Showing posts with label advice to homeowners. Show all posts
Showing posts with label advice to homeowners. Show all posts

SECRETS of APPLIANCE REPAIRMEN: A CONSUMERS HANDBOOK ON SAVING MONEY Review

SECRETS of APPLIANCE REPAIRMEN: A CONSUMERS HANDBOOK ON SAVING MONEY
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I guess I should have read the publisher's blurb more carefully. There wasn't anything in this that I didn't already know or couldn't find in the handbook that comes with the related appliances.

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There are dozens of repair manuals and books that explain how to repair almost anything on an appliance. This book is not one of them. You won?t learn how to repair timers or switches or anything else in this book. You will learn the principle that makes a dryer dry, what makes it take too long to dry, and what to do about it. the same holds true with a refrigerator that doesn?t get cold enough, and what to look for, and how to correct the problem. All appliances are covered in the book. If you save just one service call to your home, the book will have paid for itself. You will also learn how to purchase an appliance, what to look for in add ons (gadgets) that you don?t need, where to buy. You are also going to learn how to get qualified technician when you need one, and what to do once he or she arrives at your house.

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Home Improvement 101 Review

Home Improvement 101
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This is helping me a lot as I am just beginning to learn about my home, how to take care of it & how to make minor repairs. I reviewed quite a few books from my library system & this was the best to begin with as far as I'm concerned.

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Everyday care & repair is made easy with this maintenance guide for the DIY novice.Home Improvement 101 is an easy-to-understand but comprehensive guide to common home maintenance and repair tasks, written specifically for less experienced do-it-yourselfers.
From cleaning stains from carpets to unclogging drains, from dealing with insects and pests to fixing a leaky roof, it's all here-everything you forgot to learn from your parents about maintaining a home. Along the way, you'll learn about your home's structures and systems, and how to protect your single largest investment. Home maintenance is not only possible; it can be easy and rewarding, with this one-of-a-kind book.Gives complete, easy-to-follow solutions to more than 100 of the most common home maintenance tasks. Includes tips on selecting and using tools. Appendix includes a month-by-month guide for tracking routine maintenance. Includes real-life tips from actual homeowners. Features tips for working with plumbers, electricians & carpenters.

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Home Inspection Troubleshooter Review

Home Inspection Troubleshooter
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The book provided great hints and advice to a variety of specific home inspection subjects. The book by itself is not or intended as a full do it yourself guide. I purchased this book as a reference and to get additional insight and ideas.
I found it easy to read and very enjoyable.

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If you're about to buy or sell a home, having it inspected first can save you time and money. The Home Inspection Troubleshooter can help you quickly determine if your house is in shape, and if not, what to do about it.Written in factual, entertaining style, this book is the key to understanding the home inspection process.It is a must read for sellers, buyers, and landlords who need to detect problems before they become expensive.

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The Complete Idiot's Guide to Trouble-Free Home Repair (2nd Edition) Review

The Complete Idiot's Guide to Trouble-Free Home Repair (2nd Edition)
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This book is great. It talks about tools and techniques for all kinds of home repairs. It recommends what tools everyone needs for basic repairs, and which tools are useful but aren't necessary. If you are a first-time homeowner like I am, and you've never had to deal with this subject before, this is your book.

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You're no idiot, of course.You can stick a bucket underneath a dripping ceiling with breathtaking precision and tape cardboard over a broken window like you were born to the craft.But when it comes to real home repair challenges, your handiwork begins and ends with the call you make to your carpenter or plumber.Don't pack up your toolbox yet!The Complete Idiot's Guide to Trouble-Free Home Repair, Second Edition is your total guide to diagnosing and fixing the most basic home-repair problems yourself.In this completely revised and updated Complete Idiot's Guide, you get:

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The Consumer Advocate's Guide to Home Inspection: Avoiding the Nightmare of Purchasing a Money Pit Review

The Consumer Advocate's Guide to Home Inspection: Avoiding the Nightmare of Purchasing a Money Pit
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The first 120 pages of the book do nothing but drone on and on about why you should get a home inspection done and about the legal liabilities of the inspectors. I think most people who've bought the book have probably already decided to use an inspector and don't need to be told through 120 pages that they should!
Every other page is a reprint of a question that someone had sent him in his newspaper articles and are mostly redundant.
For example, he'll tell you that in most parts of the country Inspectors don't consider swimming pools to be part of the inspection. He'll then use up a full page for a q&a letter that says, "Barry, I recently got an inspection done and the inspector didn't include the swimming pool in the report. Wasn't he supposed to do this?".
I consider all of the Q&A letters to be redundant and insulting my intelligence by assuming I need the point repeated like a preschooler. It is nothing more than filler so that you won't realize you are buying what is essentially a 75 page book that is nothing more than a checklist.
Lastly, once the interesting part of the book commences (the checklist) he puts up pictures of common problems. The problem is that the pictures are black and white and are so small that you can't even see what the problem he's describing in the picture actually looks like!
In short, I think you could find the checklists you need for free on the internet and skip this book. It is nothing like what I expected based on the title.

