A Consumer's Guide to Home Improvement, Renovation, and Repair, Revised Edition [Library Binding]

The Enterprise Foundation (Author), Robert M. Santucci (Author), Brooke C. Stoddard (Author), Peter Werwath (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 3, 1995

"An invaluable guide for contractors, consumers, and tradespeople. There's an enormous supply of sound advice, proven renovation ideas and handy insights."—Bill Ellingsworth Senior Staff Vice President National Association of Home Builders

"The remodeling industry in this country is thriving, and this book is chock full of clear explanations of how those remodeling methods and materials work."—Forrest Wilson, Ph.D. Senior Editor, Architecture

Completely updated to reflect changes in the cost of materials and labor, this is the book that will save you money, worry, and headaches, whether you're reshingling a roof, remodeling your kitchen, rewiring the basement, or adding a new wing to your house. Whether you do the job yourself, hire tradespeople, or work with a contractor, this comprehensive guide enables you to compare and select the smartest solution for virtually any home improvement or repair project. You'll learn how to:

• Evaluate the level of skill needed to complete the project
• Assess the relative cost, durability, and ease of use of a wide variety of building materials
• Compare costs of over 300 options with and without a contractor
• Manage repair people and contractors like an expert

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

The Enterprise Foundation (of which this book's authors are members), as part of its "mission" to promote affordable housing, consulted with renovation experts from across the country in compiling this guide. The result is a mostly conventional run-down of repairs, renovations, and remodeling projects likely to face the average homeowner. As a cost guide, this fails to measure up to something as detailed as the Means Home Improvement Cost Guide , edited by William D. Mahoney & others (LJ 12/1/85). What it does well, however, is lay out cost options in an easy-to-follow format that summarizes the cost/value trade-offs related to choice of materials. The book also compares the contracted cost to the cost of the do-it-yourself approach (some of the latter costs are sometimes unrealistically low). Still, because of its cost comparisons, this will be a worthwhile selection for public libraries. BOMC alternate selection.
-Bill Demo, Tompkins Cortland Community Coll., Dryden,
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From the Back Cover

"An invaluable guide for contractors, consumers, and tradespeople. There's an enormous supply of sound advice, proven renovation ideas and handy insights."—Bill Ellingsworth Senior Staff Vice President National Association of Home Builders

"The remodeling industry in this country is thriving, and this book is chock full of clear explanations of how those remodeling methods and materials work."—Forrest Wilson, Ph.D. Senior Editor, Architecture

Completely updated to reflect changes in the cost of materials and labor, this is the book that will save you money, worry, and headaches, whether you're reshingling a roof, remodeling your kitchen, rewiring the basement, or adding a new wing to your house. Whether you do the job yourself, hire tradespeople, or work with a contractor, this comprehensive guide enables you to compare and select the smartest solution for virtually any home improvement or repair project. You'll learn how to: Evaluate the level of skill needed to complete the project Assess the relative cost, durability, and ease of use of a wide variety of building materials Compare costs of over 300 options with and without a contractor Manage repair people and contractors like an expert

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Library Binding: 288 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; Revised Edition edition (April 3, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0471118729
• ISBN-13: 978-0471118725
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,035,920 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Most useful in evaluation the options of having someone else, August 30, 2000

By 

Jim Carson "http://www.jimcarson.com" (Bellevue, WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Consumer's Guide to Home Improvement, Renovation, and Repair, Revised Edition (Library Binding)

do the work.

This is not a "how to" book as much as it is a "consider the options" book. The "Consumer's Guide" covers the basic home repair and improvement tasks, but offers beter insight into what these costs contracted versus do-it-yourself AND the relative difficulty level.

For example, they examine different options for water heaters: gas and electric, tank and tankless, as well as heat pump. They note that gas heaters cost more to install, but you'll usually save the amount in the utility bill.

They offer insight into add-on options. For example, an insulation jacket (for the above water heater) is worth considering if your exterior walls aren't well-insulated (<R7) or your heater is in a cold area.