Reddit mentions: The best home plumbing books

I don't know of any that compare, but, the Napoleon's Buttons is SUPPOSED to be good.

http://www.amazon.com/Napoleons-Buttons-Molecules-Changed-History/dp/1585423319/

Other books, engineering related, that I liked are:

Norm Lieberman's Process Troubleshooting books, the guy cracks me up!

Working Guide to Process Equipment (3rd edition probably cheaper): http://www.amazon.com/Working-Guide-Process-Equipment-Fourth/dp/0071828060/

Process Equipment Malfunctions (not as good as the other one, some overlap, but still worthwhile, and covers more breadth for individual issues): http://www.amazon.com/Process-Equipment-Malfunctions-Techniques-Identify/dp/0071770208/

The Prize (mentioned above): http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1439110123/ref=redir_mdp_mobile/188-3799228-4803548

The Quest (Follow on to The Prize): http://www.amazon.com/Quest-Energy-Security-Remaking-Modern/dp/0143121944/

Oil 101: http://www.amazon.com/Oil-101-Morgan-Downey/dp/0982039204/

The Mythical Man Month (Not engineering directly as it pertains to software, but, projects and project management are huge in engineering, though this book is timeless): http://www.amazon.com/Mythical-Man-Month-Software-Engineering-Anniversary/dp/0201835959/

Piping Systems Manual (You can NEVER know enough about pipe!): http://www.amazon.com/Piping-Systems-Manual-Brian-Silowash/dp/0071592768/

Pumps and Pumping Operations (OMG it is $4, hardcover, go buy now! This book is great... did you know OSU didn't teach their Chem E's about pumps? I was flabbergasted, gave this to our intern and he became not a scrub by learning about pumps!): http://www.amazon.com/Pumping-Operations-Prentice-Pollution-Equipment/dp/0137393199/

Any good engineer needs to understand MONEY too:

The Ascent of Money: http://www.amazon.com/Ascent-Money-Financial-History-World/dp/0143116177/

It's Nial Fergesuon, who has had his own series of dramas and dumb stuff. The Ascent of Money has a SLIGHT libertarian tinge... but it wasn't bad enough that I didn't enjoy it. I consider it a history book, and he attempts to write it like one.

Have fun!

There's an out-of-print book simply called "Passive Solar Energy." It's got lots of great information; I bet it will be just what you are looking for as far as the physics of solar energy and thermosiphoning (which is essentially "heated fluid rises because it's less dense than cooler fluid"). I'm an engineer and I really think that book gives you all you need to know to have a basic working knowledge of solar heat gain and how various systems of solar energy capture operate. Here's a list of books I have found helpful and/or interesting in regards to solar energy:

• Passive Solar Energy - The top link is a link to pdf's of the chapters of the book.
  
  
• The Passive Solar Energy Book - VERY in-depth on passive solar theory, design, and construction.
  
  
• Solar Air Heating Systems - Another design and construction book, specifically about solar air heating.
  
  
  
• The Solar Greenhouse Book - Name says it all. It's all about passive solar greenhouses.
  
  
• A Golden Thread - Really interesting book about how man has worked with the sun in building design through the history of civilization.
  
  
  For earthships/earth-sheltered homes, I recommend these books:
  
  
• Earth-Sheltered Housing Design - One of the most detailed and complete books on earth-sheltering available. Not earthships, but the same ideas apply.
  
  
• Earth-Sheltered Houses - Another essential book for earth-sheltering houses. Author has built several of his own and remains an authority in the subject as well as cordwood building, for which he has also written books.
  
  
• Earth-Sheltered Solar Greenhouses - Combines two subjects for a very Permaculture-appropriate building technique.
  
  
• Earthship Vol I and II - Needs no explaining.
  
  
  From my experience in university studying fluid dynamics, I recommend not going any deeper into the subject than what you would find in the solar energy books I listed above. The subject is math-heavy, and the academic study of the topic is not going to help you with what you are interested in with permaculture. It's kind of like studying the abstract physics/math of electromagnetism when all you want to do is wire a house.
  
  Hope this helps!

Energy efficiency engineer here.

You want diagnostic equipment that's straightforward, temporary, and relatively inexpensive and durable. While there are a ton of diagnostic options for professionals, most of them are not well suited for average consumers because they require more know-how, software, or post-processing to understand.

My initial reaction is that kill a watts are good- they are simple and very easy to deal with, and relatively cheap. Get a few.

The IR camera is useful, but only if you know how to interpret it.

