What Are the Best and Worst Home Products?
From vacuums to paper towels, consumer reports put these products to the test.
April 13, 2010— -- Consumer Reports magazine tested thousands of household products to put together a comprehensive list of the best and worst products for their May 2010 issue.
Here is a list of the home products Consumer Reports magazine deemed the best and worst.
Best: Walgreens Ultra Quilted
Worst: Earth Friendly Products
Why: Consumer Reports said Walgreen Ultra Quilted was rated the best because it was absorbent and survived more than 100 scrubs over the test tiles while Earth Friendly Products "lasted only 15 scrubs."
Best: Quilted Northern Ultra Plush
Worst: Scott 1000
Why: Quilted Northern Ultra Plush was highly rated because it is "soft and strong" and also "disintegrated easily when flushed," the magazine wrote. Scott 1000 "was the thinnest" the magazine tested, it said, and was "only mediocre in strength and softness."
Best: Tide 2X Ultra Color Bleach
Worst: Xtra 2X Concentrated Lasting ScentSations
Why: "For washing away tough stains, the top scorer is Tide 2X Ultra with Color Clean Bleach Alternative," Consumer Reports said in its May issue. The magazine advised consumers to "pass on bottom-rated Xtra 2X Concentrated Lasting ScentSations Spring Sun Shine."
Best: Cascade Complete Bleach
Worst: Wave 2X Ultra High Performance
Why: The magazine gave Cascade as 12 cents a load, the highest rating in detergents, although it acknowledged the detergent uses phosphates, which could harm the environment. The lowest rating went to Wave 2X Ultra High Performance, because it left the "loads pretty dirty and costs 33 cents a load," the magazine wrote.
Best: 10-piece Earth Pan with Sand Flow ($190)
Worst: Mercola Healthy Chef cookware ($300)
Why: The Earth Pan with Sand Flow 10-piece set "delivered high performance at half the price of some other sets we tested," the magazine wrote. "Burned food, handles that broke during testing, and stuck-on food helped land the $300 Mercola Healthy Chef cookware set at the bottom of our ratings," the magazine said.
Best: KitchenAid Classic K45SS[WH] ($200)
Worst: Sunbeam Mixmaster 2594 ($90)
Why: The KitchenAid Classic K45SS[WH] was the highest rated "because it can whip up fluffy meringues and handle double batches of bread dough with ease," the magazine wrote. The Sunbeam Mixmaster 2594 was found by the magazine to be "lightweight in performance and pounds."
Best: Bissell's OxyPro Carpet Spot & Stain Remover ($4.85)
Worst: Dyson's Dyzolv Spot Cleaner ($13)
Why: Although Consumer Reports said it was not impressed with any of the stain removers it tested, but said Bissell's OxyPro Carpet Spot & Stain Remover "was best at lifting French dressing and spaghetti sauce" while Dyson's "left much of those stains behind and was even worse on coffee and red wine," the magazine wrote.
Best: Moen's Inspire 21777 ($50)
Worst: Price Pfister Bell 15-070 ($40)
Why: Top rated Moen's showerhead had a "strong flow of water at a consistent temperature and seven settings," the magazine wrote, while the Price Pfister Bell 15-070 had a "big drop in water temperature between the showerhead and your body."
Small Stick Vacuum
Highest Rated: Bissell Versus 76T8 ($60)
Lower Rated: Dirt Devil Power Stick M084100 ($40)
Why: The Bissell hand vacuum received a score of 84 points from Consumer Reports magazine, versus the Dirt Devil Power Stick M084100 which the magazine gave a 64 as an overall score.
Click here to return to the "Good Morning America" Web site.