Door Glossary: Complete A–Z Guide to Door Terms & Terminology
The global door market is valued at over $180 billion (Grand View Research, 2024), with China manufacturing more than 195 million door sets annually. Whether you are a B2B buyer sourcing from Chinese factories, an architect specifying door hardware, or a contractor managing installation, this glossary defines every term you need to know — from structural components and material grades to fire ratings, certifications, and manufacturing terminology.
This reference compiles 754 verified terms from 23 industry sources, including WDMA, Andersen Windows, Schlage, Emtek, and TruDoor. Definitions are written for B2B procurement professionals and include China manufacturing context where relevant.
Glossary at a Glance
| Category | Terms | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 🚪 Door Type | 56 | Barn, Bifold, French, Pivot, Sliding, Glass, WPC, Fire Door, and more |
| 🔩 Door Part | 104 | Jamb, Stile, Rail, Sill, Astragal, Mullion, Threshold, and more |
| 🔧 Hardware | 82 | Hinges, Locks, Handles, Closers, Pivots, Mortise sets, and more |
| 🪵 Material | 44 | Solid Wood, MDF, HDF, Veneer, WPC, FSC-certified timber, and more |
| 🏗️ Construction | 15 | Solid core, Hollow core, Engineered wood, Finger-joint, and more |
| ✅ Certification | 5 | Fire rating, FSC, ISO 9001, CARB, CE marking |
| 🛠️ Installation | 21 | Pre-hung, Slab, Rough opening, Shimming, and more |
| 📋 Other / B2B | 427 | MOQ, OEM, ODM, Lead time, FOB, EXW, and trade terms |
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A–Z Door Terminology
#
12 ga., 14 ga., 16 ga, or 18 ga. 📋 : Abbreviation for the steel gauge of a frame and/or door.
161 Prep 🏗️ : 2-1/8″ Cutout (or hole) in a door for Bored/Cylindrical locksets.
28 degree latch 🔧 : A latch that requires less rotation on the handle to disengage the latch mechanism. Useful for people with ergonomic concerns, like users who suffer from arthritis.
86 Edge Prep 🏗️ : 8″ Cutout in the edge of a door for mortise lock.
A
Acclimatization 🛠️ : Doors should be stored in the installation environment for at least a few days (or longer, depending on conditions) to adjust to local humidity before hanging. Never store a door on bare concrete, as concrete can store moisture, which the door will absorb.
Active Door 📋 : The leaf of a pair of doors (double doors), that opens first and has the locking or latching device. The other door is called the inactive door and opens when flush bolts or surface bolts are released.
Active Door Set 🔩 : Handle set used on the active panel. This set will always have two cylinder holes in the backplates to accept a full cylinder.
Active Hardware 🔩 : Hardware used solely for the active panel. Includes latch and deadbolt and is handle activated.
Active Panel 🚪 : When a door is referred to as “active” it means it is the primary functioning door usually in a pair of French doors. This will be the door that opens first.
Air infiltration 📋 : Industry test that measures the amount of air leakage through a window or door (the lower the number the better).
Anchor 🔧 : A device used to attach a door frame to the surrounding structure or wall.
Anchor Hinge 📋 : A heavy duty hinge which mounts on the top corner of the door, L-shaped, routed into the stile and the top rail of the door.
APERTURE 📋 : The hole or opening in a door, where a pane of glass would be fitted. Often left empty so that the door can be glazed to suit the owner’s personal taste.
Applied Molding 📋 : Applied to the surface of a door with either nails or glue or both to form decorative patterns. Lynden Door usually uses Z-bead, a distinctive molding for this purpose and stocks this bead in Red Oak.
Apron 🛠️ : Decorative trim positioned directly underneath a window stool and installed flush against the wall.
Arch Top Door 🚪 : A door with an arched top rail and arched frame, similar to an eyebrow shape.
Architectural Grade 📋 : The highest grade of door made, bonded & sanded when particle board, stave wood or strand lumber cores are used. Comes with a lifetime warranty complete with re-hanging and re-finishing provisions. Lynden Door, Inc. designates these doors as LD series.
ARCHITRAVE 📋 : A decorative moulding that surrounds the door, and bridges the gap between the edge of the frame and the wall.
Argon Gas 🪵 : Colorless, odorless gas used in the air space of double pane Low-E glass to increase the insulating performance.
Art glass 📋 : Decorative glass in a variety of colors/shapes/patterns used to accent a window or door.
Astragal 📋 : A small molding, plain or ornamented and usually flat or T-shaped, attached to the meeting edge of one leaf to bridge the gap between, hiding the meeting joint of a pair of doors. The edge without the astragal must be closed first to allow proper closure. They also can provide a weather seal, minimizing the passage of light or sound between doors or retarding the passage of smoke or flame during a fire.
Asymmetrical Panel Doors 🚪 : Geometric patterns with subtle variations.
B
Back-Cut Veneer 📋 : A thin layer of wood cut as in half round-cutting except that the bark side faces in toward the lathe center. These veneers are characterized by an enhanced striped figure and the inclusion of sapwood along the edges.
Backplate 🔧 : Decorative plate which mounts to the face of the door with holes to accept the handle and cylinder.
Backplate Screw 🔩 : Screws that attach one backplate to the other. The screws enter through screw holes on the interior plate, travel through the door and attach directly to the exterior plate. Available in a variety of lengths to accommodate different door thicknesses.
Backset 📋 : Distance from the surface of the lock faceplate to the center of the handle hole. This distance establishes where the handle will be mounted to the face of the door. The HLS multipoint system uses a 35mm (1 3/8″) or a standard 45mm (1 3/4″) backset as well as 60mm (2.36) and 70mm (2.76) backset.
Backset or B.S. (Lock) 🔧 : The distance from the edge of a door to the center of the hole drilled for a lockset or deadbolt.
Balance Match 📋 : Each piece of veneer in a face is of uniform width before trimming. This gives a symmetrical appearance but reduces veneer yield.
Ball Bearing Hinge 📋 : A hinge type that has ball bearings between the hinge knuckles to reduce friction and increase longevity.
Banana 📋 : Occasionally, while being trimmed, a door moves in the sizer. If it moves from one side to another and back it will take a "Banana" shape. This is easiest to see by putting two doors together and checking to see if they meet all along the edge, then flip one door over and check again. If they are banana'ed they will appear tight one way and will have a convex gap between them the other way. Measured corner to corner these doors appear to be square.
Barber Pole 📋 : An effect in the book matching of veneers resulting from tight and loose sides of veneers having different light reflections when finished. This is due to the different finish absorption rates on the differing sides.
Bark Pocket 📋 : A small area of bark around which normal wood has grown. Bark pockets appear as dark streaks on radial surfaces and as rounded areas on tangential surfaces.
Barrel 📋 : A cylindrical portion of the cylinder that rotates when the correct key is used.
Base Anchor 🏗️ : A piece of metal attached to base of a door frame, to secure frame to the floor.
Batten 🪵 : A narrow strip of wood.
Batten Doors 🚪 : Composed of vertical wooden planks secured with horizontal braces, traditionally used in barns and cottages. Modern versions may have a more refined appearance. One of the oldest of historic door designs.
BEADING 📋 : The mouldings that surround a panel in a solid door, or a pane of glass in a door.
BESPOKE DOORS 📋 : Doors that are tailor-made to meet individual requirements. Choosing an alternative to the stock doors from the brochure allows clients to request special sizes and alternative designs to match their specific needs.
Bevel 📋 : The edge of the door is trimmed at an angle other than 90°. The 3° bevel is the most common. This reduces the chance of the door rubbing against the jamb since the width across the face of the wide side of the door is the same measurement as the diagonal from the edge of the wide side to the opposite edge of the narrow side of the door. Most doors now have bevels on both edges of the door creating a wide & narrow side, not a parallelogram. This moves the pivot point away from the jambs face.
Beveled Edge 📋 : The edge of a door which is not at a 90 degree angle to the face of the door (standard bevel is 1/8 inch in 2 inches)—narrow side of door is side in contact with stop of frame when door is closed.
Bezel 🔩 : Used on casement and awning windows, the lock bezel is the component that covers up the locking mechanism and helps trim out the window.
BI-FOLD 📋 : These are doors that fold together as they open to save space, using a tracking system that enables the door to slide into position. Bi-folds are particularly suitable for smaller spaces and can also be installed as a pair to create a room divider.
Bifold Door 📋 : Usually used for a closet closure, this is actually two halves of a door which has been split lengthwise and then hinged and hung from a track with appropriate hardware to allow it to fold together when open and fold flat to close the opening.
Blending 📋 : Color change that is detectable at a distance of 6 ft. to 8 ft. (1.8 m to 2.4 m) but which does not detract from the overall appearance of the door.
Block Sanding 📋 : Sanding of doors using sandpaper wrapped over large flat wooden blocks to remove rub marks and small scratches to give an even face prior to finishing.
Blocking 📋 : Special pieces of material added into the core of a door for specific functions. Examples are mineral blocking for hardware in fire doors & robe hook blocks in hollow core residential doors.
Bolection Moulding 🔩 : Mouldings, like panel moulding, used in lieu of a sticking profile that sit proud of the face of the door, adding depth and detail.
Bolt 📋 : The metal piece that extends and secures a door.
Bonded & Sanded 📋 : The stiles and rails are bonded to the core, prior to the whole assembly being sanded to uniform thickness, before the application of the faces.
Bonded Core 📋 : Stiles and rails are securely glued to the core prior to application of crossbanding, door skins, veneers or laminate.
Book Match 📋 : The most common veneer match. Every second piece of veneer is turned over so adjacent pieces are opened like the pages of a book. The grains match and create a mirrored image at the joint line. Used in Rotary, Plain Sliced, Quarter Sliced and Rift Cut veneers.
Book Size 📋 : The full height and width of a door prior to pre-fitting.
Bore 📋 : refers to a hole cut in either a door or jamb to allow for hardware. The face bore is the bore that goes through the stile face of the door and is typically 2-1/8″ in diameter. The latch bore is the bore on the edge of the door for the latch and deadbolt and is typically a 1″ diameter hole. The jamb is also bored to allow for the latch and deadbolt to engage and keep the door closed and secure.
Bore Hole 📋 : A bore hole is drilled into a door to accommodate a lockset.
Borrowed Lite 🔩 : A four-sided steel frame, which is glazed (has glass) but does not include a door. Often referred to as a steel window frame.
Bottom Rail 📋 : The lower structural member of a window or door sash.
Bottom Seal 📋 : A material or device which provides a weather tight seal between the bottom of the door leaf(s) and the threshold.
Brass 🪵 : An alloy of copper and zinc, brass is the mark of a high quality product in a market where the use of cheaper alloys is becoming more and more common. EMTEK® brass products might look the same as a lesser quality product on the outside, but the finish, strength and lifetime of ours will be superior.
Brick Mold 🔩 : Exterior trim that covers the seam between the jamb and wall.
Brick Molding 📋 : A molding used on an exterior door, typically applied to prehung units, put on the outside of the frame as a stop, or to hide brick, siding, stucco, or concrete.
Brick Mould 📋 : Brick mould is an exterior casing trim designed to conceal the gap between a window or door frame and the exterior wall surface. Brick mould is thicker than most interior casing trim profiles and provides a buffer between the window/door and the brick or other cladding surrounding it. Brick mould can be made of wood, aluminum, PVC, fiberglass, or composite materials and is the part of the door that a screen door or storm door is attached to.
Bronze 🪵 : Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper that is commonly used in decorative metal work. It was particularly significant in antiquity, giving its name to the Bronze Age.
Buck 🔩 : The wood or metal door subframe. It is installed in a wall to accommodate the finished frame.
Bull Nose 📋 : A rounded corner or edge used in positions where sharp arises might be damaged. Most stops on door frames are bull nosed.
Bullet Resistant 📋 : Doors which resist penetration by bullets. Door cores contain some material (i.e. Fiberglass) which is of varying thickness to obtain ratings for resistance to bullets fired from small arms up to high power rifles.
Butt Hinge 📋 : A butt hinge is a hinge that attaches to the abutting surfaces of a door jamb and the door or window.
Butt Joint 📋 : A square joint between two (2) members at right angles to each other; the contact surface of the outstanding member is cut square and fits flush to the surface of the other member.
Butterfly Hinge 📋 : A special hinge which has one side fit inside another so its thickness is reduced. This hinge is used by Lynden Door to assemble bifolds. It reduces gap between the panels without requiring mortising. Except for the hinge knuckles, the hinge does not show from either side when the bifold is closed, making it ideal for room dividers.
By-Pass Door 📋 : Usually used for a closet closure, this is actually two doors which are hung from a track so that each slides back and forth, one in front of the other so you can access either side of the closet by sliding the door in front of that side to the other side.
C
Cam 📋 : A flat piece fastened to the back of a mortise cylinder plug or mortise cylinder thumbturn. When rotated, it engages the lock mechanism and either locks or unlocks.
Caming 🔩 : Metal parts of stained glass design. Options include: brass, patina, Zinc, and nickel.
Carved Doors 🚪 : Elaborately carved designs for a grand and ornate entrance. Historically seen in European architecture, featuring intricate designs carved into the wood. These doors were often symbolic of wealth and craftsmanship.
Case 📋 : The housing of a lock.
Cased Opening 📋 : A steel frame with no stops.
Casement 🔩 : A window attached to its frame by hinges on the side.
Casement Window 📋 : A side-hinged window that swings outward or inward like a door. Offers excellent ventilation and tight sealing when closed. Often sealed with compression gaskets for strong air and water performance.
Casing 📋 : A wooden trim around doors that covers the seam between the jamb and the wall. It has a strong impact on the overall style, appearance, and proportion of door opening as well as the overall style of your home's interior. On the practical side, it conceals the gap between the door frame (called a jamb) and the rough opening and helps to hold the frame in the opening. Casing can be relatively plain such as square-edge design or detailed.
Caulking 📋 : Filler used in sealing openings, which is used to hold glass tight inside the beading in a door lite.
Cedar 🪵 : Naturally resistant to rot and insects but softer than hardwoods.
Center Match 📋 : Each face has an even number of pieces of veneer of uniform width to give a symmetrical appearance with a joint in the center of the panel. This match reduces veneer yield.
Center Stile 📋 : A vertical element is used within a door to provide support.
