Reports by Consumers

So…what is the verdict? Who wins the safe sippy cup celebrity death match….muhawaaa! The Foogo by Thermos wins the first round in our household but the Klean Kanteen is very close behind. My kids really liked the kid friendly design of the Sigg bottles but mom likes durability more. Born Free is a good option in plastic but a little to high maintenance for me.

Sometime in junior high school, our dishwasher broke in my home. It was never really addressed. Then, a long time later, I was informed that it had been fixed. The problem was that I was legally old enough to drink alcoholic beverages by this time.

I hope you have a wonderful, happy 4th of July! :D We’re planning a bbq complete with steak and potato salad (which I bought and didn’t make because I haven’t mentioned that our dishwasher - less than a year old - is making a very weird noise and won’t be fixed until the 5th, and I just can’t bear to dirty that many dishes for so little reward as a mediocre potato salad when I can just buy a mediocre potato salad with no cleanup. Flawless logic, no?). We’ll also have chips and dip, plenty of backyard water fun, and of course the fireworks.

Most homeowners are aware of the dangers of allergens in the air and toxic substances in household products. But how many know about the dangers of noise in the home?

The bottom line? Pay close attention to the beauty and household products your family uses. The perfumes, dyes and other chemicals in these everyday products cause skin irritations for many people. Try using chemical-free or dye-free products instead. There are more on the market all the time. I personally use ALL brand Free & Clear laundry detergent for my family’s laundry and I’ve been very happy with it. Remember, your skin is your body’s first line of defense!

According to a New York Times article, diethylene glycol was not listed on the label of the toothpaste found in the Miami store but the FDA inspected it because of the discovery in Panama of tens of thousands of tubes of tainted toothpaste made in China. It appears that “counterfeiters have found it profitable to substitute diethylene glycol for its chemical cousin, glycerin, which is usually more expensive”. Glycerin is known to be a safe additive which is commonly found in food, drugs and household products and in toothpaste, and is used as a thickening agent.

Household products can contain hazardous ingredients such as organic solvents and petroleum-based chemicals that can release volatile organic compounds (VOCs) into your indoor environment, positing a particular danger for children. The average American household has three to ten of hazardous matter in the home.

5. Dishwashers use just as much water washing a few cups as a full load. Make sure that the dishwasher is full before you put a load on. This once again will save you water, energy and money. It’s a win / win situation.

As early as Monday, TV stations in Pittsburgh began running their consumer alert commercials. KDKA-TV took home a Pre-Sweeps Award for most gut-wrenching commercial as they reminded viewers that their consumer reporter, Yvonne Zanos, has done extensive research on so many household products. And let’s not forget that she’s helped viewers save money and get what they paid for!

These new lights are more attractive, smaller, fit into almost any fixture, and are getting cheaper. I started buying them when they were 10 bucks for a pack of three. They’re less than 6 bucks for three now. I’ll grant you that this is rather steep for what used to cost 1 dollar for three bulbs. But these lights will pay for themselves. They last for 5 to 7 years, and use less than a third of the electricity.

I don’t want to mislead people, just want to show that we should give much more attention to those little labels on our household products. On that site, there are plenty of brands, some of them have great quality. Be cautious while choosing… Our health is the first!

She was a middle-aged woman just trying to survive on the mean streets of upper-middle class suburbia. He, a highly concentrated, environmentally friendly (and surprisingly economical!) bottle of Basic-H. Perfectly accessorized with a full complement of spray bottles suitable for every cleaning need, he promised her that no stain would ever stand between her and the nirvana that is the white glove clean home.

This love of modern design can be seen in many aspects of Dutch life. Interiors, household products, clothing- so many things seem to be beautifully and simply designed, even at shops the equivalent of Target or KMart. Where there are antiques or older objects, they are placed within a modern context.

The first thing you need to do to provide safety for children in your home is safeguard all the electrical sockets and chemicals in your home. Most people do this for babies, but become more lax about it as their kids get older. Most people don’t think that their middle school age child is vulnerable to electrocution or poisoning with household products. However, if they really thought through how the 12-year-old brain works, they might be more diligent.

I just noticed that my new apartment doesn’t have a dishwasher. I’m not even sure if I remember how to wash dishes by hand. Luckily I don’t use too many dishes and certainly don’t dirty them enough to suffer a whole lot when washing them by hand. But still!

