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Precision Inspections > Real Estate Terms Cont. 2
Main shut-off valve: A valve that turns off the water supply to the house. They can be located at the street, in the home or at a well pressure tank.
Mansard roof: A roof system consisting of steeply sloped sides and a top portion either flat or meeting in a peak or a ridge.
Monolithic slab-on-grade: Construction where the slab and the foundation are poured at the same time creating a one-piece design.
Muntins: A grid of cross pieces of wood or lead that hold small panes of glass in a multi-pane window. Some muntins are for decoration only and are removable.
Neutral wire: A wire, usually white in color, that provides a return path for electrical current in a circuit.
Open ground: In home receptacles, a condition where the ground wire is not attached to the outlet.
Over fusing: A condition where a fuse installed on an electrical circuit is larger than the wire’s capacity.
Piers: Columns supporting a structure that are built on top of the footings.
Pilot: The small flame that ignites gas in a gas burner, i.e. a water heater or furnace. The flame should burn continuously
Pivot window: A window that pivots open from a center hinge.
Platform framing: A construction method where each level of the house is constructed on top of the level below it.
Plenum: The first large section of supply duct from which smaller ducts branch out to distribute heat to the house.
Pressure reducing valve: A valve on the main water service pipe that reduces city water pressure before it reaches the house.
P-trap: A P-shaped trap used below fixtures and floor drains to prevent sewer gasses from entering the home.
Purlin: A board that holds that adjacent rafters or trusses together in a roof system.
Racking: A condition where a structure leans and creates angles with the foundation that are no longer 90 degrees.
Radon: A gas that naturally occurs in soil and rocks when uranium breaks down. The EPA considers radon levels grater than 4.0 pc/l as a health hazard.
Rafter spread: A phenomenon where the vertical roof-load on the rafters forces them outwards.
Rafters: Structural members of a pitched roof that support the roof covering and transmit roof loads to the bearing walls.
Rake: The overhang at the gable end of the roof.
Registers: Outlets in the home that deliver conditioned air from the furnace.
Relief valve: A valve on a water heater that releases water when temperature or pressure is too high.
Reverse polarity: A condition where the hot wire (black wire) is wired to the large slot on an electrical outlet and the neutral wire (white wire) is wired to the small slot.
R-value: The total heat resistance for a given thickness of an insulation type.
Sash: The window framework that holds the glass or other material.
Service drop: Overhead wires from the power company that bring the electrical service to the home.
Service lateral: Underground wires from the power company that bring the electrical service to the home.
Sheathing: Sheets of plywood or wood planking used to cover a roof, wall, or floor frame.
Shed roof: A roof with a single slope slanting in one direction.
Short cycling: A condition where the heating or cooling system turns on and off too often.
Sill: The bottom section in a window frame.
Single hung window: A window with only one sash that moves.
Slab-on-grade: A poured concrete slab that rests directly on the ground.
Slider window: A window with a sash that moves horizontally.
Soffit: The horizontal underside of the eave.
Spalling: The crumbling and falling away of the surface of bricks, blocks, or concrete. Usually seen on older homes.
Step crack: A crack appearing along the block or brick veneer that follows the mortar joints.
S-trap: An S-shaped unvented trap used below fixtures and floor drains that can potentially let sewer gasses into the home.
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