"S" Painting and Wallpapering Trade Definitions

Trade Definitions

Safety Valve – Pressure release valve preset to be released when pressure exceeds a safe operating limit.

Sag - Narrow (or wide curtain-like) downward movement of a paint or varnish film; may be caused by the application of too much coating, the collection of excess quantities of paint at irregularities in the surface (cracks, holes, etc.), or excessive material continuing to flow after the surrounding surface has set. Also referred to as runs or tears.

Sandblast – Blast cleaning using sand as an abrasive.

Sander – Machine for sanding wood; disc, belt, spindle; power driven.

Sand Finish - Rough finish plaster wall, or a paint that has been texturized with sand.

Sanding Sealer - Especially hard first coat that can seal and fill, but will not obscure, the grain of the wood. The surface is then sanded before subsequent coats are applied.

Saponification - A chemical decomposition of a paint’s binder by alkali and moisture from a substrate (e.g., new concrete or fresh plaster). Saponified paint may deteriorate, lose its adhesion, and become discolored.

Scale – Rust occurring in thin layers.

Scaling – Process of removing scale.

Scenic Pattern – Pattern that continues over several strips of wall covering. Often called a mural.

Scrubability - The ability of a coating to resist wearing away or changing its original appearance when rubbed with a brush, sponge, or cloth and an abrasive soap.

Sculptured Paper – Wall covering molded of solid (usually Synthetic) material to produce real texture and shadows.

Sealant - Often used as a synonym for “caulk.” The word “sealant” usually means a compound that has greater performance than a caulk, i.e.; it can accommodate movement in a joint or crack.

Sealer – A low viscosity (thin) liquid sometimes applied on wood, plaster, gypsum board, or masonry to prevent future coats from penetrating the substrate or previous coats from bleeding through.

Secondary Colors – Three colors on the color wheel made up of mixtures of two primary colors. Orange, green and purple or violet are secondary colors.

Self Cleaning - Certain exterior paints that are designed to chalk relatively quickly to maintain a white, clean appearance.

Selvage – Either edge of a roll of wall covering carrying no design and intended to protect the design surface as well as to give instruction for matching or other data.

Semi-gloss – A degree of gloss between flat and high gloss.

Semi-Transparent Stain - Stain that alters the natural color of the wood yet allows the grain and texture to show through. The term is generally applied to exterior products, but technically applies also to interior wiping stains used for trim, furniture and floors.

Semi-trimmed Wall Coverings – Wall coverings in which the selvages are partially severed by perforation or scoring by the manufacturer and may be easily detached by tapping the ends of the roll on the table or floor. Also refers to wall coverings fully trimmed on only one edge.

Settling – The dropping out of pigments and extenders from suspension, to the bottom of the container.

Set Time – Initial time for drying of paint where it is no longer able to flow.

Set Up – A film dried to firmness is said to be “set up”.

Shade – The result of adding black to a basic color.

Shadowing – The showing of a previous coat through the last coat.

Sheen - A moderately low degree of gloss; gloss with poor distinctness-of-image reflectance. Characteristic where a coating appears to be flat when viewed near to the perpendicular, but appears to be glossy when viewed from a low or grazing angle.

Shellac – Resinous material used a sealer or finish made from special resins dissolved in alcohol.

Shelf-life – Maximum interval in which a material may be stored and still be in usable condition.

Shiki Silk – Oriental shantung silk glued to a paper backing. Also refers to imitation product made of paper or vinyl.

Short Oil Varnish – A varnish with a low ratio of oil to resin, usually quick drying and brittle.

Shot Blasting – Blast cleaning using steel shot as the abrasive.

Sidewall – Main wall area to be covered.

Silane - A silicone-like substance that is added to caulks and sealants to improve their adhesion to glass and aluminum under wet conditions.

Silicone - Compound used in the manufacture of binders that is characterized by outstanding heat resistance, high water repellency, and chemical resistance. A key ingredient in some caulks and sealants, and in the formulation of many effective defoamers for latex paints.

Silicone Acrylic Sealant - Similar to an acrylic sealant, except it has a small amount of silane (hence, its name) added to it, which enhances adhesion to glass and aluminum under wet conditions.

