Rating: 
Summary: Did my first repair thanks to this book!
Review: I'm reading the other reviews here, so I thought I'd weigh in, hoping it will help the prospective buyer. This book is about as good as it gets for do-it-yourself home repair. Lots of home repairs are far easier than you think, and just take time and maybe some new tools. Even with the cost of new tools, it will often be cheaper than calling a professional. Yes--there are really complicated repairs I would leave to a professional, but this book helps with the simple things that you just need basic instruction on.
Case in point--my toilet was leaking from the base. I have never installed a toilet or taken one apart. I had no clue why it was leaking. I turned to the leaky toilet page and saw that there is something called the "closet" where the toilet connects to the floor and there is a wax seal that may have leaked. A plumber could cost $50-$100 just to come out and look at the toilet. Maybe more for his labor.
I went to Home Depot and bought a new wax seal for $3.50, and a mini-shop vac for $40 (new tool--yay!). Turned off the water valve, flushed the toilet, used the shop-vac to suck out the residual water, disconnected the water line, removed the 2 bolts connecting the tank to the bowl and removed the tank, removed the 2 bolts connecting the bowl to the floor and removed the bowl. Scrape off the old wax, put on the new wax, bolt bowl to floor, bolt tank to bowl, reconnect water. Yes--I may have figured this out on my own, but one is always hesitant to go in to a job not knowing what to expect. This book holds your hand a bit and has great photos. Now, if I had removed the toilet and found the closet flange overly corroded, I may have called a plumber. But I fixed the whole thing for $43.50, an hour of time, and I got a new shop-vac!
If you don't know a screwdriver from a hammer, then no book in the world, including this one, will help you. But if you have basic tool knowledge and a bit of courage, this book is the perfect and only companion you need. And when all else fails, you can always call a professional to fix it up. Armed with lingo from this book, you will be able to describe the problem better and perhaps avoid being ripped off as well.
Rating: 
Summary: No cd-rom with some copies
Review: Some of these copies don't come with the cd-rom. All the books on our shelves had the same ISBN # BUT the copies with the cd-rom had an extra "FREE CD INSIDE" sticker stuck onto the front cover (cd was designed for Windows 3.1 or 95). If you want a cd-rom - look for sticker on front cover, make sure it's included (page 504) or ask the seller before you buy. This is a great book.
Rating:
Summary: Good Book
Review: The book tells you what you need to know to fix just about anything in your house. It has color photos to show you step by step how to do it. If you can't fix it with this book you need to hire a contractor anyways.
Rating:
Summary: Must-have for do-it-yourselfers
Review: This is a great home repair book. Note that I said home REPAIR, not home IMPROVEMENT. B&D apparently also has another book on home improvement, which I have not read.Anyway, this is a great book. We have proceeded to replace some faucets, upgrade some 2-pronged outlets to 3-pronged outlets, paint some rooms, fix some plumbing, troubleshoot a drain problem, and 4 or 5 other problems using this book. The pictures, as noted by other reviewers, are invaluable and very well done. Product placement is, of course, present but not obtrusive. In short, as many repair projects turn into improvement projects, this is probably not the only book you'll need if you're a homeowner, but you'll definately find yourself referring to it time and again.
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