Centre to Centre 📋 : This can be referred to as CTC. Centre to Centre is the measured in millimeters and is the measurement between two fixing points and often applies to Pull Handles. It is useful when you need to match pre-drilled holes.
Ceramic Glass 📋 : Special glass which is more resistant to breaking than standard glass under high heat conditions. It can be used for larger openings than standard wire glass in fire doors. It is available in various thicknesses and types for different size and rating requirements. It is usually specified by brand name such as FireLite, Pyrostop or SuperLite.
CERTIFIRE 📋 : An independent, audited process to ensure that Fire Doors are manufactured to specific standards.
CF Mechanism 📋 : The Concealed Fastener Mechanism is an upgrade option that provides a cleaner look, with no visible screws on the interior rosette of passage and privacy knobs or levers. All CF Mechanism upgrades include a dust box for the jamb. Handing is not required on levers with CF, which also come with a 28 degree latch (vs the standard 45 degree latch).
Chalk 📋 : Veneer mills use chalk of various colors to highlight defects for repair or to give identification. Chalk is used because it is not absorbed into the wood and can therefore be sanded off completely.
Change Key 📋 : A key on the lowest level of a master keying system. Change keys are also referred to as day keys. Typically change keys are issued to personnel that require access to one or two areas in a facility.
Chatter 📋 : Lines appearing across the face at right angles to the grain giving the appearance of corrugations resulting from bad setting of sanding heads. This is easily seen in materials which have been planed but not sanded.
Check Rail 🔩 : Located on double-hung windows where the bottom and top sash meet, and the lock and keeper are mounted. Synonyms: meeting rail.
Clavos 📋 : Decorative nails attached to a door that is meant to be seen.
Closer 📋 : A device designed to automatically close the door after it has been opened. It is required for all fire doors and is either surface applied or concealed.
Closer Reinforcement 🔧 : A reinforcing piece inside of a door or frame. Provides additional strength for attachment of door closers.
Coil Stock 🪵 : Roll aluminum bent into shape to form a transition piece between the unit exterior and siding or trim.
Combination Anchor 🔧 : A device for anchoring a frame to wall constructed with wood or metal stud.
Combination Unit 🔩 : Storm window and insect screen contained in a single frame.
Compatible Edge 📋 : When relating door stiles to face appearance the edge may not be the same species as the face, but it will be similar in overall color, grain, character, and contrast as the face. Abbreviated as CVE (compatible vertical edge) or CES (compatible edge stile).
Composite 🪵 : A solid material composed of two (2) or more substances, each having different physical characteristics, in which each substance retains its identity while contributing desirable properties to the whole.
Composite Blocking 📋 : Special fire retardant material used for core reinforcement in mineral core doors for the installation or application of special hardware. Includes lock or flush-bolt blocks, wide stiles or additional rails.
Composite Doors 🚪 : Constructed using a variety of complimentary materials to create a strong durable material that is built upon its core and used with an outer skin.
Condensation 📋 : Water that collects as droplets on the glass, sash, or door panel. Under certain conditions, it can be both interior and exterior (typically cold surfaces when exposed to humidity).
Condensation Resistance (CR) ✅ : Measures how well a window resists the formation of interior condensation. CR is expressed as a number between 1 and 100. The higher the number, the more resistant to condensation formation. CR ratings are determined under specific laboratory conditions. Actual condensation performance is a function of temperature, humidity, air movement, and other uncontrolled, site-specific factors. For more information, see NFRC 501-2010 User Guide to the Procedure for Determining Fenestration Product Condensation Resistance Rating Values.
Construction Cylinder 🔧 : The Construction cylinder allows the builder to use a ‘construction key’ during the building phase. After the homeowner’s keys are used, the lock’s internal pinning arrangement alters to prevent any future use of the construction keys.
Construction Key 🔧 : This is a common term used if you’ve engaged a builder to carry out work for you. There is only one key cut. This key allows the builder to gain entry during the building phase.
Continuous Hinge 📋 : A hinge which runs the full length of the door. Also called a piano hinge, these are typically surface mounted to the door and frame.
Continuous Match 📋 : Each piece of veneer runs from the top of a transom through to the bottom of a door giving a match at the joint. Provides an optimum utilization of veneer but is limited to the available veneer length.
Controlled Environment 🛠️ : Maintaining indoor humidity between 35-55% can minimize extreme movement.
Coordinator 🔧 : A device used on a pair of doors to ensure that the inactive leaf is permitted to close before the active leaf. Necessary when an overlapping astragal is present and exit devices, automatic or self-latching bolts are used with closers on both door leaves.
Coped Joint 🏗️ : The intersection of two pieces of molding, where one is cut to fit the contour of the other.
Core 📋 : The innermost layer or center section in component construction of the door.
CORE CONSTRUCTION 📋 : This refers to how a door is constructed on the inside.
Core, Fire Resistant 📋 : A door core material meeting fire listing requirements for fire protection of 20 minutes or greater.
Cornice 🛠️ : An ornamental molding at the top of the window above the exterior trim.
Cottage Window 🔩 : Double-hung window with a shorter upper sash than the bottom sash.
Cross Bar 📋 : An irregularity of grain resembling a dip in the grain running at right angles, or nearly so, to the length of the veneer.
Cross-Banding 📋 : The center ply in a three ply plywood face or the core between the core and the face in a 5 ply construction door.
Custom Door 🚪 : A door that does not fall into a standard category or style, designed specifically for a client or home owner. Every door made by Vintage Doors is considered custom to a certain degree, since each door is designed and built-to-order to meet the specifications of a particular home or building.
Cutout (Door) 🔧 : A piercing for hardware, lite, louvers, and/or accessories.
Cylinder 📋 : The cylindrical shaped mechanism housed within door locks that contains the tumbler and keyway, into which a key is inserted to operate the lock.
Cylinder Body 📋 : The portion of a cylinder that surrounds the plug and contains the tumbler mechanism.
Cylinder Guard 📋 : Material that surrounds the otherwise exposed portion of a cylinder to protect the cylinder from wrenching, cutting, pulling, or prying.
Cylinder Housing 📋 : The portion of a lock that surrounds and retains the cylinder body. It can be a knob, part of the lock case or other anchoring means.
Cylinder Lockset 📋 : The standard lockset in a door. Also called a 161 prep. This may or may not have a keylock on one side, depending on the use.
Cylinder Plug 📋 : A tubular portion of the cylinder which rotates within the cylinder body when the correct key is inserted into it and turned.
Cylinder Screw 🔧 : Screw used to tighten cylinder into place. The screw enters through the faceplate and drive rail on the edge of the door and tightens into a threaded hole in the side of the cylinder.
Cylindrical Lock 📋 : A lock type that utilizes only the bore hole to be installed.
Cylindrical Lock Prep (161 Prep) 🔧 : Cutout (or hole) in a door for Bored/Cylindrical locksets.
D
DCDB 📋 : Abbreviation for “Door Cut Down Bottom” – Cut door undercut.
Deadbolt 📋 : Similar to a latch, a deadbolt is a shaft that protrudes from the edge of the door panel and into the door frame securing the panel in place. Residential interior doors are not equipped with deadbolts, and not all exterior doors have them either. Deadbolts are considered an additional form of security and are most often set apart from the handle assembly, which means that a door with a deadbolt needs an additional bore hole. Multi-point locking hardware systems provide even more protection than a latch and deadbolt combination, and new home automation systems are available.
Deadbolt Latch 🔧 : A non-spring loaded locking mechanism that can only be disengaged by rotating the lock cylinder via key or thumb turn.
Decorative Drip Cap 🔩 : An ornamental trim piece positioned at the top of the window above the exterior trim that directs water away from the top of the window.
Deep Bottom rail 🔩 : A door that has a wider or deeper bottom rail. This design is often seen in traditional-style doors and is chosen for its aesthetic appeal.
Dentil Shelf 📋 : A shelf added onto the exterior of a door, typically below a quarter lite and part of the craftsman style of doors.
Direct Glazed or Direct Set 🛠️ : Glass is directly glazed into the frame or stationary unit. Fillet bead or sealant may be located on the exterior edge of the glass.
Direct Set 📋 : A type of construction for sidelites or transoms that has the glass directly mounted into the frame.
Discolorations 📋 : Stains in wood substances. Some common veneer stains are sap stains, blue stains and those resulting from the chemical action of the glue on the wood.
Distressed Panel Doors 🚪 : Classic panels with an aged, reclaimed look.
Distressing & Aging Techniques 📋 : Hand-scraping or wire-brushing for a rustic look.
Distressing wood 📋 : A texturing technique that makes the wood look old or worn.
Door Closer 🔧 : After a door has been opened, this device automatically closes the door in a controlled manner to prevent it from slamming or to ensure latching.
Door Frame 📋 : Side jambs, head jambs, and mulls are the parts that make up the frame. Residential door frames are most often made of wood but can also be made of aluminum, fiberglass, or a composite material. Door frames can be purchased primed (ready to paint) or ordered with a factory finish in a variety of colors.
Door Jamb Versus Door Frame 📋 : A door jamb is an individual section of a door frame. Two side jambs make up the vertical components of the door frame and the head jamb is the top horizontal component. Together, the jambs (along with mullion) comprise the door frame.
Door Lite(s) 📋 : The glass panel(s), or glass window(s) that are mounted inside a door.
DOOR PAIRS 📋 : Two symmetrical matching doors installed adjacent to each other and modelled to form a pair of doors, creating double the size of opening of an individual door.
Door Prep 🏗️ : The dimensions that a door must be bored or mortised in order for a handle set to be installed.
Door Preparation 📋 : The cut-outs or holes made to the door for the lock being installed.
Door Pull 📋 : A device applied to the face of a door which when grasped permits the user to pull a door open.
Door Shoe 📋 : A form of weatherstripping attached to the bottom of a door that prevents infiltration beneath the door.
Door Size 🚪 : The exact width and height measurements of a door.
Door slab 📋 : a door that has no hinge or lock prep; in other words, it is not “prehung” in a jamb.
Door Stop 📋 : Limits the door's opening swing. It is part of the frame and the door rests on it when closed.
Door Sweep 📋 : The weatherstripping installed on the bottom of a door panel, a door sweep creates a weather resistant barrier between a door panel and sill.
Door Swing 📋 : Door swing is determined by facing the door and opening it towards you (left hand swing shown). See PREHANGsection for additional information.
Door System 📋 : An assembly including the frame, door leaf(s), sidelite(s), weatherstrip, threshold, and hinges, locks and other hardware, which, when installed, forms a barrier to the elements and to passage in and out of a building.
Door Unit 📋 : A door with a jamb, hinges, and is bored for door hardware. Exterior door units also include casing, brick molding, astragal, and weather strips and are pre-hung.
Door Width 🏗️ : In construction terms, these numbers translate to feet/inches. So, a 2/6 door is 2 feet 6 inches or 30″. This is a reflection of the opening, from jamb to jamb, that the door is going to be hung in, not the door size itself.
Door, Louver 📋 : A door assembly of stiles and rails where the interior is filled with slat or chevron louvers.
Double Acting 📋 : A door which is installed with special hinges so that it can swing both ways. These are sometimes small and called café doors. Full size doors often have the outer edge radiused so it does not rub in the jamb when swinging. These doors are often used in restaurants between the kitchen and the dining areas, allowing the staff to push through the doors from either side.
Double Acting Door 📋 : Door which is hinged so that it can be opened both inward and outward.
Double Cylinder 🔧 : A locking cylinder barrel that is controlled by a key on both the internal and external side of the door. Commonly found in entrance sets or deadbolts on external doors.
Double cylinder deadbolt 📋 : Deadbolt that is operated with a key from both the outside and inside of the home.
Double Doors 📋 : A pair of doors that meet in the middle of the door frame when closed.
Double Egress 📋 : This is a type of a door pair where both doors have the same swing. The normal hanging method enables a person walking on the right side of the hallway to push the door open, regardless of which direction they are going.
Double Rebate Composite Door 🚪 : Double rebated composite doors feature two grooves and two weather seals for extra insulation, security, and triple glazed options.
Douglas Fir 🪵 : Straight-grained with good weatherability when properly sealed, it’s not very dense and prone to dents.
Dovetail 🏗️ : A kind of joint in which one piece is splayed like a dove’s tail and fits into another shape like a jigsaw piece.
Dowel joint 📋 : A corner joint created by precisely boring matching holes into a door rail and style and joining them together with a dowel pin.
Drip bar 🔩 : A strip at the bottom of your door that deflects rainwater.
Drip cap 📋 : A one (1) piece aluminum or vinyl cover installed above windows/doors to direct water away from the top of the unit.
Drip groove 📋 : A groove cut or moulded in the underside of a door or window sill to prevent rainwater running back to the wall.
Drive In Latch 🔧 : A drive-in latch fits into a 1” round hole on the edge of the door and contains no face plate. It does not require any special preparation or mortising.
Drive Rail 🔧 : The vertical moving mechanism of multipoint hardware under the faceplate. The drive rail carries the motion from the gear to the multipoints to activate them. This can be achieved through a single part or through multiple parts hooked together such as extensions and corner drives.
Dry-Wall Return 🏗️ : A type of construction in which the windows have drywall installed from the interior wall surface to the window unit. Another method of trimming windows is to have wood return from the window to the wall surface. With extension jambs, you need window casing to frame the inside of the window. With drywall returns, you have a corner bead drywall corner and no window casing.
Drywall Frame 🔩 : A three piece door frame, installed after a wall has been erected.
Dummy 📋 : A face-fixed lever or knob that matches your passage and privacy sets, for use on a cupboard or wardrobe door. Usually sold as singles not pairs and does not come with a latch. When supplying a dummy set for a right door you may need to check the required handing.
Dummy Function 🚪 : Dummy sets have no latch and require no bore hole. They are surface mounted to the door so you can install a dummy set wherever you choose. They can be secured to the rosette and to the door with a supplied Allen wrench.
Dummy Trim 📋 : Trim only, without lock. Typically used on the inactive door in a pair of doors or on closet doors with roller latches.
Dunnage 📋 : Material, such as 2" x 4" ‘s or 1" x 6" ‘s, used in the packaging of doors to prevent direct contact with other surfaces which could mar or damage the door.
