[.ca] The Builder's Book of Bathrooms (ISBN 1561583340)

From Amazon.com:
A well-built bathroom is more than just the sum of its parts--bath, toilet, and sink. It also includes a convenient and carefully planned layout; smartly designed plumbing, venting, and electrical systems; and accessibility features. Wormer's The Builder's Book of Bathrooms covers all of these bases and then some. The book takes you from bare-bones bathroom framing to a finished bathroom awaiting final inspection, offering extremely practical advice throughout for those considering building or remodeling. With so many bathroom options, no two rooms are likely to be the same. Wormer guides you through each choice, explaining how to select sinks, countertops, faucets, toilets, showers, and tubs; heating, ventilation, and lighting elements; and finish materials. He weighs the pros and cons of each choice, explaining the difference between, for example, installing a pedestal sink, a wall-hung sink, or an above-the-countertop sink. He also compares building material options, such as whether to use copper, cast iron, ABS, or PVC pipe for your drain/waste/vent system, and then explains how to incorporate these elements into a pleasing, practical layout that leaves enough room for storage. The first section of the book focuses on choosing the materials and fixtures and planning layout, and the second on installation and finish work. Scattered throughout are color photos of various bathroom styles, plus detailed line drawings and charts of the more intricate technicalities of the building process. The book contains the most current trends in bathrooms, including installation instructions for natural stone flooring, jet tubs, and radiant floor heat systems. Whether you're remodeling a client's bathroom or your own, you'll do well to learn from Wormer's expertise, rather than the more costly method of learning from your own mistakes. From the nitty-gritty beginnings of a bathroom to the final detail trim, The Builder's Book of Bathrooms leaves no stone unturned. --Kris Law

Required reading for home owners, builders and architects:
Andrew Wormer's Builder's Book of Bathrooms is an impressive achievement. In a friendly, narrative format, Wormer describes now only the why's and the how's of designing and building a bathroom. The Builder's Book of Bathrooms excels as both a reference to what's available with explanations of the pros and cons of the various options available, as well as its numerous clear, concise "how to" illustrations. Numerous lighthearted sidebars inserted among the photos, drawings and informative text discuss the history of the bathroom and its various fixtures. Information is easily accessed through a very complete index. Within moments of opening the book I was able to identify many of the shortcomings of our plumbing system (an extremely noisy fan)and locate some alternatives. The Builder's Book of Bathrooms is an excellent introduction to the technology and techniques behind one of the most visited rooms in your home. The in print and online Resources in the appendix, alone, justify adding it to your library.