Construction Basics and Environmental Issues & Property Concerns

Question 1

Roof rafters are ____________ in orientation and establish the pitch or the ____________ of the roof.

Answer 1

Diagonal, Slope

Question 2

What are the vertical wooden columns (usually 2x4) inside the walls and is part of the house frame?

Answer 2

Studs

Question 3

The slope or angle of the roof is the _____________.

Answer 3

Pitch

Question 4

Circuit breakers and ____________ both serve the same function. They are over-current protection devices.

Answer 4

Fuses

Question 5

What is nailed on the outside of wall studs or roof rafters to begin to weatherproof the house? What is it often made out of?

Answer 5

Sheathing. Plywood or OSB

Question 6

“A” for Amps, “A” for the ____________ of current available in a structure.

Answer 6

Amount

Question 7

What is the minimum amperage for new construction in NYS?

Answer 7

100 A

Question 8

“Voltage” is the ____________ or ____________ of the current in a particular electrical circuit.

Answer 8

Force, Pressure

Question 9

What is the standard voltage in the United States?

Answer 9

110 V

Question 10

The lower part of the roof which includes the soffit and fascia is called the ____________ or ____________.

Answer 10

Overhang, Eaves

Question 11

Bent pieces of flexible metal (often aluminum) that serve to waterproof a house and cover cracks are called ____________.

Answer 11

Flashing

Question 12

You would call a BTU, British Thermal Unit, a measure of ____________.

Answer 12

Heat Energy

Question 13

What is the name of the refrigerant that leak out of air conditioners and was destroying the ozone layer of the atmosphere, the layer that protects us from the ultra-violet rays of the sun which give us skin cancer?

Answer 13

CFCs (Chloro-fluoro-carbons), Freon

Question 14

What is the law that regulates CFC’s (Freon)? What does it set limits on?

Answer 14

Clean Air Act. Sets limits on pollutants in the air.

Question 15

What are liquids used to cool power plans that can seep into soil or groundwater that were banned in 1979 because they were found to cause cancer?

Answer 15

PCBs

Question 16

What is the law that regulates PCBs?

Answer 16

Clean Water Act

Question 17

What is the law that sets nationwide standards for water quality? In NY, which department is responsible for following this law?

Answer 17

The Safe Drinking Water Act. NYS Dept. of Health

Question 18

What does the Comprehensive Response, Compensation & Liability Act (CERCLA) give the government the power to do when there is uncontrolled hazardous waste / toxic spill? Why is it referred to as ‘Superfund’?

Answer 18

The power to see what to do (Response), pay for the cleanup (Compensation), and see who is responsible. Because the government budgets $250 million a year into helping with cleanups

Question 19

What are USTs? Who regulates them? Who handles enforcement?

Answer 19

Underground storage tanks filled with gas, chemicals, propane, etc. Regulated by the NYS Dept. of Environmental Conservation, enforcement by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency)

Question 20

USTs under ____________ that hold gas or diesel are not regulated.

Answer 20

1100 gallons

Question 21

What would you call the first wooden member to be laid down on the foundation wall? It serves to connect the concrete foundation to the flooring system of the house. It’s the ____________.

Answer 21

Sill Plate

Question 22

When I build a house, I’m going to have an architectural rendering of it – what is that called?

Answer 22

Blueprint

Question 23

And I’m going to spell out how it is to be built along the lines of the blueprints – what is that called?

Answer 23

Specifications

Question 24

What material was used for insulating heating pipes, a naturally occurring mineral fiber, now banned from use because it is a carcinogen (cancer causing)?

Answer 24

Asbestos

Question 25

What is the name of a colorless, odorless radioactive gas that is the byproduct of uranium in the soil?

Answer 25

Radon

Question 26

Percolation rate is the rate ____________.

Answer 26

Of Water Movement through Soil

Question 27

____________ causes neurological damage if you drink, eat, or breathe it. If ____________ it chips, children can eat it and if sanded people can breathe it.

Answer 27

Lead, lead paint

Question 28

What does Title X say?

Answer 28

You must give the Lead Disclosure Form to buyers/tenants for homes/buildings built before 1978 n