Dust Box 📋 : The part of a box strike that encloses the opening thus concealing the jamb.
Dutch Door 📋 : Originating in the Netherlands during the early 1600s, this unique design features top and bottom halves that operate independently. The bottom can be closed for some privacy, while the top is left open for fresh air and neighborly chats. Or, when locked together, the two sections can work as a standard door. Dutch doors were first used on front entryways and were later placed at secondary doorways to the kitchen or scullery. These doors also provided ventilation to barns and stables. Dutch doors lend a country charm to rear entrances and outbuildings such as potting sheds.
Dutch Doors 🚪 : A historical door type divided horizontally, allowing the top half to open independently from the bottom half.
E
Ease 📋 : Slightly shaving or rounding the longitudinal and horizontal edges of the door skins on a door to remove the sharp corner and prevent the face being chipped due to something being rubbed against the door edge.
Edge 🔩 : The sides of the door that join to the frame.
Edge Band 📋 : A veneer or laminate strip along the outside edges of the two stiles and/or the top and bottom rails, usually to match the face of the door.
Edge Grain 📋 : Wood that has been cut so that the wide surfaces are approximately at right angles to the annual growth rings. Lumber is considered edge grain when the rings form an angle of 45o to 90o with the wide surface of the piece.
Edge Joint 📋 : A joint between two pieces of wood glued edge to edge in the direction of the grain. Most hardwood doorskin veneers are now made this way.
Electric Operator 🔧 : A motorized device that remotely operates an awning window.
Electric Strike 📋 : A special strike in a jamb where part of the strike mechanism, on receiving an electric signal, opens to allow the door to open, even though the lock is still closed.
Electronic Locksets 🔧 : A lockset using a keypad input and a user code to engage or disengage the latch bolt.
End Match 📋 : Paired pieces of veneer or door faces are placed end to end to give a mirror image, thus giving the impression of a continuous match joint.
ENERGY STAR® ✅ : A government-backed program to help consumers identify energy-efficient products. See.
Engage 🔧 : A term used to describe the activating of the multipoint hardware. When the multipoints have been activated into position, the system is said to be engaged.
Engineered or Laminated Solid Wood 🪵 : Provides stability while maintaining the aesthetic of solid wood.
Engineered wood 🪵 : This is layers of hardwood compressed together to create products that look like wood, but designed to be more durable.
Equal Lite 🔩 : Window or door with equally spaced grille bars.
Escutcheon 📋 : Escutcheons are ornamental plates that can be found surrounding handles, thumb turns and key cylinders. They’re designed to protect the surface of the door panels from nicks and scratches.
Escutcheon plate 📋 : Decorative door handle plate that conceals the locking mechanism.
Eurogroove 🔧 : Routed groove in the edge of the door, usually centered, but may be offset to one side in which the drive rail and faceplate of the multipoint hardware are mounted.
Existing Wall Anchor (EWA or EOA) 🏗️ : An expansion bolt sleeve anchor, used to anchor a frame in an existing block wall. A reinforcement bracket and a punch-out or a punch & dimple prep through the stop of the frame is required for the sleeve anchor to go through. EOA anchors are also used for exterior wood stud walls (new and existing), where the frame butts the wall.
Exit Device 📋 : A door locking or latching mechanism which is designed to be operable in the direction of egress travel in an emergency. The locking or latching mechanism releases through pressure on a touch/push “panic” bar. If tested and approved, exit hardware can bear a fire rating label certifying its suitability for use on fire-rated emergency doors. Such hardware may be one of the following: Mortise Type: having the lock mechanism mortised into the edge of the door or concealed within the door. Rim Type: having the lock mechanism mounted on the interior face of the door. Vertical Rod Type: surface or concealed, having the latches in or on the top and/or bottom of the door and activated by the cross bar through a rod linkage extending vertically on or in the lock stile of the door.
Expansion Gaps 🛠️ : Allowing for wood movement in varying humidity conditions. Houses will often settle and doors may mysteriously stop working. Unlike composite doors, however, solid wood doors can be trimmed slightly to make them fit without compromising the beauty or integrity of the door.
Extension 🔧 : Sections of operating drive rail that can be attached to the gear to reach the needed height of a door.
Extension jamb 📋 : Wood component fastened to the interior of the window/door that extends the window frame out to the wall depth.
Exterior trim 📋 : A decorative trim positioned around the exterior perimeter of a window or door.
Exterior Trim Strip (Angled) 🛠️ : A color-matched component that covers the vertical mullion on a bay or bow window.
Exterior Trim Strip (Flat) 🛠️ : A color-matched component that covers a vertical or horizontal join between windows or patio doors that is installed on the same plane as the wall.
Exterior Trim Strip Face 🛠️ : The finished surface(s) of the exterior trim strip that faces the exterior. An angled exterior trim strip will have dual faces, while a flat exterior trim strip will have a single face.
Exterior Trim Strip Holding Leg 🛠️ : Components of the exterior trim strip that are perpendicular to the face and generally fit into a groove in the mullion to hold the exterior trim strip in place.
Extruded Aluminum 🪵 : Aluminum that is shaped by running it through a dye, typically more durable than roll-formed material.
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Face 🔩 : The front and back surfaces of the door.
Face (Frame) 🔩 : Exposed part of frame when viewed perpendicular to face of the door also referred to as trim.
Face Veneer 📋 : The outermost exposed wood veneer surface of a veneered wood door.
Faceplate 🔧 : Flat piece of metal that covers the drive rail and multipoints along the entire length of the door sitting flush with the edge.
Fanlights 📋 : A fanlight is a window with glazing bars that is placed over another window or doorway, that opens like a fan, and is sometimes hinged to a transom.
FCDB 📋 : Abbreviation for “Frame Cut Down Bottom” – Cut jamb legs down in height.
FD30 FIRE DOORS 📋 : Doors that have been tested by an accredited test house to ensure that they are able to resist the passage of fire for more than 30 minutes. Likewise, FD60 fire doors will last at least 60 minutes.
Feather Grain 📋 : A slight separation of spring wood and summer wood fibres on veneer surfaces.
Feet 📋 : The term used to describe small blocks of wood or metal "buttons" placed on the bottom corner of each door, to allow the door to be stood upright without having the finished edges of the door contacting the floor.
Fenestration 📋 : Refers to an opening in a structure such as windows, doors, or skylights; it can also refer to the placement of windows and doors in a building.
Fiberglass Door 📋 : An alternative to wooden doors, composed of a molded fiberglass skin filled with insulating foam.
Fiddleback 📋 : A type of figure with a ripple look. It is an undulating appearance of a smooth surface veneer. It has a fine wavy grain common in sycamore and maple. It is often used for the backs of violins.
Figure 📋 : The pattern produced in a wood surface by annual growth rings, rays, knots, deviations from natural grain, such as interlocked and wavy grain, and irregular coloration.
Filler Plate 📋 : A blank plate used to fill mortised cutouts.
Fillet Bead 🔩 : Where the glass sits directly into the frame. This bead of sealant is located on the exterior glass edge and is for cosmetic and water-repelling purposes.
Film 🪵 : Removable, semi-transparent material that adheres to and helps protect the glass during construction.
Finelight™ Grilles 🔩 : Grille bars that are placed between the glass panes; allow for easy cleaning. Synonyms: Grilles-Between-the-Glass (GBG).
Finger Joint 📋 : A series of interlocking fingers precision cut on the ends of two pieces of wood which mesh together and are held rigidly in place with adhesive.
FINISH 📋 : The surface of the door. Doors can be supplied finished, (usually with clear lacquer), or unfinished/natural (where you are able to apply your own finish).
Finished Opening 🪵 : To determine the size of your door slab you can measure the current opening into which the door will go from existing wood frame to wood frame.
Fire Lite 🔩 : A type of ceramic glass used in fire rated doors and frames.
Fire Rated Door or Frame 🔩 : The ability of a door or frames to provide an effective barrier against the passage of flames, smoke and toxic gases and / or to reduce the transmittance of radiated heat.
Fire Rating 📋 : Doors which have been specially manufactured in such a manner that when installed in an assembly and tested, will pass ASTM E-152 "Fire Test of Door Assemblies" and can be rated as resisting fire for 20, 45, 60 or 90 min.
Fixed 📋 : Whether describing a door or a window, then the word fixed refers to it being non operable.
Fixed Dummy 🔩 : Handle set is usually “fixed” in place. Handles serve only as pull handles and do not operate. Usually used on inactive panels where a mortise flush bolt has been used.
Fixed panel 🔩 : The detachable part of the patio door that is held in place on the sill.
Fixed Window 📋 : A non-opening glazed unit used purely for light and view. Offers excellent air and water performance because there are no moving seals. Often combined with operable windows or doors in modern designs.
Flake 📋 : Portion of a ray as it appears on the quartered surface. Flake can be a dominant feature in oak. Also called Fleck.
Flanker 🚪 : Window or patio door positioned at the side of another window or patio door.
Flashing 🛠️ : Water-resistant material that directs water to a drainage plane or the exterior surface of a building.
Flat Astragal 🔩 : An astragal that is flatly applied to the inactive door. An astragal is used to seal the seam between a pair of doors.
FLAT PANEL 📋 : This is a panel on a door that is not raised, bevelled or profiled.
Flat Panel Doors with Vertical Grain 🚪 : Subtle texture with a minimalist approach.
Flexiframe® Windows 🔩 : Andersen brand name for fixed geometric window shapes (octagon, pentagon, trapezoid).
Flush Bolt 📋 : A piece of hardware routed into the edge of one leaf of a door pair which, when activated, locks the door into the jamb header or into the floor, thus making the door "inactive". Flush bolts are often used in upper and lower pairs, giving "two point latching". The active door then usually locks into the inactive door. The pair has "three point latching.".
Flush casement 🔩 : A window or door where the sash and frame are flush.
Flush Cut 📋 : Straight cut, not rabbeted, having a surface level with an adjacent surface.
Flush Door 📋 : A door that is designed to appear flat and does not contain any panels.
Flush Doors 🚪 : Flat, smooth door without panels that offer a modern and understated look. Historically uncommon, these are now widely used in modern architecture for minimalistic looks. Their construction generally requires the use of manmade materials, and, while they can be made with solid wood, they are rarely ever 100% solid wood (or shouldn’t be, at any rate).
Flush Doors with Woodgrain Emphasis 🚪 : Simple with a focus on warm, natural materials.
Flush Pull 📋 : A handle or grip designed for flush attachment to a door to facilitate opening and closing.
Flutes 📋 : Hollows or grooves cut longitudinally into a door for decorative purpose.
Folding door 📋 : Door unit with multiple hinging panels that can be folded together to create an large, unobstructed opening.
Foot lock 📋 : An auxiliary lock used on gliding doors to secure the operating panel to the sill.
FRAME 📋 : The timber components (e.g. linings & casings) that are fitted within a wall opening to which a door is fixed.
French Casement Window 🔩 : Unit with two (2) venting sash that open outward to provide a large center opening with no center post.
French Door 📋 : A door with the majority of its center cut away and replaced with glass. In a stile and rail door it is normally composed of several small lites. In a flush door it usually has a single, almost full door size piece of glass.
French Doors 🚪 : Typically double doors, but the term can be used to describe a single door as well, with multiple glass panes, divided by muntins, used to create open visual spaces between rooms.
Frieze Rail 📋 : A horizontal rail located within a door below the top rail.
Frosted Glass Panel Doors 🚪 : Offers a blend of modern and industrial aesthetics.
Full Divided Light (FDL) 🔩 : Grille intended to replicate the look of a true divided light unit; it consists of an interior grille, an exterior grille, and a spacer between the glass panes.
Full Frame 🔩 : Frame intended for installation direct to the rough opening, the opposite of an insert window.
Full Glass Door (Design FG) 🚪 : A design of door having glass the entire height and width of the area surrounded by rails and stiles.
Full Insect Screen 🔩 : A double-hung insect screen option where the insect screen frame and screen fabric cover the entire openable area of the window, allowing for ventilation of the upper and lower sashes while keeping bugs out.
Full length Entry Set 🚪 : An entry set with a plate that spans the entire length, from the deadbolt to the bottom of the handle grip.
Full Lite Doors 🚪 : Doors with no panels, instead substituting a large glass pane, which can be decorative or insulated. For exterior applications these doors often feature double or triple-pane glass to improve insulation.
Full Louver Door (Design FL) 🚪 : A design of door having louvers the entire height and width of the area surrounded by rails and stiles.
Function Hole 📋 : The main holes cut or drilled through the faces of the door for the mechanisms of a lock to fit into. Complexity of function holes vary widely, with the simplest being a single hole for a cylindrical lock to detailed, multiple holes for electronic locks.
Functions (Lock) 🔧 : A set of operating features for a particular type of lock or exit device which make it suitable for a specific application.
Fusible Link Louver 🔩 : A louver used in fire-rated doors.
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Gasket Compression Seal 📋 : A flexible rubber seal that compresses when a window or door closes. Provides strong protection against air leaks, noise, and rain penetration.
Gear 🔧 : Main functioning body of multipoint hardware containing hub for handle operation and deadbolt (on active gear).
Georgian Polished Wire Glass 📋 : Glass which has a ½" wire mesh inside it for additional strength. This glass is the minimum required for fire door applications.
Glazing 📋 : Glass in a window sash or door panel; the act of installing glass in a window sash or door panel.
Glazing bead 📋 : Wood or vinyl pieces around the perimeter of the glass that cover the space between the glass edge and sash or panel.
Glazing Pocket 📋 : The recessed space within a window or door frame where the glass sits. Deeper pockets support thicker IGUs and improve structural and thermal performance.
Glide 🏗️ : Top and bottom of a retractable screen assembly aiding in the movement of the insect screen.
Gliding Door or Sliding Door 🚪 : Door with two (2) or more panels where one (1) panel slides horizontally past another.
Gliding door/sliding door 📋 : Door with two or more panels where one panel slides horizontally past another.
Gliding Window or Sliding Window 🔩 : Window with two (2) sash, where one (1) sash slides horizontally past the other.
Grading 📋 : Describing the act of sorting wood materials into different categories for different uses. Lynden Door re-grades every doorskin which enters our plant to make sure they are all up to our standards. Most door plants do not do this additional grading.
Grain 📋 : The pattern made by the direction of the wood fibres on the surface of a door.
