Fox Chapel Publishing Ultimate Guide: Plumbing, 6th Edition: 2024 National Plumbing Code Standards (Creative Homeowner) Beginner-Friendly Step-by-Step Projects, Comprehensive How-To Information for DIY, and Over 800 Photos

Why I picked up this guide

A good plumbing manual earns its keep the first time you’re staring at a leaking fitting and wondering what you missed. I picked up this guide to see if it could serve as a reliable bench-side companion for real-world projects—quick fixes, planned upgrades, and the odd troubleshooting rabbit hole. Over several weeks, I used it to replace a shower cartridge, reconfigure a double-bowl kitchen sink drain, add a frost-proof hose bib on PEX, and sanity-check my venting layout on a basement bathroom rough-in. The short version: it helped me do those jobs right, with fewer surprises, and gave me enough context to avoid common mistakes.

What the book actually covers

This is the sixth edition, updated to reflect 2024 code standards, and it runs 312 pages with more than 800 color photos. The coverage hits the major residential categories you’d expect:

• Water supply: shutoffs, fixture stops, pressure regulators, copper sweat joints, PEX (crimp/clamp and push-fit), and CPVC solvent-weld basics.
• DWV (drain, waste, vent): slope, trap selection and placement, cleanouts, vent tying, fixture arm rules, and common branch configurations.
• Fixtures: toilets, faucets, sinks, showers/tubs, disposers, dishwashers, and laundry.
• Maintenance and small repairs: replacing cartridges, seals, wax rings, supply hoses, and clearing traps safely.
• Planning and safety: tool lists, materials selection, and callouts that tie back to code essentials.

It’s written for DIYers but doesn’t talk down to you. The tone is clear and practical, like a contractor who’s already seen the five ways a job can go sideways.

The photography and step-by-step approach

This book’s greatest strength is its visual clarity. Each project sequence has tight, well-lit photos that match the text without making you juggle between paragraphs and diagrams. Steps are short, numbered, and anchored by close-up shots—solder beads at the joint, crimp ring placement, solvent-cement sheen, trap orientation, and so on. As someone who prefers to confirm what “hand-tight plus a quarter turn” looks like in context, I found the photo sequences more useful than any illustration could be.

Where it shines even more is the use of comparison photos. For example, there’s a side-by-side of properly prepped copper versus improperly cleaned pipe before sweating, and it explains why one weeps and the other doesn’t. Similar sidebars show correct versus incorrect slope on a trap arm and how that affects siphon risk.

How it performed on actual projects

• Shower cartridge replacement: My shower had erratic temperature control and a faint drip. The guide’s troubleshooting section let me confirm it was the cartridge and not a balancing spool issue. The steps for isolating the water, protecting the finish, extracting a stubborn cartridge, and greasing the O-rings were accurate, and the cutaway photo helped me understand alignment. Time saved: I avoided a second trip to the hardware store for a missing puller because the tool list called it out upfront.

• Double-bowl sink drain rework: I was moving from a shallow to a deeper sink and needed to correct the trap height and add a disposer. The book clarified the right way to configure a baffle tee and maintain trap seal depth while keeping a cleanout accessible. The sequence helped me dry-fit everything, mark positions, and solvent-weld in the right order. No leaks, no gurgling, and the baffle tee eliminated cross-flow.

• Adding a frost-proof hose bib with PEX: The step-by-step on PEX transitions shows crimp ring placement and a neat trick for stabilizing the sillcock to avoid stressing the connection. The pressure test procedure and winterization notes were concise. I liked that it explicitly calls out the torque to avoid crushing soft copper stubs if you’re mixing materials.

• Basement vent layout check: Before closing a wall, I used the DWV section to confirm vent tie-ins and trap arm lengths. The book didn’t try to be an exhaustive code bible, but it highlighted the rules of thumb and pointed me toward verifying local specifics. That kept me from creating a dead-end branch that would have been a headache later.

