Maintenance manual needs a fix of its own

When I picked up “The Ultimate Home & Property Maintenance Manual” by Joe Beck, I was hoping for a solid reference book to use for home fix-it problems. However, I was disappointed.

This is an oversimplified home-repair guide lacking in important details. After reading the hundreds of very brief explanations, I asked, “Is that all there is to know?”

Although there are many black-and-white photos on the repair topics, none offered information about how to make necessary fixes. The captions on the photos are often simplistic. A couple of examples: “Shingles work hard to keep your house dry, so you don’t have to,” and “Windows that are kept clean and well lubricated stay attractive for years.”

Sears Craftsman tools and equipment are pictured throughout. Surely, there must be other tools of equal or better quality to be recommended. This use of one supplier made me question the author’s objectivity.

Beck includes estimates of the time needed to complete a repair or installation. However, they often seem irrelevant, such as an estimated two to five hours to replace glass in a wooden-frame window (rated “fairly easy”) or the five to seven hours needed to mask and protect against paint (rated “difficult”).

Having tackled those tasks, I found the estimates to be much longer than the actual time it took me to complete each job.

One topic that Beck has completely overlooked is mold. The word isn’t even mentioned in the book. The closest the author comes is a photo of mildew, which he says can easily be removed with a bleach solution.

Entire books have been written on the dangers of mold. Either the author is unaware of the topic or he elects to ignore it.

Other than learning that Beck was a contractor for 15 years and that he owned a landscaping company, we don’t know much about his qualifications.

Occasionally, he offers practical tips, such as buying equipment and materials in the off-season to save money. But most of the information is very basic and not very helpful.

A classic example is in the section about sealing an asphalt driveway. He writes, “Carefully pour the sealer where you think you’ll need it to start.” The next photo’s caption says, “Use an applicator to spread the sealer evenly.”

The chapter outline looks great. But the superficial explanations made me beg for details.