I'd recommend that you get a copy or two of Residential Energy ( http://www.amazon.com/Residential-Energy-Savings-Existing-Buildings/dp/0133418960) since it's written in an understandable manner and is full of really great information.

Do you guys have natural gas? If so, I'd get a gas sniffing wand. Last thing you want is for a well meaning person to seal their house up tight and then have their house explode due to a gas leak that would have never built up in a drafty house.

A pro grade caulking gun might be helpful- most people would never buy a nice one but they make the job much better.

Get an IR thermometer gun. It's a much faster way to check surface temperatures, which could be used by somebody who wants to do some math about heat loss calcs.

I'll think some more and see if I can come up with other simple tools. Honestly, the best thing to do is get a professional energy auditor, but you can't really get one of those to keep at the library...

the "x-wing" series is pretty good (LOTS of books), and doesnt require any reading to understand, just the movies, and maybe you should know what a tie fighter/interceptor/bomber is, but for that theres wookiepedia. it goes on through most of the starwars post endor timeline, so you might wanna look up which book plays when, but the first 4 in the series should form a complete set.

http://www.amazon.com/X-Wing-Squardon-Kryptos-Squadron-Command-ebook/dp/B008C87QZY/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1416765287&sr=1-1&keywords=x-wing

the "thrawn trilogy" is good imo, and i think it plays at least after the first three/four "x-wing" books.

http://www.amazon.com/Star-Wars-Trilogy-Mike-Baron/dp/1595824170/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1416765422&sr=1-2&keywords=thrawn+trilogy

my favorite (if youve read the others) is the "hand of thrawn" dualogy.

http://www.amazon.com/Star-Wars-Thrawn-Dualogy-Specter/dp/B003TMTPTS/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1416765447&sr=1-1&keywords=thrawn+dualogy

but its a matter of taste.

if youre interested, ill look through my old collection, and see if i find anything worth reading besides those.

edit:

amazon links.

Congrats, my wife and I just bought our first home 2 months ago, as such, here are a couple of tips that might come in handy:

1. If you don't have a collection of tools, I suggest buying some. We bought a new construction and have still found things the builders could have done better. We've also done some improvements so they've been a necessity.
   
   
2. Speaking with my law student hat on, see if you can find public records on your home; make sure the title has been recorded. Your title should also have a description of the lot, make sure you know for certain where your property line is, the last thing you want to deal with is someone with an adverse possession claim later down the line.
   
   
3. Two books I've found very helpful are this and this.
   
   Otherwise, enjoy!

Thanks! I believe it was just under $2000 (minus the machines). You could certainly save a bunch of money by doing a different sink and faucet, because we splurged there for sure to complete the look.

We bought this house in 2011 and I've just been learning as I go. I have a few relatives I can call when I'm unsure but I mostly get by researching on my own. If you're new to plumbing, give this a read to gain some confidence.

My advice would be to just go for it. Accept that you will definitely mess something up and know that everything can be fixed.

Zero welding in theory (Ontario as well). In reality, you might weld some brackets or shims if you don't want to wait for a welder to wander by the fab area.

Locally, you write a test (fractions, unit conversions, mechanical aptitude, spatial) then do an interview if you pass. Then you wait for the call. Probably the test is pretty standard.

Do the whole apprenticeship: people who get bumped up end up missing out.

For books, I keep of copy of this in my locker - it might be older than I am (it was my Dad's) - but its a great resource. There's also a plastic one that's handy, though I couldn't tell you what its called. I'll try to remember to bring it home tomorrow.

I bought this one and have used it extensively since diving into my own DIY projects around the house:

http://www.amazon.com/Home-Improvement-1-2-3-Expert-Advice/dp/0696213273/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1396898676&sr=8-1&keywords=home+depot

I also picked up Home Depot's more specific books for more detail. I only have two:
http://www.amazon.com/Plumbing-1-2-3-The-Home-Depot/dp/0696222477/ref=sr_1_12?ie=UTF8&qid=1396898676&sr=8-12&keywords=home+depot
http://www.amazon.com/Tiling-1-2-3-Home-Depot/dp/0696211874/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&qid=1396898676&sr=8-15&keywords=home+depot

If you are a fitter/fabricator/welder (meant all as one word)

This book is almost necessary

Passo nº1


Passo nº2


Passo nº3


Força, depois passa cá por casa que o fdp do canalizador nunca mais aparece.

Incinerating toilets often have an odor.
http://www.amazon.com/Composting-Toilet-System-Book-Pollution-Preven/dp/0966678303

You should find this interesting. :)

This would be my pick since most people wouldnt want to touch a book they assume you'd been touching when you fixed it.