Forum Friday: Fall yard work, best furnaces, and dishwasher love

We're always happy to see your comments on our blog entries. There's another place for you to vent or to share information with fellow readers: our home and yard and appliances forums. Since most forum messages are posted over the weekend, we're debuting Forum Friday posts to tip you off to the timeliest topics. For example:

• If you've spent more time lately following politics than tending to your yard, our fall-cleanup forum has some savvy tips from Consumer Report garden guru Peter Sawchuk on how you can play catch-up on your cleanup. We've also put together this very useful mix of raking strategies and equipment ratings.

• If you're dreading winter's chill and heating bills, discussions like Which gas furnace should I buy? cover geothermal heating and other topics and offer dozens of first-hand accounts. You'll also find a spirited discussion of our reviews of tankless water heaters and replacement windows.

• On the appliances forum, our dishwashers discussion is attracting a fair amount of traffic as more people are reporting problems with a wide range of models or touting the better-performing ones in I love my dishwasher.

• More warmth is radiating from a discussion of the pros, cons, and costs of slow cookers in our small-appliances forum. And as often happens, members are swapping notes on the real-world performance and unforeseen pitfalls of new products. This discussion about GE's Advantium oven shows how forum postings complement our formal ratings and user reviews (available to subscribers).

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Check out our appliances forums

With nearly 400 user-initiated topics, refrigerators remain our most active appliance-related forum. A good place to join in is the "Anyone happy with their purchase?" thread, where people are reveling in—or just plain regretting—their recent refrigerator buys. Other notable fridge topics include:
• When you should repair or replace a refrigerator.
• The pros and cons—and costs—of French-door refrigerators (shown).
• Buying advice for narrow refrigerators.

Dishwashers enjoy the second-highest number of member-created topics in our appliances forums. Check out these:
• Bosch, Electrolux, and Kenmore models have received rave reviews in the "I love my dishwasher" forum set up by forums moderator Angelo Mannino.
• Dual-drawer dishwashers are drawing detractors and defenders.
• One member noted a downside to some high-tech models: The circuit boards could prove difficult to replace.

For washing machines, you'll find a number of interesting reads. These include:
• Picks for a dependable front-loader.
• Talk about which store offers the best return policy.
• A thread on curing washers of mold and mildew, a topic that prompted this recent blog post. It's an example of how we can work your specific needs and concerns into our coverage.—Gian Trotta

Essential information: Read about how some appliances have become more energy efficient in recent years, and learn how the federal Energy Star program has lost some of its luster.

Forum and Function: Readers' solutions to summertime problems

If you find yourself in a bind around the house this holiday weekend—or maybe you just have some spare time—you might want to take a look at the wealth of user-generated information on our forums. You'll find suggested solutions to some summer-specific household issues—or at least get some sympathy from fellow readers.

Summer comfort: Make your air conditioner more dependable and efficient

• Curing noisy air conditioners
• Using an air conditioner with a fan
• Does fan speed affect efficiency?

Outdoor pleasures: Here's what's fueling discussions about grills, an essential summer tool

• Who makes the best gas grill?
• Should you refill or exchange your liquid-propane tanks?
• Natural gas vs. propane: Which fuel is better?

Appliances woes: Higher temperatures take a toll on many appliances. Here are solutions to a few recurring problems

• Dryers: What to do about condensation
• Curing a smelly washer
• Replacing a refrigerator: Which French-door model is best?

And finally, if summer activities have taken a toll on your physique, our best mattresses for bad backs thread might provide some relief.—Gian Trotta