Do you love a Do-It-Yourself (DIY) home project? If so, there are tons of acronyms to learn! Experienced DIYers may take for granted what HVAC stands for because, well, IYKYK. But while experienced fix-it types may LOL, we don’t want anyone to suffer FOMO. So, FYI, let’s get newbies up to speed PDQ, without TMI.
DIY acronyms aren’t dead letters
Let’s plunge right into our dictionary of acronyms:
- In electricity, you may hear of AC and DC and think to yourself, IDK, isn’t that a band? AC stands for alternating current, which means the electricity rapidly changes direction in alternating cycles, forward and backward. This is the best way to deliver electricity over long distances. Thus, power companies deliver electricity over miles of power wires via AC. DC, or direct current, means power flows in only one direction, which works best over short distances. Electrical devices around your home use direct current.
- HVAC, BTW, refers to your home’s heating and air system and stands for heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning.
- PVC pipes are made from a plastic called polyvinyl chloride. Virtually every house built in the U.S. in the last 50 years uses PVC pipes.
- PEX is the new innovation in plumbing, and it stands for polyethylene, which has crosshatches embedded in it for strength, thus the X in the name. PEX is a huge improvement in plumbing because it is more flexible than PVC, doesn’t need gluing, and expands when water in the PEX line freezes, thus avoiding bursting in a freeze, as PVC is prone to do.
- On virtually every electrical device, you will find a label that says UL. That stands for Underwriters Laboratories, the Illinois-based testing agency that sets the standards for the safe manufacturing of all things electrical in America.
- PSI stands for pounds per square inch and is used to measure pressure in air and water hoses, tires, and other items where gases or liquids are pumped.
So now you’re on the DL with home-fix-it acronyms. TBH, there’s probably some we missed, but we’ll look into it and BRB.
Related – Don’t Try This At Home: Dangerous and Illegal DIY Projects
