BUILDING UTILITIES REVIEWER

 Full bath or 4/4 bath has a sink, toilet, shower and tub. A bathroom that has a shower over the tub is
considered a full bath as long as there is also sink and a toilet.
 ¾ bath has a sink, toilet and shower.
 Half bath, also known as a powder room, consists of a sink and a toilet.
 Quarter-bath denotes the room includes only one fixtures instead of the complete set of fixtures in a
full bathroom.
 Acoustics is a science that concerns with transmission of sound, effect of sound waves and generation of
sound.
 Globe valve- a valve in which the flow of water is cut off by means of a circular disk that fits against the
valve seat. The plane of movement of the disk is parallel to the normal direction of flow water, which is
turned through a tortuous passage to direct the flow normal to the face of disk.
-are used for regulating flow in a pipeline, instead of having the “all or nothing” function of gate
valve. Globe valves regulate by the position of a movable disk (or plug) in relation with the
stationary ring seat.
 Gate valves, the most common type of valve in the industry, are valves that open by lifting a gate out of
the route of the fluid. Gate valves are designed to be fully open or closed; they are regularly used as a
block valve for isolating pipe systems.
 Check valve- a valve that close to prevent backward flow of liquid.
 Angle valves are structure so that center lines of the entrance and exit of the fluid intersect
perpendicularly.
 Polarization- the act of dividing something, especially something that contains different people or
opinions, into two completely separate groups.
 Convection-the transfer of heat through a fluid (liquid or gas) caused by molecular motion.
 Conduction-the transfer of heat or electric current from one substance to another by direct contact.
 Radiation-energy that is radiated or transmitted in the form of rays or waves or particles.
 Battery of fixtures-any group of two or more similar adjacent fixtures which discharge into a common
horizontal waste or soil branch.
 Curve Surface -Creep is the phenomenon whereby sound travels ins a curve surface.
 What is/are the advantages of a circuit breaker over a fuse?
 It can act as a switch
 Its position can be easily detected (close/open)
 It can be used again after-fault has been corrected.
 The following characterizes centralized air-conditioning system.
 It uses ducts
 Has cooling tower
 Provided with air handing unit
 Gooseneck, or P-trap- curved pipe prevents sewer gases from entering the home by securing a small
amount of water in its lower curve.
 Drum traps-do the same thing, but instead of just having a dip in the pipe to create a self-scouring P-
trap, a drum trap consists of an enlarged ‘’vessel’’ that holds a large volume of water. Drum trap were
commonly used at bathtubs and occasionally at laundry sink.
 Running trap-a depressed U-shaped section of pipe in a drain; allows the free passage of liquid, but
always remain full, whatever the state of the pipe, so that it forms a seal against the passage of gases.
 The following affects the room acoustics
 Shape and proportion of the room
 Room cavity
 Seating and other furnishing
 Vent pipe- waste-vent pipe is part of a system that allows air to enter a plumbing system to maintain
proper air pressure to enable the removal of sewage and grey water from dwelling.
 Waste pipe-a pipe for draining away the waste of the building other than those from water closets
(sinks, shower, washing machine or bath).
 Stack- a general term used for any vertical line of soil, waste or vent piping.
 Soil pipe-a soil pipe is designed to carry soiled water from the toilet, urinal or bidet to the sewer.
 Current- It is analogous to pressure in water flow.
 Plumbing- the art and science installing in buildings the pipes, fixtures and other apparatus for bringing
in water supply and removing water and waterborne waste.
 Alternating current is characterized as having
 Positive and negative polarity
 Average value of zero
 Frequency
 Ball valve- a valve in which the flow of liquid is controlled by a rotating drilled ball that fits tightly against
a resilient (flexible) seat in the valve.
-a one-way valve that is opened and closed by pressure on a ball which fits into a cup-shaped
opening.
 Float valve- an automatic valve whose opening and closing are controlled by a float at the end of a lever.
