Definition of Top Plate

Top Plate

The horizontal member nailed to the top of the studding of a wall.

Load-Bearing Wall

Includes all exterior walls and any interior wall that is aligned above a support beam or girder. Normally, any wall that has a double horizontal top plate.

Bottom Plate

The lowest horizontal member of a wall which rests on the rough floor, to which the studding is nailed.

Plates

Pieces of wood placed on wall surfaces as fastening devices. The bottom member of the wall is the sole plate and the top member is the rafter plate.

Sole Plate

See Bottom plate.

Area Walls

Corrugated metal or concrete barrier walls installed around a basement window to hold back the earth.

Balloon Framed Wall

Framed walls (generally over 10' tall) that run the entire vertical length from the floor sill plate to the roof. This is done to eliminate the need for a gable end truss.

Bull Nose Drywall

Rounded drywall corners.

Gable End Wall

The triangular end of an exterior wall above the eaves formed under a gable roof.

aterial used to cover the interior framed areas of walls and ceilings

Knee Wall

A wall-like structure that supports roof rafters.

Load-Bearing Point

A point where a bearing or structural weight is concentrated and transferred to the foundation.

Nonbearing Wall

A wall supporting no load other than its own weight.

Trombe Wall

A passive solar wall, usually masonry or concrete, used for passing heat from one room (like a sun room or solar garden room) to another.

Wall Out

When a painter spray paints the interior of a home.

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