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Find the dangers are lurking inside your new home. Put ""The House Detective"" on the Case! 100% of home inspections reveal either a series of defects or safety hazards. And every home inspection can result in a renegotiation of the terms of sale, that is, if homebuyers understand their options. Barry Stone, author of the definitive guide on this issue, The Consumer Advocate's Guide to Home Inspection, can offer the knowledge you need in order to understand how to benefit from the home inspection process.

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Help, It's Broken: A Fix-It Bible for the Repair Impaired Review

Help, It's Broken: A Fix-It Bible for the Repair Impaired
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This book covers everything and the author has a great sense of humor throughout. It reads well and is the first home-repair book that is easy to understand

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No matter where you live and whether you rent or own, one day you'll wake up in the morning and something will be broken.This book will come in handy to avoid panic and home repair disasters because a good reference guide is just what you need when there's a geyser in your living room.Count on this manual to tell you what to do or who to call to get the mess fixed.This useful book includes chapters on: Walls, Doors, Windows and Floors; Electricity; Appliances; Plumbing; Heat and Ventilation; Pests; Frugal Fixing and more.Each section is illustrated and explains the basics of how things operate before detailing how to fix them in a few easy steps.It also teaches you not only how to fix things yourself but also how to get someone who knows what they're doing to fix things for you and what questions to ask.This quick and informative guide can save you thousands of dollars and a lot of hassle. From unclogging drains to expelling rodents, from repairing stained carpet to fixing your dishwasher, you can depend on this book in any number of household catastrophes.Even if you can barely tell a nut from a bolt, Help! It's Broken is your quick reference guide for all home-repair solutions. Consider it a toolbox essential.

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Homeowner Basics (Black & Decker Complete Photo Guide) Review

Homeowner Basics (Black and Decker Complete Photo Guide)
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It turned to be very useful for us - first time homeowners. Our house was a foreclosure, so there were tons of things to fix about it. This book has information on basic repairs such as repairing a light fixture, fixing pipes, replacing toilets, installing faucets, painting tips, new floor installation, gutters, etc. etc. The photos are detailed, description is simple. We definitely recommend it.

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New help for new homeowners
Homeowners who are ready to remodel, just moving in, or ready to tackle their first DIY repair will find Black & Decker The Complete Photo Guide for New Homeowners indispensable. Filled with easy-to-follow projects for all of the most common repairs and installations homeowners confront, this is the essential guide for readers with little to no do-it-yourself experience.
This book is carefully tailored for the needs of homeowners new to the art of home repair and maintenance.Each section includes an overview of the topic; including information on common tools and materials, overall house systems, and how to evaluate different situations. Then specific projects start with a list of common terms and a photographed list of the tools and materials needed for the project at hand. Detailed, step-by-step photo instructions follow.

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Black & Decker The Complete Photo Guide to Home Improvement: More Than 200 Value-adding Remodeling Projects (Black & Decker Complete Photo Guide) Review

