Aggregate Small stone content of a given mixture.
Ashlar A facing of dressed stone blocks on a backing wall of brick, rough stone or concrete block.
Automatic valve A valve which can be remotely operated. The remote operation method may be electrical (the most common) or hydraulic. Automatic valves are commonly used as “control valves” for irrigation systems.
Ball valve A valve which controls the water by means of a rotating ball with a hole through the centre. When the hole is aligned with the water flow, the water moves freely through the valve with almost no friction loss. When the ball is rotated so that the hole is not aligned, the flow is completely shut off. Ball valves are used primarily as isolation valves. They tend to be very reliable and trouble-free, but ball valves as a group tend to require more effort to turn on and off than other valves. For largest pipes, butterfly valves are usually used rather than ball valves.
Ballast A mixture of sand and stone aggregate. Usually associated with the mixture used for making concrete.
Balustrade A complete railing system consisting of a top handrail supported by balusters (which sometimes rest on a bottom rail).
Batter The angle of a wall where it is made to lean inwards from the perpendicular.
Belt course A continuous horizontal course of flat stones marking a division in the wall plane.
Bentonite A natural clay product commonly used for a soil sealant in ponds. When hydrated, the bentonite granules swell into the voids surrounding soil particles, creating a tough watertight seal.
Blinding A layer of sand laid to cover sharp edges of stone, such as over a hardcore base, or when laying a liner for a pool.
Bond The way in which bricks or stone are laid to give structural strength.
Brick on edge A brick laid with the thin stretcher face uppermost, as when used as a trim to an edging or as a coping to a wall.
Brushed finish A textured finish obtained by brushing with a coarse rotary-type wire brush.
Brushed aggregate Concrete, the surface of which has been brushed before setting (when “green”) to expose the selected stone aggregate to give a textured finish. Also referred to as exposed aggregate.
Bull nose The convex rounding of a stone member, such as a stair tread.
Bush-hammered finish A textured finish made by a pounding action.
Camber (of paths) A slightly arched surface.
Cement The medium used as the binding agent in mortar or concrete.
Chat-sawn finish A finish featuring irregular, uneven markings.
Concrete A mixture made up of cement, sharp sand and aggregate (usually gravel stone). The sand and stone are often referred to as ballast.
Controller A timer used to turn an automatic irrigation system on and off. Controllers range from very simple to extremely sophisticated computer systems that utilize modems, cell phones or radios and allow two-way communication between the controller and the units being controlled (valves, metres, weather stations, soil moisture and sensors, for example).
Coping The top course of a wall, usually made of brick, stone or concrete, designed to prevent water from seeping into the body of the wall.
Coursed Describes stone or brick laid in a particular pattern.
Critical curve The maximum extent to which a path can be curved without the need for cutting corners.
Cubic feet A measurement of liquid quantity, often used by water companies in the United States. A cubic foot is 1 foot long, 1 foot wide and 1 foot deep.
Curbing Slabs and blocks of stone bordering streets, walks and so forth.
Damp-proof course (DPC) A course laid near the base of a wall to prevent moisture rising within the wall. It can consist of a number of courses of high-density engineering bricks, two courses of overlapping tiles or a layer of bitumen-impregnated strip. Where there is a poured concrete foundation this can also be referred to as the “top of foundation”.
Design pressure The pressure at which a specific piece of irrigation equipment is designed to operate.
Drip irrigation Any type of irrigation that applies water to the soil very slowly. Drip irrigation tends to be the most efficient irrigation technology in terms of both water and energy use.
Drip system An irrigation system that uses drip irrigation.
Dry-mix A mixture of sand and cement without any water added, sometimes used when laying brick or slab paving.
Emitter A small device, also known as a dripper, that controls the flow going to the soil during drip irrigation. Emitters come in many different flow rates and styles.
Fall The slight slope created to carry water off hard surfaces to prevent flooding and puddling. The fall, also referred to as the slope or grade, is directed towards open soil areas or specially sited drains and gullies.
Finish A surface treatment. Stones may be finished in a variety of ways. In general, smooth finishes emphasize colour and veining, while rough finishes subdue veining and markings.
Flagstone Thin slabs of stone used for flagging or paving walks, driveways, patios and so forth, generally consisting of fine-grained sandstone, bluestone, quartzite or slate, although other stones may be used.
Flamed finish A rough finish developed with intense heat.
Footing The load-bearing (underground) substructure of a wall—for example, with a wall, the excavated trench, foundation and lower courses.
Gallons per minute (GPM) A measurement of water flow primarily used in the United States.
Gauging A grinding process that results in the uniform thickness of all pieces of material to be used together.
Gnomon A rod or pin that indicates the time of day by the position of its shadow.
Gravity flow A water system that relies on gravity to provide the pressure required to deliver the water. Consists of a water source located at a higher elevation than the water delivery points.
Ground-water table The level at any given time of the water travelling through the soil. It varies according to the soil conditions and the time of year.
Gulley A shallow channel that carries away surface water. Sometimes used as another name for a drain, a gulley may also be known as a swale.
Hardcore A mixture of broken brick or stone used to create a firm base on which to lay concrete foundations, paving and so on. It should not include any soil or traces of vegetation. Can also be referred to as base course, bedding or sub grade.
Head to head Said of sprinklers spaced so that the water from one sprinkler throws all the way to the next sprinkler. Most sprinklers are designed to give the best performance when this kind of spacing is used.
Hoggin A mixture of gravel and clay used as the binding agent in gravel paths and driveways.