In a style that’s strictly his own, Jerry suggests topical treatments for your yard that include ingredients such as ammonia, molasses, beer, pop, mouthwash; and those are just some of the interesting household products and items needed to get your lawn and garden up and growing. Jerry Baker tells people by following these simple instructions “the greenest grass and tastiest vegetables will be on your side of the fence.”

In the middle of all the laughing caused by the story behind the "hair dryer duck" recipe, I remember that long time ago I read about an incredible post by The Skinny Chef, the recipe was to prepare "dishwasher poached salmon." Yep. So, after looking and digging into my favorites, I found it. This recipe is going to crack you up too.

She was young and in her late twenties when I was her student. She was a strong advocate of pro-environmentalism. A lot of the things our class used to develop our creativity, our tactile, and counting skills were from reuseable or recycled everyday household products such as butter containers, various lids of cream cheese or yogurt lids, newspapers, milk cartons from the cafeteria, etc. And Earth Day was the best when it was approaching. Even in months prior to Earth Day she encouraged us to become more conscious of the products we used or how much electricity we consumed in our households.

There are certain household products (like my coffee maker) that tend to have a long service life. So, when it comes time to replace them, you're not likely to find one just like the one you had. There will be all sorts of new bells and whistles (timers, digital clocks, RFID, and god knows what).

Today, the array of available appliances run from small and simple, with a one quart capacity and little or no ornamentation, to large and very expressively decorated, even themed. The largest slow cookers for residential use have a 7-quart capacity. Would you like a crockery cooker with race cars on the sides or in the shape of a football? They are available. The lids, sizes, and actual temperatures of the heat settings can vary. For me, the only important thing when it comes to a slow cooker is that the ceramic insert is removable. Cleaning up is so much easier when it can be washed in the dishwasher.

we got assigned our client for our national campaign in advanced media strategies class yesterday. we working on a media plan for method (the company that makes household products). looks like it’s going to be a great client, it’s a brand that’s going to be fun putting a media plan together for. so much growth potential there. even more exciting is the agency that we’re working with: crispin porter [burger king, volkswagen, among other greats]. seriously, that just insanely exciting. tomorrow is our conf. call with the agency, got to do some research so i’m prepared. my group that we have picked out is awesome and this is looking like it’s going to be great. at the recruiting happy hour last night we were all hanging out and had a great time and got along well so i’m very pleased with that.

I have no pictures to share quite obviously. I don’t think that you want to see a picture of my desk, my washing machine, my dishwasher, or my bed…and that’s pretty much the only places I’ve been frequenting lately. Perhaps this weekend I will take an excursion, just my new camera and I. I will take stellar outdoor mood shots, and you will all marvel at the amazing degree of detail that my new camera of love and goodness captures. Perhaps.

Now it's true, "she believes deeply in living green." She thinks that plain soap does just as well as antibacterial soap. (And well it should, since soap is an antibacterial by definition, a point that seems to have eluded both Gordon and the story's author.) She avoids plastics and cleans her home with vinegar and lemon juice instead of household products.

This is my first apartment with a dishwasher. Man, do I ever love this thing. In previous apartments, I was "pretty good" (ahem) about taking out the trash, but dishes... well, sometimes I neglected them just a bit. And, you know, once in a while I'd find mold growing on my dishes. It can be rinsed off, sure, but the smell is what's problematic.

Productscan Online contains detailed descriptions of over one-half million new products, introduced from 1980-present worldwide. Product coverage is focused on consumer packaged goods: foods, beverages, health and beauty aids, household products, and pet foods/supplies.

We're close to getting back on track and feel like we are making a little progress. We are slowly making progress on the framing for the first floor and we will be getting the necessary tools for plumbing later this week. The varnishing of doors continues as I don't have much energy after teaching 4th graders all day, but the doors are set up and ready to go- I just have to set my mind to it and get them done. The sink and dishwasher will move to the new location (new appliances won't be bought until we're closer to building the cabinets) and the cat door might be re-installed in the next week.

From the U.K this Guardian article says,”household products usually promise to help get rid of dirt, but one leading brand has been shamed into cleaning up its own act after an internet marketing campaign backfired spectacularly.

