GLOSSARY 

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B 

BACK BLOCKING

Applying additional thickness of gypsum wallboard by adhesive at a back joint, usually on ceilings, to reduce ridging or beading.  

BACK PRIMING

Applying a coat of paint to the back of woodwork or exterior siding to prevent moisture from getting into the wood and causing the grain to swell.

BACKER ROD

A rod of urethane, Styrofoam, or similar material that is inserted into wide joints or cracks to provide a backing so that caulking or sealant material cannot flow through the joint being sealed. 

BARRIER COAT

Coating used to isolate a paint system from the surface to which it is applied in order to prevent chemical or physical interaction between them. 

BARRIER PIGMENT

A pigment that can improve the ability of a coating to provide a good barrier between the environment and the substrate it protects. 

BASKET-WEAVE DESIGN

In wallcovering, a loosely woven fabric effect that represents the weave of a basket or coarse matting. 

BATCH

The total quantity of paint or other material that is produced in a single processing, mixing, and/or filling operation. 

BEADING

A slight bead or protrusion that forms along a finished drywall joint. It can result from joint compound being applied before the preceding coat was dry, paper along the edges of the drywall panels becoming loosened or delaminated, or drywall panels being set too close together to allow for expansion. Sometimes called "ridging." 

BELT SANDER

A power tool with a continuous belt of abrasive that moves in one direction. 

BID

A written document that spells out exactly what the painting contractor will do and the exact amount of money he or she will charge. Make sure you understand everything in this bid and keep a written copy.  

BINDER

Non-volatile portion of the liquid vehicle of a coating. When the paint dries, the binder becomes part of the solid film. It binds the pigment particles together and cements the paint film to the surface.  

BITUMASTIC

An asphalt or coal tar mastic (thick-film) protective coating used primarily for waterproofing. 
 

BITUMEN

Black or dark brown solid or semisolid cementitious material that gradually liquefies when heated and is soluble in carbon disulfide. 

BITUMINOUS COATING

Asphalt or tar-based coating used to provide a protective finish; applied as hot melt, solvent cutback, or water emulsion. 

BITUMINOUS CUTBACK

Asphalt or coal tar dissolved in a suitable aliphatic or aromatic hydrocarbon solvent to lower its viscosity for application at ambient temperatures. 

BITUMINOUS EMULSION

A suspension or emulsion of minute particles of asphalt or coal tar, emulsifying agents, and inert filling materials in water. These emulsions, unlike straight bitumen’s, do not need to be heated to be applied. 

BLAST ANGLE

Angle of blasting nozzle with reference to surface; also, angle of particle propelled from centrifugal blasting wheels with reference to surface.  

BLAST CLEANING

Cleaning and roughening a surface (particularly steel) by the use of metallic or non-metallic grit or metal shot (usually steel) abrasives that are projected against the surface being cleaned by compressed air, centrifugal force, water, or a compressed air/water mixture. 

BLAST NOZZLE

Device through which abrasive is propelled during blast cleaning. 

BLAST POT

A container that holds abrasive material until it is fed to the blast nozzle in air abrasive blast cleaning systems. 

BLEACH SOLUTION

A water solution of sodium hypochlorite, often called household bleach. It is a disinfectant and mildewcide used as a surface treatment for removing mildew and bacteria before painting. 

BLEACHING WOOD

Bleach solutions are used to restore natural colour to stained or discoloured woods or the make woods lighter in colour. 

BLEEDING

The diffusion of colouring through a coating from the substrate.  Bleeding usually occurs as a result of solubility in the vehicle portion of the top coat. It often can be prevented or reduced by application of a barrier coating (primer, sealer). 

BLISTERING

Usually caused by solvent entrapment, moisture diffusion through the coating, or application of paint to a surface containing excessive moisture.   Blistering also can occur when moisture enters painted wood through some indirect source, such as poor joints or careless carpentry work, or as a result of excessive heat or sap (resin) trapped in the wood. 

BLOCK COAT

A barrier coat or transition primer/tie coat that prevents incompatible paints from touching. 

BLOCK FILLER

An emulsion coating that is heavily pigmented, usually with a finely divided silica flour. 

