A concrete slab poured between base brick walls laid on concrete footings. An in-fill slab is supported by formwork or compacted filling.


J
JOIST – A timber or steel beam supported by a bearer which the flooring is fixed directly to.

 

K
KING POST – A vertical member which connects the ridge and beam of a roof.

 

L
Laminate; A veneer of coloured/ textured material covering a cupboard.
LINTEL – A horizontal supporting member spanning over a window or door opening. A "galintel" is a steel lintel used to support brickwork over an opening.

M
MELAMINE LAMINATE – A laminate manufactured from layers of paper, textile, plastic, wood or wood veneer compressed at high temperature and ser in melamine plastic. Often used as shelving in robes or kitchens.
Meter Box; The metal box mounted on the external wall of a home that houses the meters, circuit breakers etc.
Mixer Taps; See Flickmixer
MORTAR – A mixing of bush sand (white or yellow), cement (grey or off-white) and water for brickwork. Usually at the rate of 6 part sand to one part cement (by volume) and if required one part lime.
MPR; Multi Purpose Room

N
NEWEL POST – A post at the top or bottom of a stair flight to support the handrail and/or winders in the stair treads.
NOGGING – A horizontal timber member fixed between joists or trusses to provide stiffening or to support ceiling lining.
NOMINAL SIZE – The size of a timber that is used as a convenient description but not an exact size and usually before the timber is dressed.


P
PA; Provisional Allowance. A monetary amount allowed towards a cost that is not possible to fully calculate at the time of quoting.
Penetrations; The points of entry through a slab for items such as drains etc.
Percolation Test; A test done to determine the water holding/absorbing capacity of soil. Used to design HSTP’s. See HSTP.
Picture Nook; A recess in a wall used to “frame” a picture
Piers/Piering; Support mechanisms usually made from poured concrete under the slab of a home .Often used in filled areas. Brick Piers; Square columns of brickwork usually used for the support of a roof structure.eg) a porch.
Pitch; Refers to the degree of angle of the roof line.
Plan of Development; A sub-division where special permissions have been granted by Council for variances to standard building or siting requirements.
Pods; The polystyrene moulds over which a slab is poured. Also known as a Pod Slab or Waffle Pod.
Pointing; The cement used to set in a ridge capping. See Ridge Capping.
Post Formed; Used to describe the rounded edges of the benches of kitchens and vanity units.
Practical Completion Stage; The home has reached the stage where it is fit for the purpose it was built. It can be lived in.

Q
Quotation; A document produced following receipt of a home order together with all site reports. Has to be approved before proceeding to contract.

R
Raft Slab; A traditional concrete slab which excludes the “pods”.
RAFTER – A sloping member in a roof providing the principal structural support for the roofing material.
RAFTER (COMMON) – A rafter spanning the full distance from the eaves to the ridge.
RAFTER (CRIPPLE) – A rafter connecting a hip and a valley.
RAFTER (GABLE) – A common rafter at the end of a pitched roof.
RAFTER (HIP) – A rafter forming the hip at the external line of intersection of two roof surfaces. Jack rafters meet against it.
RAFTER (JACK) – A rafter between a ridge and a valley or a hip rafter and the eave.
RAKED JOINT – A brick joint raked out by the bricklayer for a key for plaster or as a decorative finish.
Relaxation; An approval by a council to vary its own requirements. Usually associated with boundary setbacks.
RENDER – The covering of a brick wall with one or more coats of cement mortar consisting of Sydney Sand, cement and plasterers clay.
RIDGE – The highest part (apex) of a roof, which is usually a horizontal line.
Ridge Capping; The angled tile cap that seals the ridge of the roof of your home.
Risers; The vertical part of a stair that gives height.

