The most common shape is the rectangle, but others, illustrated here, are also frequently used. Quantity Surveyor – A person trained in construction measurement and costs. Alteration – The rebuilding, re-erecting, repairing, enlarging and extending of a building. When talking to an architect or builder, it can be helpful to know basic terminology and architectural vocabulary you may encounter. Monolithic cladding – A cladding of sheet material forming a continuous mass, with an applied coating to give the appearance of a seamless cladding. For information about when a building consent is required and how to apply, see Building consents and inspections process. Open-web, flat truss structural member used to support floor or roof structure. Usually constructed of wood or steel, the components of the frame include studs, beams, joists and rafters. Chamfer: A 45-degree bevel cut at an outside corner of a building element, often seen in wood, stone or brick. Glossary of House Building Terms The following are definitions to some common terms you may run into as you review your blueprints, plan for home construction, or build your house. The process of treating air to control simultaneously its humidity, cleanliness, and temperature and to provide distribution within a building. Web section is made from bar or rod stock, and chords are usually fabricated from "T" or angle sections. A curved structure in which the internal stresses are essentially compression. A material that has the ability to cause molecules of gases, liquids, or solids to adhere to its surfaces without changing the adsorbent physically or chemically. It is usually installed horizontally and the board is most often tapered in cross-section. The volume of soil in situ in cubic yards. Resource consent will be needed when a building project will contravene a permitted activity, for example, wishing to locate a building closer to the boundary than permitted on the District Plan. Double hung window: A window with top and bottom sashes that slide past each other vertically. buttress: a support on the outside of a wall that helps to stabilize a vault or roof. Board for the Coordination of Model Codes; part of the Council of American Building Officials Association (CABO). It does not constitute professional advice. Read our reviews on GuildQuality! A projecting horizontal molding separating parts of a wall surface in a façade. A hydrated form of aluminum oxide from which aluminum is made. Circulation: Used to describe the flow of people throughout a home or building. Neo-colonial: Residences built after 1955 with allusions of the colonial revival architectural style. A compressive or tensile stress developed by applying non-axial force to structural members. Balustrade: A railing composition composed of upper and lower rails, balusters and pedestals. Spire: A cone shaped roof element with a steep point. A window that pivots near the top edge of the sash and projects toward the exterior. Ogee cap: A molding with an S-shaped cross section used on top of a baseboard or other structure. Architectural House Design: Online Resources, Product X Architecture’s Escea Fireplace Wall Feature, Managing your food waste in an Eco-friendly way, Our Wonderful and Supremely Useful Publications. The angle that the sun makes with the horizon. Clay masonry units made with a textured or sculptured face. A high-pressure steam room that rapidly cures green concrete units. A straight horizontal structural loadbearing member spanning a distance between supports. Bonding agents that set hard when not exposed to oxygen. Verge board: Decorative boarding (also called bargeboard) along a projecting roof eave. 4.9/5 stars. A generic term describing a material that is a mixture of predominantly hydrocarbons in solid or viscous form. Resource consent – A consent issued by a Territorial Authority to use the land in a way that is not a permitted activity under a council or district plan. Joists – Parallel beams of timber, concrete or steel for supporting floors or ceilings, etc. © 2020 Wentworthstudio.com All rights reserved. Licensing Building Practitioners (LBPs) – A licensing system for the building industry covering designers and trades. Foundations – The substructure that supports a building, such as piles, piers or footings, with the purpose of transmitting structural loads from the building into the earth. Circulation: Used to describe the flow of people throughout a home or building. All building work in New Zealand must comply with the Building Code. Cavity – The cavity space immediately behind a wall cladding that has vents at the base of the wall. Hip roof: A roof that slopes inward from all four exterior walls. Specifications – Detailed written instructions containing details of work to be done and materials to be used in the construction of a building. Identified by codes as either "fire wall", "party wall" or "townhouse separation wall.". Half-timbered building: A building constructed with timber frame filled with plaster or brick. Clapboard: One of a series of boards used for siding. It is derived from coal and petroleum. Cupola: A small structure projecting above a roof that provides ventilation and can serve as a “look-out.”