Alligatoring:
A condition of paint or aged asphalt brought about by the loss of volatile oils and the oxidation caused by solar radiation. Causes a coarse checking pattern characterized by a slipping of the new paint coating over the old coating to the extent that the old coating can be seen through the fissures. "Alligatoring" produces a pattern of cracks resembling an alligator hide and is ultimately the result of the limited tolerance of paint or asphalt to thermal expansion or contraction.
Buckling:
The bending of a building material as a result of wear and tear or contact with a substance such as water.
Cupping:
A type of warping that causes boards to curl up at their edges.
Deflect:
To bend or deform under weight.
Drippage:
Bitumen material that drips through roof deck joints, or over the edge of a roof deck.
Efflorescence:
A white powder on the surface of walls due to evaporation of water. It forms on the surface of bricks.
Fungal Wood Rot:
A common wood destroying organism which develops when wood containing material is exposed to moisture and poor air circulation for a long (6 months +) period of time. Often and incorrectly referred to as dry rot.
Honeycomb:
Areas in a foundation wall where the aggregate (gravel) is visible. Honeycombs can be usually be remedied by applying a thin layer of grout or other cement product over the affected area. Also, a method by which concrete is poured and not puddled or vibrated, allowing the edges to have voids or holes after the forms are removed.
Infiltration:
The process by which air leaks into a building. To find the infiltration heating load factor (HLF), the formula to account for the extra BTUs needed to heat the infiltrated air is BTU/HR = building volume x air changes x BTU/cu.ft/hr x TD (temperature difference).
Jumpers:
Water pipe installed in a water meter pit (before the water meter is installed), or electric wire that is installed in the electric house panel meter socket before the meter is installed. This is sometimes illegal.
Kick Hole:
A defect frequently found in perimeter flashings arising from being stepped on or kicked. A small fracture of the base flashing in the area of the cant.
Migration:
Spreading or creeping of a constituent of a compound onto/into adjacent surfaces. See bleeding.
Mushroom:
An unacceptable occurrence when the top of a caisson concrete pier spreads out and hardens to become wider than the foundation wall thickness.
Oil-Canning:
The term describing distortion of thin-gauge metal panels which are fastened in a manner restricting normal thermal movement.
Ponding:
A condition where water stands on a roof for prolonged periods due to poor drainage and/or deflection of the deck.
Settlement:
Shifts in a structure, usually caused by freeze-thaw cycles underground.
Spalling:
The chipping or flaking of concrete, bricks, or other masonry where improper drainage or venting and freeze/thaw cycling exists.
Splitting:
The formation of long cracks completely through a membrane. Splits are frequently associated with lack of allowance for expansion stresses. They can also be a result of deck deflection or change in deck direction.
Step Crack:
Hairline, "staircase"-type steps near the corners of the foundation, usually due to normal soil settlement. Larger such cracks may indicate ongoing movement or sinking of the foundation and are much more grave.
Termites:
Insects that superficially resemble ants in size, general appearance, and habit of living in colonies; hence, they are frequently called "white ants." Subterranean termites establish themselves in buildings not by being carried in with lumber, but by entering from ground nests after the building has been constructed. If unmolested, they eat the woodwork, leaving a shell of sound wood to conceal their activities, and damage may proceed so far as to cause collapse of parts of a structure before discovery. There are about 56 species of termites known in the United States but the two major ones, classified by the manner in which they attack wood, are ground inhabiting or subterranean termites (the most common) and dry wood termites, which are found almost exclusively along the extreme southern border and the Gulf of Mexico in the United States.
Veining:
In roofing, the characteristic lines or "stretch marks" which develop during the aging process of soft bitumens.
Warping:
Any distortion in a material.
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