Pediatricians Are Quietly Telling Parents to Rethink the Age They Sign Their Kids Up for Tackle Football, and the Reasoning Goes Back Years of Research

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Group of kids enjoying a game of soccer on a grassy field in Portugal.

A government-backed study that strapped sensors to young football players’ helmets found that kids in tackle leagues absorbed roughly 15 times more head impacts over a season than kids playing flag football, and 23 times more of the hardest, highest-force hits, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That gap doesn’t come from … Read more

Homeowners Filing a Flooding Claim After Every Big Fall Rain Rarely Realize the Real Culprit Is Sitting Right Outside Their Own Basement Window

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Floodwaters surrounding stone buildings and a partially submerged white car in a town

Water damage and freezing is the second most common cause of homeowners insurance claims in the country, running about 1.61 claims for every 100 insured homes and an average payout near $13,954, according to data compiled by the Insurance Information Institute. A meaningful share of the basement flooding behind those numbers traces back to a … Read more

Somewhere in an American Home Right Now, a Child Is About to Swallow Something So Small Their Parents Won’t Even Notice Until It’s Already Too Late

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A young boy plays with a colorful toy tool set on a table indoors, having fun.

A coin-sized battery sitting in a remote control or a flickering LED candle doesn’t look like a medical emergency, which is part of why it becomes one so often. According to National Capital Poison Center data drawn from the National Poison Data System, button battery ingestions in children under six have climbed sharply over recent … Read more

Homeowners Who Switched to a Front-Load Washing Machine for the Better Wash Are Now Dealing With a Smell Top-Load Owners Almost Never Have to Think About

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An adult woman loading clothes into a washing machine in a modern indoor space.

Front-load washing machines clean clothes better than top-loaders, using less water and less detergent while being gentler on fabric, which is exactly why so many households upgraded to one. What buyers didn’t sign up for is the smell. In Consumer Reports’ latest owner survey, 16 percent of front-load washer owners reported dealing with mold, mildew, … Read more

Homeowners Tired of Climbing a Ladder Every Fall Are Weighing a One-Time Fix Against Years of the Same Chore, and the Math Only Works Out One Specific Way

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man in blue t-shirt and blue pants standing on ladder

Every fall, the same argument plays out in driveways and on porches across the country: pull out the ladder one more time, or finally pay to make the problem go away for good. Gutter guards now run about $1,520 on average to install, according to current contractor pricing data, while a single professional gutter cleaning … Read more

Homeowners Who Try Selling Their Own House to Skip an Agent’s Commission Usually Walk Away From Closing With Less Money Than They Ever Expected to Keep

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A couple and realtor discuss details in an unfinished property. Ideal for real estate themes.

Skipping a real estate agent’s commission sounds like a straightforward way to keep more of a home’s sale price, and for decades plenty of sellers tried it. Fewer are trying it now, and the ones who do are increasingly walking away with less money, not more. According to the National Association of Realtors, homes sold … Read more

Homeowners Who Never Think About Their Basement Until Something Smells Off Are Already Behind on the One Fall Habit That Actually Prevents It

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brown concrete staircase with stainless steel railings

A basement that felt fine all summer can turn musty within a few weeks of the first cool September nights, and the timing isn’t a coincidence of imagination. Warm, humid air holds more moisture than cool air, and when outdoor temperatures start dropping while soil around a foundation is still holding onto summer’s groundwater, that … Read more

Homeowners Noticing Strange Clusters of Bugs on Their Sunniest Exterior Wall This Month Are About to Have a Much Bigger Problem if They Ignore It

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a house in the middle of a snowy field

A handful of slow, sluggish flies gathering on the sunny side of a house in September looks like nothing worth worrying about. Extension entomologists say that’s precisely the moment to pay attention. Cluster flies “enter homes in late August to overwinter and occupy attics and/or wall voids that are warmed by winter sun exposure, most … Read more

Sweaters Packed Away for the Season Keep Coming Out of Storage Full of Holes Every Single Year, and It’s Almost Never Happening While They’re Hanging in the Closet

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person holding knitted textiles

A sweater that survived an entire winter without a single snag can come out of a storage bin in September shredded with holes, and entomologists say the timing isn’t random. Clothes moth larvae need weeks of total stillness and darkness to feed without interruption, conditions a folded sweater rarely gets while it’s being worn or … Read more

Homeowners Trying to Renew Their Insurance This Year Are Getting Turned Down for a Reason That Has Nothing to Do With Their Claims History or Their Roof

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Couple happily moving into a new home

A homeowner in Tampa recently received a nonrenewal letter that had nothing to do with a burst pipe, a cracked driveway, or a wind claim from three hurricane seasons back. The reason printed on the notice was a brand name stamped inside a metal box in the garage: Federal Pacific Electric, installed sometime in the … Read more