If there’s one skill most of us wish we had, it’s being handier around the house. Tired of your leaky faucet? Fixed. Is your bedroom fan hanging a little too low? Sorted. Sure, owning a home is an investment, but unless you know how to properly maintain all those cumbersome appliances, it can quickly become an even more costly one. That’s why we’ve rounded up all of our favorite handyman guides to help you take your home improvement skills to the next level.
For all you readers who think twice before calling the plumber or wait till the very last minute to hire that expensive electrician, the best handyman guides give you the knowledge, skills and confidence you need to tackle those everyday home improvement projects. Instead of having to shell out top dollar just to fix your underperforming A/C unit, simply fix it yourself. With comprehensive guides that cover everything from simple projects like fixing your plumbing to learning how to build your own patio, there’s something here for every reader — regardless of their skillset.
Whether you’re new to the big bad world of DIY home repair or you’re looking to brush up on a few tips, these handy guides are sure to help you get the job done right. With the best DIY manuals on your bookshelf, you’ll truly become the master of your domain.
1. Home Maintenance For Dummies
A smart guide for people who need a little extra guidance when it comes to all things DIY, this “Home Maintenance For Dummies” features hands-on, easy-to-follow guides that make things sound so simple even your grandma could do it. This updated edition features more tips, more guides to help spruce up, repair or refresh each and every room in your room. A wonderful coffee table book, it also makes a great gift for the budding DIYer in your life. The best DIY manuals can turn you from a novice into a pro, and this updated edition is designed to do exactly that.
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2. 100 Things Every Homeowner Must Know
Save money, solve problems, fix things yourself. These are the three basic principles that make up the bulk of this incredibly handy DIY guidebook. As one of the few handyman books that’s designed to help you prevent problems around the house (as opposed to simply fixing them), this must-read book features 100 tips on everything from home maintenance to easy cost-effective repairs and more. Like all of the best handyman guides, this book features color photographs and illustrations that make the instructions easy to understand. Regardless of your skillset, this book is an important tool that definitely deserves a place in your toolkit.
3. Black & Decker Complete Photo Guide to Home Repair
The latest and greatest from Black & Decker, this 4th edition guidebook features more tips, more projects and more easy-to-follow guidelines than ever before. Packed with 350 projects (with refreshingly colorful and simple photo guides), this is the ultimate DIY book for people who want to take their skills to the next level. One of the bigger, bulkier books on the list, this one’s basically an all-inclusive encyclopedia of how to save money by learning how to fix things yourself.
4. Dare to Repair: A Do-it-Herself Guide
Looking for the best handywoman guide? This awesome DIY guide has tons of handy tips and detailed step-by-step illustrations. The modern woman’s guide to everyday repairs is a must for every female homeowner, and it’s a perfect gift for the recent college graduate or renter. No matter how large (or small) the project, “Dare to Repair” offers essential step-by-step instructions to help turn those DIY dreams into a reality.
5. Family Handyman Whole House Repair Guide
The editors of The Family Handyman magazine are the go-to experts for thousands of DIY enthusiasts, and their “Whole House Repair Guide” should be required reading for any new homeowner. Whether you’re a novice or a self-proclaimed expert, this handy repair guide features hundreds of easy-to-follow tips to help you finish any task. With more than 300 different repairs, it’s a great book to have on hand. What’s more, it dives deeper into each repair project to offer painstaking details that only the real pros could accurately convey. A must if you’re looking to cook up a few projects around the home.
6. The Art of Fixing Things, Principles of Machines, and How to Repair Them
A smart resource for even smarter people, this how-to guide goes above and beyond the ordinary and offers great tips to help get the job done right. With more than 150 detailed tricks, this guide is made to help you save time, save money, and get the job done right. Unlike other handyman books, which often sugarcoat or overly explain the task at hand, this one’s short, concise and always to the point, making it a great book for more intermediate DIY enthusiasts.
7. Complete Do-It-Yourself Manual
If you’re looking for the ultimate DIY guide, then the revised Reader’s Digest newly updated “Complete Do-It-Yourself Manual “is a must-read. More than 10 million copies of this book have been sold, and it’s one of the best DIY manuals ever created. Got a leaky faucet? Maybe your dishwasher isn’t working as well as it used to. This handy DIY manual features top tips to help you easily (and thoroughly) undertake your own home improvement projects. With step-by-step illustrations, you’ll be channeling your inner Tool Man in no time. Unlike other fix-it-yourself guides, this one’s a little abbreviated: focusing only on the meatier tasks to help you get right down to work without wasting time flipping through pages and reading random introductions.
8. Ultimate Guide to Home Repair and Improvement
Perhaps we saved the best for last, as the “Ultimate Guide to Home Repair” is definitely the be-all, end-all of home improvement guides. The best DIY manuals show and tell, which is why this book is consistently one of Amazon’s best-selling handyman guides. This updated edition features 600 detailed pages with more than 3,400 different photos and illustrations to help you fix everything from your fridge to the AC unit, sink and more. If you only end up getting one handy guide, this is the one to get.
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