Hey /diy/, so I just bought a house that I'll be moving into next month and was wondering if there are any good handyman books out there I can buy for home maintenance/repair/upgrades that I can do myself?
I'm not entirely inexperienced with hands on labor, I went to vocational high-school for carpentry, and have worked various landscaping and manual labor jobs in my youth. I've also amassed quite the number of tools in my time as my family and friends discount auto mechanic and repairman, so I'm pretty well equipped to carry out most work. But seeing as this will be my own home I'd rather not half-ass anything so having some good reference material on hand that doesn't treat the reader like some stay at home wife would be nice to have.
The house is a four bedroom ranch. It needs some paint/trim/carpet and flooring work to be done. The basement is also pretty shitty at the moment, nothing more than storage and washer/dryer. The backyard is also pretty large so I have some garden/patio/firepit ideas going on.
Do you guys have any good recommendations on some literature I can pick up that would suit this situation? Anything on home and garden stuff or more creative home upgrades would be cool.
Thanks guys.
>>985824
If you want to build a shed here some recommended reading.
>>985829
It's got a shed on site already but I may need to expand it or completely redo it depending on how cramped it ends up being once I actually start moving my tools and whatnot into it.
>Renovation 4th Edition by Michael Litchfield
(I like this book more than any other for its simple explanations and detail of brand names for material, reads more like a guide than a textbook or reference)
>Carpentry 6th Edition by Leonard Koel
(Carpentry bible, if you took any classes that were worth a shit you should have or be familiar with one of the editions of this book.
>International Building Code, Should be a 2015 edition, codes are updated every three years generally. Not necessarily a needed book, but should be familiar with relevant codes concerning your task.
That's basically it for any remodel or carpentry/framing/finish trim etc things, for mechanical systems, plumbing, electrical, landscaping try to find a book with a simple title and multiple editions.
>>986037
Thanks for the input, I'll take a look at these.
I'm definitely going to need some books on plumbing and such, I have minimal background in that but I have friends and family in the field.
And I'm fairly adept at landscaping, I kept up with the immigrants during my time landscaping at a major outfit during my summers in college. I think a book about more in depth landscaping like patios and fountains more than shrubs and mulching would be next to add to my list of things to look for.
I hope you find these books more useful than i did/do
The only time they come off the shelf is when i need something heavy to weigh down something until the glue sets up
At least the diy level stuff there is so much fluff, i like watching video of people doing stuff or step by step diagrams showing me what i need to do and in what order
But that might come from me having to maintain a home for more than 20 years
Yes my farts are dusty so what. . .
>>986091
pretty much this. now days fuck the books, as sad as it is to say. there is a youtube video that will show you closely how to get what ever you're trying to do, done.
I'm not that old really, but old enough to have grown up watching this old house. I knew how to properly hang a door when I was like 10.
you learn more by doing it then watching someone else do it for you.
>>986093
>>986091
Yeah I know, but I kinda prefer having a book to reference. I'd rather flip through my Haynes manual when I'm covered in oil and grease than try to get a youtube video to load on my phone.
That's why I'd like a book that reminds me how to measure a birdsmouth on a rafter and not how to sharpen the pencil beforehand.
I recommended the books, but I cant say the other guys are wrong about Youtube. Between watching Tom Silva on This Old House and Larry Haun's video series a few time you could frame and finish a house without too many bumps in the road. The books are nice to go though once and keep in your mind or as a reference when you need calculations for stairs and rafters and such. I'd look up a handful of videos the night before you start an you can learn just as much, either how to do it or how not to do it depending on the skill of the presenter in the video.
Type diy into thepiratebay and you'll get loads of resources.
Note that it can be counterproductive as it can be an overload to get so much
