Book Description
This third introduction into the best-selling Complete Photo Guide line brings all the merits of the indoor guides -- The Complete Photo Guide to Home Repair and The Complete Photo Guide to Home Improvement -- to outdoor construction projects for the home and landscape.

It begins with sections on tools & materials, building codes, yard surveying, drawing plans, and includes a lengthy section on the basic techniques of working with wood, concrete, brick, stone, and roofing materials. Then comes the heart of the book -- lengthy chapters on pathways; fences, walls & gates; patios; decks; porches & entries; sheds & outbuildings; and accessories. With more than 200 projects, there is value for every reader, from the beginning do-it-yourselfer to seasoned veterans of outdoor building projects. Featured projects include: a three-season porch, a timber play structure for kids, a Victorian gazebo, retaining walls, brick barbecue, cobblestone walkway, decorative fountains, a raised garden bed, and a garden pond.

As has come to be expected from Black & Decker books, this volume contains the most precise, detailed and easy-to-follow how-to directions to be found in home improvement publishing. The Complete Photo Guide to Outdoor Home Improvement will delight readers who have made its predecessors the best-sellers in their categories.

FROM OUR EDITORS

Black & Decker's Complete Photo Guides are designed to be user friendly. Just as The Complete Photo Guide to Home Improvement and The Complete Guide to Home Repair shepherded renters and homeowners through the rigors of indoor work, The Complete Photo Guide to Outdoor Home Improvement provides step-by-step instructions for every kind of outdoor project. Whether you plan to work in wood, concrete, brick, stone, or roofing materials, this primer instructs you on techniques and possibilities. Utilizing 1,500 color photographs, the guide describes how to complete more than 200 projects, including: pathways; fences, walls and gates; patios; decks; porches and entries; sheds and outbuildings; and accessories.

FROM THE PUBLISHER