The Visual Handbook of Building and Remodeling, 3rd Edition Paperback – December 8, 2009

I am very impressed with this book. The name "The Visual Handbook of Building And Remodeling" pretty much says it all. This book, which is approximately 1 inch thick and printed on high-quality paper, is beautifully illustrated with hundreds of full-color, isometric, and cross-sectional views of just about anything to do with the construction of a building. There are page after page of design guidelines including dimensions of just about any room in a home. Diagrams and dimensions of walks, ramps, level changes, kitchens and seating are clearly illustrated including the recommended dimensions. Brick sizes, brick veneer construction and various brick building tables are included. The cross-sections of every construction detail are clearly drawn with each part distinctly labeled. Table after table of easily understood joists and rafter dimensions, allowable spans, truss construction of various types with tables and again clearly illustrated. There are chapters on roofing, with asphalt,cedar and other shingles and flashings. Plumbing fittings are illustrated along with water wells and pumps, PVC pipe, sizing drain pipe, roughing in and dimensions. "Meet the Code", including a partial list of the requirements from the 2006 international residential code are included for many of the trades. There is also excellent coverage of electrical wiring for residential buildings including conduit, switches, lights, tables and cross-sections of each of these. I have only touched on the surface of what's available in this book. If you're planning to build a home from the ground up or just planning to do a little remodeling in a few rooms, you will find this book well worth the investment. Even a building contractor would find some useful advice and perhaps a few new ideas contained in this excellent book.

Great Product!!

Must have for a DIY project/person. Historically, I've spent countless hours researching how to do some house related project online and how to not goof it, plus meet code. I wish now I would have forked over the money much earlier in my life and bought this book. It's a one stop shop for MANY aspects of DIY work around the house. I'm using it now to help with a bathroom remodel and to study for Homeowner's permit tests through my local county building department which will hopefully allow me to pull my own electrical and plumbing permits.Regardless of the outcome of the tests, this is still a great reference source which will save me many hours in the future of searching through online forums, discounting the garbage some folks post, and ultimately I'll read the correct answer the first time in the book. I have NOT yet read it cover-to-cover, but from the number of pages I have read, it's very easy to read and has plenty of pictures and tables to help aid understanding.

This is a very well written and perfectly illustrated book. Much of what is presented is interested even though a lot of it will be never used. This seems more like a book for having information for making choices.If you are a novice I do not think you can actually complete any task in this book safely, their is not a lot of information. It is good for general housing codes but not necessarily in your home county. However it is a very good reference book on a huge amount of facts that can be very useful.If you are an experienced DIY this may be all you need to complete a lot of the task because the pictures and illustrations are superb. It will take me time to see how useful this book will be because it does have a lot of pages within its binders. It is certainly worth more than the asking price.

I am enjoying this read. It covers most topics. Maybe not to the fullest but I just got it today. I feel it covers each topic to decent basic requirements and mentions code expectations when it can. I would recommend this as a read to familiarize the DIYer with what they may have forgotten or didn't know before you dive in. Certainly can't hurt to brush up on whatever area of a home you will journey into for repairs or improvements.

I was considering undertaking the daunting task of doing an addition but had no experience. I started off with The Complete Guide to Contracting Your Home by Kent Lester which is a great place to start since it helps with writing up contracts, dealing with subs, etc... that this book does not. Not being in the trade though, I had a hard time visualizing what was being described even with the use of Google images. This book made it all clear though with many, many very clear and professionally done images that even a layman such as myself could understand. Even the design elements were a huge help. I think this book fills a need for one source that explains the ins and outs of the home building process that is very understandable. I wish I would have read it even before starting the addition just to understand the inner workings of my home.

This book is great! It has multiple pics showing the correct way to build, not just the written codes. I referred to it often even though I bought the current code book from a different publisher. The examples were very helpful as I have been retrofitting my 130 year old farm house. I wish I had bought this publisher's current code. See my review of the DeWalt code book.

I am a licensed residential builder specializing in remodeling, so I have quite a bit of knowledge of building practices. With that being said, Charlie Wing does an excellent job illustrating precisely how the entire process works. This book is an indispensable tool when showing an employee how to do something, as a picture is easily worth 1000 words. Every individual building trade will benefit from seeing how the house ultimately assembles as a whole, not just each individual trade.This book, and "The Visual Handbook of Energy Conservation", also by Charlie Wing, are both excellent and well worth the cost.