How Your House Works


Book Description

The updated and highly illustrated guide to understanding how just about everything in your house works! The revised and updated third edition of How Your House Works is a hands-on guide that gives you the low-down on why your faucet is leaking, your dishwasher is overflowing, or your furnace is on the fritz. This comprehensive book is your reference to virtually everything in your house with richly illustrated explanations of electrical systems, heating and air conditioning, plumbing, major household appliances, foundation, framing, doors, and windows. This must-have book answers most questions homeowners face when repairs are needed or when a new house or addition is in your future. How Your House Works is filled with easy-to-understand illustrations that show how things should be put together and how they function. The book also highlights issues outside the house as well as clock thermostats, ventless gas heaters, moisture and mold, and passive solar heating. Using the illustrations and the author’s clear explanations might save you the expense of calling a professional. This invaluable guide: Offers a colorful resource to home electrical systems, HVAC, plumbing, major household appliances, foundation, framing, doors and windows, sustainability, and much more Includes easy-to-follow information for troubleshooting problems Contains dozens of new full-color illustrations Presents new chapters on solar power and smart home technologies Helps homeowners save money on many common household repairs Written for homeowners with little or no knowledge of home maintenance or repair, How Your House Works is your illustrated and updated guide to understanding how appliances, electrical, plumbing, heating, air conditioning, and more work!




The Home Book


Book Description

Homeowner maintenance reference manual including 380 residential workmanship guidelines covering conditions and maintenance for topics including: floors and ceilings; roofs and gutters; foundations and basements; interior/exterior components; grounds; utility systems; and walls. Homeowner and builder maintenance responsibilities are stated along with the performance guideline and additional information for each topic. Green home construction is also covered.




Black & Decker The Complete Photo Guide Homeowner Basics


Book Description

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.







How to Buy Your Home


Book Description




The Wall Street Journal. Complete Home Owner's Guidebook


Book Description

Your Map for a Brave New Real-Estate World The days of real-estate mania—when you really couldn’t go wrong with buying a home, then selling it in a few years for a lot more than you paid for it—are over. Inflated prices and the “subprime” mortgage crisis have finally burst the bubble. Now, more than ever, it’s important for current and prospective home buyers to understand just what they’re getting into when they take that plunge—and to think smarter when it comes to making the most of their biggest asset. The Wall Street Journal. Complete Home Owner’s Guidebook shows readers how to become savvy home buyers—and eventually owners—not only in this new, uncertain era but in any market: • Understand the benefits and pitfalls of owning versus renting • Make sense of the housing market—ask the important questions, factor in the unforeseen costs, and explode the big myths of home ownership • Take advantage of current opportunities if you’re a first-time home buyer • Overcome the challenges if you’re looking to trade up or cash out on your home for retirement • Make the best profit on your home in any market • Understand why your home—your number one asset—really isn’t such a great investment From the Trade Paperback edition.




The Homeowner's Energy Handbook


Book Description

Discusses renewable energy resources and provides instructions for creating energy-saving and energy-producing equipment.




The Homeowner's Guide to Greatness


Book Description

Owning a home is a constant adventure filled with infinite challenges. To succeed, it's important to keep an open mind and to think creatively. In these pages, learn new ways to make use of your mortgage agreement (i.e. as a stepping stool), how to pick through other people's garbage for furnishings, and exactly what you should do if a tree falls on your house. You might be surprised to learn what your design choices say about you and interested to discover just how easy it is to catch poison ivy. This is an excellent and humorous tool for new homeowners and those who are experiencing burnout. Whether you've been in your house 20 minutes or 20 years, this groundbreaking guide will help you become a better homeowner and quite possibly a great one.




The Holmes Manual


Book Description

No-nonsense advice from the star of HGTV’s Holmes Makes It Right and Holmes Inspection Why are my windows fogging up? What can I do about a squeaky floor? Why is my bedroom so much colder than the rest of the house? Are tankless water heaters worth the money? From top to bottom, outside to inside, Mike answers homeowners’ most common questions and provides solutions for everyday problems. Mike also offers trusted advice on maintenance—including instructions for repairs and projects that homeowners can tackle themselves. Packed with colour photographs, handy tips and sidebars, The Holmes Manual is a must-have guide for every homeowner.




How to Operate Your Home


Book Description