The Complete Guide to Home Wiring: Including Information on Home Electronics & Wireless Technology

This originally was two separate books, Basic and Advanced Wiring, that B & D combined into one book. Extremely well written, with lots of photographs, this is an excellent book for a do it yourselfer with a project in mind, or for a home owner to keep on hand to have when the need arises. The book covers basic repairs and maintenance, with a not too complicated introduction to electricity, but quickly gets down to the basics, with chapters on Wall Switches, Receptacles, Light Fixtures, Doorbells & Thermostats. The second half covers how to do more complicated electrical tasks. The first half is repair and maintenance, the second half moves into renovation and remodeling, with chapters on project planning, tools & techniques, Wiring a Room Addition, Wiring a Remodeled Kitchen, Installing Outdoor Wiring, etc. From this book I learned how to install new breakers in the main fuse panel, a project I was terrified of trying. This really is a very good book for the non-professional. It was a good idea to combine the two books into one, a handy reference and guide

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 spaciousness. 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. 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 electrical 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

This book is teeming with clear, color photos and diagrams. It is a good reference for performing routine electrical work.While the title purports it as including "advanced projects", however, almost all of the book is devoted to new installation work. An "advanced" book, in my opinion, should include more information on modernizing old wiring, and things to watch out for when modernizing, such as bad splices on knob & tube wiring, and even rewiring.This book is really not much different from dozens of other books out there, but it gets 4 stars for its clarity and reasonable price.

After purchasing a home with outdated and dangerous wiring, I needed a comprehensive reference to quickly learn as much as possible. Prior to this book, I knew almost nothing about residential wiring. The descriptions and photos were clear and easy to understand and completely demystified everything. I have since completely replaced everything myself; from the new service panel to each and every switch and receptacle. This book has saved me thousands and I would recommend it to any beginner. In fact, I am very pleased with most of the Black & Decker reference books.

I found this book to be most informative; lots of detail, that isn't buried in volumes of text. Tons of pictures, and real-world examples. Would be valuable for the novice, as well as the seasoned home-improvement enthusiast.