The Essential Home Skills Handbook: Everything You Need To Know As A New Homeowner, by Chris Peterson

When the first thing that you see looking at the top of the cover page is the logo of Black & Decker, and the next thing is a statement that this book is part of a do-it-yourself series from the brand that the reader presumably trusts, it is obvious that a big part of this book is designed to sell the tools of a noted American tool company to those who have bought a new home and might be expected to be willing (and, flush with borrowed cash, able) to purchase tools and equipment in order to properly maintain their newly purchased single-family home. This is not to cast any shade on the efforts of this book, as it is a worthwhile book and full of useful skills, even if they happen by be skills that this reader does not possess. For those who are either looking to or have bought a home, this book is certainly a useful one (though some readers have commented that earlier editions of the book were even more useful) in providing some general skills that someone who wants to be able to make minor and basic repairs on their home shuld be able to do.

At less than 200 pages, this book is a pretty brief one, but it presents a fair amount of tasks that a homeowner could, at least theoretically, perform on their own home. The book begins with an introduction, a basic toolkit (helpfully full of products that are made and sold by Black & Decker themselves), and a guide to locating essential services and fixtures. After this, the book is divided into six parts that contain various tasks involved with different parts of the house. Teh first chapter contains tasks involved with home heating and cooling, and ranges from such basic tasks as installing weather stripping to considerably more demanding tasks like hardwiring carbon monoxide and smoke detectors and replacing a bathroom fan (1). The second part discusses tasks involving structural opening, namely doors and windows (2), and includes such tasks as installing a video doorbell, The third part of the book discusses plumbing tasks (3), which include repairing a pop-up drain stopper and installing a hands-free faucet, both viewed asks tasks of intermediate difficulty. The fourth part of the book examines tasks related to electrical issues (4), which includes the demanding task of installing a whole-house surge protector. The fifth part of the book discusses tasks related to interior surfaces (5), such as correctly painting an interior, fixing drywall holes, and installing a backsplash. The final part of the book contains various tasks related to external concerns (6), such as locating roof leaks and performing emergency roof repairs as well as installing a foundation French drain. The book then closes with a brief but also ambitious yearly maintenance calendar, conversion charts, resources and photo credits, and an index.

It should be noted that though this book is designed to encourage people to engage in do-it-yourself home repairs, the author is careful to note that there are some tasks that are beyond the task of the amateur home repairman. Indeed, looking at this book, even the most basic skills would present, at the present time, a considerable challenge for this reader, so those tasks that the author considers to be beyond the expertise of someone repairing their own home is something to be taken seriously. This is a book that presumes the reader is not only someone who is capable of using a pretty substantial amount of home equipment in a careful and skillful fashion, including skill saws and soldering, but also someone who is careful and recognizes that the book provides basic and general advice on how to engage in particular tasks that may not always work, and so there may always need to be recourse to skilled tradespeople who are capable of providing more detailed and customized support in areas like remodeling, plumbing, ductwork, roofing, and especially electrical work. The wise reader will recognize that this book is no substitute for more particular knowledge about the quirks of one’s own house, but presents a somewhat general and definitely optimistic view of the capabilities of the novice homeowner.