Wiring a House

Rating:
Summary: Many strengths, a few weaknesses
Review: Cauldwell's book, overall, is an excellent text for those who are building their own homes and doing the bulk of the wiring themselves. The book's strengths are the straightforward explanations and clear exploded wiring diagrams. Cauldwell does a good job pointing out common safety issues and how to avoid getting zapped. However, the book has some weak points. One is that he doesn't acknowledge that master electricians (and utility company engineers) don't agree on many wiring procedures, particularly in the areas of grounding the electrical system and wiring branch circuits. For example, I followed his recommendation of installing two ground rods -- and was ordered by the utility company to remove one of them before they would wire the meter, as their policy was to only have one rod (I found that utility companies have their own policies for grounding residential electric systems that aren't always the same as the 96 NEC). A couple master electricians disagreed with his suggested procedures for wiring receptacles, although their alternate suggestions certainly weren't easier. They also noted that in my county, placement of smoke detectors is governed by the UBC, not the NEC (smoke detectors in every bedroom, outside BR doors, in living and family rooms, and at the bottom of lower floor stairs). Thus, future editions of the book might remind us to check with our electric utility before getting deeply into the wiring job,to obtain their specific policies and local codes rather than relying only on the NEC. Future editions also might give more information on where to find large capacity receptacle boxes; in order to avoid some of the cable fill violations he aptly describes; and more clearly emphasize to us beginners just how much practice it takes to wire receptacles correctly, particularly in parallel. Otherwise, it's a good book written in a pleasant, digestable style.

Rating:
Summary: great resource
Review: I agree with most peoples assesmant that this is not for those without any prior knowledge of home wiring but it does go great with black and decker's book"Complete guide to home wiring"
It does a great job of walking you through the do's and don'ts of electrical work as well as pointing out common pitfalls. It is a must have for anyone who does alot of electrical work and needs a reference for code compliance concerns.

Rating:
Summary: Goes beyond the basics, but has some gaps
Review: I am a homeowner who has done dozens of minor and major electrical projects over the last 20 years.

This book is full of practical tips and details I have not seen in the basic books. I wish I had read it years ago.

Not the best starter book, it's for those who want to go beyond the starter books.

Cauldwell has and conveys a deep understanding of the electrician's work. His many insights and "Above Code" sidebars help you do a better job than your $60 an hour electrician would do.

Heavy emphasis on mechanical tips...fishing, drilling, etc. which is usually the most challenging part.

Excellent photos and illustrations.

I don't give it 5 stars because there's too much missing. How many conductors are permitted in size X conduit? What gauge wire do I need for 50 amp service? What if it's a long 100+ ft. run? Can the ground wire be a smaller gauge? The book desparately needs reference tables for this kind of stuff.

There are no tips for pulling wire through conduit, bending PVC conduit, or outdoor wiring in general.

Too bad, beacuse in many respects this a masterpiece.

Rating:
Summary: Ideal for my needs!
Review: I bought this book after reading some of Rex's work in Fine Homebuilding (my favorite magazine). I really like to get into the details of things, and this book has not let me down.

I had accumulated significant wiring experience and tools already, in home projects. But there are many aspects of home wiring that are not intuitive, such as temperature derating, box and cable fill, and many other nuances of the NEC. Plus--something I find at least as important--the book is full of tips from a very experienced electrician that helps prevent costly mistakes and makes the work go faster and easier.

I wound up buying this book, followed by the 1999 NEC (an eBay find) and Electrical Wiring Residential by Ray Mullin. The standard I refer to over and over, and recommend to many other people, is this book by Rex Cauldwell. It's a great read, cover-to-cover. To me, it's best-in-class. I just hope that Taunton Press (also the publisher of Fine Homebuilding and Fine Woodworking) keeps it up-to-date with the 2002 NEC. That's the only pitfall of books of this genre--many things are indexed to the current NEC, which means you need to get a new edition every three years. Alas, it's worth doing.

This may not be a beginner-level book, but it is outstanding for its intended audience and a must-have for anyone contemplating any home electrical project of any scope beyond the trivial.

