Glossary

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H Clip: Small metal H shaped clips that fits at the joints of two plywood sheets to stiffen the joint.

Hardware: Metalware, as tools, locks, hinges, or cutlery.

Hatch: An opening, usually rectangular, in the deck through which passengers can pass, cargo can be loaded or unloaded, etc.

Haunch: The part of a beam projecting below a floor or roof slab.

Hawk: A small, square board with a handle underneath it, used by plasterers and masons to hold plaster or mortar being applied.

Hazard Insurance: Insurance that provides protection against certain risks such as storms or fires.

Header: A horizontal beam used as a finishing piece over a door or window.

Hearth: The floor of a fireplace, usually of stone, brick, etc., often extending a short distance into a room.

Heartwood: The older, nonliving central wood of a tree or woody plant, usually darker and harder than the younger sapwood. Also called duramen.

Heat Meter: The electric meter breaker panel box.

Heat Pump: A device that warms or cools a building by transferring heat from a relatively low-temperature reservoir to one at a higher temperature.

Heat Rough: The work done by the heating contractor after the interior walls are built.

Heat Strengthened Glass: Flat or bent glass that has been heat-treated for greater compression durability.

Heat Trim: Work performed by the heating contractor to get the home ready for its final municipal heat Inspection.

Heating Load: The amount of heating necessary to keep a building at a specified temperature regardless of the outside temperature.

Heel Bead: Sealant applied to the base of a channel, after setting and before the removable stop is installed.

Heel Cut: A slot cut in a rafter so that an object will fit flat on a wall.

Hermetic Seal: Made airtight by fusion or vacuum sealing.

High-Early Cement: A fast setting cement.

Highlights: An area or a spot in a drawing, painting, or photograph that is strongly illuminated.

Hinge: A jointed device or flexible piece on which a door, gate, shutter, lid, or other attached part turns, swings, or moves.

Hip: The inclined projecting angle formed by the junction of a sloping side and a sloping end, or of two adjacent sloping sides, of a roof.

Hip Rafter: The external angle formed by the meeting of two sloping sides or skirts of a roof, which have their wall plates running in different directions.

Hip Roof: A roof with sloping ends and sides; a hipped roof.

Hip Shingles: The shingles that cover the external inclined angle formed by the intersection of two sloping roof planes.

Hoistway: An opening for the hoist, or elevator, in the floor of a wareroom.

Home Run (Electrical): An electrical cable that carries power from the main circuit breaker to the first electrical box.

Honeycomb: To cause to be full of holes; pierce with many holes or cavities.

Horizontal: At right angles to the vertical; parallel to level ground.

Hose Bib: A faucet with hose threads on the spout found outside or near washing machines and wash basins.

Hot Wire: Any wire that carries an electrical charge to a receptacle or other device.

Hub: A center around which other things revolve or from which they radiate; a focus of activity, authority, commerce, transportation, etc.:

Humidifier: Any device for regulating the amount of water vapor in a specific container or area.

Hurricane Clip: Metal straps used to secure the roof rafters and trusses to the top wall plate.

Hurricane Ties: Fasteners that secure rafters on structures subject to hurricane winds.

HVAC: Heating Ventilation and Air Conditioning.

Hydro-Electric Elevator: An elevator that uses an electric motor to pump liquid directly into the cylinder to perform its operation.