Trimming a custom home common construction terms 7

Common construction terms 7 Trimming

Have you have ever been on a construction site talking to your contractor and been totally lost in the terms that they are using? Well I’m here to help; here are some common terms that contractor’s use that you might not understand.

• Base board. This is the trim that is installed at the base of the wall where the wall meets the floor. Traditional baseboard is usually larger than any other trim in the house.

• Casing. This is the trim installed around doors and windows. It is typically smaller then the baseboard.

• Back band. This is an accent piece of trim that is traditionally installed on the outside of the window and door casing. It helps give the casing a thicker wider look.

• Build outs. This is the wood installed around the window frame. This wood starts at the windows edge and runs out to the face of the wall where it meets the casing.

• Stool. This is a piece of trim that is installed at the bottom of the windows to help define the edge of the window. It usually is installed butting into the build out.

• Sill. This is the trim piece that is installed on the window. It runs from the window edge out to the stool.

• Apron. This is the piece of trim that is installed under the stool. This helps give the window a finished look. The apron typically is a piece of casing but not always.

• Plinth blocks. These are wood trim blocks that are installed at the bottom edges of the door. The casing runs into the top of the block and the baseboard runs into the side of it.

• Corner blocks. These are wood trim blocks that are installed in the upper corners of the door and windows, allowing the casing to run into them from both directions.

• Crown Moulding. This is a trim that is installed on the ceiling. It spans the distance between the wall and ceiling, usually on a 45 degree angle.

• Cove Moulding. This is a small piece of trim that is installed between chairs, stools and aprons; it looks like a small version of crown moulding.

• Door stops. This is a piece of trim usually about an one inch wide that is placed on the door jamb. It stops the door from swinging right through the wrong way.

• Cap moulding. This is a piece of trim designed to be placed on top of trim or bead board.

• Chair rail. This is a piece of trim that is installed usually in the middle of the wall, flat on the surface. This helps define the wall and helps with a transition from one colour to another colour on the same wall.

• Quarter round. This is a small piece of trim that is made at a right angle. Usually installed at a joint or where the baseboard meets the floor. It looks like one quarter of a circle when viewed from the end.

• Battens. These are trims that are installed vertically on walls. They are usually used to hide were the joints of two panels come together.

• Corner guards. These are trims that are manufactured in a way that allows you to install them on a vertical outside corner.

• Half rounds. They are built to be installed to cover a joint in trim or panels on a vertical surface. If viewed from the end they look like half a circle.

 This should help you understand what your contractor is talking about the next time you have a meeting with them. Look for part 8 of common construction terms, coming soon.

Rob Abbott
Operations Manager
Village Builders Inc.