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Safety glazing
Glazing that is held in place or is
otherwise harmless when it breaks. May
be tempered or laminated glass.
Safety switch
See Master
shut-off.
Sanitary pump
A sealed crock located in the basement
floor containing an electric pump
which pumps gray water from fixtures into the sewer line or drywell.
Sash
The framework in a window that holds the
glass or other material.
Scissors truss
A roof truss used in vaulted or cathedral
ceilings.
Seepage field
Underground porous concrete drain tiles
receiving liquid discharge from a
septic system for seepage into the ground.
Self-flashed valley
A valley where the roof covering
continues over the valley, but there is
no flashing underneath.
Self-storing window
A double hung window with a
storm and screen permanently
mounted in a 3-channel metal or plastic frame.
Separation walls
Walls between the garage and living area
which must be covered with
drywall for fire resistance. Also called firewalls.
Septic tank
A watertight underground tank of
concrete, steel, or fiberglass into which
household waste is held and broken down for release to a seepage field.
Service box
A metal box, separate from the main
panel, that contains the main disconnect.
Service conductors
The wires bringing electricity
to the home.
Service drop
Overhead wires bringing the electrical
service to the home.
Service entrance
The portion of a home's electrical system
from the utility pole to the
home's main disconnect.
Service lateral
Underground wires bringing the electrical
service to the home.
Service pipe
The pipe that brings water from its
public or private source into the house.
Serviceman's switch
See
Master shut-off.
Setback feature
A feature on a thermostat that can be set
to automatically lower
temperature settings during certain hours.
Shear
A stress resulting from forces being
applied upon a structural member from opposite
directions. Can cause the member to crack, split, or completely separate.
Sheathing
Sheets of plywood or wood planking used
to cover a roof, wall, or floor frame.
Sheathing
Sheets of plywood or wood planking used
to cover the roof frame.
Shed roof
A roof style with a single slope slanting
in one direction.
Shoe
The curved section at the bottom of the
downspout which directs water away from the
house.
Short cycling
A condition where the heating or cooling
system turns on and off too often.
Sill
The 2 x 4 or 2 x 6 laid flat on and
anchored to the foundation, providing a pad for the
framing system. Also called a sill plate.
Sill
The bottom piece in a window frame.
Single course
An application of wood shingles or shakes
where each course is exposed to
the weather.
Single hung window
A window with two sashes, only
one of which moves.
Single hung window
A window with two sashes, only
one of which moves.
Single ply membrane
A modified asphalt, plastic, or
rubber membrane laid in adhesives or mechanically
fastened, used as a roof covering.
Single ply
One layer of roof covering.
Single-bus panel
An electrical panel with a single pair of
busbars for either 120-volt or
240- volt circuits.
Siphon jet toilet
A reverse trap toilet with a
quiet flush.
Siphon vortex toilet
A late model 1-piece toilet with
a large wetted area and a silent flush.
Site-foamed insulation
Insulation made of syrups and
reactants mixed at the building site
and foamed in place.
Slab floor
A poured concrete floor, as in a garage,
that rests directly on the ground.
Slab-on-grade
A poured concrete slab that rests
directly on the ground.
Slate shingles
Sedimentary rock in shingle form, used as
a roof covering.
Slider window
A window with a sash that moves
horizontally.
Slope
The ratio of a roof's rise to its run.
Normally expressed with the measure of the rise
over a run of 12'. A slope of 3/12 is said, "Three in twelve."
Smoke chamber
In a fireplace, the area between the
damper and the flue that guides
smoke toward the flue.
Smoke shelf
In a fireplace, the base of the offset
between the damper and the flue that
interferes with and interrupts chimney downdrafts.
Snow shovel
In roofing, a metal finger-like claw
installed with slate roofing to hold snow
and ice in place until it melts.
Soffit
The horizontal board laid on the
underside of the eave.
Soffit vent
A vent located in the soffit along each
side of the roof.
Softwood
Woods like pine, fir, or cedar.
Stile The side piece in a window sash.
Soil pipes
Waste pipes that carry waste from toilets
in the home.
Soil stack
Main vertical waste pipe fed by all other
waste pipes that carries waste to the
sewer to septic system.
Soldering
The process of using flux and a soft
solder to make a joint in copper piping.
Sole plate
In platform framing, the horizontal
framing member nailed to the header and
floor joists at the outer edge of the structure.
Solid brick wall
A wall construction where three layers of
brick are used to construct a solid
wall with no wood framing.
Solid waste pump
A sealed tank in the basement floor
containing an electric pump which
pumps toilet waste up to the sewer line.
Solvent
The third constituent in paint that
evaporates after the paint is applied. Also called
the thinner.
Spalling
The crumbling and falling away of the
surface of bricks, blocks, or concrete.
Span
The distance center to center between two
like framing members such as floor joists.
Spillage
A condition where combustion byproducts
spill out of a heating unit's exhaust
system.
Split outlet
An outlet wired with two hot wires and a
neutral, which provide two separate
circuits to the outlet, plus the ground wire for grounding purposes.
Split-bus panel
An electrical panel with two or more
pairs of busbars. The upper busbar is
for 240-volt circuits, one of which provides power to the lower busbar.
The lower busbar is
for 120-volt circuits.
Square
The amount of roofing material used to
cover 100 square feet of roof surface.
Stack relay
A oil burner primary control that is
located on the smoke pipe.
Stacks
Vertical piping in the DWV system.
Standalone air conditioning
system A cooling system
with a compressor/condenser unit
and an evaporator unit with its own fan, filter, and ductwork. Does not
work in conjunction
with a furnace.
Standing pilot
A pilot flame that burns continuously.
Standpipe
An outdoor elevated water reservoir.
Starter course
Shingles or shakes laid under the first
course of shingles at the edge of the
roof.
Step crack
An angled crack appearing along the block
joints in a concrete block foundation.
Step flashing
Short lengths of overlapped flashing to
form a continuous slopping flashing,
used parallel to the slope of the roof.
Stippling
A texturing process where a stipple finish is sprayed
over drywall.
Stop molding
A bottom framing piece in a door frame
that stops the movement of the door.
S-trap
An S-shaped unvented trap once used under
plumbing fixtures.
S-trap
An s-shaped unvented trap once used under plumbing
fixtures.
Stringer
Long diagonal member that supports a
staircase.
Structure
A home's skeleton, including its
foundation and footings, roof, and framework.
Stucco
A water resistant, plaster-like material
made of sand, cement, and water, applied
and used as a wall cladding. May have an acrylic finish.
Subflooring
Horizontal floor members that transfer
the load of the home's furnishings and
people to the floor joists.
Subflooring
Horizontal sheets or planks that transfer
the load of the home's furnishings and
people to the floor joists.
Submersible pump
A motorized pump that sits in the well
and pushes water to the surface
by means of a motor and centrifugal pump.
Submersible sump pump
A pump that sits below the water
level in the sump.
Subpanel
A panel connected to a main panel for the
purpose of providing more circuits and
better distribution of electricity to the home.
Sump pump
A pit located in the basement floor
containing an electric pump that pumps
water from the perimeter drain system away from the house.
Sump pump
A pit located in the basement floor
containing an electric pump which pumps
water from the perimeter drain system away from the house.
Supply ducts
Ducts that deliver warm air from a
furnace to the home or deliver cool air
from a cooling system to the home.
Supply system
Distribution piping from the source of
water supply to the home's fixtures
and faucets.
Supported slab
Where the edges of a slab rest on
Surround
The wall around the bathtub, made of ceramic tile or a
premolded fiberglass.
Sweep
A horizontal curve in a wall, where the
wall has an outward curve from side to side. |