Editorial Policy
Last updated: September 29, 2026
Trust is the whole point of The Tool Teacher. This page explains how we choose what to write about, how we research it, and where we draw hard lines.
How Topics Are Chosen
We pick topics based on what DIYers, homeowners, and hobbyists are actually asking about: common buying questions, tools with confusing spec sheets, categories where marketing hype makes comparison shopping difficult, and reader suggestions. Reader requests sent through our Contact page genuinely influence the editorial calendar. We do not let advertisers, brands, or affiliate programs dictate which tools we cover.
Research-Based Methodology
Every review and guide on this site is built from published, verifiable sources:
- Manufacturer specifications and official documentation — the primary source for technical details, feature lists, and warranty terms.
- Verified retailer listings — used to cross-check pricing, what’s included in the box, and current availability at major U.S. retailers.
- Aggregate user feedback — owner reviews and community discussions, read in bulk to surface patterns rather than cherry-picking individual opinions.
Sources are weighed by reliability: a manufacturer’s published spec sheet outranks a forum comment, and a recurring complaint across dozens of owners outranks a single one-star review.
No Hands-On Testing Claims
This is a hard rule: we never claim to have personally tested, used, or reviewed a tool hands-on unless we genuinely have. Our reviews are research syntheses — we say so plainly in our About page and in the articles themselves. When we discuss how a tool performs, we frame it as what published data and owner reports indicate, never as personal experience we didn’t have.
Corrections Policy
Mistakes happen, and spec sheets change. When we learn something is wrong or outdated:
- We correct it promptly and, where the change is substantive, note the correction in the article.
- Readers who spot errors can report them via the Contact page — including the source showing the correct information helps us verify faster.
- Corrections are made to the article itself; we don’t bury them where readers can’t find them.
No Sponsored Placements Disguised as Reviews
We do not accept payment in exchange for positive reviews, favorable rankings, or coverage of any kind. A review’s conclusions are decided by the research — never by who paid for it, because nobody does. If this site ever runs clearly-labeled sponsored content in the future, it will be explicitly marked as such and kept entirely separate from editorial reviews.
Independence
The Tool Teacher is independently run by Mark Dalton. We have no corporate parent, no tool-industry employer, and no obligations to any brand. Our only obligation is to our readers: honest research, plainly stated, with the limits of that research made clear.