If you're like many consumers, using the Web as a resource for your home -- whether it's buying appliances, curtains and other home essentials, even furniture -- represents a risk you're not quite ready to take. Can you trust the recommendations you're reading on the Internet? Who are these online "experts" telling you which products to buy? And do you really want to purchase an item you can't physically touch beforehand? Are you ready to shoot your credit card number into cyberspace and assume everything will arrive as promised on the specified date?

You'll be happy to know that the Web offers many, many sites with which you may be confident. Most major furniture and home appliance retailers have tapped into the Web's enormous power for revenue generation. When you stop to consider how pressed all of us are for time these days, the Web is a godsend. A retailer can't afford not to use the Internet, and even among those few consumers who aren't short on time, wouldn't it be spent in better ways than at your local furniture store on a Saturday afternoon with an impatient spouse and your bored children in tow?

All of these factors considered, here's a compliation of some of the Web's best sites for home shoppers.

Consumer Reports: As of the most respected consumer resources in the country, Consumer Reports' printed publication has a loyal subscribership. The online version of the magazine is much the same, with an additional interactive feature that encourages readers to chat with the magazine's staff as well as with each other. For example, the site's current "Subscriber Sound Off" asks readers to share their online shopping experiences -- both positive and negative.

As far as editorial content is concerned, Consumer Reports' appeal comes largely from its frequent lineups of various household products; editors test them and report their findings honestly. You can read the magazine's reports and gain as much information as you're going to need to make an informed decision for your purchase. But if you want the full report -- including the entire lineup of products tested -- you'll have to become a bona fide "subscriber," which will run you $2.95 a month for full access to all current and archived reports. That's a minimal investment for a wealth of knowledge. Once you find an appliance that suits your specifications, you can also take advantage (without becoming a subscriber) of the site's manufacturer locator, enabling you to find a retailer in your area who carries the products of your choice. The manufacturers' home pages are listed (along with links) to help you in your search.

Amazon.com: This online warehouse for bookworms is good for nearly any and every subject, and your home is no exception. You'll find titles on nearly every home-related subject in existence, and many selections are offered at discounted prices.

Superbuild.com. This handy site rates a wide variety of home appliances -- more than 30,000, to be exact -- and allows consumers to purchase them online. You'll find everything on superbuild.com, from gas grills and power saws to coffee makers and bird feeders. One of the best features of the site is "Lifestyle Picks," a section that highlights the products most applicable to such "types" as the bachelor, the back-yard barbecuer, the pet lover, the homemaker and the wanna-be handyman. Head to this section if for no other reason than your own amusement.

For example, the bachelor's picks include coffee makers, blenders, electric hair clippers and razors, toasters, popcorn poppers, rice cookers and food processors (depending upon the bachelor in question, these are perhaps rather optimistic choices). The homemaker's top picks seem to wax nostalgic back to the ages of a pearl-donning June Cleaver, but it's still good fun for you Martha Stewart wanna-bes. You'll find salad shooters, tea kettles, sewing machines, even griddles (pancakes, anyone?).

While most prices on superbuild.com are quite reasonable, you'll want to puruse the site's monthly sale section, featuring a variety of discounted books and appliances. A "Staff Picks" section features this techie groups' recommendations for the best home appliances. Head to the Product Index section if you want to view the entire store's inventory at once and make a quick selection. If you've got more time, check out the site's various "how-to" features and tips.

If furniture's what you're looking for, check out FurnitureFind.com. This online shopping center offers name brand furniture for every room of the house at prices roughly 30 percent to 50 percent below retail. Numerous departments -- including office furniture, lighting, gas grills and mattresses, are offered in addition to living rooms, bedrooms and accessories, among many others. For a full list of manufacturers represented by furniturefind.com, head to BedAndBath.com is a helpful online resource for linens as well as other bedroom and bathroom accessories. You'll also find window treatments, kitchen and tabletop items, a selection of home decor items and a wedding registry, in addition to a "clearance corner" of featured sale items.

Considering the vast territory represented by the Web, this is but a very short selection of what you'll find online. Name just about any major manufacturer or retailer of home decor items, and you'll find a Web site that will make it easy for you to order 'till your heart's content in the comfort of your living room. The Web gives new meaning to the expression "Shop 'till you drop." When you're donning your bedroom slippers in front of your home computer, the only thing that will drop is the balance in your bank account.

Published: September 15, 1999

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