Home Appliances

You probably don't need to change your ceiling fan direction if you only use it to cool the room, but you can switch the direction for a wintertime hack.

By Sascha Bos

Doing laundry is bad enough without having to worry about choosing the right detergent. So which is best? Or does it even matter?

By Jeremy Glass & Sascha Bos

The dishwasher uses much less water and energy than washing by hand. Here's why.

By Alia Hoyt

That fridge dispenser is supposed to make it easy to get a pure delicious-tasting glass of water. But often you taste something stale, metallic or foul. Why is that and how do you fix it?

By Nathan Chandler

It's not every day you spend $1,500 on a kitchen gadget, even one that bills itself as 22 appliances in one. So, is it worth the price? We decided to investigate.

By Dave Roos

The Lazy Susan is a circular tray that spins to make food service easier, but the origins of the name are a bit murky. What is a Lazy Susan, exactly, and why did it earn that disparaging name? Let's find out!

By Laurie L. Dove

The bathroom appliance that Europeans embrace and Americans pooh-pooh could be beneficial to our health and to the health of the planet.

By Jesslyn Shields

You should never, ever flush tissues. What else?

By Laurie L. Dove

The pressure cooker has been around for years, but its pride of place in the kitchen is being usurped by the new kid in town, the Instant Pot. So, what is the difference?

By Jeremy Glass

One study showed gas stoves had pollutant levels exceeding limits for outdoor pollution, so don't save the kitchen fan only for when you've let the bacon burn.

By Nathan Chandler

It's not just loud and annoying — a fan is necessary to help stop mold and mildew in the bathroom. But you have to use it correctly.

By Nathan Chandler

Sure you can shove your food on any shelf in the fridge it will fit on. But stacking it the right way will help the food last longer.

By Alia Hoyt

Winter time often means hauling out the humidifier to improve air quality. But ignoring the cleaning instructions could add to your health problems.

By Alia Hoyt

We can thank a woman named Josephine Cochrane for this timesaver.

By John Perritano

The microwave oven is a ubiquitous appliance in kitchens today, but don't we all have that one holdout friend who still refuses to own one?

By Jesslyn Shields

Good news: You don't have waste time pre-rinsing before you stack your dishes.

By Alia Hoyt

Lots of turkeys sold in the United States come with a cool little piece of technology — the pop-up timer. But how do they know when the turkey is done?

By Marshall Brain

Sales of bidets are up in the U.S. Could they finally make a splash in a country that's mostly resisted them?

By John Donovan

It's an absorbing topic: Where did toilet paper come from, how is it made and why did it take so long for people to start using it?

By Nathan Chandler

Open-front public toilet seats are U-shaped, while those in private residences are O-shaped. What gives?

By Chris Opfer

When you're whipping up your famous paella, the thought of saving money and energy probably isn't at the front of your mind. Yet you could be saving money every single time you cook --if you have an energy-efficient stove.

By Stephanie Watson

Traditional air conditioners are huge consumers of energy. Could magnetic air conditioners keep our homes cooler inside without making temperatures hotter outside?

By Beth Brindle

Electricity may seem like the cheap, green way to go, but natural gas is also a popular choice for energizing many common indoor and outdoor appliances. This fossil fuel is efficient, reliable, economical and environmentally friendly.

By Marie Willsey

You want your new kitchen to look nice, but you also want it to do everything you need a kitchen to do quickly and easily. Would getting all of your appliances from the same manufacturer solve both problems?

By Ed Grabianowski

Long a staple of any modern kitchen, stainless steel has been cast off as old news by a vocal band of outliers. Is the ubiquitous appliance material a thing of the past?

By Chris Opfer