How answers are checked

Which questions get an answer

Topics come from questions homeowners search for in each subject, and from the problems where a homeowner may eventually need a professional. A question gets a page only if public sources can answer it.

Which sources count

A claim that a reader could check has to rest on a named source. The site relies on:

• Federal agencies, such as the Environmental Protection Agency and its ENERGY STAR program, the Department of Energy, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the Census Bureau.
• Model codes and standards, such as the International Residential Code, the International Energy Conservation Code, and standards from bodies like the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification.
• University extension services and state agencies, for questions where rules or conditions differ by state.

Company websites, forums, and marketing material are not used as sources for facts. Numbers appear only when a source gives them.

How a page is checked

Each answer is drafted from its sources and then checked claim by claim against them. A claim that cannot be confirmed in the cited source is removed, not softened. Rules, code editions, and program dates are stated with the year or edition they come from, because these change.

The sources for each answer are listed at the bottom of the page. The date at the top is the last time the page was checked against them.

What pages leave out

Answers do not quote prices. They do not rank or recommend companies, and they do not carry reviews or testimonials. Health questions get the facts a public health agency publishes and a referral to a physician, not medical advice.

Data on the site

The home page chart and the heating-fuel chart come from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey, 2020–2024 five-year estimates (tables B25034, B25035, and B25040). Each chart names its table and links to it.

Corrections

When a source changes or a page turns out to be wrong, the page is corrected and its date is updated.