A field guide for the house.

Home Fieldbook is an illustrated reference to the rooms, fixtures and systems inside a building. Each chapter covers the code minimum, the better number, the options worth knowing about and the mistakes we see most often on real jobs.

It's written for anyone making decisions about a building: homeowners planning a renovation, owners and investors scoping a project, and the trades doing the work.

A fieldbook is the notebook surveyors, engineers and builders carry on site: the dimensions, the rules and the notes you need when you're standing in the room. This is that book for the whole house.

How to read it

• Code numbers are the minimum the model building codes require.
• Good numbers are what we'd build to. They're better practice, not law.
• Small chips like R311.7.5.1 mark a code requirement. Tap one to see the code, section, a plain-English summary and a link to the free official text.
• Drawings are illustrative, not to scale for construction.

How it's made

The drawings are made with AI image tools, then picked, edited and checked by us. They're a fast way to show an idea, not plans to build from. The substance is what we write: every number is checked against the code text, cited to its section and dated. If a drawing and the text ever disagree, the text wins, and we'd like to hear about it.

Which codes

Unless a page says otherwise, numbers refer to the 2021 International Residential Code (IRC) and its companion codes (IPC, IMC, IFGC, IBC, IECC), the 2023 National Electrical Code (NEC), and the 2010 ADA Standards where accessibility applies. Numbers were last checked Oct 2026.

Disclaimer

This guide is general information, not professional advice. Building codes are adopted and amended by states and towns, and the edition in force where you build may differ from the one cited here. Always confirm requirements with your local building department, and use licensed professionals where the work or your jurisdiction requires them.

Code summaries are written in our own words. The model codes are published by the International Code Council and the National Fire Protection Association; follow the links on each citation to read the official text. Costs, where shown, are ballpark ranges and vary widely by region and project.