Rating:
Summary: gold standard for modern wiring and rewiring jobs
Review: I know nothing about anything having to do with a house and despite my good understanding of physics in theory, the reality of electrons actually "moving" through wires both baffles and scares me. Though based on other reviews and on the content of this book, this is probably an excellent reference for someone who can and is actually going to do the job her/himself. Unfortunately, there is much variation among even professional electricians and I can imagine that this book would help any one - pro or DIY'er to do a top notch, above code job. For me, it will really guide us, once we are able, in choosing and working with a professional electrician and the inspector to have our house rewired and grounded in the best way possible. It's very nice to have such a credible and thorough reference so that even though this is not at all our area of expertise, we will be able to make informed decisions to assure the electrical security and functioning of our home. On the down side, for those of us who live in an old house, the wiring looks nothing like what's described in this book or most others. So, it's a great book to have for anyone, professional down to the most uninformed, electricity-handicapped consumer who nonetheless must pay an electrician for some work or other, when it comes to dealing with modern wiring or rewiring issues but it's pretty useless for figuring out what to do in an old house especially if you can't afford to rewire immediately according to the guidelines set forth in the book (in which case, the book leaves you with the feeling that your house is a fire trap on the verge of erupting into flames as the cloth insulation on all your old wiring erodes and you have wires burning up and ungrounded electricity shooting all over the place but that's not a reason not to get the book for the excellent purposes that it does serve.) One thing the book also leaves unanswered is how much of a fire hazard really is anything other than the best practices that the author recommends, particularly if one doesn't live in an area where lightening is that much of a problem? The houses in so many of these neighborhoods have been around for over 100 years with no grounding wires and probably rotted out insulation and all sorts of other problems yet it doesn't seem that much of a problem.

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic book on home wiring
Review: I researched a lot of electrical books and wiring books before I commenced my wiring projects. Luckily, I found this one. The book is packed with outstanding, USEABLE, knowledge on beginner to intermediate level electrical projects. There were also numerous helpful diagrams that were clear and concise. I highly recommend the book, the best one on the subject that I've found so far.

Rating:
Summary: Outstanding book indeed!
Review: I would not consider this a beginner's book at all, although, a do-it-yourselfer with some inclination towards electricity could and would definitely benefit from having this book as a reference. I enjoyed reading this book because I didn't have to wade through the waters of electrical theory just to pick up tips of the trade from another pro. It's enjoyable and pleasant reading and someone who has worked with electricity (I am a licensed electrian) can enjoy Mr. Cauldwell's "electrical humor" while maintaining respect for electricity. I believe this book is "for pros by a pro, and, in reading it, you might be abe to obtain an overall, different perspective in which to execute electrical installations beginning with choice of tools, color-coding wire, selection of products, or, simply toting your tools around in a little red wagon vs. carrying them on your hip. I also appreciate his "theme" of safety throughout the entire book.
There is nothing I didn't like about this book and I received a "red wagon" full of ideas and tips for a more than reasonable fee. Thank you Mr. Cauldwell!

Rating:
Summary: Good for the guy who is doing his own home wiring
Review: I'm building my own house. I am a former industrial electrical engineer (I've moved on to other things). The problem with being an engineer is that I know the big picture, (I can spec a panel and size the service entrance cables in a heartbeat, I used to know the NEC like the back of my hand). The problem that I run into is figuring out the way the guys who install the stuff I spec make what I spec meet code and do it quickly and easily.

This book will show you how the guys who do installations every day do them.

If you understand basic electricity, this book will be a good guide to help you do an installation that will make your inspector happy.

Rating:
Summary: Comparison of 3 how-to books on home wiring
Review: I've decided to remodel my spare bedroom. It's one of those "furnished closet" type spaces that tends to collect junk at an alarming rate. While it's a lovely little room when it's empty, it disappears in the furniture that gets put into it. Even the sliding glass doors over the small balcony don`t give one an illusion of spaceousness. I had a roommate for a while who used that room, and she had to climb over her bed just to get to her bureau.

The plan is to put up lighted crown molding to add dimension and indirect lighting to the room and to remodel the ample closet space into a bureau cum mini-closet cum desk area. By putting in a full sized futon, I can use the room as a sitting room/spare bedroom, and without the clutter, it'll seem quite spacious.