. This includes aspects of siting, design, construction, operation, maintenance, and removal. Waterproof/waterproofing – The process of rendering a building element or building totally resistant to the ingress of any moisture. Usually refers to the bolts at the bottom of the columns, wind posts, end wall posts and door posts. The maximum unit stress permissible in a structural member. Materials used can range from stone to brick, wood and sheet metal. A short piece of gypsum board adhesively laminated behind the joints between each framing member to reinforce the joint. Compliance – Occurs when building performance, according to the standards in the Building Code, has been achieved. & Gregg R., Woodley Park, Washington, DC. Baseboard. Source: Min of Business, Innovation & EmploymentL: Building and Housing Group. A relatively permanent point of known location and elevation. Am electrolytic process that forms a permanent, protective oxide coating on aluminum. ARH 314 and 315 Terminology: All definitions are reproduced from the required course textbook: Trachtenberg, Marvin and Isabell Hyman, Architecture, From Prehistory to Postmodernity: the Western tradition, 2nd Ed., Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice-Hall; New York: H.N. Lumber less than 2 inches (50.8 mm) thick and 1 inch (25.4 mm) or greater in width. Parapets – A low protective wall at the edge of a balcony, roof, bridge, or the like Ore containing high percentages of aluminum oxide. Fenestration: It’s a blanket terms for the design, construction, and presence of any openings in a building. Here are a few to help with the communications… A Acceptable Solution – A design solution deemed to comply with the Building Code that is pre-approved and therefore has fewer compliance costs associated. We are consumer advocates providing home building and renovation advice in New Zealand since 1989. Heating a metal to a high temperature followed by controlled cooling to relieve internal stresses. A wall that supports any vertical load in addition to it's own weight. Excess water that rises to the surface of concrete shortly after it has been poured. Also, polystyrene, perlite and vermiculite particles used in texture finishes. Restricted building work must be carried out, or supervised by, a licensed building practitioner. Also referred to as working stress. Wood pieces inserted between joists, studs, rafters, and other structural members to stabilize the frame, provide a nailing surface for finish materials, and block the passage of fire between the members. Think windows, doors, vents, wall panels, skylights, curtain walls or louvers. (1) The American Institute of Architects. Method of framing outside walls in which studs extend the full length or height of the wall. A metallic material composed of two or more chemical elements one of which is a metal. Amu substance added to a molten metal to change its mechanical or physical properties. Quoin: A large rectangular block of stone or brick (sometimes wood) used to accentuate an outside corner of a building; typically in a toothed form with alternate quoins projecting and receding from the corner. Volume of a piece of wood, nominal 19 x 129 x 18. moisture may occasionally enter a weathertight building but is able to harmlessly escape or evaporate. Weathertightness is not necessarily waterproofing (see above). Contact our architects in Maryland today to learn more about home construction terms and definitions! American National Standards Institute, a nonprofit, national technical association that publishes standards covering definitions, test methods, recommended practices and specifications of materials. A surface divider joint designed to allow free movement between new and existing construction or between different materials. Internal compartments of a building; each divided from the other by subtle means such as the boundaries implied by divisions marked in the side walls (columns, pilasters, etc.) There are a few additional technical words that are used with reference to the basic shape of a building: bay The algebraic sum of the moments of all forces that are on one side of a give cross-section of a beam. Transom: A small window placed above a door or window. Subcontractor – A tradesperson hired to do specific work such as roofing, plumbing, wiring or painting. Acceptable Solution – A design solution deemed to comply with the Building Code that is pre-approved and therefore has fewer compliance costs associated. This type of cladding has sometimes been implicated in issues of weathertightness. Cresting: A repetitive metal ornament installed at a roof ridge or parapet. Weathertightness – The resistance of a building to the weather. A raised finish floor surface consisting entirely of small, individually removable panels beneath which wiring, ductwork, and other services may be installed. Cavities allow for drainage, which is one the four principles in managing water in and around buildings. To this end, we’ve compiled a list of important architectural terms (some you may have heard and others you probably haven’t)! BCAs issue building consents, undertake inspections during construction and issue code compliance certificates, notices to fix and compliance schedules. Frame/framing – The skeletal framework of a building to which roofs, floors and cladding are attached. Mansard: A two-pitched roof with a steep lower slope that typically rises to a more gently sloped upper portion. Flashing – A building element used on a joint between two materials designed to catch and drain rainwater to prevent it penetrating the interior. Carpet formed by weaving on a loom that inserts each tuft of pile individually into the backing.