timely access: access to the subject property and documentation required by the inspector to perform the inspection.

TJ (or TJI): Manufactured truss joints resembling the letter I that are used as floor joists and rafters. I-joists include two key parts: flanges and webs. The flange may be made of laminated veneer lumber or dimensional lumber, usually formed into a width of 1-1/2 inches. The web is commonly made of plywood or oriented strand board (OSB). Large holes can be cut in the web to accommodate ductwork and plumbing waste lines. I-joists are available in lengths up to 60 inches long.

TLVs: Threshold Limit Values (guidelines recommended by ACGIH).

toilet room: a room containing a water closet or urinal, but not a bathtub or shower.

torch-applied: A method for installing a membrane on a low-slope roof that uses special equipment, such as an open-flame propane torch; usually used on MB.

TPO (thermoplastic polyolefins): A thermoplastic low-slope roof membrane.

tracer gases: Compounds, such a sulfur hexafluoride, which are used to identify suspected pollutant pathways and to quantify ventilation rates. Tracer gases may be detected qualitatively by their odor or quantitatively by air monitoring equipment.

trap: a fitting that provides a liquid seal to prevent the emission of sewer gases and odors.

tree crown: the branches growing out from a tree, including twigs and foliage.

tributary area: A loaded area that results in the given structural member supporting the area.

truss: A frame or jointed structure designed to act as a beam of long span, while each member is usually subjected to lengthwise stress only (either tension or compression).

TVOCs: Total volatile organic compounds.

unsafe: in the inspector’s opinion, a condition of an area, system, component or procedure that is judged to be a significant risk of injury during normal, day-to-day use. The risk may be due to damage, deterioration, improper installation, or a change in accepted commercial construction standards.

Use and Occupancy: Classifications established by the IBC® that are the design loads for categorized structures based on usage in pounds per square foot.

UV (ultraviolet) degradation: A reduction in performance caused by exposure to sunlight.

value engineering: The systematic effort of analyzing planned or designed building features and systems to achieve acceptable performance, function, and safety at the lowest service life cost.

valve: a device used in piping to control the gas or liquid supply downstream of the device.

vapor retarder: a vapor-resistant material, membrane or covering, such as foil, plastic sheeting or insulation facing, that limits the amount of moisture vapor that passes through a material or wall assembly.

variable air volume system: Air handling system that conditions the air to a constant temperature and varies the outside airflow to ensure thermal comfort.

VAV: Variable air volume system.

ventilation: the natural or mechanical process of supplying and removing air from any space.

ventilation air: Defined as the total air, which is a combination of the air brought into the system from the outdoors and the air that is being recirculated within the building. Sometimes, however, used in reference only to the air brought into the system from the outdoors.

verify: to confirm or substantiate.

visible: that which may be easily observed during the walk-through survey portion of the inspection.

VOCs: See “Volatile Organic Compounds.”

volatile organic compounds (VOCs): Compounds that evaporate from the many housekeeping, maintenance, and building products made with organic chemicals. These compounds are released from products that are being used and that are in storage. In sufficient quantities, VOCs can cause eye, nose, and throat irritations, headaches, dizziness, visual disorders, memory impairment; some are known to cause cancer in animals; some are suspected of causing, or are known to cause, cancer in humans. At present, not much is known about what health effects occur at the levels of VOCs typically found in public and commercial buildings.

waffle structural system: A type of two-way cast-in-place concrete roof and floor structural system that uses a square dome with concrete placed on top.

walk-through survey: that portion of the inspection where the inspector makes non-intrusive, visual observations of readily accessible areas of the subject property.

walking surface: the ground or floor surface that meets specific requirements to be accessible to people with disabilities.

wall protector: non-combustible shield between a wall and anything heat-producing for the purpose of reducing required clearance.

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