What began as a frustrating apartment search turned quickly into a demoralizing one. There were serious questions of safety and affordability, and I found myself conceding on most of the major points on my list of ideal qualities in an ideal apartment. Washer and dryer? OK, I knew that was a pipe dream. I held out for about a day. Dishwasher? Not necessary when you live alone. Running water? A luxury. Safe neighborhood? I'll carry a club.

A couple days ago, I had to remove the dishwasher from the kitchen cabinets for an appliance fixit job that is still ongoing. When the dishwasher came out, I found that the space under my kitchen cabinets and dishwasher was is being used as a giant mouse toilet.

I had to tinker with the dishwasher today– a project that required removing the toe kick and soaking up water in an overflow pan with a sponge. While I was lying down on kitchen floor I noticed a smell like a musty bathroom coming from beneath the dishwasher and kitchen cabinets. I pulled out the dishwasher to investigate.

Things in our kitchen seem to be breaking down and my son has definite ideas on how to go about fixing them. The dishwasher needs to be re-anchored and he says we need to get loooooong screws and drill biiiiger holes. My reply: let daddy take care of it. This morning the sink started acting up again. I told T, “The sink is clogged up again.” His reply: plunger it, Mommy.

I spent a few vacation days and the weekend getting our new dishwasher hooked up. This is a big win for us–not so much because of the automatic dishwasher itself, but because it doubles the amount of counter space we have available in the kitchen. (Not having to wash dishes by hand is nice, too. But the counter space was critical!)

Plastic, my friends, is based on highly refined and modified - you guessed it - petroleum products. This final state is, largely, unrecyclable. “So?” you ask. Well, lets look at the things in your life that wouldn’t exist without plastic:

Start with your computer and all the peripherals. That means every computer, including the ones that keep the lights on at the power plants, the ones that control the rails and air traffic, your phones, all of them. Ipods, printers, mice keyboards, the whole enchilada.

The organization has published a chart, which can be seen here, that lists the odds of needing a repair of various household products . According to the site, the repair rate for laptops is 33%. This means there is a 1 in 3 chance, you’ll need to take your laptop in for repairs during the first three years of ownership.

We had to pick a specific company and decide what sort of connectors we wanted on our hose and then buy something for the spigot, for the hose and, if we wanted to add another hose to the end, yet another connector. I am constantly having to go look for one connector or another. They are all made out of, hopefully, durable plastic and easily snap into place. I don’t know, it just seems strange to me. Its amazing how things come to be in various countries, from electrical wires and plugs, to plumbing to which side of the street cars drive on. I should be more amazed and maybe a little charmed, but I often find myself irritated. Sometimes I miss the comfortableness of America. And, on a final note, our dishwasher, used for a little over one year, has stopped working and we await a repairman.

We have a dishwasher! It was finally installed today, after it sitting in the kitchen for 3 days. Ever since we moved in here we wanted to get the Fisher and Paykel double drawers. So we went out a couple of weekends ago, and got a price somewhere, and then went to another place to see if they could do better.

3) The spaghetti sauce test. The package shows spaghetti leftovers in one of these bowls, but you know that spaghetti sauce will stain almost anything, including the inside of your dishwasher, a little orange. After nuking the sauce in test #2 above, I washed the bowl. As I suspected, it was stained orange. Very few disposable containers can pass this test, and this one was no exception.

How to build your own air-conditioner. If there were no computers, this is what Brett Peters would do instead of reconfiguring his home network all the time. But where would he post about it?

Jenn-Air added glitz to fridges. Now the Maytag division's Attrezzi line adds pizzazz to stand mixers, blenders, and toasters. Touted as a "modern renaissance," the line of coordinating appliances features etched glass, antique copper and oiled bronze finishes, and plenty of graceful curves. The toaster even browns bagels in a choice of seven shades. Mixing bowls and blender pitchers, both in 10 colors, are designed for double duty, going from kitchen counter to dining table. When done, removable cords let them sit statuesquely. And these babies...

Has anyone tried this? Washing your keyboard in a dishwasher? Google Search.

A decade or so ago one of Pournelle’s kids spilled an Orange Crush into Dad’s rig, a review Northgate with one of the famed Northgate keyboards. Jerry popped it into the dishwasher, and it came out fine.

I'm really wanting to go to bed here. Can someone come over and take a shift mopping up the water while the dishwasher runs?