Grain Slope 📋 : Describes the angle of the grain to the edge of the veneer or door.
Grain Sweep 📋 : Describes the angle of the grain to the edge of the veneer or door over an area extending 1/8 of the length of the piece, a curved section.
Grilles/Muntins/Dividers/Bars/Grids 📋 : Components used to simulate individual pieces of glass within a sash/panel.
GROOVES 📋 : These are lines cut into the face of the door that create a pattern or design.
GRP skin 🚪 : Glass reinforced plastic, also known as GRP, is a high-impact resistant skin used to strengthen foam filled composite doors.
Gusset plate 📋 : Metal plate attached to a window or door to strengthen a window or door joint.
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Half Glass Door (Design HG) 🚪 : A design of door having glass in upper portion only.
Half insect screen 📋 : Insect screen that covers the opening area of the operating sash in hung and gliding windows.
Half Round Slicing 📋 : A variation of the rotary veneer cut in which segments of the log are mounted off center in the lathe. The resulting cut travels slightly across the annual growth rings and shows modified characteristics between rotary and plain sliced.
Hand (Door Hand) 📋 : A term used to designate direction in which a door swings. e.g., right hand or left hand.
Handed Products 📋 : Handed Products are designed for use only on right hand doors or only on left hand doors, but not both. This could be due to the style or functionality of the product.
HANDING 📋 : The manner in which a door swings. It is best shown in a diagram and has four terms: right hand, left hand, right hand reverse and left hand reverse. Right hand and left hand reverse are the same until the hardware is applied, as are left hand and right hand reverse. The hardware makes the difference.
Handle 📋 : A handle, knob, or lever is the component of door hardware that is used to unlatch the door panel and pull it open or push it closed. There are many styles and finishes to choose from. There are three types of door handles: Entry handles are operated with a key cylinder on the exterior side of the door and a push or turn lock button on the interior. Bed/bath handles have a push or turn lock button on the inside but not on the other. Passage handles have no locking mechanism.
Handles & Locks 🔧 : Options range from traditional mortise locks to modern lever sets, or smart locks and 3 point latching systems.
Handleset 📋 : The exterior door hardware that has a grip or, handle along with a deadbolt function to lock the door. When ordering, be sure to also add the corresponding interior ‘trim’.
Hardboard 📋 : A composite doorskin made up of layers of fiber pressed into a hard skin. Sometimes this fiber is pressed into a mold and results in molded panel doorskins.
Hardware (Window/Door Hardware) 📋 : All mechanical components: hinges, handles, rollers, locks, friction stays. High-quality hardware ensures smooth operation, durability, and security.
Hardwood 📋 : A description applied to woods from deciduous (annual leaf dropping) and evergreen broad-leaved trees (dicotyledons). This term does not infer hardness in its usual sense, but is a classification only. Generally, the wood from broad-leaved trees is harder and heavier than that from needle-leaved trees, but there are numerous exceptions, (i.e. Balsa is one of the lightest and softest woods, but is a hardwood.) Examples are Birch, Oak, Maple, Cherry, Teak, Walnut and Mahogany.
Hardwood Edge 📋 : The edge of the door is made from hardwood. This may be either an edge band or a full stile. Written as hardwood vertical edge (HVE) or hardwood edge stile (HES).
Head 🔩 : The top horizontal piece of a wooden door frame.
Head Board or Seat Board 🪵 : Stain-grade wood shaped to the angles of a bay or bow window that forms the finished upper and lower interior surfaces.
Head Flashing 📋 : A waterproof metal or membrane installed above a window or door to direct water away from the frame. Critical in all cladding systems.
Head Jamb 📋 : The top horizontal section of a door or window frame is called the head jamb. Mullion (Mull) When two individual windows or a door and window are joined, the seam between the frames of the two units is called the mull, which is short for mullion. In this case, a door jamb has been joined to a window/sidelight jamb. The seam is typically hidden with a piece of trim called a mull casing (See additional definition below).
Head Parting Stop 🚪 : A component that separates the operating and stationary patio door panels in a gliding door unit and also holds the panels in place.
Header 📋 : Heavy beam extended across the top of the rough opening to prevent the weight of the wall or roof from resting on the window frame.
Header (Head) 📋 : A horizontal frame piece at top of opening or top member of transom frame.
Hidden or Frameless Doors 🚪 : Integrated flush with the wall for a sleek look.
Hinge 📋 : the hardware that attaches a door to the jamb and allows it to swing open and closed. They can have square or radius corners and come in a variety of sizes and finishes. The standard hinge size is 4″x4″ for 1-3/4″ door thickness; standard for a 1-3/8″ thick door is 3-1/2″x3-1/2″.
Hinge Filler Plate 🔧 : A plate installed in hinge cutout when hinge is not required.
Hinge Jamb 🔧 : A vertical piece of a door frame prepared for installation of hinges.
Hinge Side Jamb 🔩 : The vertical member of a window or door frame that constitutes the hinge side of the frame.
Hinge Stile 📋 : The vertical edge piece that sits opposite to the lock and the hinges are attached to.
Hinged Door 📋 : A door hung on one side by hinges. Can be single or double panel. Ideal for traditional and modern projects.
Hinges 🔧 : Heavy-duty, ball-bearing, or concealed hinges for smooth operation and longevity.
Hold-Back 📋 : A catch on a lock which can hold the latch bolt in the retracted position.
Hold-Open 📋 : The feature of a door closer unit which enables a door to be held in the opened position until released.
Hollow Core 📋 : A slight misnomer - it describes a light weight door where large sections of the core are hollow. Most flush doors have a paper (kraft) core made up of corrugated paper (cardboard) which opens up into a honeycomb of cells to give the door skins support and to add to the doors structural stability.
Horns 📋 : Extended door or window stiles designed to protect the corners from damage while in storage.
Hose Stream 📋 : Can be part of a fire test. After the allotted burn time, the door must with-stand the pressure of the water from a 3" fire hose being sprayed back and forth across it.
I
Impact-Resistant Glass 🪵 : Laminated glass is frequently used in hurricane-prone areas to protect against wind-borne debris.
In Swing Door 🚪 : A door that opens inside or towards the inside of a home, building or room.
Inactive Door 🚪 : A door leaf in a pair of doors which is normally held closed by top and bottom bolts.
Inactive Door Set 🔩 : Handle set used on the inactive panel. This set will have a cylinder hole on the inside plate only to accept a half cylinder. You may also use an active set on an inactive panel.
Inactive Hardware 🔩 : Hardware used on the inactive panel, no latch or deadbolt.
Inactive Panel 🚪 : When a door is referred to as “inactive” it means it is the secondary functioning door in a pair of French doors. This door can only be opened after the ?active? panel has been opened.
INLAY 📋 : A decorative strip, design or pattern which is embedded into the front of the door. Typically the inlay is made of a complementary material or alternative colour to the door, like a veneer or coloured plastic, and it is flush with the door’s surface.
Insect screen 📋 : A mesh fitted to windows or doors to allow airflow while keeping insects out. Can be sliding, hinged, magnetic, or retractable.
Insect Screen Housing 🪵 : Aluminum extrusion that houses the retractable screen assembly.
INSERT 📋 : Similar to an inlay but usually slightly thicker and it may not be flush with the door’s face (front of the door).
Installation Brackets 📋 : Metal brackets used to secure window or door frames to the building structure. Ensures proper alignment and long-term stability.
Installation Clips 🛠️ : Metal brackets used to secure a unit to the rough opening from the interior.
Insulated Glass (Double Pane) 🔩 : Glass panes separated by air or gas. The air/gas is trapped between the two pieces of glass and acts as an insulator.
Insulated glass unit (IGU) 🪵 : A unit composed of two hermetically sealed panes of glass, with the space between them filled with argon gas to better insulate the window.
Insulating Glass Unit 🪵 : Two (2) or more glass panes sealed together to increase energy efficiency.
Inswing / Outswing 📋 : Indicates whether a door or window opens inward or outward. Choice depends on space, weather resistance, and building design.
Integral Mullion 🔩 : Frame member trapped within the master frame to separate vents or fixed glass. Units with integral joins do not have removable exterior trim strips to cover the mullions because the frame covers the mullions.
Interchangeable Core (IC) 🔧 : Unlike a standard key cylinder, which is accessible for combinating only via locking device disassembly, an interchangeable mechanism relies upon a specialized “control” key for insertion and extraction of the essential (or “core”) combinating components.
Interconnect Device 🔧 : The interconnect device provides an emergency egress function on tubular handle sets. When the deadbolt is in the locked position, simply turning the knob or lever will open both latches. It is especially handy in a fire or many other panic situations.
Interconnected Lock 📋 : (Also known by a number of different trade names ie. Emergency egress) A lock having a separate latch and dead bolt mechanically interconnected and installed in round bored openings in the face and ed...
Interior Trim 📋 : The knob or lever attached to the inside of the door.
Interlock Weatherstrip 🔩 : Two (2) pieces of weatherstrip that engage with each other by overlapping or by fitting together projections and recesses; this interlocking adds strength by joining the two (2) sash or panels.
Intumescent 📋 : A special fire material which, when exposed to heat, swells to many times its original size and helps to seal closed a fire door assembly. Available in soft puff and hard puff (a description of its character after swelling), it is required for all positive pressure fire door assemblies. Classified as either Category A (concealed inside the door) or Category B (provided with the door frame).
Invisible Hinge 📋 : A hinge which is completely concealed when the door is closed. There are no knuckles visible on either side of the door. The most commonly known hinge of this type is manufactured by Soss and is often called the Soss hinge.
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Jalousie Window 🪵 : Louvered window with multiple horizontal glass sections that rotate open or closed.
Jamb 📋 : The frame in which a door is hung, consisting of two legs, a butt leg which is prepared for hinges, a strike leg which is prepared for a lock bolt plate and a header, the overhead section. Jambs can be flat stock with stop applied or 1-1/4" thick and rabbeted.
Jamb & Casing Alignment 🛠️ : Ensuring proper fit and reveal for a seamless look. Most custom, solid wood doors will not come pre-hung. There may be considerably more on site work to get the door installed correctly.
Jamb Clips 🔩 : Metal brackets used to secure a unit to the rough opening from the interior.
Jamb Depth (Frame Profile) 🔩 : The overall width of frame profile—face to face dimension.
Jamb Liner 🔩 : Interior frame cover surface where the sash slides on a double-hung window.
Jamb Type 🛠️ : Solid wood doors are heavier than hollow-core alternatives, requiring robust framing and high-quality hinges for long-term performance. Industry standard jambs may be inadequate.
Jamb Width 🔩 : Distance between the outside house sheathing and the inside finished wall, not including trim.
Jambs 🔩 : The vertical side members of a door frame.
Join 🛠️ : Two (2) units installed together (vertically or horizontally) as a window combination.
Joining 📋 : Two or more window or door units joined together with mull materials or Andersen’s Easy Connect joining system; joint can run vertically, horizontally or both.
Joint 📋 : The line of juncture between edges or ends of two adjacent sheets of veneer. An open joint means the adjacent sheets do not meet tightly.
K
Keeper 🔩 : Receiver on a sash that the lock engages.
Kerf 📋 : A saw cut only part way through a material. Kerfed exterior jambs have a cut part way into the jamb for a weatherstrip to be slotted in. The width of a saw cut. A back kerf is cutting slots in the back of a piece of wood to allow the face side to be bent into an arc without breaking.
Key In Lockset 🔧 : A knob or lever that includes a keyed cylinder that locks from the face of the hardware set instead of requiring a separate deadbolt and bore hole in the door. Often used in place of an entry set for secure entrance to the home or for a back door entrance.
Key Side 📋 : A reference point used to determine outside of door—sometimes required for handing or determination of secure side of glass bead or louvers.
Keyed Alike (KA) 📋 : A keying option which allows for any number of cylinders to operate by the same key.
Keyed lock 📋 : A lock that requires a key to operate. Common in sliding doors, entrance doors, and commercial systems.
Kick Down Holder 📋 : A type of door stop that kicks down to hold the door open; locks in the up position to allow the door to open freely.
Kick Plate 📋 : A door protection plate providing protection against the lower portion of the door. 8″, 10″, 12″ and 16″ heights are typical. The use of 16″ high kick plates is recommended for use on doors used by pe...
Kiln-Drying 🪵 : The wood is kiln dried for 2 weeks to a moisture content of 10-12% and has an additional week or so of "resting" to allow the wood to reabsorb moisture in the air. This process ensures that the wood regains its dimensional stability and will not warp or split. This critical stage of reabsorbing moisture allows the doors to withstand the rigors of climatic change.
Knife Marks 📋 : Fine lines appearing across the veneer that result from a defect in the slicing knife. These lines cannot be sanded out.
Knob Closure 📋 : A type of door handle that includes a knob to twist to open the door.
Knobset 📋 : The door hardware that includes the inside and outside knobs.
Knockdown System 📋 : Commonly abbreviated "KD”. Machined residential doors are combined with machined jambs to match in a shrink-wrapped package complete with hinges. Shipped disassembled for assembly at the building site.
Knocked Down (KD) Frame 🔩 : A door frame furnished in three or more parts for assembly in the field.
Knot 📋 : Cross section of a tree branch with grain running at right angles to the piece of wood in which it occurs. Dead or Open Knot - openings where a portion of the wood which made up the knot has dropped out or where cross checks have occurred to present an opening. Pin Knot - a small sound knot 1/4" or less in diameter. A blending pin knot is a small knot which does not contain a dark center. Blending pin knots are not detectable from 6 - 8 feet away. Sound Knot - solid across their face and fixed by growth to retain their place.
Knuckle 📋 : The part of the hinge visible when a door is closed through which the pin fits.
L
Laminated Glass 🪵 : Layered glass that resists breakage and holds together when broken.
Laminated Veneer Lumber (LVL) 🪵 : Engineered wood consisting of multiple layers of thin wood bonded together.
Laminated wood 🪵 : This is wood with a laminated easy-clean surface.
Lap 📋 : A condition where the pieces of veneer are positioned so that one piece overlaps the other and does not make a smooth, even joint.
Latch 📋 : The mechanism that secures the door when the door is closed. Most products come standard with an adjustable latch, allowing the hardware to be used on doors with either a 2-3/8″ backset or a 2-3/4″ ba...
