Habitat for Humanity How to Build a House Revised & Updated(Habitat for Humanity) Paperback – Bargain Price, September 9, 2008

Not anytime innovative or new. Much like other books I have. Simple to digest!

This book is very good with nice illustrations.

It gives a good overview for many options, but in the pieces I needed in my project it was not quite all I needed (slab for example). Still well worth purchasing gave me ideas and things to think about

This book is a wealth of info on house building

I'd have given 4 1/2 stars if I could. I've built part of my tiny home using mostly this book. It was the best book (by far) I found for a novice builder. I think it would also be great for anyone wanting to know the basics of building- a habitat volunteer or budding carpenter/ apprentice. It's easy to read and It seems quite thorough for basic building but not so comprehensive that it's overwhelming- just right in my opinion. Its conciseness and readability means that there are compromises made in detail that limit it's application to basic practices. I've found (the hard way) that building even a tiny house is complex and there are often different ways to do things and it can be hard to know what's best. Often this book will explain the differences but sometimes (again for brevity) not so much. For one example, I found a window flashing method that I like better than Haun's in The Visual Handbook of Building and Remodeling, by Charlie Wing (another good companion to Haun's book as is: Working Alone, by John Carroll). For the most part though, this book is an invaluable resource. Ideally, use this book along with one or more others (such as the others I referenced) and, if you're lucky, enlist the aid of a trustworthy builder for consultation when questions or problems arise. I needed all of these for building my house but this book has been the most valuable and trusted part of the "team". Haun also has some youtube how tos and another book or two that are helpful.

Excellent

I’m only 15 pages in and I already feel like I’ve gotten my money’s worth!! Aspiring owner builders, new-build developers, Residential construction professionals this is the book you need. Thank me later.

This book is well-written and includes high-quality photos and diagrams. It teaches the vocabulary and has "Tips" inserted at critical points as well. Very helpful.

This is definitely not a "complete, step by step guide to building a house" as the back cover claims. My initial reaction to reading it was disappointment and anger, because as early as Chapter one it talks about hiring a contractor. People who choose to hire a contractor don't need books like this. I want to build my house myself, with my own two hands, but information on this is virtually non-existent. Hundreds of resources I have found talk about building a house using contractors, but I have not found a complete guide to doing the entire construction project on your own.However, as I continued reading the book, I discovered that it was very well written. The language is clear and to the point. The sequence is logical and makes sense. The explanations are easy to understand and well supported by high quality images and graphical illustrations. I really like the author's basic philosophy that a decent house doesn't need to be huge and pretentious, but rather affordable, comfortable, safe and practical. Anyone who adopts this approach and learns enough construction skills to build without hiring any contractors can afford a decent home, even in today's economy.Unfortunately, the author arbitrarily decided that his readers can learn to do framing, roofing, and finishing, but foundations, plumbing, electrical and HVAC are better left for the professionals. I have done all of these, and I can say that the parts that are not covered are not any more complicated or difficult. I do agree with the author that excavating is a "back breaking" process if you use a shovel, but it can and has been done. You can also rent a small backhoe or a bobcat at the Home Depot if you care about your back. Foundations are very important, not complicated, and shouldn't have been left out. With modern materials and tools, plumbing and electrical are even easier and more accessible to an average DIYer. Gluing ABS, crimping PEX and even soldering copper can be learned in less than a day. Connecting wires is no rocket science either, as long as you pick the right guage for the application and connect red to red, black to black and white to white.Once again, the parts of a project that are covered are simply brilliant. I have done framing, roofing and finishing for years and I haven't found a better resource than this book. Perhaps my three stars are too low. But the book claims to be a complete guide, which it isn't. If the author decided to expand it by adding sections on foundations, plumbing, electrical and HVAC, and if those sections were half as well written as the rest of the book, I would give it five stars and buy ten copies to give to friends and family.

Comprehensive and useful guide for the novice builder. Don't know if I'll ever use it build a full size house but I have recently build a summer house and this book to give me lots of hints and tips. Having this as a go to guide made some of the building processes so much easier and I've found myself wanting to build more. So much so I've offered my services to my family and friends.Would really recommend to anybody wanting to build anything from a summer house like myself to a full size wooden building.

Very very pleased. Thanks!

This book has much of the information required for a person thinking of participating to the building of their house. It does not show All the little details or it may not show you all the options. It gives the reader a path that if followed by a diligent person, will lead to a small home built at the most reasonable price. The book covers mainly the structural and finishing aspects of a house. Some people may need additional help with best practices in electrical wiring, plumbing etc. The best book I own on building a house - I own a few.

A fairly inspiring book, although oriented around the USA, the land of cheap wood, Home Depot and plenty of land. It would be a nice dream to build your own affordable house with a group of like minded individuals but then who would buy all the over priced rows of boxes that are capital assets more than homes. Well this book could show you how!