Today In Our Test Labs: The toilet paper video edition

Crack jokes at our expense if you want, but Consumer Reports tests toilet paper.

Everybody uses it. Everybody buys it. So Consumer Reports tests it.

Our team looks at not only the feel and strength of the paper, but how easy it is to open the packaging and how hard it is to start a roll.

Bottom line, we do all this to find the softest, strongest toilet paper for the best value.

UPDATE: Our new ratings-based report on toilet paper is online now and appears in the May 2009 issue of Consumer Reports.

For more news and tips on keeping your home running smoothly, visit our Home & Garden Blog.

You can watch more of our testing at the Consumer Reports video hub.

Around Consumer Reports: Monday on our blogs

Here's a look at the blog posts on ConsumerReports.org.

Babies & Kids Blog

• HPV vaccine for boys?

Cars Blog

• Obama’s restructuring plan for GM: Can CEO Wagoner
• Obama: Chrysler, GM plans inadequate, demands further restructuring
• U.S. government to back Chrysler, GM car warranties
• Coming to New York: Acura ZDX concept

Electronics Blog

• Verizon to offer netbooks with plans

Health Blog

• Depression screenings recommended for teens
• Considering switching to Crestor? Not so fast
• Pistachios recalled due to salmonella risk

Home & Garden Blog

• By the Numbers: The environmental impact of gas mowers and tractors
• BBC warns visitors to New York City to be wary—of bedbugs, not muggers
• EPA Launches Video/Photo Project in Celebration of Earth Month and Earth Day

Money Blog

• New tax savings for car buyers
• New credit cards offer more cash back
• Restaurant menu secrets revealed: Part 1

Safety Blog

• Holiday lights that pose fire hazard are recalled
• Source of many foods difficult to trace, says DHHS study
• Oh nuts! Now pistachios are being recalled

ShopSmart Tip Sheet

• Reduce your grocery bills: try a garden

Around Consumer Reports: Thursday on our blogs

Here's a look at the blog posts on ConsumerReports.org.

Babies & Kids Blog

• Head lice: What works best for detection

Cars Blog

• Q&A: How can I protect myself from a failing dealership?
• Saab convertible drivers weather the storm, top down

Electronics Blog

• Photo-sharing sites: No place to back-up your photos
• Malware gets more malicious, boots small country offline

Health Blog

• Most hospitals still not using electronic health records, study shows
• Maggots: Much-maligned, but medically helpful
• Infections and medical errors persist in U.S. health care system
• Debate over HPV vaccine for boys centers on costs and safety

Home & Garden Blog

• EPA finding could lead to carbon dioxide being treated as a pollutant
• Tip of the Day: Smart moves when getting goods on Craigslist

Safety Blog

• Electrolux recalls 320,000 cordless vacuums with faulty batteries

ShopSmart Tip Sheet

• What to do with recalled products

Around Consumer Reports: Wednesday on our blogs

Here's a look at the blog posts on ConsumerReports.org.

Babies & Kids Blog

• 5 steps to DIY car seat installation
• Recall: Fisher Price high chair and booster seat

Cars Blog

• Start me up: Portable jump-starter battery packs
• Q& A: What if my dealer goes out of business?
• EPA declares CO2 harmful
• Americans oppose Detroit loans despite consequences

Electronics Blog

• Tips on getting movies from the library: Making the most of a free video option
• DTV converter coupons are flowing again
• TiVo adds Blockbuster to online movie partners
• New software optimizes photos for picture frames

Health Blog

• Tip of the day: Avoid free drug samples
• Alzheimer's cases triple health-care costs
• Detox diets could do a body harm

Home & Garden Blog

• By the Numbers: Median home price declines even as existing-home sales rise
• Appliance Standards Improvement Act of 2009 aims to enhance appliance efficiency
• 1800Mattress.com files for bankruptcy

Money Blog

• Grocer files for bankruptcy protection; stores will stay open
• Taxes: Last, best money-saving options

Safety Blog

• Swing into safety on the White House lawn
• CPSC announces five recalls of children's clothing with drawstrings

ShopSmart Tip Sheet

• Be your own coupon cop

Around Consumer Reports: Tuesday on our blogs

Here's a look at the blog posts on ConsumerReports.org.

Cars Blog

• Rollover poses real risks; IIHS announces new roof crush test
• Toyota Corolla – There is such a thing as too barebones

Electronics Blog

• DTV converter boxes: More rated, some scarce—at least for now
• Dell to deliver a smartphone?
• 13-inch Dell Inspiron laptop for the price of a netbook?