Not to be confused with the Great Appliance Failure of 2004, the sequel includes not only the dishwasher, but the dryer AND the riding lawnmower. Oh, and not to be outdone, the Busy Van II is in on the failure action as well.

You reach it by a ferry which butts its way through the waves like a ping-pong ball in a dishwasher - you can duplicate the experience at home by eating a large meal of underdone fish and lightly-boiled eggs, then performing a somersault in a car-wash.

Online shopping received a substantial boost on Monday when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that state governments may not prohibit residents from ordering directly from out-of-state wineries.

In a 5-4 ruling, the court said that Michigan and New York had enacted protectionist laws that unconstitutionally discriminated against wineries from other states.

SUPER MAN RETURNS!: Oscar-nominated documentarian Morgan Spurlock, whose fast-food exposé Super Size Me gave McDonald's a serious case of indigestion, is targeting something smaller for his next project: the nation's minimum wage. For the June 15 premiere of his new FX ducu-series, 30 Days, Spurlock and his fiancée, Alexandra Jamieson, relocated to Columbus, Ohio, for a month and lived on $5.15 an hour. "It's so impossible," says Spurlock. "There were days when I'd work 18 hours and make $90." During the experiment, the human...

The Coca-Cola Company is currently testing a new Diet Coke sweetened with Splenda in the Phoenix market. A friend of mine tipped me off. Right now, you can get them in the small refrigerators next to the check out lines at Fry's grocery stores. I haven't checked any other grocers out. Also, the 20 oz. plastic bottles are only $0.50 with your Fry's card, so definitely bring that one along.

My parents got a new dishwasher recently after the old one gave up the ghost. They did whatever anyone would do - they went to a shop, had a look at various anonymous white boxes, and made a choice. How were they to know what a steaming pile of crap it would be? Sure, the settings are great. Yah, wonderful. Economy. Well done. But you try actually filling the fucking thing with the results of a very nice Sunday roast, and frankly, you'd be cursing the stupid thing too.

To follow up on the ordeal of overflowing washing machines, dead dishwashers, et al, I have ordained that there is a special circle in Hell for electricians who add circuits to existing switch panels without labeling same. And adjacent to that is another cozy spot for appliance manufacturers who ship appliances without fittings that their products require and which sell for the outlandish sum of $3.41. Yes, Frigidaire/Electrolux, I’m looking in your direction. If I need a 90° male fitting coupled with with a 3/8 inch compression fitting —...

I just went into the kitchen and my dishwasher is flashing "HO." I have no idea what this means, but I think I'm insulted.

We sold his place and turned my place into our place with an addition and now it's been two years since he moved in here. He still claims to not know where we keep the vacuum which is the front hall closet right next to his golf shoes. He can't empty the dishwasher because he doesn't know where forks go. He has a PhD and earns his living doing statistical research but changing light bulbs is too high tech. Okay, I'm exaggerating but the point is he has significantly dummied up when it comes to housekeeping. So, now, for the first time ever...

Apart from the charities I have mentioned (of which there are so many more but I mentioned the ones here as an introduction) and writing to your local member of government, there are other ways in which you can reduce the amount of animal testing that goes on. By buying organic you are reducing the amount of revenue that goes to agrochemical testing on animals. Other ways include buying cruelty free cosmetics, household products etc. Investing your money in ethical companies/ financial institutions, although this is not always transparent with regards...

One of the best means of avoiding exposure to house- hold hazardous materials is to use safer alternatives whenever possible. Included in this section are time- honored recipes and suggestions to help you make the switch toward safer household products. Ingredients followed by instructions will guide you through an array of easy-to-make, easy-to-use safer alternatives. Some ingredients recommended as alternatives are safer, but not nontoxic.These...

The first of an avalanche of applications I imagine, but is it safe? The history of Lead and Mercury in household products is the first thing that springs to mind, I need to see some reassuring science I think.

Countertop microwaves seem to fall into 3-4 categories these days: Tiny, cheap utilitarian models, slightly larger units with various gadgets like toasters incorporated, normal 1-1.5 cu. ft models, and stainless-clad uber beasts. All I wanted was a mid-size microwave with a few sensor features and a reasonable price. No one had these in stock - they were all the $40 tiny models, the Swiss-Army microwaves, and $170 "designer" styles. To me, a 'wave should be just a 'wave - not a coffee machine nor a fashion accessory - and should cost between...