876
Glossary
trap: A pipe fi tting installed below each fi xture
and fi lled with water to block the reverse fl ow
of gases into the house.
tread: A horizontal member of a stairway that
constitutes the step (surface) on which a
person walks.
trimmer: A structural member positioned inside
a wall opening to help support the header
over the opening; also called a jack stud.
trowel: A rectangular instrument that is used
in a circular motion after concrete is fl oated
to further harden the surface and develop a
smooth fi nish.
true height line (THL): The line established
where the object touches the picture plane in
a perspective drawing. The THL is used to
project heights to the perspective drawing.
Also called a true length line (TL).
two-face adjacent fi replace: A fi replace that is
open on the front and one side. Also called a
projecting corner fi replace.
two-face opposite fi replace: A fi replace that is
open on both the front and back sides.
two-point perspective drawing: A perspective
drawing that has two vanishing points: a right
vanishing point (RVP) and a left vanishing
point (LVP).
two-story: A house design that has living space
on two full levels.
typical section: A building section that shows
features or sizes that are used in many
different places in the structure.
U
U stairs: A stairway that has two fl ights of
steps parallel to each other with a landing
between them.
U-factor: The number of Btus transmitted
in one hour through one square foot of
a building material for each degree of
temperature difference; calculated by taking
the reciprocal of the material’s resistivity
(R-factor).
uncoursed cobweb: Rubble stonework in
which the stones are dressed with relatively
straight edges to fi t a particular place in the
pattern, but still give a rubble, not ashlar,
appearance; also called polygonal rubble.
upfl ow furnace: A furnace designed for
basement installation, with the plenum on
top of the furnace.
T
teamwork: Working closely with others toward
a common goal.
template: A guide used to draw standard
symbols and features.
T-foundation: A foundation wall and footing
combination, constructed as two separate
parts or cast as a single unit.
thermostat: An automatic sensing device
that sends a signal to activate a furnace or
air conditioner at a temperature set by the
homeowner.
three-coat stucco system: The traditional method
of applying stucco that consists of a scratch
coat, brown coat, and fi nish coat of stucco.
three-face fi replace: A fi replace that is open on
three sides.
three-way switch: A switch that allows a fi xture
to be turned on and off from two different
locations.
title: A legal document that provides evidence
of property ownership.
title search: An examination of the title to a
property to determine whether there are any
legal claims against the property.
topographical features: All existing natural
and human-made structures on a property,
including trees, shrubs, streams, ponds, roads,
utilities, and fences.
topography: The physical characteristics of the
land on a site.
total rise: The total fl oor-to-fl oor height of a
stairway.
total run: The total horizontal length of a
stairway.
townhouse: A two- to four-story house connected
to one or more similar houses by a common
wall. Townhouses are also known as rowhouses.
tracking: An alignment feature that allows
you to align new geometry with objects that
already exist in the drawing.
traffi c circulation: The movement of people
from one area or room to another.
transverse building section: A building section
taken crosswise across the shorter overall
dimension of a building.
transverse method: A method of roof beam
placement in post and beam construction in
which the beams follow the roof slope and
decking runs parallel to the roof ridge.