Black & Decker The Complete Outdoor Builder Review

About.com Rating

The Bottom Line

The Complete Outdoor Builder is for when you've finished the indoor remodels, and now it's time to have a little fun outside.



Pros

• Clear and simple graphics.
• Accompanying text further clarifies the graphics.
• Tons of projects--150 total.

Cons

• Deadset on a certain outdoor project or two? Then, this guide may be superfluous.
• Too much emphasis on decks: 142 pages in all.

Description

• The Complete Outdoor Builder is...complete. It's 528 pages showing a cross-section of most outdoor building projects.

• Pay attention: the operative word in the title is "builder." This is not a gardening book.
• Includes hot topics like building a deck and laying a stone pathway.
• Think the book is too complete? Perhaps not. No doubt you'll get ideas for projects you have never even considered.

Guide Review - Black & Decker The Complete Outdoor Builder Review

Outdoor building projects are pure candy.

Don't believe me? Imagine this. You're inside your house--demo'ing drywall, pulling out fiberglass insulation, dealing with dead rats in the crawlspace, wrestling 20 ton house jacks. You're covered in drywall dust, dirt, paint, and anything else that comes with the territory.

Then, you look outside and see Neighbor Jones whistling in the sun as he happily builds his delightful A-frame greenhouse. Jealous? You bet.

That's the promise I get out of a book like Black & Decker's The Complete Outdoor Builder: from Arbors to Walkways: 150 DIY Projects. The fun stuff. The outdoors stuff.

I can't find a single project in The Complete Outdoor Builder that I wouldn't want to take on.

Here are just a few:

• Building a deck
• Installing railings
• Building a flagstone pathway
• Building a mortared stone wall
• Building a children's play structure

And at least 145 more outdoor projects, illustrated in typical Black & Decker book-series clarity. Because, I don't know about you, but I have a sure hand when it comes to things like hanging drywall, wiring, replacing windows, and other interior remodeling projects. When you take me outside and give me a shovel, I start to get nervous.
The Complete Outdoor Builder aims to quell the fears of beginning outdoor DIY'ers, as well as speak to intermediate level outdoor builders.

Important Note: Version of The Complete Outdoor Builder reviewed here publishes November 30, 2009. The Compare Prices link to shopping aggregator should link to this new version after that date. See also the link direct to the publisher listed below.



Disclosure: A review copy was provided by the publisher. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.