To accomplish my goal, the project required some rewiring of the room, so I found three books that seemed to have the information I needed: Wiring 1-2-3 by the people at Home Depot, The Complete Guide to Home Wiring by the Black and Decker people, and Wiring a House by Rex Cauldwell. Each is an excellent book with much to offer, but I definitely found that each had a slant that made it specialized in some way.

Of the three books, only the Cauldwell book was written in a person-to-person format. The author is a third generation electrician with years of experience, and as he says quite charmingly, "I have written this book from lifelong experience and knowledge--some of which has been passed down through each generation. However, there is no one within my family to pass the gauntlet to--no fourth generation to pick up the trade. Therefore, by reading this book you will become heir to my knowledge and experience. You, in effect, will become the fourth generation (p. 1)." His style is very much master of the craft to learning apprentice, explaining all facets of his field from how electricity is produced, how it is measured, what types of wires carry it to and into your home, and what tools one needs to do electrical work. He not only provides the information, he tells the reader the "whys" of what is, which I find helpful because it permits one to problem solve and trouble shoot more effectively. Particularly useful are those things that he tells the reader to avoid and what can happen when they aren't! The drawings are very helpful, particularly as they are clearer than photographs can be. Sometimes less is more in this regard. The schematic of the main floor of a house (pp. 22-23) which detailed how wiring is arranged for each room was quite helpful for my project, since it described what I should (and did) find in the walls when locating my power source and routing new wiring. I also found that the information on materials to select was helpful. I was able to go to the store and pick out just what I needed without any trouble at all.

While the Cauldwell book is a good one to read from cover to cover because of it's clear and thorough discussion of electronical wiring and its many helpful hints (which I did), it really did not help with my specific plans. It does cover some types of project, but I found that The Black and Decker book was more useful for my specific wiring goals. It's definitely a "how to do it" book with information on trouble shooting current wiring for potential problems (pp. 122-143), on code requirements (pp. 145-146), on how to calculate electrical loads and when to upgrade. It also includes simple repairs for the home owner, everything from checking which fuse controls which part of the house, to replacing plugs and repairing fluorescent lights. It also provides some advanced projects, like rewiring a kitchen or installing outdoor wiring. Of particular interest to my husband, the computer guru in our household, was the information on the home network wiring systems.

For my own project, I found the circuit maps for 26 common wiring layouts of greatest help. With the aid of this feature and the Cauldwell book, I was able to draw on paper the likely arrangement of the present wiring in my spare bedroom, and plan in the pathway to and from the projected new outlets. The diagrams on pages 155-167 also gave me a clearer idea of which wires connected to which specific sites on the receptacles, and what the pathway of the current would be. I was thrilled when I turned on the wall switch in the room, and the lighted crown molding actually came on, first try!

Wiring 1-2-3 is another group-effort type book like the Black and Decker. It'd made a splendid gift for the new home owner or prospective buyer. It provides the most extensive information on inspecting the home for electrical problems and providing measures for repairing them. The table of contents highlights almost every conceivable project, and each project has a list of materials, a skill scale that projects the level of difficulty to expect, and the amount of time that would be required by the experienced, the handy and the novice. It also makes some suggestions regarding the selection of a professional electrician for difficult projects, and does not urge the novice to go beyond their comfort level.

Although I didn't use the Home Depot book for actual planning and wiring, I found it was especially helpful with the messy stuff, things like drilling holes through the attic to route wires, the nitty-gritty of fishing for wires, and repairing the damage to walls where holes had to be made to route wires. In general these books are useful all round books.

I'd give all three books a 5, each for its own area of usefulness. If you're a person who likes to have a multi-perspective approach to your projects, then I'd recommend all three. Certainly the Home Depot book would be a very nice house warming gift.

Rating:
Summary: excellent reference
Review: I've read a lot of how to books on every type of home renovation but this is the best book I've ever seen on electrical. It's an excellent reference - I've used to do things like wire a 3 way light right the 1st time! an excellent book for both experts and beginners. would like to see a little more about circut breaker wiring the next time it's updated. practical code references are excellent.