 Types of valves
 Gate valve
 Check valve
 Globe valve
 Angle valve
 Butterfly valve- is a rotary valve in which a disk-shaped seating element is rotated 90degrees to
open or close the flow passage
 Foot valve- is a type of check valve that is typically installed at a pump or at the bottom of a pipe
line (hence the name).
 Safety valve- is a valve that acts as fail-safe. An example of safety valve is a pressure relief
valve(PRV), which automatically releases a substance from a boiled pressure vessel or the
system, when the pressure or temperature exceeds preset limits.
 Carpet- material would exhibit the highest sound absorption coefficient (SAC) value.
 Series circuit- a circuit type where components are electrically connected end to end
-a series circuit is made by connecting the end of one device to the beginning of another
 Parallel circuits- in parallel circuits the same terminals of both devices are connected together.
 Trap- a fitting or device designed and constructed to provide, when properly vented, a liquid seal which
prevents backflow and passage of foul air and gasses without materially affecting the flow of swage or
wastewater through it.
 Pipe fittings- also known as pipe connectors, attach one pipe to another in order to length the run or
change the flow direction in a plumbing system.
 Waste stack- a vertical which conveys only wastewater or liquid waste.
 Cables are conductors that are
 Larger that wires
  Stranded (no.6 AWG and larger)
 Soil pipe- any pipe which conveys the discharges of water closet, urinal or fixtures having similar
function, with or without the discharges from other fixtures to the building drain or building sewer.
 Cooper as a conductor has the proper/properties of being ductile & malleable,
 Ductile-able to be drawn out into a thin wire.
-able to be deformed without losing toughness; pliable, not brittle.
 Malleable-able to be hammered or passed permanently out of shape without breaking or cracking
 The over-all covering of underground feeder and branch circuit cables shall be fungus resistant &
corrosion resistant.
 Class B fire- a fire involving flammable liquid, as gasoline oil and grease, which must be extinguished by
excluding air and inhibiting the release of incombustible vapors.
-flammable & combustible liquids; gasoline, oil, grease, acetone.
Memory Tip: Can Boil
 Class A-soil combustible materials (not metals); wood, paper, cloth, trash, plastics.
Memory Tip: Leaves an Ash
 Class C- energized electrical.
Memory tip: Can carry a Current
 Class D- Combustible metals; potassium, sodium, aluminum, magnesium.
Memory Tip: used in producing Dynamite
 Class K- oil and fays used for cooking
Memory Tip: usually present in the Kitchen
 The rustling of leaves in breeze is said to be with the threshold of hearing.
 The sound travel in a vacuum is false.
 The velocity of sound is affected by temperature, kind of medium & material density.
 Temperature- sound travels faster in higher temperatures.
 Kind of medium- of the three phases of matter (gas, liquid, and solid). Sound waves travel the slowest
through gases. Faster through liquids and fastest through solids.
 Material density- Thus, sound will travel at a slower rate in the denser object.
 Mho as used in electrical systems calculation is defined as the reciprocal of ohm.
 The Siemens (symbolized S) is the standard International (ISI) unit of electrical conductance. The archaic
term for this unit is the mho (ohm spelled backward).
 Septic tank- a water tight receptacle which receives the discharged of the sanitary plumbing system or
part thereof, designed and constructed to retrain solids, digest organic matter through a period of
detention.
 Cesspool- a non-water tight lined excavation in the ground, which receives the discharge of a sanitary
drainage system or a part thereof, designed to retain the organic matter and solids discharging
therefrom.
 Privy- an outhouse or structure used for the deposition of excrement.
 Cistern- a waterproof receptacle for holding liquids, usually water. Cisterns are often built to catch and
store rainwater. Modern cisterns range in capacity from a few liters to thousands of cubic meters,
effectively forming covered reservoirs.
 Siamese connection- an eye connection used on fire lines so that two lines so that of hose may be
connected to hydrant or to the same nozzle.
 Parallel Circuit- circuit arrangement which are commonly used in building.
 Soporific effect- an effect brought about by a low-steady sound.