Black and Decker The Complete Photo Guide to Home Improvement: More Than 200 Value-adding Remodeling Projects (Black and Decker Complete Photo Guide)
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Black & Decker brings a great how to and home improvement manual from the experts with plenty of step by step photos with the necessary in depth techniques to guide you through plenty of common projects.
Contents 23/25
Ease of Understanding/Practicality 24/25
Pictures/Illustrations 24/25
Additional Features 21/25
Total 92/100
Black & Decker brings a great home improvement and do it yourself manual with The Complete Photo Guide to Home Improvement. The book starts with techniques and skills for all kinds of home improvements and finishes with complete remodeling jobs that you can tackle.
They give great detailed photos to help you understand things they are doing as well as guide you in text to give you a detailed and in depth explanation of each topic. They continue from the basics to more complex tools and new materials and techniques that may not be common in building but soon will be.
From electrical to plumbing they take you on a safe tour of your home and give not only basic techniques but the continuation into projects helps you out with some common things you may want to do to your home. Projects include bathroom and kitchen remodeling, attic and basement finishing and a host of other common do it yourself projects to give you a good broad range of ideas and help.
The Complete Photo Guide to Home Improvement takes you not only into common practices in these projects but covers enough of a variety in each project that will cover the variety that will happen with your home. They cover enough of a broad range in each project so you can have a good idea of what you want in any given area of your home from remodeling and installing new counters, plumbing, fixtures, electrical and more.
The first chapter includes Anatomy of a House, Building Codes and Permits, Working Safety and more to get you in the mood for home improvement projects. The next chapter is on techniques and you move onto home improvement basics and then to major remodeling for an in depth look at projects you can accomplish.
The book goes from tools and planning with how to get the proper permits you need for work on your home to the actual steps to get the job done. Once you get into the actual work the book has plenty of tips and hints for odd circumstances that can crop up in jobs to help you out as well.
The books use of pictures makes sure you know what you're doing on a reference job so that once you get to your own work on your house you can have plenty of references. Simple examples like cutting a hole in an exterior wall shows how to do this on wood sided and stucco walls which will cover older homes.
Other sections also have these general tips on various types of materials and construction types to help you out in many general circumstances so you can work on your own home. This is a major benefit to the Complete Photo Guide with its step by step process of doing projects and improvements like installing a window.
The book shows on two different wall types how to cut the hole in the wall so you do the same on most any type of wall in your home. They also go into the safety of checking the wall for plumbing and electrical to give you a step by step guide for how to do the same thing on your home.
The Complete Guide does the same thing for all types of projects from simple things like adding an outlet or light fixture to complete jobs like finishing an attic or basement. While many of the projects are pretty specific like the attic finishing you can complete other jobs that are similar using many of the same principles and ideas.
The guide shows you how to do many jobs or projects including cutaway photos and general anatomy of a home so you can use these guides and photos on your own project or home improvement. The book also contains plenty of useful tips and hints like tools for special jobs or handy ways to make jobs go safer and easier.
This is one book that is a helpful and handy reference to keep on your bookshelf for jobs around the home to help you when things go wrong as well. The book contains plumbing and electrical guides so you can troubleshoot problems you may be having as well as the normal way things should be done.
I really like how they show various ways to do things according to different situations and materials that may be in a home or project so you have many different circumstances and jobs covered in one complete guide. I highly recommend this as an all in one guide and photo step by step book to help you with a lot of home improvement projects.
This is one handy reference for those times when some explanation of homes and their various systems may be needed and makes a fantastic home improvement manual. This is a great book to have on hand and use not only for home improvement projects but just to have for reference for electrical, heating and plumbing problems that may occur in the common home.

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This comprehensive bible of remodeling information and projects focuses on the significant projects that help homeowners add real value to their homes while bettering their lifestyles. Unlike other books, The Complete Photo Guide to Home Improvement isn't diluted with basic home repairs, but gives readers foolproof instructions on more than 200 blockbuster home remodeling projects.


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How Your House Works: A Visual Guide to Understanding & Maintaining Your Home Review

How Your House Works: A Visual Guide to Understanding and Maintaining Your Home
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I bought this and two other "visual guide to your home" books from Amazon. This book is by far the best of the lot. I can't say enough good things about it. Here's why:
1. CURRENCY AND COVERAGE. Published in 2007, it's the most current title, and covers modern home fixtures better than the others. It's also very comprehensive in it's coverage
2. QUALITY. The diagrams and cutaways are highly detailed, and the best that I've seen - they're also full color, compared to the black and white in other books.
3. CLARITY AND ORGANIZATION. The explanations are straightforward and insight, with just enough detail to understand home systems.
4. TROUBLESHOOTING TIPS. Every topic includes a sidebar containing "Before hiring a professional" troubleshooting tips. They explain the 2 to 3 most likely problems with the system, along with the solutions. I just used this book to troubleshoot our malfunctioning garbage disposal. The troubleshooting tip was 100% right. I made the fix in 2 minutes and saved $180+ on the cost of replacing the disposal. The book just paid for itself 10 times over.
I have 30+ books on home building. This one has a special place on my bookshelf. If you own a house, buy this book. You'll thank me the first time you have the satisfaction of fixing something that goes wrong!

