New Complete Do-It-Yourself Manual [Hardcover]

Editors of Reader's Digest (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 1, 1991

The most complete and authoritative home repair manual ever published, this book is the yard-stick by which all other books on do-it-yourself are measured. The definitive guide to home repair, maintenance, and improvement. Over 4,000 illustrations.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This complete revamping of what is perhaps the champion of do-it-yourself guides, surveying almost everything under your roof and some of what lies beyond, has managed to retain all of its classic virtues without adding unnecessary pages. Rewritten, redesigned and newly illustrated, the upgraded edition also includes more color, improving the legibility of its explanatory drawings. New materials, techniques and tools are examined and explained with Reader's Digest 's customary clarity and thoroughness. For example, a chapter on electricity discusses track lighting, ceiling fans and telephones; the consumer who wonders what's going on inside his phone can see exactly what it looks like and consider how to deal with minor adjustments and repairs. The volume is also geared to the new breed of homeowners who admit to some degree of manual incompetence. They can learn how to deal with professionals without feeling intimidated and how to untangle the proper codes and regulations for major work. $400,000 ad/promo.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

This profusely color-illustrated volume is an excellent update to the popular Reader's Digest Complete Do-It-Yourself Manual (Reader's Digest Assn., dist. by Random, 1973). The book's intended audience is the occasional do-it-yourselfer with basic to intermediate skills. The coverage is comprehensive, though not overly detailed. Each chapter profiles a particular component of "doing it yourself," and discusses emergency repairs, various tools, fasteners, and building materials before moving into procedures on "how to use." User safety and environmental protection are stressed throughout. The format of the book lends itself to exploration. This update is recommended for public and academic libraries owning the original and desiring a worthy successor, or for those with interest in the area.
- Alex Hartmann, Bloomsburg Univ. Lib., Pa.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 528 pages
• Publisher: Readers Digest; Rei Sub edition (September 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0895773783
• ISBN-13: 978-0895773784
• Product Dimensions: 11 x 8.5 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (47 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #179,633 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

91 of 91 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book February 7, 2001

By Karen L. Hunter

Format:Hardcover

I love this book. It's extensive, easy to follow and copiously illustrated. With it, I can tackle most small-and-medium jobs around the home (even plumbing, my personal bugaboo. New faucet? No problem!) Without it, I'd be stuck having to call someone in and paying good money to have the work done. This book is a great resource for homeowners (or even renters) and is all the home repair and improvement manual that many people would ever need.

The book is broken into sections, organized by the type of work they cover. There's a chapter on Electrical, one on Plumbing, one on Power Tools, etc. The Emergency Repairs section at the beginning of the book could be invaluable in making your home safe and habitable if necessary until a professional can come in to make permanent repairs.

88 of 89 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars A great reference for the homeowner August 30, 2000

By Jim Carson

Format:Hardcover

This book is extremely good at presenting a given home repair task to the novice and covers most of what you'll ever need to do to your home.

It gives a general listing of the types of tools you'll use and includes some incredibly useful tricks of the trade like how to hide nail heads (aka "blind nailing") and using wedges of wood to prevent pry bars from destroying more than you want.

I especially like the supplementary material it provides. For example in the electrical section, it talks about how electricity is typically wired in a home. It further offers guidelines on such things as the number of receptaccles per (15 amp) circuit and how a layout of circuits might look around your home.

A minor nit is the book lacks is a way to estimate how appropriate a given task is for you. For example, they talk about installing and removing a bathtub, but don't include any conventional warning like "Are you out of your mind?" or "Maybe you should not attempt this." (Removing and installing bathtubs is considered to be both time consuming and labor intensive.)

Overall, this is a great reference book for the homeowner and provides great diagrams and descriptive text of tasks you may soon need to attempt.

89 of 93 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Very helpful September 16, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Hardcover

This book is GREAT for the beginning do-it-yourselfer. It assumes that you know next to nothing, which is a good place to start. It's very thorough, starting with tools and how to use them and going through all the components of your house. The one thing it doesn't cover is landscaping/gardening, but there are millions of books about that. It won't teach you how to build your own house, but it has just about everything you need to maintain and improve one.

This book will give you the confidence to take on most home projects yourself. (And, hopefully, the skills to do so as well...)