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Glossary of DIY Home Improvement Terms - N

This page of our online a to z glossary of DIY home improvement terms is for do-it-yourself terms beginning with the letter 'N'.

• Nail punch - Pointed steel shaft used with hammer for driving nail heads just below surface of wood without damaging it.
• Needle - A stout wooden beam used with props to support the section of a wall above an opening prior to the installation of an RSJ or linrel.
• Neutral - The section of an electrical circuit that carries the flow of current back to source. or A terminal to which the connection is made.
• Neutral colors - White, black or greys.
• Newel - Post at top and bottom of staircase supporting the handrail.
• Nippers - Pincher tools with sharp cutting jaws. Nippers are often used for cutting tiles.
• Nogging - Short wooden rail spanning vertical members of a stud partition wall.
• Nominal size - The sawn size at which timber lengths are specified, not the finished size.
• Nosing - The rounded and projecting top edge of a stair tread.