S
Sarking; The foils sheet used in roofs to assist with preventing water intrusion; generally in high wind areas.
SCISSOR TRUSS – A truss or strut with a sloping bottom chord to produce a raked ceiling at a cheaper cost than rafters.
SCOTIA – A concave moulding.
SEASONING – The elimination of excess moisture from timber by air or kiln drying.
Services Connection; The connection of water, power, sewer stormwater, gas and telephone between point of connection and home.
Setback; The distance a home is located from its boundary.
SHIPLAP – Timber boards that are edge dressed and rebated so that the edges of each board lap over the edges of the adjacent boards.
SHORING – The temporary or permanent support of an existing building, often due to demolition or of footing excavation to prevent collapse.
Sisalation; See Sarking but also used on the external walls of the frame.
Site Access; See Earthworks.(Can also refer to “all-weather” access road on acreage blocks
Site Cut; See Earthworks.
Site Preparation; See Earthworks
Siteworks; See Earthworks
Siting; The act of placing a home on a site. The position of the home.
Skillion Roof; A roof projecting from a building that has neither gable or hip ends.
SKEW NAILING – The driving of nails at an oblique angle often in different directions to improve the strength of a joint of fixing.
Skirting; The moulding that seals the join between floor and wall.
SLIP JOINT – A joint designed to allow movement between two members usually in the form of two layers of sheet metal with grease installed on top of a brick wall prior to installation of a concrete slab.
Slope; The change of grade on a block of land.
SOFFIT – The underside of a slab or eave.
Soil Test; A Geotechnical survey used to determine soil type and reactivity. Ultimately used for foundation design.
SOLDIER COURSE – A course of brickwork laid on its end.
SPROCKET – A framing timber used in eaves construction.
Square Set Opening; An opening in a wall that has had the opening set square (not curved).
STRETCHER BOND – The most common masonry bond in Australia in which all bricks are laid with half overlaps and not using half bricks or cross bonds.
STUCCO – Traditionally an external render to provide a decorative finish but now generally referred to as a fibro wall sheet with a decorative finish.
Sub Board; A secondary internally mounted housing for electrical circuit breakers. See also Meter Box.

T
TERRAZZO – A material consisting of irregular marble or stone fragments set in a matrix of cement and mechanically abraded and polished after casting to produce a smooth hard surface.
THRESHOLD – The step or sill at an external door of usually timber tile or brickwork.
TOUGHENED GLASS – Glass made by rapidly cooling the glass to make it shatter into small pieces when broken for safety, It usually cannot be cut and needs to be made to order to size. It is unlike laminated glass which is made from layers of glass with silicon between to crack only when broken for safety and can easily be cut on site.
Transition Zone; The area immediately in front of a garage that levels out prior to entering the garage.
Treads; The horizontal part of a stair that is walked apon. Also see Risers.
Trickle Feed Water; Used where full mains pressure water is not available. Delivers limited flow and requires storage tanks.
TRIMMER - A timber member fixed between joists or trusses to provide stiffening or to support ceiling lining.
Truncation Zone; Angled area of land across the frontage corners of a corner allotment. Driveways cannot cross this.
Two Pac; A cabinet finish that is painted in high gloss with gloss polyurethane coating.


U 
UNDERPINNING – The construction of new footings or concrete piers under an existing footing to prevent its collapse or failure.
 

V
Valley; Point at which two planes of roof meet at a declining point. It carries rainwater to the guttering.
Vinyl Wrap; A cabinet finish where coloured vinyl is heat wrapped onto moulded doors/cupboards.
Variation or VO’s; Variation to the order. Any modifications requested or required which vary from the original signed contract.

W
Waffle Pod; See Pods
Wall Wrap; See sisalation
WEEP HOLES – Vertical joints or perpends in brickwork left open above the flashing line to allow water from behind the wall to escape.
Wet Areas; Bathrooms, ensuites, laundries and powderooms (Areas where running water is available)
WINDERS – Wedge shaped treads in a staircase landing.

Z
Zero Lot; A block of land where a dwelling can be built within 200mm of the boundary.
Zone of Influence; The area surrounding a pipe where pressure can bear. Usually occurs around easements. See Easement.
Z-PURLIN – A metal purlin with a cross section in the shape of the letter Z.