General Electrical Handbook

Q: Does anyone know of any really good, extensive / general electrical handbooks / reference books? Maybe something similar to "The art of electronics" by Horowitz and Hill, but more about electrical things and not only electronics.

A: -A good one is "The American Electrician's Handbook", by Terrell Croft and Wilford Summers. -The Construction Bookstore puts out a quarterly catalog that lists many such books. They are online at http://www.constructionbook.com They seem to have the best selection of all for the electrical industry and the building industry in general. I have owned many editions of the American Electricians Handbook (AEH), but as a practicing electrician, I have to say that I seldom use it and when I do I find many times that it is obsolete. Much of the material is simply copied and pasted from earlier versions. I find a lack of application of computer technology to the electrical trade missing entirely. The section on Voltage Drop is misleading and lacks insight. There is nothing on Neher McGrath or the application of heat transfer for defining ampacity. While I have several old versions of the AEH , I do not think the book is worth the $90 price. -I picked an old (1949) "Standard Handbook for Electrical Engineers". It has all kinds of stuff that would not be in a general purpose book these days- how to make a Levin (elecrolysis) cell ("two asbestos diaphrams"), the mechanical design of high tension power transmission towers, arc furnaces etc. etc. ~2300 pages. There was so much less to know back then! -Yes I have the lastest version of that 'handbook'. It is pretty good, except, it has a whole lot of outdated stuff in it and old pictures. It is still a good book though at over 1200+ pages. -If you are talking about what references an EE should have on his/her bookshelf, then IMHO, If you can only afford to have one handbook on your shelf it should be the "Standard Handbook for Electrical Engineers," published by McGraw-Hill. This has been THE standard reference for pacticing EEs for years. It concentrates primarily in the area of power generation and distribution and has many

illustrations. If you are more into electronics design then I would recommend companion works, the "Electronics Engineers' Handbook," and the "Electronics Designers' Handbook," also from McGraw-Hill. There are also excellent reference books available from IEEE. Check the technical reference section of your public library; they may have some of these books on the shelf. You don't have to be an EE to appreciate the content of the above referenced handbooks. I would also add that the above references are not intended as DIY manuals (e.g. something like "How to Wire Your Home"). Sincerely, -IEEE Std 141 "red book" Smeaton, RW, Switchgear and Control Handbook