BLOCKING

The undesirable sticking together of two painted surfaces or of touching layers of wallcovering or other material. 

BLUSHING

A film defect appearing as a milky opalescence. It sometimes forms as the paint film or lacquer dries because rapid solvent evaporation cools the surface and moisture from the air condenses on the cooled wet coating. 

BODY

Subjective assessment of the apparent consistency or viscosity of a paint. 

BODY HARNESS

A full-body safety harness is a device worn around the entire torso, including the shoulders, waist, upper legs, and buttocks. 

BOLT

A roll of wallcovering containing the surface area equivalent of two or three single rolls. 

BOND

If a contractor damages something during the course of a job and fails to pay for court-ordered damages within a certain amount of time (often 30 days), the bond provides payment. These are intended more as an incentive for contractors to pay for damages than being a comprehensive safety net for homeowners, so make sure your contractor is also insured.  

BOND-BREAKER TAPE

A special tape used to prevent caulk or sealant from sticking to the back of a joint. It allows the sealant to move with the joint. 

BOND COAT

A coating used to improve the adhesion of subsequent coats. 

BONDING STRENGTH

The adhesion between a coating film or wallcovering adhesive and a substrate or previous coating film. The amount of stress needed to separate a coating or wallcovering from the surface to which it is bonded. 

BOOKING

After adhesive is applied or activated, some wallcoverings, especially pre-pasted ones, require a brief curing period, which allows the adhesive to soak into the material before it is hung. To accomplish this, the wallcovering is "booked," which means it is folded paste side to paste side, and allowed to sit for the curing period. 

BOOM LIFT (CHERRY PICKER)

A boom lift or "cherry picker" has a single or articulated arm that can manoeuvre an enclosed work platform and worker to a work area either above or below the area where the boom lift is located. 

BORDER

A narrow strip of wallcovering used as a decorative accent. It may be placed along walls at the ceiling, around windows or doors as a frame, or around a room to create a chair-rail effect.  

BOSUN’S CHAIR

A rigging system suspended from a single cable or rope and designed for use by a single individual, who is limited to working in a sitting position. 

BOUNCE BACK

The rebound of atomised paint particles during spray application. This effect is most pronounced when paint is being applied into corners or boxed areas. The resultant return flow of atomisation air carries some of the paint particles away from the surface. 

BOXING

Pouring paint from one container to another several times to assure that no unmixed material remains on the bottom and that the paint is uniformly mixed. 

BREAKING STRENGTH

The ability of a wallcovering to resist the initiation of a tear. 

BRISTLE

Natural or synthetic fibres bundled together and attached to a handle for use in soaking up paint and spreading it onto a surface. 

BROAD KNIFE

A multipurpose hand tool with a blade that ranges in size up to 10 to 12 inches wide. 

BRUSH

A tool used to apply paint. There are many types of brushes available, and selecting the right one is important to the finished product. "Brush" is also used to describe how paint will be applied - i.e., brushed, rolled, sprayed, etc.  

BRUSH MARK

Parallel ridges and valleys in a coating produced by the bristles of a brush during paint application. Depending on the levelling characteristics of the paint, brush marks may or may not remain in the dried coating. 

BRUSH-OFF BLAST CLEANING

Blast cleaning standard with the lowest quality requirements. 

BRUSHABILITY

The ability or ease with which a paint can be brushed under practical conditions. 

BUBBLING

A coating defect in which bubbles of air, solvent vapor, or both are present in the applied film. Bubbles may be temporary and work out of the coating during drying, or they may be permanent and remain in the dry film. 

BUG HOLE

An air pocket left on or near the surface of vertical formed concrete or horizontal laid concrete. 

BURLAP

Woven fabric of jute, hemp, sometimes flax, fused to a composition backing or to paper and used as a wallcovering.  

BUTADIENE

A gas which is chemically combined with styrene to create a resin used in latex binders, styrene-butadiene. 

BUTT END

Untapered end of gypsum wallboard panel at narrow dimension of board. 

BUTT JOINT

Joint where butt ends of gypsum wallboards meet. 
 

BUTT SEAM

A butt seam is made by aligning the edge of one wallcovering strip tightly against the next strip without any overlap.