Silicone Resins – A particular group of film formers. Often used in water repellent and high-temperature paints.

Single Color Scheme - Utilization of different values of a single color in a decorating scheme. Also called monochromatic.

Single Roll – Standard commercial length of wall covering containing 36 square feet of surface after trimming regardless of the width of the wall covering material. Usually put up in double or triple rolls, depending on width. Prices are usually quoted by the single roll.

Size – Material used to seal a surface and prevent absorption of finish materials.

Skin – A dry layer formed on the surface of paint in a container due to exposure to air.

Skinning – Formation of a solid on top of a liquid.

Soffit – Underside of a beam or structural part. In wall coverings, border and soffit are the same. See also Border.

Softwood - The group of trees (fir, pine, spruce, hemlock) characterized by its needles and being (for the most part) evergreen. The term does not refer to the hardness of the wood.

Solids - Non-volatile matter in the composition of a coating or a caulk, i.e. the ingredients in a coating that, after drying, constitute the dry film. Solids are composed mostly of pigment and binder.

Solids Volume – The percent of total volume devoted to pigments and other solid material.

Soluble - The ability of a material to be dissolved in a liquid. For example, sugar is soluble in water.

Solubility – Degree to which a substance may be dissolved.

Solution – A liquid in which substance is dissolved.

Solvency – Measure of ability to dissolve.

Solvent – A liquid in which a substance is dissolved.

Solvent Wash – Cleaning with a solvent.

Spackling Compound - A powder mixed with water or a ready-mix compound that is primarily used to fill large cracks in walls. It dries hard and can be sanded and painted, but does not tolerate much movement in the substrate.

Spar Varnish – A varnish usually used on exterior surfaces.

Spatter - Droplets of paint that spin or mist off the roller as paint is being applied.

Spatula – A knife-like tool with a flexible blade of regular shape and no sharp edges. It is used in working with colorants in mixing and matching, particularly when the colorant is in paste form.

Sponge Painting (sponging) - Interior painting technique in which natural sea sponges are used to apply or partially remove a “glaze coat” of paint.

Spot-Prime - To apply a primer to those areas where paint has been removed or stripped to the original surface.

Spray - Method of application in which the paint is broken up into a fine mist and directed to the surface under pressure. Specific types of spray equipment are: aerosol, airless, airless with air-assist, and high volume low pressure (HVLP).

Spread Rate - The volume of a coating that can cover a given area. The recommended spread rate is usually indicated on the paint can, e.g., 450 sq. ft./gallon (11 m 2 /l). Spread rate depends on application method and technique, porosity of the substrate, etc., as well as on the nature of the particular coating.

Stain – A transparent coating which colors the substrate, usually wood.

Stain Bleed Through - When tannin found in certain types of wood (such as cedar or redwood) migrates through the coating, causing discoloration. Also, discoloration from a contaminant on the substrate.

Stain Resistance - The ability of a coating to resist soiling.

Steam Clean – A cleaning process using live steam.

Stippling – A finish made by striking the finish with a brush before finish is dry.

Straightedge – Ruler or zinc strip used by the wall covering applicator to trim selvage.

Stenciling - A method of applying a design by brushing or sponging paint through a cutout overlay placed on the surface.

Strip – Length of wall covering cut to fit height of wall. In scenic patterns, a single section of the design.

Stripping - Removing old paint, varnish, etc., by using paint remover, sandpaper, heat gun, or scraping tools. Also, the removal of wallpaper.

Strippable Papers – Chemically treated stock tough enough to resist tearing. Special formulation permits a release of the wall material from the adhesive, making possible the removal of an entire strip from a wall without wetting.

Style – Generally good design. In the wall covering trade, a synonym for colorway.

Styrene-butadiene Resin – Synthetic rubber resin.

Substrate - Any surface to which a coating or sealant is applied.

Surface Preparation – All operations necessary to prepare a surface to receive a coating of paint.

Surfactant Leaching - Also called water-spotting and weeping. It is often a tan-colored, glossy residue that can form on the surface when exterior latex paint is applied under conditions that are cool and damp, that result in slow dry of the paint. May not readily wash off, but generally will weather off within a month’s time.

Synthetic – Produced by chemical synthesis rather than natural; artificial.