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Why is my faucet leaking, my toilet running, or my dishwasher refusing to start? Can I fix it myself? What's causing the heating system to smell bad or the foundation to crack? Do I need an air filtration system? Is the new "engineered lumber" as good as conventional wood? These are just a few examples of questions homeowners face when repairs are needed, or when a new house or addition is being planned.
There's no question that it pays to be an informed consumer. Knowledge of your home's systems helps you control repair and construction costs and make sure the correct elements are being installed or replaced.
This book uncovers the mysteries behind just about every major appliance and building element in your house. Clear, "exploded" drawings show you exactly how these things should be put together and how they function – what to check if they don't work, and what you can do that might save you having to call in a professional.
The easy-to-understand pictures and explanations on every page get right to the point, helping you understand how things work, what can go wrong, and how to trouble-shoot a problem.
FEATURES:
Virtually everything in your house is included:
Electrical – circuit breakers and grounding, service, outlets, lamps and fixtures.
Heating and air conditioning – gas, electrical and oil - ductwork and piping, thermostats, central and window AC units, humidifiers and dehumidifiers, and air filtering systems.
Plumbing – kitchen and bath fixtures, piping, water heaters, traps and vents, septic tanks, pumps and water softener systems – even sprinkler systems and swimming pool filters/heaters.
Major household appliances – from kitchen to laundry.
Foundation, framing, doors and windows – including issues like drainage and radon, types of framing and how it supports the house, and all types of doors and windows.


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Black & Decker The Complete Photo Guide to Home Repair: with 350 Projects and 2000 Photos (Black & Decker Complete Photo Guide) Review

Black and Decker The Complete Photo Guide to Home Repair: with 350 Projects and 2000 Photos (Black and Decker Complete Photo Guide)
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There are certain skills that are "wasted" on no one. Home repair is one such skill. I believe that 5 weeks after purchasing this book - the book has already paid for itself. My parents moved back into my grandmother's 1960-era house after she passed away last year. The house was in need of a few repairs, but money was a limiting factor. I had to find a way to teach myself (and my dad) how to weatherproof the basement, replacing an ancient water heater & dishwasher, replace several outlets with new GFCI (p. 397!) outlets, and finally, how to update the upstair's faucets and fixtures. I logged onto Amazon.com and typed-in HOME REPAIR. To be honest, I chose this book because it had 500+ pages and two 5-star reviews. When this book arrived, I instantly felt the weight and quality of the binding.(think college textbook material) I quickly found DETAILED descriptions of the tasks I would soon have to perform. I called my father and said "Get ready we're going to Home Depot!" On the phone, my father expressed concern over our lack of experience. When my father got in my truck, I handed him the the Black&Decker text. I had put PostIt's on the pages with our projects. He slipped on his glasses and peered through his bi-focals and didn't say a word on the way to purchase tools & supplies. Once in the parking lot, I could hardly turn-off the engine before he was pointing to pictures saying "Ours looks just like this! I want some gloves like that!" And he was making a bee-line for the door!(the old man can move!) He was excited and so was I. Now, it has beeen 5 weeks since that first trip to Home Depot. Both my father and I have the cuts and scrapes and the ever present sore backs to prove that we have done our own home repairs. My father now keeps the Black&Decker text at his house "for safe keeping." He cleans the text with a moist cloth after each project. The projects don't seem to have an end in sight, which I believe is a direct result of my dad reading the text for "suggestions." My suggestion....don't let anyone "borrow" this text, unless of course - you love him!

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Home Maintenance For Dummies Review

Home Maintenance For Dummies
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This is a GREAT book for first-time buyers or for people who never learned what should be done to your home to keep it in good shape.
The book is well organized and has two main sections, indoor maintenance and outdoor maintenance. The book also includes nice graphical guides for those of us (me!) that need more than your basic instructions. Another great feature of the book are montly to-do's, to keep you on track throughout the year.
However, by far, the best thing about the book is it has saved me money! There are things outlined in the book that I thought I would have to pay someone to do, but realized how simple they really were and was able to do them myself!

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A hands-on, step-by-step guide to properly maintaining your home

Your home requires regular maintenance to operate safely and efficiently. The expert advice in this second edition of Home Maintenance For Dummies can help you save literally thousands of dollars each year by showing you how to perform home maintenance yourself!
This new edition provides the latest tips on how to tune up your home and make repairs to every room of the house, from basement to attic. By combining step-by-step instructions and expert information, this practical guide gives you the skills to tackle everything from furnace tune-ups to leaky roofs. You'll also learn how to conduct routine inspections, keep major appliances running efficiently, and increase energy efficiency.
Shows how to keep your home in tip-top shape, preserve its value, and avoid costly repairs
Covers all rooms of the house, in addition to the roof, foundation, and exterior
Explains how to keep all home systems and major appliances running smoothly
Includes a seasonal maintenance schedule
Provides the latest green maintenance options to help lower your utility bills

James Carey and Morris Carey have a radio show, a newspaper column, and a Web site, all called On the House, and appear regularly on CBS News Saturday Morning. They are also the authors of Home Remodeling For Dummies
If you've always wanted to tackle home repairs like a pro, Home Maintenance For Dummies, 2nd Edition is your ideal resource!

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