Glossary

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Facade: The front of a building, esp. an imposing or decorative one.

Face Brick: Brick used as a facing on the exterior building.

Face Glazing: To give a glassy surface to, as by polishing.

Faced Concrete: The finish applied to the front and all vertical sides of a concrete surface.

Facing Brick: The brick used on the exterior walls.

Factory Mutual (FM): Industry standards that establish stringent guidelines for maximum construction integrity as it relates to fire and environmental hazards.

Fall/Flow: The slope of a pipe necessary for adequate drainage.

Fascia: Any relatively broad, flat, horizontal surface, as the outer edge of a cornice, a stringcourse, etc.

Fasteners: To attach firmly to something else, as by pinning or nailing.

Faucet: A device for regulating the flow of a liquid from a reservoir such as a pipe or drum.

Feathering Strips: Tapered wood filler strips placed over existing wood shingles to create a level surface when re-roofing roofs.

Felt: Any matted fabric or material, as a mat of asbestos fibers, rags, or old paper, used for insulation and in construction.

Female IPS: Pipe threads located on the inside of the fitting.

Female Threads: Threads inside a pipe or conduit.

Fenestration: The design and disposition of windows and other exterior openings of a building.

Ferrous: Of, relating to, or containing iron.

Ferrule: A short metal sleeve for strengthening a tool handle at the end holding the tool.

FHA Strap: Metal straps used to repair and connect walls and wall corners.

Fibered Aluminum Roof Coating: Reflective barrier that reflects the sun's rays, reduces energy costs in summer and winter also prolonging surface life.

Fibered Roof and Foundation Coating: Used as a roof or foundation coating.

Fibered Roof Coating: Used to renew and rejuvenate old composition roofing and prolongs roof life.

Fiberglass Mat: A material consisting of extremely fine glass fibers, used in making various products, such as yarns, fabrics, insulators, and structural objects or parts.

Field Measure: Measurements taken on site instead of using the blueprints.

Fillet Bead: Caulking or sealant at an angle between the materials being caulked.

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Finger Joint: The process of interlocking two shorter pieces of wood end to end to create a longer piece.

Finish: The surface coating or texture of wood, metal, etc.

Finish Carpentry: The completion of all hanging of all interior doors, installation of door molding, base molding, chair rail, built in shelves, etc.

Finish Coat: The final coat

Finish Grade: Any surface cut to or built to an indicated elevation.

FIP (Female Iron Pipe): Threads that are on the inside of a pipe fitting.

Fire Block: Horizontal attachments sometimes nailed between studs, approximately halfway up a wall.

Fire Brick: Brick which will resist high temperatures. Used in fireplaces and boilers.

Fire Rated: Description of tested materials for use in fire.

Fire Retardant Chemical: A chemical used to reduce flammability.

Fire Stop: A solid, tight closed and concealed space, placed to prevent the spread of fire and smoke through such a space. Used between studs.

Fire Wall: A wall built for restricting or preventing the spread of fire in a building.

Fire-Resistive: Applies to any material that will withstand fires without serious impairment for about 1 hour.

Fireplace Chase Flashing Pan: A large sheet of metal installed to confine and limit the spread of fire and smoke to a small area.

Fish Tape (Fish Wire): Material used to advance wire through a conduit.

Fishplate: A metal or wooden plate or slab, bolted to each of two members that have been butted or lapped together.

Fitting: Suited, adapted, or acceptable for a given circumstance or purpose.

Fixed Price Contract: A contract with a set price for the given work.

Fixture: Something securely, and usually permanently, attached or appended, as to a house, apartment building, etc.

Flagstone (Flagging or Flags): A flat slab of stone used as a paving material.

Flake: A small, flat, thin piece. one that has been or become detached from a larger piece or mass.

Flakeboard: A form of particle board.

Flame Retention Burner: An oil burner designed to hold it’s flame near the nozzle surface.

Flapper Valve (Plumbing): A valve that creates a seal between the tank and the toilet bowl like a stopper.

Flash Point: The lowest temperature at which the vapor of a combustible liquid can be made to ignite momentarily in air.

Flashing: Pieces of sheet metal or the like used to cover and protect certain joints and angles, as where a roof comes in contact with a wall or chimney, esp. against leakage.