Latch Bolt 🔧 : A bevel-headed spring bolt that holds a door closed, and is usually operated by a knob or a lever handle.
Latch Housing 🔩 : An aluminum extrusion that matches the retractable screen housing on the opposite side. The latch housing contains the screen latch and snugger bars, which secure the retractable screen in its extended state.
LATCH PACKS 📋 : These packs contain everything you need to fit your door including handles, hinges and a latch mechanism.
Latch Protector (Latch Guard) 🔧 : A piece of hardware (attached to door) that completely covers the latch area protecting the latch bolt from prying and shimming.
Latches & Closures 🔧 : Soft-close mechanisms or magnetic catches for a refined feel.
Latchplate 📋 : The metal sheet that surrounds the bolt and is mounted to the door edge.
Leading Edge 📋 : The vertical edge of a swing door which is opposite the hinge edge.
Ledge Door 📋 : A door composed of or appears to be composed of, only vertical boards fixed by horizontal/diagonal boards.
Lever Handle 📋 : A type of door handle that includes a lever to push down upon to open the door.
Leverset 📋 : The door hardware that includes the inside and outside levers.
Lift 🔩 : A handle on the bottom of a double-hung window, making it easier to raise and lower the sash.
LIGHT 📋 : This refers to an individual pane of glass within a door e.g. a ‘2 light’ door has two panes of glass.
Light/Lite 📋 : Individual glass panes within a window sash or door panel.
Lights 🔩 : Individual panes of glass set within a door.
LININGS/CASINGS 📋 : Another name for an internal door frame.
LIPPINGS 📋 : These create the door edge and can be reduced slightly in size to fit a specific door opening, without exposing the inner core of the door. Solid lippings (as long as they are large enough) allow the edges of doors to be modelled to form rebated pairs.
Lite 📋 : Any opening cut into a door, transom, or sidelight other than hardware cut-outs. These include window, louver, and viewers openings, and may be open only, open and beaded, or glazed.
Lite Kit 🔩 : A complete “door window” kit; includes frame used to hold glass in place, glass and glazing tape.
Lock 📋 : Mechanism: used to secure windows and doors into a closed position.
Lock (Concealed) 🔩 : Mechanism used to secure a casement or awning window, hidden behind wooden trim stops with only the lock handle and bezel visible.
Lock (Exposed) 🔩 : Mechanism used to secure a casement or awning window, housed in a visible square-shaped box with a handle attached.
Lock Block 📋 : A concealed block adjacent to the stile at a location corresponding to the lock location into which hardware is to be fitted.
Lock Pin 🔩 : They hold the passive retractable insect screen into place. It functions as the latch and holds the passive insect screen door in an extended or open position.
Lock Prep 🔧 : Holes and pockets machined in side stiles to accommodate latch and hinge hardware.
Lock Rail 📋 : The horizontal rail is located within a door at the height of the lock.
Lock Side Jamb 🔩 : The vertical member of the frame that constitutes the lock side of the frame. Synonym: strike jamb.
Lock Stile 📋 : The vertical edge piece that sits opposite to the hinges and holds the lock.
Lockcase 🔧 : The main body of the multipoint gear.
Locking Mechanism 📋 : The internal system that secures a window or door closed. Multipoint locks offer better security and sealing.
Lockset 📋 : The lockset refers to the handles, locks, latches, strike plates, and all the other hardware components that allow a door to latch and lock in place. Locksets are also referred to as handlesets or hardware.
Long Narrow Lite Door (Design LNL) 🚪 : Design of door with long narrow rectangular lite at lock stile of door.
Loose Lay 📋 : All parts of a door core are purchased pre-sanded to specific thickness and brought to the lay-up line where the parts are put through the glue spreader and laid between skins. The skin is glued to the parts in this process and actually hold the door together. Individual core parts are not bonded together.
Lost Wax Cast 📋 : An ancient practice in which a bronze sculpture (in our case door hardware) is cast from a wax model. The wax model is dipped in a slurry of silica, then more ceramic material is added creating thick walls around the model. At this point the wax is melted out of the ceramic and you are left with an empty ceramic mould. Molten bronze is then poured into the ceramic mould creating a bronze reproduction of the original wax model.
Louver 📋 : An insert with parallel slanted sides to allow ventilation but excludes light or provides privacy. Metal, heat activated self-closing louvers are allowed in mineral core fire doors, but not in 20 minute rated fire doors because 20 min. doors are also smoke doors, and louvers do not stop smoke from passing through.
Louvered Doors 🚪 : Slatted doors that provide ventilation between spaces, often used in closets or utility rooms.
Low-E glass 🪵 : Glass coated with an invisible layer of energy-efficient material that lets in outdoor light but keeps the heat in.
M
Magnetic Catch 🔧 : A magnetic catch is a latching mechanism that uses a magnetic force to hold two objects together. Often used on non-latching wardrobe doors with dummy furniture.
Mahogany 🪵 : Dense, stable, and resistant to moisture.
Masonry Frame 🔩 : A frame installed in a new or existing masonry or block opening.
Masonry opening 📋 : Opening in a brick, stone or stucco wall where a window or door is installed.
Master Key 🔧 : This is a key that can open two or more locks which makes it convenient for the facility or site manager to have control over an entire building/s.
Masterkey System 📋 : An arrangement of cylinders having individual key changes, which permits them all to be operated by one key, called a master key.
Matching Edge 📋 : The edge of the door is made from the same wood as the face. This may be an edge band or a full stile. If a full stile it is called a matching vertical edge (MVE) or matching edge stile (MES).
Mdf 📋 : Medium Density Fiberboard. A generic name for material made in panel form from lignocellulosic fibers combined with a synthetic resin and bonded together under heat and pressure in a hot press by a process in which the entire bond is created by the synthetic resin. Cut and used as stiles and rails or used in sheets as door faces.
Mdo 📋 : Medium Density Overlay - a thermosetting resin impregnated paper applied to a plywood to provide an optimum painting surface. Used as a doorskin.
Meeting Edges 📋 : Two adjacent door edges not separated by a mullion or transom bar. These are found in pair, Dutch door and door & transom applications.
Meeting Stile 📋 : The vertical edge of a door, in a pair of doors, which is adjacent to the other door.
Metal & Wood Combination Doors 🚪 : Incorporating steel elements for an industrial edge.
Metal Edge 📋 : A piece of U-formed metal which goes over a door edge for protection. It may be to protect against impact as in hospitals where they are applied to protect against wheelchairs or hospital beds bumping them, or it may be part of a paired fire door assembly where it is used in conjunction with a fire rated astragal.
Metal Type 🔧 : Stainless steel, zinc, bronze, or brass. We prefer brass, as it’s self lubricating and won’t rust.
Metal Vision Panel 📋 : A metal frame used to install glass in fire rated doors. The glass must also be fire tested. Wired glass is the most common type, but ceramic glass is also used.
Mid Rail 🔩 : The horizontal or vertical piece on a door that usually houses the letterbox.
Mineral Core 📋 : Fire rated material made from a mixture of gypsum, cement and other minerals which will withstand temperatures hot enough to melt glass. Used by Lynden Door in our 45, 60 and 90 minute doors.
Minimalist Glass & Wood Hybrid Doors 🚪 : Frosted, smoked, or tinted glass for subtle elegance.
Mishandling Device 🔧 : Prevents locking points from accidentally firing and potentially damaging door trim.
Miter 📋 : The intersection of two pieces of molding forming an angle. This angle is usually 90o and is the type of joint used for beading for insertion into a lite and is also the joint used to join casing around a door jamb.
Miter Joint 🏗️ : A joint made when two (2) beveled edges join to form an angle, often 90 degrees.
Moisture Content 📋 : Wood naturally contains moisture. Improper or uneven drying is the single greatest cause of warp in wood products. Moisture content is the percent of moisture remaining in the wood. For door parts, recommended moisture content is 8 - 12%.
Molding 🔩 : Decorative wooden strips used for ornamentation around glass and/or panels.
Molding & Paneling 📋 : Routed edges, raised panels, or V-grooves add character and are functional as well.
Monolithic Entry Set 🚪 : An entry set with a plate that spans from the top of the deadbolt to the top of the handle grip.
Monolithic Glass 🪵 : Glass that has no air space; used in specific situations such as some coastal applications.
Mortice Lock 🔧 : A lock which is set within the body of a door in a recess or mortice, as opposed to one attached to the door surface.
Mortice Plate 🔧 : The rectangular piece on the inside of the door that the latch or deadbolt tongue enters when the door is closed.
Mortise 🔩 : A cavity made to receive a lock or other hardware; also the act of making such a cavity.
Mortise & Tenon Joinery 📋 : A method of locking or joining / bonding two pieces of wood together through holes (mortise) and extrusions (tenon).
Mortise Dead Latch 📋 : An auxiliary lock fitting a cavity prepared in the edge of the door and having a dead latch operated by a key or thumbturn both. The key or thumbturn engages the lock through holes prepared in the fac...
Mortise Dead Lock 📋 : An auxiliary lock having a deadbolt instead of a dead latch. Deadbolt could also be a hook type bolt.
Mortise Lock 📋 : A lock which is fitted into the edge of the door into a "pocket" with a few holes drilled through the face for the passage of door knobs, key access, etc. This pocket is usually 6" long and is covered by a face plate which is routed over the pocket for a length of 8". This is often called an 86 pocket.
Mortise Lock Prep (86 Edge Prep) 🔧 : Cutout in the edge of a door for mortise lock.
Mortise Plates 📋 : These plates add strength to latches, deadbolts, and the door panel, which help prevent a forced entry.
Mortise-and-Tenon 🔩 : A woodworking method used to join two pieces of wood. A mortise (cavity, hole, notch or slot) is cut into one piece of wood. The tenon is created by shaping the end of the second piece of wood, so that it can slide into the mortise. After fitting the tenon into the mortise, the joint is made secure by drilling a hole though both the mortise and tenon and driving a wooden peg into the hole.
Moulded Wood 🪵 : These are strips of wood shaped with contours for decoration or ornament.
Mounting Plate 📋 : The mounting plate installs on the inside face of the door and holds the interior door trim in place.
Mull Post 📋 : The post between the door and sidelite is created by the door frame.
Mullion 📋 : A vertical member of the door frame (jamb) used to separate door leaves (or glass panels in a door) and/or sidelites. Bars are horizontal members.
Multi-point lock 📋 : Lock that engages the sash or panel in multiple locations; activated by a single motion.
Multi-Point Locking System 📋 : A 3 or 5 point lock system controlled by levers in multiple places in the door panel and frame. Used for protection against high-pressure winds caused by hurricanes and/or storms, as well as added security for the entryway.
Multipoint Hardware 🔧 : Any hardware that has multiple locking points which simultaneously lock into place through the action of a continuous travel drive rail activated by a handle.
Multipoint Locks 📋 : Lock body typically mounted in the face of the door with a latch and deadbolt plus additional locking or latching points top and bottom.
Muntin 📋 : Vertical or horizontal bars that divide glass lites into smaller sections. Historically, this is referred to as True Divided Lite (TDL). In modern use these are often decorative, preference being given to monolithic tempered glass, and are referred to as Simulated Divided Lite (SDL).
N
Nailing Flange or Installation Flange 🛠️ : Narrow attachment strip on the window perimeter is typically used to secure the window to the rough opening.
Narrow Lite Door (Design NV) 🚪 : Design of door with narrow rectangular lite at lock stile of door.
Negative Pressure 📋 : A type of fire test where the hot air is exhausted at the top back of the oven drawing heat away from the top of the door. Also called neutral pressure.
Neutral Pressure 📋 : A fire door test procedure where the neutral pressure plane is at or near the top of the door. Sometimes referred to as negative pressure.
NFRC 📋 : National Fenestration Rating Council is an non-profit organization that provides for fair, accurate and credible energy performance ratings for windows, doors & skylights.
Non Removable Pin Hinge (NRP) 🔧 : A hinge with a set screw in its barrel; to prevent the removing of hinge pin. Set screw is not accessible when door is closed. Used with outswinging exterior doors.
Non-Handed Lock/Reversible Lock 🔧 : This is a lock that enables you to open with any hand (left or right).
Number 1 Edge 📋 : A five ply door where only the face veneers are carried through to the edge of door. Coupled with a matching edge, it looks as if the veneer wraps around the door.
Number 2 Edge 📋 : A five ply door with a two ply skin on each side which shows on the edge of the door.
Number 3 Edge 📋 : A seven ply door with a three ply skin on each side which shows on the edge of the door. This is the door Lynden Door manufactures.
Number 4 Edge 📋 : A door which has had a matching hardwood edge glued to the side of a number 2 or 3 edge door. This hardwood edge shows on the faces of the door and is therefore used very rarely.
O
Obscure glass 📋 : Glass with a texture of pattern of various degrees of opacity that limits visibility through a window or door (see also patterned glass).
Ogee 📋 : A type of sticking that is characterized by decorative curves.
Opening panel 🔩 : The detachable part of the patio door that slides out and opens up.
Operable Sidelite 📋 : Sidelites that can be opened like a second door to allow airflow.
Operating Side Jamb 🔩 : The vertical member of the frame that the operating sash or patio door panel closes into.
Operator 🔧 : Metal arm and gear with a handle used to open and close a hinged window.
Operator (Split-Arm) 🔧 : A casement operator with two metal arms riveted together to form an elbow that bends as the window is opened. The end of the arm utilizes a slide clip to attach to a pin on the sash bracket.
Operator (Straight-Arm) 🔧 : A casement or awning operator with a single metal arm. The end of the arm utilizes a slide shoe that slides in a track as the window is opened.
Out Swing Door 🚪 : A door that opens away from the inside of a home, building or room.
Outdoor Environmental Rating 📋 : Specifies how materials withstand UV, salt spray, humidity, and weather exposure.
Outdoor/Indoor Transmission Class (OITC) 📋 : Measurement standard used to indicate the rate of sound transmission between indoors and outdoors (see also STC).
Overhead Stop 📋 : A device designed to stop a door swing at a specific angle (i.e. 90°, 110°, etc.) to keep the door from hitting a wall, tabletop, etc. It can be either surface mounted or concealed.
Oversized Panel 📋 : Large-format glass or door panels requiring reinforced frames and heavy-duty hardware.