Honed finish A dull finish without reflections.
Hydro-zone An area of an irrigation system in which all the factors that influence the watering schedule are similar. Typical factors to be considered would be the type of plants, the precipitation rate of sprinklers or emitters, solar radiation, wind, soil type and slope.
In situ Constructed on site in the position shown. For example, a concrete wall is created in situ by pouring liquid concrete into a “form” using timber shuttering.
Liner A waterproof layer used to create water features ranging from small pools to lakes. This can be a variety of materials, including clay and sheeting made of butyl or PVC.
Litres per minute A metric measurement of water flow used worldwide.
Mainline The pipes going from the water source to the control valves.
Mortar A mixture of soft sand and cement used for walling, paving and so forth. Sometimes referred to as cement.
Natural cleft Stones formed in layers in the ground. When stones are cleaved or separated along a natural seam, the remaining surface is referred to as a natural cleft surface.
Nozzle The part of a sprinkler that the water comes out of. Usually a nozzle is carefully engineered to assure a good spray pattern. In most cases the nozzle is removable so that is can be easily cleaned or replaced. With plastic nozzles, replacement is generally preferred over cleaning, as small scratches in the plastic can cause big problems with water distribution uniformity.
Operating pressure The pressure at which a device or irrigation system is designed to operate. There can be “optimum operating pressure”, “minimum operating pressure”, “maximum operating pressure” and “operating pressure range”.
Paver A “shin” brick specially manufactured for brick paving. It can also be used as a facing on walls.
Pea shingle A material dredged from sea and rivers, consisting of more rounded stones than gravel.
Planed timber Timber that has been cut to a nominal size with a saw and has a rough finish. Also referred to as sawn timber or rough-sawn lumber, this timber can be planed or sanded for a smooth finish. Timber sizes are quoted in sawn sizes unless otherwise stated. For example, after planing, it is “F4S” (Finished Four Sides): 50 ˥ 100 mm (2 ˥ 4 in.) is the rough-sawn dimension, but the actual piece of wood measures 37 ˥ 87 mm (1.5 ˥ 3.4 in.).
Polished finish A shiny finish with sharp reflections. This is the smoothest finish available, resulting in a high lustre (gloss).
Pop-up sprinkler head A sprinkler head that retracts below ground level when it is not operating.
Precipitation rate A measurement of water application, given in the depth of water applied to the soil—in other words, the depth that the water would be if it did not run off or soak into the soil. In the United States, precipitation rates are measured in inches per hour. In metric countries, they are measured in mm per hour.
Pressure gauge A device used to measure water pressure. The best pressure gauges are “liquid filled”; however, most inexpensive gauges work well enough for irrigation use.
Pump A device that increases water pressure or moves water.
PVC Polyvinyl chloride, a type of plastic used to make pond liners and water pipe. PVC is available in several colours. Purple indicates unclean or wastewater.
Quoins Stones at the external corner or edge of a wall emphasized by size, projection, rustication or by a different finish.
Random course Paving laid so that the roughly shaped stones are in a random pattern instead of in coursed lines. Various sizes of square paving can be laid in a random pattern, such as when using slate or York stone paving.
Resin bonded aggregate Gravel that is mixed with resin before it is laid. When set, it provides a firm base and allows water to drain through.
Riprap Irregular, broken and randomly sized pieces of rock used for facing abutments and fills. Stones are thrown together without order to form a foundation, breakwater or sustaining wall.
Rise The height of stone (generally in veneer) or the vertical dimension between two successive steps.
Rock-face finish Also referred to as a pitch-face finish, this convex finish is similar to a split-face finish except that the face of the stone is given line and plane, producing a bold appearance that is considered to more closely resemble natural stone.
Sharp sand A sand that is washed to remove the silt content, used mostly for concrete and rendering. It is coarser, larger-grained, and lighter in colour than soft sand.
Slab A lengthwise cut of a large quarry block of stone, approximately 1.5 ˥ 2.4 m (5 ˥ 8 ft.).
Smooth finish A softened effect created by a saw, grinder or planer.
Snapped edge A style, also known as quarry cut or broken edge, that usually involves a natural breaking of stone either by hand or machine. The break should be at right angles to the top and bottom surface.
Soft sand A very fine sand with a relatively high silt content, often referred to as building sand and used to make mortar for brickwork.
Spall A stone fragment that has split or broken off the face of a stone, either by the force of a blow or through weathering. Sizes may vary from chip size to large stones. Spalls are primarily used for taking up large voids in rough rubble or mosaic patterns.
Split-face finish Also referred to as a sawed-bed finish, this finish is concave or convex, usually sawed on the stone bed and split by hand or machine so that the face of the stone exhibits the natural quarry texture.
Sprinkler A device that distributes water over a given area for irrigation.
Stretcher and header The different faces of a brick. The stretcher is the long face, either when seen as the narrow side in walling or when laid on edge, or the wider face when laid flat in paving. The header is the small, end face of the brick.
Thermal finish A coarse finish created by applying a mechanically controlled flame to a surface.
Tread A flat stone or surface used as the top walking surface on a step.
Valve A device used to control the flow of water. Isolation valves are used to shut water off for repairs. Control valves turn water on and off to the individual circuits of sprinklers or drip emitters. Check valves allow water to flow in only one direction. Master valves are located at the water source and turn water on and off for the entire irrigation system when not in use.
Veneer Any decorative facing material which is not meant to be load-bearing.
Water table The level at which water lies naturally in the soil.