Health Blog

• Tip of the day: Soak up 10 minutes of sun for vitamin D
• Patient-centered care helps dementia patients cope
• Diabetes Alert Day: 8 ways to live longer

Home & Garden Blog

• Dos and don'ts: Avoid remodeling mistakes in your kitchen or bath
• By the Numbers: Smart grid could be vulnerable to cyber-attack
• Problems with Chinese-made drywall include health issues

Money Blog

• Steamed over ‘sticky’ pricing
• Where to turn when debt gets too deep

Safety Blog

• After child fractures skull, Fisher-Price recalls 24,000 high chairs

ShopSmart Tip Sheet

• Unhappy? Don't be afraid to speak up—gently

Around Consumer Reports: Monday on our blogs

Here's a look at the blog posts on ConsumerReports.org.

Babies & Kids Blog

• 3 ways to save money on high-end baby gear

Cars Blog

• How used cars are holding up
• Q&A: How can I get auto financing?
• Dawn of the $2,000 Car – Tata Nano
• Average gas prices--March 23, 2009
  

Electronics Blog

• Hit by cybercrime? Tell us your story
  

Health Blog

• Tip of the day: Get some sleep, prevent disease
• Fast-food restaurants near schools feed obesity
• Wet-combing beats visual inspection for spotting head lice

Home & Garden Blog

• Minnesota bill would require manufacturers to set up paint-recycling program
• By the Numbers: UNICEF's Tap Project aims to provide safe, clean drinking water worldwide
• Yankees Sod and Grass Seed go on sale

Money Blog

• We need your ideas for ‘What goes on sale when?'
• Millionaires get audited less. How 'bout you?

ShopSmart Tip Sheet

• Avoid the big-box binge

Some Consumer Reports history

One of the hundreds of dedicated folks who test, write, edit, and produce for Consumer Reports forwarded this video clip to all of us this morning, and you should see it, too.

It's a 1960 film produced for Consumers Union, our publisher, showing what was happening inside the Consumer Reports test labs.

The video is old and a bit grainy, but the mission is the same as it is today: to work for a fair, just, and safe marketplace for all consumers and to empower consumers to protect themselves.

For a more timely take on what we're doing here at Consumer Reports, visit our video page.

Around Consumer Reports: Thursday on our blogs

Here's a look at the blog posts on ConsumerReports.org.

Cars Blog

• Economic slowdown eases traffic
• Hybrid price war: Honda Insight vs. Toyota Prius
• More automakers abandon diesel entries
• Obama pledges $2.4 billion for electric vehicles & technology

Electronics Blog

• Consumer Electronics and Computer News Briefs

Health Blog

• Tip of the day: Be aware of risk factors for prostate cancer
• Docs weigh in on private cord-blood banking
• QVC to pay $7.5 million to settle false dietary supplement claims

Home & Garden Blog

• Tip of the Day: How to fix a jammed garbage disposer
• By the Numbers: In down economy, electricity thefts rise
• White House launches mortgage-assistance Web site

Safety Blog

• Kellogg CEO joins call for food safety reform
• Chinese-made drywall causing home and health hazards

ShopSmart Tip Sheet

• Ways to save on tax prep

Around Consumer Reports: Wednesday on our blogs

Here's a look at the blog posts on ConsumerReports.org.

Babies & Kids Blog

• New standard for cribs may make them safer

Cars Blog

• Car and truck recalls
• Chevrolet Camaro--The muscle car still has it
• "Cash for clunkers" revived as CARS Act

Electronics Blog

• Panasonic’s 2009 LCD HDTVs add 120Hz technology, iPod docks
• Most TV stations to offer analog signals through June 12

Health Blog

• Tip of the day: TV drug ads don't tell you everything
• Prostate-cancer screening: New research, but still no easy answers
• Comparative effectiveness: Will it lower Rx drug costs?
• Richardson's accident raises concerns about head injuries

Home & Garden Blog

• 10 Questions for . . . Sarah Susanka, Architect
• Do the Kill a Watt or Watts Up devices save you money?
• By the Numbers: New Yorkers are overpaying for power, says Schumer

Safety Blog

• New crib standard may yield safer designs

ShopSmart Tip Sheet

• Fun on the cheap

Around Consumer Reports: Tuesday on our blogs

Here's a look at the blog posts on ConsumerReports.org.

Babies & Kids Blog

• Glass topped tables and child injuries

Cars Blog

• Q&A: How long can my car last?
• Traffic can be bad for your heart

Electronics Blog

• Best DVD rental plans
• iPhone 3.0: Highlights of the new operating system

Health Blog

• Getting the best drugs for less
• Tip of the day: Shopping tool for COOL
• Best Drugs for Less Event: Watch the Video
• Teaching hospitals: Better survival rates, but not for all

Home & Garden Blog

• Vintage ad promotes the best sewing machines
• By the Numbers: N.J. builders offer mortgage lifeline to laid-off buyers
• Tip of the Day: How to avoid dangers at home

Money Blog

• Supermarkets doing more to help consumers muddle through
• Credit card rewards: Use them or lose them

ShopSmart Tip Sheet

• Sew fun! Project Runway sewing machine is a snap