Oversized Statement Doors 🚪 : Full-height doors that blend into the walls.
OX / XO 📋 : "OX" or XO" are used to identify the opening direction of gliding windows/doors; "X" stands for operating while "O" stands for stationary.
Oxalic Acid 📋 : A crystalline acid which, when mixed with water makes a wash for oak veneers to remove blue staining.
P
PACR 📋 : Abbreviation for “Parallel Arm Closer Reinforcement” – Welded-in reinforcement, in frame head, for mounting of door closer.
Paint Grade 📋 : A door skins which is smooth and even. It may have repairs or patches as long as they are tight and solid and sanded smooth for opaque finish.
PAINTED FINISH 📋 : The door has been painted to achieve a high-quality finish. This can be a colour or even grained timber effect.
Painted Finishes 📋 : High-end enamels or lacquers for a smooth, durable surface.
Pair 📋 : Two doors hung in a single jamb. Usually these doors will be made with pair matched doorskins. They are usually machined so that one door is “active” (opens and closes the most) and one door is “inactive” (anchored) which has a strike for the active door’s lock bolt. The inactive door usually is anchored by a top and bottom rod exit device or by flush-bolts.
Pair Frame 🔩 : A door frame, to accommodate two doors or a pair.
PAIR MAKER 📋 : A timber moulding that is shaped to fit on a door edge to easily create a door pair.
Pair Matched 📋 : Pairs of doors with the same grain pattern as they are made using skins manufactured from the same veneer flitch.
Palusol 📋 : A rigid intumescent typically laminated under the wood stiles in a fire door to help achieve positive pressure.
Panel 📋 : A door panel, sometimes called a slab, refers to the whole part of the door that swings back and forth. Full door panels are often divided up into smaller panels, which are set between the stiles, rails, and mullions.
Panel Doors 🚪 : Doors made from stiles, rails, and inset panels. Traditional designs included four, six, or eight-panel arrangements, with detailed mouldings, profiles, or curves. Exterior panel doors have thicker panels and more robust framing.
Panel Moulding 🔩 : Applied decorative mouldings used in lieu of a sticking profile that allow for profiles not otherwise possible with sticking.
Panel Stacking 📋 : The position where bi-fold or sliding door panels gather when fully opened.
Paneled Door 📋 : A door composed of or appears to be composed of, stiles, rails, and panels or lites.
Panels 🔩 : Door panels are the pieces of material that fill the frame.
Panning Kerf 🔩 : A narrow groove on a unit's exterior outer frame edge typically accepts trim or aluminum coil stock.
Particle Board 📋 : The standard core type in solid core flush doors made of very small pieces of wood bonded together into a slab.
Parting stop 📋 : A narrow frame molding that holds a sash or panel in position.
Passage 🚪 : A handle set without an internal locking mechanism. A passage set is used on a door that doesn't require privacy, for example; between a living room and a kitchen or closet.
Passage Set 🔧 : A Passage Set is a door handle set with a non-lockable function. Generally, a latch allows free access through the door from both sides. Suitable for internal doors that don’t need to be locked.
Passage/Privacy Latch 🔧 : A spring loaded mechanism that slides it's bolt into a strike plate on a door jamb, securing the door shut and disengages when the attached knob or lever is turned.
Passive Door 📋 : In a door-two system, the door that typically stays closed.
Passive Panel or Passive Sash 🔩 : Panel or sash that will open only after the active panel or sash is opened.
Passive panel/sash 📋 : Panel/sash that will open only after active panel/sash is opened.
PassiveSun® Glass 🪵 : The Andersen brand name for a glass type ideal for situations where solar heat gain is desired, typically in passive solar building designs.
Patina 📋 : An aesthetically pleasing sheen or coloration that signifies a bronze object's age. Patinas are produced by chemical action, oxidization or sulphurization, during the course of time.
Patterned Glass 🪵 : Glass that lets in light while obscuring vision.
Performance Grade (PG) 📋 : An industry rating for a unit that has been tested for air, water, structural and force entry performance. Used to determine compliance with code required design pressures.
Pitch Spots 📋 : Pitch or resinous material of color spots caused by prior resin accumulations sometimes found on panel surfaces. Also called Gum spots.
Pivot Doors 🚪 : Large, statement doors with smooth operation.
Pivot Hinge 📋 : Special heavy duty hinges which support greater weight than normal hinges. The top hinge is different than the middle hinge, which is different than the bottom hinge requiring separate machining set-ups for each.
Plain Sliced 📋 : Veneer sliced parallel to the pith of the log and approximately tangent to the growth rings. Plain sliced veneer can be cut using either a horizontal or a vertical slicing machine or by the half round method using a rotary lathe. Also called Flat Sliced, Plain Cut, or Flat Cut. This is the most common method of cutting expensive veneers.
Plank and Batten Doors 🚪 : Vertical planks with visible bracing, often barn-style.
Plank Doors 🚪 : Composed of vertical wooden planks either side of a horizontal support frame. One of the oldest designs of doors, and still found on many castles and historic buildings. Modern Plank doors can be insulated.
Plastic Laminate 📋 : Also known as P-Lam. A paper with a design or color in a high density plastic with varying types of finish which can be used as a door face. This is principally used in medical facilities as it is easy to keep clean. Also called High Pressure Decorative Laminate. Common brands are Nevamar, Wilsonart, Formica, Pionite and Arborite.
Pleasing Match 📋 : A face containing components which provide a pleasing overall appearance. The grains do not need to match at the joints but sharp color contrasts are not allowed.
Plinth Block 🔩 : A decorative wood block typically found at the top corners of the unit that creates a transition from vertical to horizontal interior trim.
Ply 📋 : The layers in a sheet of plywood, door skin or door. In a door it consists of the number of plies in each skin plus the core. A 7 ply door would have two pieces of 3 ply doorskins plus the core layer.
Pocket Door 📋 : A door which has been hung in a frame which is partially in a wall so that to open the door you slide it sideways into the "wall pocket".
POCKET DOOR SYSTEM 📋 : This is a sliding door system that is built into the wall so that the door disappears on opening completely into the pocket. A popular, contemporary door solution that is ideal for properties with limited space.
Pocket Doors 🔧 : Spacing saving for smaller areas and of a historic nature, pocket doors easily create or remove privacy and can be of any size.
Positive Pressure 📋 : A fire door test procedure where the neutral pressure plane is located at 40 inches (1 m) above the sill.
Powder Coating 📋 : Type of finishing process in which parts are spray painted in a spray booth and then baked to cure the finish.
Pre - Hung 📋 : Doors or combinations of doors and sidelights put together with jambs, hinges, threshold, T-Astragal, and trim to make a total working door system (a unit).
Pre-Fabricated Home 🛠️ : Homes that are preassembled at a factory and shipped in units to the job site. They usually can be installed with a minimum of adjustments. Related terms pre-fab home.
PRE-FINISHED 📋 : Products that are stained and sealed at the factory or warehouse before distribution.
Pre-Fitting 📋 : Reducing the width of a door to allow for better fit into a jamb. Standard pre-fit size is -3/16” off book.
Pre-Hanging 📋 : The process of installing a door by application of hinges and hardware in a jamb unit prior to shipment to a job site so the entire door/jamb assembly with hardware attached can be installed at once.
Primed 📋 : An undercoat that can be applied during the construction process that prepares the piece for painting.
Privacy 🚪 : A handle set with a locking mechanism.
Privacy Pin 📋 : A pin that engages the privacy feature on the latch from the interior side of the rosette. Can be disengaged in an emergency by inserting a narrow object (like the end of a paperclip) into the emergency release hole on the exterior rosette.
Privacy Set 🔧 : A term for locks used on bathroom and bedroom doors having an internal button, pin or snib to lock the outside handle and an emergency function which will unlock the set from the outside.
Profile 🔧 : A UPVC or aluminum extrusion used in door manufacturing. The shape/style of each extrusion differs between each extruder and therefore requires different hardware–particularly hinges and strike plates.
Projection 📋 : The furthest distance and object extends off of a surface, like a door or cabinet.
Proper Sealing 🛠️ : All surfaces, including top and bottom edges, should be finished to slow moisture exchange and prevent uneven expansion.
Pull 📋 : A piece of hardware used to pull a door in specific direction. Examples are Bifold knobs, Flush bypass pulls inserted into cutouts in the doors and Pocket pulls (which may have latch of some kind) cut into the edge of a door.
Pultrusion 🪵 : Strong, stiff composite material, in profile form, made from polymeric resin and glass fiber; also used to refer to the process for producing these profiles.
Push Bar 📋 : Similar to a Pull Bar but used for pushing a door open.
Push Plate 📋 : A plate applied to the lock stile of a door, to protect against soiling and wear.
Push-Out Casement 🔩 : A casement with no crank handle. The sash is opened by releasing the sash lock and pushing the sash outward.
PYRAN® 📋 : A fire-protection rated and impact safety-rated glazing material made from a transparent glass-ceramic with a thickness of 3/16”.
PZ 🔧 : Refers to the distance from the center of the handle hole to the center of the cylinder hole. HLS swing door standard is PZ 92mm.
Q
Quarter Sliced 📋 : Veneer produced by cutting in a radial direction to the pith to achieve a straight vertical grain pattern. In some species, principally oak, ray fleck is produced, the amount of which is unlimited.
Quick-Release Hinge 📋 : A hinge that allows the door or window to be easily removed for maintenance.
R
Rabbet 📋 : A stepped recess cut into the edge of the jamb pieces that allow them to fit at a right angle.
Rabbett 📋 : A longitudinal recess cut into the edge of a door. This is the usual joint in door and transom assemblies and is also used in Dutch doors. Also called Rebate.
Raceway 📋 : A groove routed through or a hole drilled through a door for the passage of electrical wires for the activation of electrical hardware.
RACR 📋 : Abbreviation for “Regular Arm Closer Reinforcement” – Welded-in reinforcement, in frame head, for mounting of door closer.
Radius Edge 📋 : A rounded edge on the stile or stiles of a door to allow double swinging in double-acting openings. Both face sides of the door are radiused.
Radius Hinge 📋 : A hinge type that has rounded corners and edges.
Rail 📋 : The narrow horizontal segments on a door panel are called rails. This door has a top, bottom, and a mid-rail.
Rails 📋 : The top and bottom cross members of the door core frame. Also applies to any other horizontal member in the core.
Raised Panel 🔩 : A door panel on which the edges have been contoured or shaped to provide an aesthetically appealing, three-dimensional effect.
Raised Panel Doors 🚪 : Feature decorative, profiled panels with intricate moldings.
Random Match 📋 : A misnomer - actually means that the pieces of veneer in a face are mis-matched to give the appearance of boards glued together.
Ray 📋 : A strand of tissue extending in a radial direction across the grain. It is oriented so that the surface is exposed in fleck across the quartered surface.
Re-keying 🔧 : The changing of a lock’s internal pins in order to make the tumbler combination fit a different key.
Rebate 🔩 : This is the groove which is cut into the door frame and is what the latch is attached to. This then allows the door to strike correctly as it closes.
REBATING 📋 : This makes doors into a pair, by machining a groove into the edges of two doors, creating a partial overlap where the doors meet.
Reinforced Mull 🪵 : Mull that uses a structural material (wood, aluminum, steel, LVL) to provide a stronger joint.
Relative Humidity 📋 : The ratio of the quantity of water vapor actually present to the amount present in a saturated atmosphere at a given temperature, expressed as percentage. Doors and their components should be about 8 - 12%.
Removable Interior Grille 🔩 : Interior grille that can be readily removed for cleaning.
Removable Mullion 🔩 : A mullion which can be temporarily taken out of opening to allow the passage of large objects through the opening.
Return 📋 : The return leg at the back of frame profile.
Reverse Cottage 🔩 : Double-hung window with a taller upper sash than the bottom sash.
Rift Cut 📋 : A parallel grain pattern produced by cutting at a slight angle to the radial to give an appearance similar to quarter cutting without the fleck. Used in oak veneers only.
Rim Lock/Rim Latch 🔧 : A lock or latch which is fixed to the surface of a door, rather than inserted along the edge of the door.
Roller 🔧 : Small cylindrical cam locking point that is connected to the drive rail and secures inside a strike plate by an upward and downward movement along the surface of the faceplate.
Roller Latch 📋 : The roller catch has a spring-loaded roller held within a cylinder attached to a flange. The catch is recessed into the edge of the door while the striker plate is recessed into the jamb. Usually used with a dummy trim or pull handle.
Roman Ogee 🔩 : Grilles with a Roman ogee design have a lower convex arc and an upper concave arc.
Rose 📋 : The rose is a circular plate on which the door handle or knob is mounted.
Rosette 🔧 : A decorative trim plate that goes between the knob/lever/handle and door, used in both door and cabinet hardware.
Rotary Cut 📋 : A wild grain pattern results from this method of veneer slicing. A whole log is placed in a rotary lathe and as the knife is moved toward the pith of the rotating log a long continuous peel of veneer comes off.
Rough Opening 📋 : The structural framework which surrounds the wall opening for the door assembly to be anchored into. Consists of header, studs and sub-sill (which may be the floor). Also the measurement of the size of the wall opening into which the door assembly is to be positioned.
Round Top Door 🚪 : A door that forms a complete half circle radius of both the door top and jambs.
Roundbolt 🔧 : Bullet shaped locking point that retracts flush inside the faceplate until engaged, at which point it deadbolts the door inside a strike plate. No upward or downward movement. This version requires additional mortising for the roundbolt lockcases.
Router 📋 : A tool for routing. In today's parlance, the tool is usually a hand held power tool with a high speed rotating bit with a carved surface, usually of carbide steel, which, while it is spinning, is moved along a piece of wood causing the wood to be molded to the shape of the cutting bit.
S
SAFETY GLASS 📋 : Glass that is heat treated so that, should it break, it becomes granular and does not create sharp shards. All of JB Kind’s pre-glazed doors comply with building regulations and meet European standards.
Sanding 📋 : Taking an abrasive paper, literally a heavy paper with sand of various grits glued to its surface, and rubbing it against a piece of wood or veneer to remove rough spots or handling marks. The higher the number grit, the finer the sandpaper. Sandpaper is measured by grit pieces per inch. A 40 grit sandpaper will have 40 pieces of grit per inch. To fill the paper, each piece of grit will have to be large, giving a very rough, coarse surface. This is used for preliminary sanding where removing uneven surfaces is desired. A 400 grit sandpaper will have 400 pieces of grit per inch, so each piece will be very small to fit on the paper. This surface will be almost smooth and will be used for finish sanding, almost polishing the wood.
