So many technical books paint their subject with such broad brush strokes that, after reading the book, the reader is left to discover for themselves (as in "the hard way") what necessary detail was omitted. Not this book. It's complete, well organized, well indexed, and riddled with excellent photographs and illustrations.

While the book is entirely in in black and white, the author very effectively used an artist with a computer to expertly draw most of the illustrations. The fidelity of the graphics is worthy of a graphic arts how-to book.

To give you a sense of how thorough and complete this book is, I'll describe the problem I recently used it to understand and solve. A family friend, who is a veterinarian, recently mortgaged everything to buy her own animal hospital. As soon as she bought is the drains started backing up. Roto-Rooter started coming monthly to remove pet hair from the sewer pipes. I went to the "Plumbers Handbook" and it not only had a section on trapping hair, it even had a topic specific to the control of hair generated by kennels and animal care facilities!

What a super book!

10 of 10 found the following review helpful:


Plumbing Concepts - Residential and Small Commercial  Sep 28, 2001 By Donald W Randall
Excellent book for designers and architects to use for residential and small commerical structures. Provides the Plumbers point of view on necessary design elements for layout of fixtures, pipes, etc.

Provides excellent explanation on how to read a plumbing design layout and superb insight in to the plumbing codes. Provides the details that will allow a designer or architect to adequately communicate with plumbing contractors.

Good overview for architects/designers and a very useful study guide for plumbers and plumbing contractors.

19 of 22 found the following review helpful:


Plumber's Handbook  Mar 25, 2000 By Sherri Jeffrey
A must have for any licensed Plumber! Of all the years that I have been plumbing this book is the most concise I have come across. I use it as a study guide for my apprentices. The chapter reviews help to tie the book together.

16 of 20 found the following review helpful:


Not the book if you are plumbing your own house  Mar 03, 2003
I'm building my own house and bought this book as a plumbing reference. It has pretty much sat on the shelf. It is more oriented toward the full time plumber who is doing multiple types of jobs. Too much time spent on the many fascets of plumbing and too little time spent on how it applies to doing a residential job.

Instead I'd recommend "Complete Home Plumbing" by Sunset books. That book has been my first read when a question comes up.

1 of 1 found the following review helpful:


A very highly recommended instructional reference manual  Feb 03, 2007 By Midwest Book Review
Whether a do-it-yourself amateur or an experienced professional, this new and updated edition of Howard Massey's "Plumber's Handbook" is a very highly recommended instructional reference manual. Drawing upon his many years of expertise and experience as a plumber, a plumbing contractor, an inspector and plans examiner, Massey explains in simple terms how to install plumbing systems that will pass inspection the first time! Each chapter is profusely illustrated with diagrams, charts and tables that will insure the selection of the right material and correct installation. The "Plumber's Handbook Revised" addresses vents, waste piping, drainage, septic tanks, hot and cold water supply systems, wells, fire protection piping, fixtures, solar energy systems, gas piping, and so much more. Of special note are the chapters dedicated to the plumbing of mobile home and travel trailer parks and graywater recycling. An invaluable addition to personal, professional, school and community library reference collections, this newly revised edition is completely updated to conform to the International Plumbing Code (IPC) and the Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC) standards.

See all 7 customer reviews on Amazon.com