Flat Glass: A general term referring to float glass, sheet glass, plate glass, and rolled glass.

Flat Grain: Lumber that has been sawed parallel to the pith of the log and tangent to the growth rings.

Flat Mold: Thin wood strips installed over the seam of cabinet skins.

Flat Paint: An interior paint containing a high proportion of pigment and dries to a flat or lusterless finish.

Flat Seam: A seam at the connection of sheet metal roof components that has been bent at the plane of the roof.

Flatwork: Refering to concrete floors, driveways, basements, and sidewalks.

Fleet Averaging: Average figures for all air conditioning units in the same sub division.

Flex Hose: A flexible pipe or tube.

Flexible Metal Conduit: A hollow conduit used as a flexible housing.

Float Glass: Extremely smooth, nearly distortion-free plate glass manufactured by pouring molten glass onto a surface of molten tin.

Floating: To make the surface of (plaster, for example) level or smooth.

Floating Wall: A wall constructed so that the bottom two horizontal plates can compress or pull apart if the concrete floor moves up or down.

Floor Plan: A diagram of one room, apartment, or entire floor of a building, usually drawn to scale.

Floor Plate: A diagram of the primary floor plan of a building, usually drawn to scale.

Flow Rate: The amount of fluid that flows in a given time.

Flue: a passage or duct for smoke in a chimney, etc.

Flue Collar: Circular metallic ring that fits around the heat flue pipe after the pipe passes out of the roof.

Flue Damper: An automatic door that closes when the burner turns off; its purpose is to reduce heat loss up the flue from the still-warm furnace or boiler.

Flue Lining: Used for the inner lining of chimneys with the brick or masonry work around the outside.

Fluorescent Lighting: A lighting fixture.

Flush Glazing (Pocket Glazing): A light setting of glass into a four-sided sash or frame opening containing a recessed "U" shaped channel without removable stops on three sides of the sash or frame and one channel with a removable stop along the fourth side.

Flush Valve: The valve separating the water in the reserve tank from the bowl.

Flux: A material applied to the surface of copper pipes and fittings to help clean and the bonding process.

Fly Rafters: End gable rafters overhang supported by roof sheathing and lookouts.

Folded Seam: A joint between sheet metal wherein the edges of the sheets are crimped together and folded flat.

Foot Print: Refer to Floor Plan.

Footing: The basis or foundation on which anything is established.

Footings: Cement reinforced with re-bar that support foundation walls, pillars, or posts. Footings are part of the foundation and are often poured before the foundation walls.

Forced Air Heating: Heating with natural gas, propane, oil or electricity as a fuel. Air is heated in the furnace and distributed through ducts to various areas of the house.

Form: External appearance of a clearly defined area.

Foundation: The basis on which a thing stands, is founded, or is supported.

Foundation Coating: Moisture protection. Used for below-grade exterior concrete and masonry wall damp-proofing to seal out moisture and prevent corrosion.

Frame Inspection: An inspection of the home's structural integrity with respect to local municipal codes.

Framer: A rigid structure formed of relatively slender pieces, joined so as to surround sizable empty spaces or nonstructural panels, and generally used as a major support in building or engineering works, machinery, furniture, etc.

Framing: A structure for admitting or enclosing something.

Free-Tab Shingles: Shingles with out self-sealing adhesive.

Frieze: A horizontal member connecting the top of the siding and the soffit of the cornice.

Frostline: The maximum depth at which soil is frozen.

Fully Tempered Glass: Fully tempered glass, when broken, fractures into many small pieces which are more or less cubical. It is approximately four times stronger than annealed glass of the same thickness.

Fully-Adhered: Completely attached.

Fungal Wood Rot: Occurs when wood is exposed to moisture and poor air circulation for a long period of time.

Fungi (Wood): Any of a diverse group of eukaryotic single-celled or multinucleate organisms that live by decomposing and absorbing the organic material in which they grow, comprising the mushrooms, molds, mildews, smuts, rusts, and yeasts.

Fungicide: A substance or preparation, as a spray or dust, used for destroying fungi.

Furnace: An enclosure in which energy in a nonthermal form is converted to heat, especially such an enclosure in which heat is generated by the combustion of a suitable fuel.

Furring: The attaching of strips of wood to a wall or other surface, as to provide an even support for lath or to provide an air space between the wall and plasterwork.