Sash 🔩 : Rail, stile, and glass components joined together to form the venting capability of a window.
Sash Glazed / Sash Set 🔩 : Fixed window with a separate sash and frame intended to replicate the look of nearby venting windows.
Sash In Frame 📋 : A type of construction for sidelites or transoms that has the glass held in a designed frame within the piece.
Sash Tabs 🔩 : Used on the 200 Series Perma-Shield® Narroline® double-hung windows, these vinyl tabs are affixed to the end of a balancer cord and fit into the sash.
Screw Support 🔧 : A support on the backside of the gear for the screws which helps prevent flexing or bending of the gear once installed in the edge of the door.
Sealing 📋 : Applying a coating to a door which makes it impervious to moisture and thus reduces the chance of it warping or telegraphing.
Sectional Entry Set 🚪 : An entry set with separate plates for the deadbolt and handle grip.
Self-Closing 🔧 : When a door must close on it’s own, with the assistance of closing hardware. Properly installed door closers or spring hinges will make a door self-closing. Self-closing doors are required for fire rated openings.
Semi Solid 📋 : A hollow core door with 4" particle board strips inside both stiles and across the top rail, with an 8" strip at the bottom rail for added strength & stability.
SEMI-SOLID CORE 📋 : The centre of the door is part solid and part cellular components.
Sequence Match 📋 : Matching of several doors by using veneer from the same flitch in all of them in an ordered pattern. Also called Set Matching and Blue Printing.
Set Screw 🔧 : Small screw located on the neck of the handle which is used to tighten handle into the spindle.
Shaker 📋 : A type of sticking that is characterized by a single right angle.
SHAKER STYLE 📋 : This type of door has a simple, flat, recessed centre panel and usually no detailing. Most often the shaker style doors have right angled edges, although occasionally you will find those that have a slight bevelled finish.
Sheathing 🪵 : The wooden covering on the exterior of walls and the roof. It is typically made of 1/2-inch construction-grade plywood, but older homes may have shiplap boards or planks.
Shim 📋 : A thin strip of material, typically wood, wedged between the jamb and the rough opening to secure and align.
Shims 📋 : Small pieces of veneer from the same piece of veneer or at least another piece of same color and grain pattern used to repair an open joint. After being glued into the split and sanded, the shim should be inconspicuous to the naked eye.
Shoji-Style Doors 🚪 : Thin wood frames with translucent panels.
Shootbolt 🔧 : Arrow shaped locking point that retracts into the eurogroove until engaged, at which point it extends out and locks into strike plates in the head and sill of the door.
Shop Drawing 🏗️ : A measured drawing that details the design specifications of a proposed door or entryway before construction begins.
Side Jamb 🔩 : The vertical members of the window or door frame.
Side Stile 🔩 : Full-length vertical posts on each side of door.
SIDELIGHT 📋 : A panel which is usually fixed at the side of a hinged door. A sidelight is normally a narrow panel of glass set alongside a larger door.
Sidelite 📋 : An assembly of stiles and rails, with or without a wood panel, containing a single row of glass panels or lites. They are installed parts anatomy on one or both sides of an exterior doorframe, especially a front entrance doorframe. Also used in older houses to frame interior doors.
Sidelite Frame 🔩 : The same as a borrowed lite except that it is attached to door frame.
Silencer 📋 : A rubber part attached to the stop on a frame to cushion the closing of a door.
Sill 📋 : Sills are the bottom component of a door frame. They are the part of the door that gets sealed and fastened to the floor. Only exterior doors (those that lead to the outdoors or garages) have sills.
Sill (Frame) 🔩 : The bottom horizontal piece of a borrowed lite or sidelite frame.
Sill Adapter ✅ : Part of the retractable screen assembly on the door sill.
Sill cover 🔩 : A cover attached to the sill, usually made from anodized aluminum, that improves the finish and protects the sill from dirt and damage.
Sill Nose 🛠️ : Traditional exterior trim component that attaches underneath and extends out beyond the sill.
Sill Pan 📋 : A pan flashing that rests beneath the sill and is sealed or sloped to the exterior.
Sill Slope Adaptor ✅ : An applied trim strip for vinyl windows that simulates the appearance of a true sloped sill and provides a drainage surface.
Simple Panel Doors with Natural Wood 🚪 : Light, airy, and warm.
Simulated Divided Light (SDL) 🔩 : Uses interior and exterior grilles with no spacer between the glass panes; used to simulate the look of a window with multiple glass lites.
Simulated Lite 🪵 : Windows or doors that contain one piece of glass with internal spacer bars which provide the illusion of a true divided lite. Also known as SDL.
Single Cylinder 🔧 : A locking barrel operated by a key on the outside and a turn or snib on the inside for an easy exit in an emergency.
Single cylinder deadbolt 📋 : A deadbolt back that is locked with a key from the outside of the home and a thumbturn on the inside.
Single Point 🔧 : A mortise lock consisting of a latch and deadbolt only.
Single Rebate Composite Door 🚪 : A door rebate is the deep groove cut into the door frame that allows the slab to fit tightly against its frame.
Six-Panel Doors 🚪 : Symmetrical, structured look that fits colonial and classic designs.
Skin 📋 : The face layer, whether flat or contoured, of flush doors, stile-and-rail doors, bending laminations, etc., typically composed of hardwood plywood (usually 3 ply), hardboard, or composition pane.
Slab 📋 : Door only. No frames, jambs or parts added to make the door operate.
Slatted or Reeded Wood Doors 🚪 : Vertical or horizontal grooves add texture without being ornate.
Sliding or Pivot Systems 🔧 : Barn door hardware, concealed tracks, or pivot hinges for contemporary designs.
Slip Match 📋 : Adjoining pieces of veneer are placed in sequence without turning over every other piece. The grain figure repeats, but the joints do not have a mirror image. Slip matching is often used in Rift or Quarter cut veneers to eliminate the barber pole effect. Slip matching may cause a sloping or banana or bending appearance in the veneer, especially in taller doors.
SmartSun™ Glass 🪵 : The Andersen brand of a glass option that reduces solar heating but allows high visible light transmission.
Smoke Seal 📋 : A gasketing material which is designed to prevent smoke from leaking through a fire door/frame assembly during a fire.
Snib 🔧 : A snib is a part of the door handle and is used to either lock or unlock the door.
Soffit 📋 : Portion of the frame between stops on a double rabbeted frame and the stop and the largest face on a single rabbeted frame.
Softwood 📋 : Woods from coniferous or needle leaved trees (Gymnosperms). The term does not denote the texture of the wood, as softwoods are often harder than hardwoods. Examples are fir, spruce, pine and hemlock. These are often used to make stiles and rails for doors.
Softwood Edge 📋 : The term used when requesting a softwood be used for the stiles of a door.
Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC) 📋 : A measurement of the sun's heat energy that passes through the window/door; the lower the value, the less heat is gained through the product.
SOLID CORE 📋 : This is when a door has a heavy and solid centre, normally made from wood-based components.
Sound Transmission 📋 : Also called STC doors - a method of rating doors for the amount of noise which transmits through the closed door.
Sound Transmission Class (STC) 📋 : A rating system that measures how much sound is transferred through windows/doors (see also OITC).
Spacer Rings 🔧 : The spacer ring fits between the door and the handle for thin doors.
Spindle 🔧 : One or two-piece metal shaft used to mount the handles to the door. The two-piece has a groove that accepts the set screw in the handle. Available in different lengths to accommodate a variety of door thicknesses.
Split 📋 : A separation along the grain, forming a crack that extends through the veneer allowing you to see the cross-band.
Spreader Bar 🛠️ : Metal bars at base of welded frame to keep frame in alignment during assembly, transportation and handling—not to be used for installation.
Spring Hinge 🔧 : A hinge that has a built in spring that can facilitate the self closing of a door when it is not propped open.
Square 📋 : In doors, being “square” means that the top and bottom widths are equal. The lengths of the door on each side are also equal, with all four corners at right angles. If a door is measured from top right corner to bottom left and from top left to bottom right and the measurement is the same the door should be square.
Square Hinge 📋 : A hinge type that has sharp corners and edges.
Square-Top Door 🚪 : A door with a flat top rail; i.e., not containing a radius. Also known op door or a flat-top door.
Stainless Steel 🪵 : A highly corrosion-resistant grade of steel containing Chromium.
Stains & Clear Coats 📋 : Highlight natural grain while protecting the wood.
STANDARD CORE 📋 : Standard core doors have a cellular structure inside the door. This means that the door is lighter in weight than solid or semi-solid core doors and is well suited to domestic use.
Stationary Side Jamb 🔩 : The vertical member of the frame where the stationary sash or patio door panel sits.
Stave Lumber Core 📋 : Made by gluing blocks or strips of wood, not more than 2 ½" wide, of one species with a moisture content of 6 - 9%. Joints must be tight and must be staggered in adjacent rows. Abbreviated as SLC. Also called wood core or lumber core.
Steel Door 📋 : An alternative to wooden doors, composed of molded steel filled with insulating foam.
Steel Stud Anchor 🪵 : A metal piece inside throat of frame used to secure frame to steel stud.
Sticking 📋 : The profile of the edge of the stile or rail that gives it definition and allows it to hold panels.
Sticks 📋 : Linear lengths of frame sections used for fabrication of transom/ sidelite frames.
STILE 📋 : The vertical edge of the door where door furniture is fixed. A thin stile i.e. one with a glass pane near the edge of the door may have implications for which backset can be used.
Stile & Rail 📋 : Doors made up of solid wood stiles and rails assembled around panels. Also known as panel doors. This is the way doors were made historically before flush doors were invented.
Stile & Rail Construction 🏗️ : Traditional method that allows for expansion and contraction while maintaining structure. Exterior doors with floating panels require extra attention to tolerances and weather sealing.
Stile and Rail 📋 : A model of door using stiles and rails either mitered or butted— corner joints welded and ground smooth—panel interlocks with stiles and rails and is provided with core or stiffeners—panel may be flush with (flush panel door) or recessed (recessed panel door) from faces of stiles and rails.
Stiles 📋 : The vertical edge of the door. Stiles may be fiberboard, fingerjoint, hardwood or softwood.
Stiles/Vertical Edges 📋 : The upright or vertical pieces of the core assembly of a wood flush door. Measurement. The width of the vertical edge/stile is measured at its widest side (the wide side of a beveled door).
Stool 📋 : Flat, interior trim member located at the sill of a window or door, typically extending into the room and horizontally beyond the extension jambs.
Stop 📋 : The strip of wood that prevents the door from swinging through the frame when a rabbeted jamb is not used.
Stop (Frame) 🔩 : The part of frame against which door closes.
Stop Moulding 📋 : Door stop moulding is attached to a door frame. It aligns the door panel within the frame and prevents the panel from swinging right through the opening.
Stormwatch® protection 📋 : An Andersen brand name for a series of upgrades you can specify to meet increased code performance in coastal areas. Check your local codes for performance requirements in your area.
Strap Hinges 📋 : Long, horizontal metal pieces attached to doors, typically decorative to mimic holding the door.
Strike 📋 : The leg of the door jamb or frame against which the lock side of the door swings. It is also the metal plate set into the strike leg of the jamb which catches the lock bolt to hold a door closed.
Strike Jamb 🔧 : A vertical piece of a door frame prepared for installation of lock strike.
Strike Plate 📋 : A metal plate attached to be flush with the door jamb that will receive the door bolt or the flush bolt, depending on location.
Strike Plates 📋 : Plates that the locking points (roller, tongue, round bolt, deadbolt or latch) lock into. Different strike plates are required for different versions of locking points and profile designs.
Strike/Strike Plate 🔩 : The metal piece attached to the door jamb. As the door closes, the latch mechanism strikes the plate mounted to the jamb and the strike plate catches the mechanism and holds the door closed. A metal plate fixed in or on a doorjamb where the lock or latch bolt engages when the door is closed.
Striker 🔩 : The part responsible for keeping the retractable insect screen door engaged in a locked position.
Structural Composite Lumber 📋 : Also known as glulam (glued laminated timer), it is an engineered lumber product made with 1" wide wood strands, bonded with Type 1 adhesives. It swells less than typical hardwoods or softwoods and is therefore superior to other solid cores as it minimizes telegraphing, warping or splitting. Abbreviated as SCL. Core, rails, and stiles for plastic laminates are often made from this material. Weyerhaeuser produces a laminated strand lumber product they call TimberStrand® within this category. Laminated veneer lumber is another type of engineered wood product that falls within this classification.
Stucco 🪵 : A cement plaster used to cover exterior wall surfaces; usually applied over a wood or metal lath base.
Substrate 📋 : Material on which glue is spread such as door core or the center plys in plywood.
Sun Glass 🪵 : Tinted glass that reduces heat gain.
SUSTAINABLE SOURCES 📋 : To use materials from sustainable sources means that for every resource used/harvested from the land, a replacement will be created. In the context of JB Kind doors, it means that our supply partners ensure that trees are planted to replace those harvested and that only plantation timber specifically grown for use as raw material is used.
T
T-Astragal 🔩 : astragal that has a cross-sectional shape of the letter T.
Telegraphing 📋 : The outline (and/or surface irregularities) of frame parts, core laps or voids, etc. that is visible through the face of the door. This is usually caused by differing moisture content in the separate core parts at lay-up time. Also called show-through.
Temperature Rise 📋 : The temperature increase above ambient that has developed on the unexposed face of the fire door assembly at the end of 30 minutes of exposure to the standard fire test. By definition fire doors must have a minimum fire rating of 30-minutes to also have a temperature rise rating. Typically wood doors will carry a temperature rise rating of 250°. Metal doors, with specialty core, will typically carry a temperature rise rating of 450° or 650°. The temperature rise rating will typically be void should doors have vision lights that exceed 100 square inches.
Tempered Glass 📋 : Treated glass that is strengthened by reheating it to just below the melting point, and then suddenly cooling it. When shattered, it breaks into small pieces. Approximately five times stronger than standard annealed glass; it is required as safety glazing in patio doors, entrance doors, sidelites, and other hazardous locations.
