This book lists a number of potential do-it-yourself (DIY) home-improvement and repair projects. Each project has a short description of the labor and materials involved, along with a comparison of the costs and time for DIY versus hiring a professional. It offers a realistic approach to what it takes to do the project yourself, and it warns you of projects where your inexperience can lead to costly damage (for example, marring your hardwood floor during a refinish job). This book is not really a manual for exactly how to do a project, but it does offer some helpful hints. My only complaints are that the book could be a little more broad in scope and that it have a logical order how the projects are listed. Overall, it is worth reading if you are trying to decide whether to undertake home improvements yourself or hire a contractor.

My recommendation would be to not buy this book. Unless you mostly want to read about how to hire a contractor. There are a few books out there much better for the weekend do it yourselfer then this.

Having just entered into home-owning (versus apartment-dwelling) I've embarked on a crash course in home improvement. So far, this book has been a good resource, especially in terms of =illustrating= what I'm supposed to do. I need the visual cues to understand how part A is supposed to fit into part B and so on. This is one book I think I will be referring to often.

You'll still be a dummie after reading this book. For those with little or no knowledge of carpentry, you won't find what you are looking for in this book.

There are no photos and almost NO illustrations (or drawings), so things are just described and you'll have to imagine how it looks. For example, the vast variety of screws and nails are addressed without a single illustration! A picture says a thousand words and helps the reader to visualize and comprehend the topic, but you won't find it here.

Skip this book and try Black & Decker's Complete Guide to Home Carpentry. It's loaded with color photos of the actual work you'll be doing and explains everything step-by-step.

When you read the title of this book, please take it to heart. It really is only for dummies. Who else but a dummy would need to know how to nail, how to push a button to turn on a saw, etc? There is no real information on basic carpentry skills such as the use of a framing square,framing itself, the use of leveling tools to make sure you are starting with level ground, and so on. A more appropriate title for this book would have been "Home Improvment for Dummies" as one could not take knowledge from this book and build from scratch.

I will no longer purchase "For Dummies" books without checking it out at a bookstore first.

First time builders need not worry! This books explains all you need to know. From tools and uses to step by step instructions. I highly recommend this for any beginner.

This book provides a few of the basics that you will need to know if you are contemplating a small remodeling project. If you are planning on contracting your own house, this volume will not help you much. It provides only very superficial coverage of the information needed to intelligently communicate your requirements to subcontractors and evaluate their responses.