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Title: Independent Builder: Designing & Building a House Your Own Way (Real Goods Independent Living Books) by Sam Clark ISBN: 0-930031-85-7 Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing Company Pub. Date: October, 1996 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $35.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 5 (6 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: An ACCURATE subtitle: as much about design as about building
Comment: Sam Clark uses up half the book before he gets into the nitty-gritty of construction methods. This really IS a book about house DESIGN as well as construction. As such, it's an EXCELLENT book for someone who's starting from scratch to create their own house. The approach is extremely methodical, treating mindsets and goals as elements of the design process equal in importance to elevation drawings.
The illustrations bear particular attention. The (black and white) photographs are well composed, and have high contrast to clearly delineate the features that are supposed to be of interest. The line drawings are rather funky looking (in part because Clark appears not to own a ruler), but nevertheless do a very good job of illustrating what the text is talking about. This is the case for three reasons: (1) they were created by the author, who knew EXACTLY what part of the text needed visual aids; (2) their rulerless nature means that Clark can emphasize particular features rather than focus on strict scale drawings; and (3) each one is sized independently to take up as much space as is required to depict the subject matter, without worrying about "wasting" some page area. The end result is that the text and illustrations fit together well to make a unified whole.
For more detail on the Building part of creating a house, I'd recommend "Do-It-Yourself HOUSEBUILDING" by George Nash. But because Nash's book doesn't come close to Clark's for clarity, I'd first read Clark's book cover-to-cover. Then I'd keep Sam Clark's book open to the same subject area so that you can step back and get a clear overview as you get confused in the details of the Nash book.
Rating: 5
Summary: Your own way indeed!
Comment: This tells you how to design a house for you. Not just a house out of a book, but one that takes your living patterns into account. Don't want a formal living room? Don't put one in! Also reminds you if you want to live in the house a long time, to make room for handicapped access that may be needed later. Design your kitchen and baths the way you live! Have fun! ;-)
Rating: 5
Summary: Excellent Reference and User-Friendly Text
Comment: I am planning to build my own small house on a very small budget and have been doing some fairly extensive reading on the subject, but I find I constantly return to Sam Clark's book as my main reference for overall design and planning and I expect to refer to it during the building process as well. Whether dealing with general design philosophy, costing, or the actual building process, Clark's writing is always clear, informative, stimulating and unpatronizing and the drawings and illustrations are also clear and user-friendly. The book is layed out in a logical progression which guides you through the planning process. I have never built a house before, but this book alone would give me the confidence to do so. It is not a construction technique manual, in that it won't teach you how to hammer in a nail, but it will teach you how to design and plan a house for your budget and lifestyle.
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Title: The Complete Guide to Contracting Your Home by Kent Lester, Dave McGuerty ISBN: 1558704655 Publisher: Betterway Pubns Pub. Date: June, 1997 List Price(USD): $18.99 |
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Title: How to Design and Build Your Own House by Lupe Di Donno ISBN: 0394752007 Publisher: Knopf Pub. Date: 12 October, 1987 List Price(USD): $26.95 |
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Title: The Solar House: Passive Heating and Cooling by Daniel D., Ph.D. Chiras ISBN: 1931498121 Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing Company Pub. Date: October, 2002 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
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Title: How to Plan, Subcontract and Build Your Dream House by Warren V. Jaeger ISBN: 0964782405 Publisher: Trojan Homes Pub Co Pub. Date: 01 January, 1998 List Price(USD): $39.95 |
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Title: Build Your Dream Home for Less by R. Dodge Woodson ISBN: 1558703837 Publisher: Betterway Pubns Pub. Date: September, 1995 List Price(USD): $18.99 |
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