Textured 📋 : Refers to the visual or tactile surface of a door skins. This indicates that an artificial grain pattern has been embossed into the skin.
Textured Glass 🪵 : Any glass with a surface texture (frosted, etched, fluted, ground, etc.) used for privacy, light diffusion, or decorative effects.
Thermal Break 🏗️ : Solid wood provides a natural thermal barrier and good insulative value.
Threshold 📋 : A threshold is the protective cap that covers the sill. It is typically sloped toward the outside to help shed water. Thresholds are made of durable materials like metal or fiberglass because they need to be strong enough to withstand foot traffic.
Throat (Frame) 🔩 : The opening between backbends of frame.
Through Bolts 📋 : Hardware bolts which pass totally through a door and anchor on the back.
Throw 🔧 : Distance a deadbolt, tongue, roundbolt, etc. travel from beginning point to point of full extension.
Thumb Latch 📋 : A type of door handle that includes a lever to be pressed by the thumb to open the door.
Thumb Press 🔧 : The flat stub located above the handle on an entry set that disengages the latch bolt.
Thumb Turn 📋 : A deadbolt is operated by turning a thumb turn on the inside of a house and by a key cylinder on the exterior side.
Timber Alternative door 🚪 : A door made of UPVC that is foiled with a grained colour to make it look like a timber door.
Timely Frame 🔩 : Brand name of a prefinished steel door frame, for stud walls.
Tongue 🔧 : Triangular shaped locking point that retracts flush inside the faceplate until engaged, at which point it extends out to lock into a strike plate.
Top hung insect screen 📋 : An insect screen option for patio door units secured from the top, resulting in smoother operation.
Top mullion 🔩 : The vertical piece between the two uppermost panels of a door.
Top Rail 📋 : The horizontal piece that fits across the top of the door.
Toplight 📋 : A window above another window or door (see glossary entry fanlight).
Track & Hardware 📋 : The overhead track which a bifold moves and the hardware which installs it come included in every bifold Lynden Door sells. Heavy duty track and hardware is recommended for all solid core bifolds.
Transition Piece 🔩 : A decorative wood piece covers the joint between extension jambs or casings.
Transom 📋 : A window or panel above a door. It may be within a separate frame and may be hinged to open, allowing air passage (usually in older buildings before air conditioning).
Transom Bar 📋 : The part of a transom frame which separates the door area portion from the transom area portion.
Transom Frame 🔩 : A door frame having a panel, louver, sash or glass above door opening with or without transom bar.
Transom Lite 📋 : The glass panel(s), or glass window(s) that are mounted inside a transom.
Transom Panel 🛠️ : A panel installed in a frame above the door opening.
Trim 📋 : The finishing components, such as molding, which are applied around openings (doors frames) or at the floor and/or ceiling of rooms. They may also be applied to doors as plant-ons. The term also refers to the sizing of doors to their finished specific size with smoothly finished edges and easing of the faces.
Trim Hole 📋 : A hole drilled into the face of the door to allow for the application of hardware decorative trim at a later time.
Triple Pane 🪵 : Glass construction consisting of three (3) distinct layers of glass and two (2) air spaces.
Triple Window 🔩 : Three (3) casement or awning windows joined together with two (2) integral mullions; while each unit functions by itself, they are joined together for design purposes.
True Arch 📋 : A window or door whose top is curved in a radius equal to half the width of the product, for example, a true-arch window having a width of 3' would have a top rail outside radius of 1'6".
True Divided Light 🔩 : Windows and doors with multiple smaller glass lites framed in a single sash or panel.
True Divided Light (TDL) 📋 : Windows and doors in which multiple smaller glass lites are framed in a single sash or panel.
True Divided Lite 🪵 : Windows and doors that contain individual panes of glass and are assembled in the sash using muntins. Also known as TDL.
TruScene® insect screens 📋 : Unique to Andersen this patented micro-fine stainless steel mesh provides 50% more clarity than typical Andersen insect screen cloth.
Tubular Bolt 🔧 : A bolt that has a round cylinder hole in the door edge rather than a chiselled rectangular shape used for mortice locks.
Tubular Lock 🔧 : A lockset requiring bored (round) holes rather than a chiseled rectangular mortise door preparation.
Turn 🔧 : A small interior piece that can be turned with your finger and thumb to lock or unlock a door lock.
U
U-Factor 📋 : Commonly used measurement of heat transmission through a window or door; the lower the U-Factor, the better the insulating value.
U-value 📋 : The u-value is a measure of how easily heat can pass through the materials that make the door or window.
U-Value (Thermal Transmittance) 📋 : Measures how much heat passes through a window or door. Lower U-values = better insulation.
U-Value Rating ✅ : The thermal resistance performance of a door.
UG 🔩 : This term is used to refer to “no cylinder hole” on a backplate.
Ultraviolet Finish 📋 : A means to dry certain special kinds of paint almost instantly. Lynden uses this process on its bifold edge finishes. The finish is applied by rollers, then passed through an Ultraviolet drying oven which dries the finish as fast as the bifolds pass through the booth. Because of the possible hazard of continuous UV illumination to the eyes and skins, the drying oven is completely enclosed in a protective booth.
Undercut 📋 : The clearance between bottom of frame and bottom of door—The floor clearance may not be the same as the clearance between the bottom of the door and the finished floor—the floor clearance can only be determined after the finished floor material is in place.
Undercutting 📋 : Reducing the height of a door to allow for better clearance between finished flooring or carpeting and the bottom of door.
UNFINISHED 📋 : The door is supplied prepared ready for a top coat finish. E.g. varnish or paint.
Unit 🔧 : All parts needed to hang the door and/or sidelights. The parts include Jambs, Hinges, Weather-stripping, Casing, Brick mold, Threshold; Flush Bolts and a T-Astragal on double doors and a sweep on an in swing unit.
Universal Building Code 📋 : The set of regulations governing building and construction in North America. This code regulates fire door assemblies as well as other construction details.
uPVC Doors 🚪 : A rigid durable form of PVC which is often used for External Doors thanks to it’s ability to withstanding most weathering and being unable to rot thanks to its engineered construction.
V
Vapor barrier 📋 : Watertight material used to prevent moisture migration around windows and doors.
VE 🔧 : Abbreviation for “Value Engineered” – referring to value engineered door hardware or a value brand.
VENEER 📋 : A thin slice of timber used as a decorative material on the visible face of the door.
Vent Limiting Hardware 🔧 : A fixed device that limits the sash travel to a specific opening dimension. Vent-limiting hardware cannot be used on windows required for emergency escape and rescue because it requires tools or special knowledge to allow for emergency escape.
Ventilation Rate 📋 : Amount of air that can pass through a window opening. Critical for healthy indoor air quality.
Venting Unit 📋 : Window or door that opens and operates.
Viewer 📋 : A special piece of hardware placed into a door which allows the person inside to view outside the door without opening the door. Viewers are normally one way only, and cannot be used by a person standing outside the door.
Ving Card Lock 📋 : The most common type of electronic lock currently in use.
Vinyl 🪵 : Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) material that is very durable and corrosion-resistant.
Vision Lite 🔩 : A window inside of a door; frame inside of a door used to hold glass in place.
Vision Panel 📋 : Clear glass panel inserted into a door for visibility and safety.
W
Warp 📋 : Any distortion in the plane of a wood door itself and not in its relation to the jamb in which it is hung. Warp includes the following: Bow – A flatwise deviation from a straight line drawn from top to bottom; a curvature along the length of the door. Cup – A deviation from a straight line drawn from side to side; a curvature along the width of the door. Twist – A deviation in which one or two corners of the door are out of plane with the other corners of the door.
Weather Strip 📋 : A narrow strip that is flexible which surrounds the door to protect from moisture and air coming in when the door is closed.
Weather-stripping 📋 : On exterior doors, weather-stripping helps seal the gaps between a door frame and a closed-door panel, weather-stripping is typically made of a resilient, flexible material like silicone, rubber, or foam.
Weep holes 📋 : Small holes placed on the exterior of a window or door that allows for water drainage.
White Oak 🪵 : Strong, rot-resistant, and available in rift-sawn for a contemporary look.
Wicket Door 📋 : A standard size door with a small door in it. This small door can be opened and allow small articles to be passed through it without a person being able to go through. These doors are often used in post offices. They have usually been replaced by dutch doors.
Window Opening Control Device (WOCD) 🔩 : A device intended to restrict the opening dimension of a window when activated to less than 4-inches but can be disengaged to allow complete opening of the sash for escape and rescue but re-engages when the sash is closed such that the sash will open to a less than 4-inch dimension when opened again.
Window-Wall 🔩 : An exterior curtain wall using a frame containing windows that may be fixed or operable; glazing may be clear, tinted, or opaque.
Wire Glass 🔩 : A type of glass that has a grid or mesh of thin metal wire embedded within the glass.
Wood Selection 🏗️ : Quarter-sawn lumber is more stable than flat-sawn wood, reducing the risk of warping, and is often considered more aesthetically pleasing.
Wood Species 🚪 : Oak, Mahogany, Cherry.
Wrought Steel 🪵 : Steel that is worked to resemble the rustic hand craftsmanship of wrought iron, which is not commonly produced any more. Sign up for our email newsletter. Learn about our new product releases and exciting news.
B2B & Manufacturing Terms for Door Sourcing
When sourcing doors from Chinese factories, buyers frequently encounter the following trade and manufacturing terms:
What is MOQ in door manufacturing?
MOQ (Minimum Order Quantity) is the smallest number of door sets a factory will produce per order. For Chinese door manufacturers, MOQ typically ranges from 20 to 200 sets depending on door type, customization level, and factory size. Bestop Door Factory accepts MOQ from 50 sets for standard interior wooden doors.
What is the difference between OEM and ODM doors?
OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) means the factory produces doors to the buyer's exact specifications and brand. ODM (Original Design Manufacturer) means the factory provides its own designs that the buyer can rebrand. Most Chinese door factories offer both models — OEM for buyers with established product lines, ODM for buyers entering new markets.
What does FOB mean for door shipments?
FOB (Free On Board) means the seller delivers goods to the named port and loads them onto the vessel. The buyer assumes risk and cost from that point. For Chinese door factories, FOB Shanghai, FOB Ningbo, and FOB Guangzhou are the most common Incoterms. Compare with EXW (Ex Works), where the buyer handles all logistics from the factory gate.
What certifications should Chinese door factories hold?
Key certifications for B2B door sourcing from China include:
| Certification | Scope | Required For |
|---|---|---|
| ISO 9001 | Quality management system | General B2B qualification |
| FSC | Sustainable forest sourcing | EU/US eco-conscious buyers |
| CARB Phase 2 | Formaldehyde emissions (wood panels) | California, US market |
| CE Marking | European product safety | EU market entry |
| UL 10C / EN 1634 | Fire door performance | Commercial/hospitality projects |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a door slab and a pre-hung door?
A door slab is the door panel only, without frame or hardware. A pre-hung door comes with the door slab already mounted in a frame (jamb), with hinges attached and often a pre-drilled bore hole for the lockset. Pre-hung doors are faster to install but require a correctly sized rough opening. Slabs are used when replacing an existing door in a sound frame.
What is a solid core door vs. a hollow core door?
A solid core door has a continuous interior of wood composite, particleboard, or solid timber, providing better sound insulation (STC 28–34), fire resistance, and security. A hollow core door has a honeycomb or grid interior, making it lighter and less expensive but offering minimal acoustic or fire performance. Solid core doors are standard for commercial, hospitality, and premium residential projects.
What does 'fire rating' mean for doors?
A fire-rated door (also called a fire door) is tested to resist fire and smoke for a specified period — typically 20, 45, 60, or 90 minutes. Ratings are expressed as FD20, FD30, FD60, or FD90 (UK/EU standard EN 1634) or by UL listing (US standard). Fire doors must be installed with rated frames, hardware, and intumescent seals to maintain their certification.
What is a pivot door?
A pivot door rotates on a top and bottom pivot point rather than side hinges, allowing for oversized door panels (up to 3m wide, 4m+ tall) that would be impractical with conventional hinges. Pivot doors are popular in luxury residential and commercial architecture. Chinese factories typically manufacture pivot doors in solid wood, aluminum-clad wood, or full aluminum.
What wood species are commonly used for solid wood doors in China?
Chinese door factories commonly use American white oak, walnut, teak, sapele, ash, and pine for solid wood doors. Oak and walnut are premium choices for European and North American markets. Teak is preferred for humid climates due to its natural oil content. FSC-certified timber is available from most reputable factories for buyers requiring sustainable sourcing documentation.
What is an astragal on a double door?
An astragal is a vertical molding or T-shaped strip attached to one leaf of a double door to cover the gap between the two panels when closed. It provides a weather seal, light block, and security barrier. Astragals can be fixed (attached to one door) or overlapping (attached to both). They are required on fire-rated double doors to maintain the fire seal.
What is the difference between a barn door and a sliding door?
Both barn doors and sliding doors move horizontally on a track, but they differ in mounting and aesthetic. Barn doors hang on an exposed overhead track mounted to the wall surface, making them a visible design feature. Sliding doors typically run in a concealed track within the wall (pocket door) or in a recessed track, creating a cleaner look. Barn doors are a popular interior design trend; pocket sliding doors maximize space efficiency.
What does 'veneer' mean in door construction?
A veneer is a thin slice of real wood (typically 0.5–3mm) bonded to an engineered wood substrate (MDF, HDF, or LVL). Veneered doors offer the appearance of solid wood at lower cost and with greater dimensional stability. The veneer species (oak, walnut, teak, etc.) determines the visual character. High-quality veneers are book-matched or quarter-cut for premium grain patterns.
Source Doors from a Certified Chinese Factory
Bestop Door Factory (Zhejiang, China) has manufactured wooden doors for 15+ years, supplying buyers in 40+ countries. We hold ISO 9001, FSC, CARB Phase 2, and CE certifications. MOQ from 50 sets, lead time 25–35 days.
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This glossary is compiled from 23 industry sources including WDMA, Andersen Windows, Schlage, Emtek, TruDoor, and Marvin. Last updated: 2026.
Senior Export Manager, Bestop Door Factory
15+ years in door manufacturing & B2B export