Code awareness without being dense

This edition is updated to 2024 standards, and you can tell. It flags things like the importance of accessible cleanouts, anti-scald protections, and proper air gap placement for dishwashers. It does a nice job distinguishing “best practice” from “minimum compliance” without turning the pages into legalese. The book doesn’t get into the weeds of every regional amendment, which is fair, but it consistently reminds you to verify with your local code office. I appreciated that balance: it keeps the book actionable while remaining responsible.

Planning, tools, and materials

Before each project, there’s a brief tools-and-materials box that’s actually complete. That sounds basic, but it matters. The lists prevented me from starting a job without a critical part, like spare PTFE tape, extra escutcheon gaskets, or the right solvent for ABS versus PVC. The planning advice is practical—turn off water at the right point in the system, bucket under every joint you touch, keep a few union joints in supply lines to simplify future service, etc. There’s also a solid overview of pros and cons among materials: copper’s durability versus PEX’s speed and freeze resilience, CPVC’s temperature resistance but brittleness, and when push-fit makes sense as a temporary or serviceable solution.

Troubleshooting that goes beyond “look for leaks”

Troubleshooting is where the book provides a lot of value. Rather than generic advice, you get symptom-driven paths: slow-draining fixture with gurgles (likely venting issue), intermittent hammering after valve closes (arrestors and anchor checks), ghost flushing toilets (flapper or fill valve diagnostics), and low flow after fixture swap (aerator debris or supply stop not fully open). The “if this, then try that” layout made it easy to narrow down causes without tearing apart half the system.

Usability and organization

• Layout: Logical progression from basics to advanced tasks. Clear headings and short sections make it scannable when you’re mid-project.
• Index and glossary: Surprisingly helpful. Finding “trap arm” or “dielectric union” is quick.
• Writing: Jargon is explained on first use. Measurements are consistent, and callouts tie directly to photos.

One small gripe: the paperback binding doesn’t lie flat, so I ended up clipping pages open in tight spaces. A spiral-bound version would improve shop usability.

Where it could go further

No book covers everything, and I bumped into a few gaps:

• Vent maintenance: There’s plenty on designing and roughing in vents, but I wanted more on diagnosing and addressing blocked stack vents beyond the basics.
• Regional techniques: The guide is necessarily general. If your area relies on certain materials (e.g., cast-iron no-hub work in older homes), you’ll need supplemental references.
• Advanced systems: Hydronic heating, recirculation loops with timers or demand pumps, and whole-house filtration are touched on lightly or not at all. That’s outside core residential repair, but worth noting.

These aren’t deal-breakers, but they set expectations. For standard residential fixes and upgrades, the content is deep enough. For specialty or regional work, treat this as a foundation.

Who will get the most from it

• Homeowners tackling occasional repairs or a bathroom refresh: The photos and checklists make it approachable.
• Serious DIYers: There’s enough detail to take on moderate projects, from moving a vanity supply to swapping a tub valve.
• Apprentices and new techs: As a visual reference, it’s excellent for reinforcing proper technique and code-aware decisions.
• Pros: It’s not a field manual for complex systems, but it’s a good refresher and a useful loaner to clients who want to understand what you’re proposing.

Value and durability

At 312 pages with 800+ photos, the value is in the time and rework it saves. The book paid for itself on the first job where I didn’t have to redo a weeping joint or re-route a trap arm. Paper quality holds up to jobsite handling reasonably well, though I wouldn’t leave it in a damp crawl space. A plastic page marker or tabs help when bouncing between sections during a project.

Recommendation

I recommend this guide for anyone who wants a reliable, photo-rich reference that aligns with 2024 code principles and supports real work, not just theory. It helped me complete repairs and small remodel tasks efficiently, and its troubleshooting sections reduced guesswork. While it’s U.S.-centric and not exhaustive on specialty topics, its step-by-step clarity, strong visual instruction, and practical planning advice make it the first book I’d hand to a homeowner or apprentice. If you want a single, up-to-date volume that improves your results and confidence on residential plumbing projects, this is the one to keep on your bench.