When is it appropriate to fork a question based on new information?

Question

In Is an exhaust pipe broken at engine connection fixable by a DIYer?

I first asked if a certain repair is fixable by a DIYer and described my level of experience. After getting 5 great answers involving intermediate-to-complex solutions, I thought of an alternate, simpler, second solution and added it to the comments below my question.

However, I think it's unlikely to get any answers to the second question now. The users who already posted the 5 answers likely won't update their answers, new solutions would address both questions. Picking the best answer including the second question deprives the prior 5 user solutions of getting whatever points or badges since it's essentially a new question.

So should I fork it, as in post a new question with just the second (simpler) question, and link the first, explaining the second new question is slightly different? Or leave it as-is?

Thanks for your help, I want to do the right thing here.

Answer 1

I would suggest you have two problems with your approach ...

On Stack Exchange you should write questions separately. This is so each question has a much better chance of getting the attention it deserves. Putting multiple questions in a single thread can cause issues with getting a coherent answer. Since there is no penalty for asking separate questions (and it's actually preferred), just take the extra time and type it up. If the first and second questions are related in some way, you can always put a link to the other to draw attention to each.

The other problem here is when you go back and add on to a first question, whether asking a second question or changing the first, it creates all kinds of issues. I'm pretty sure you've already seen one of those issues, being that you don't think the second question is getting the attention it deserves. The bigger thing here is, the original answers usually become null and void by doing so, which brings no end of consternation from the populace. It really isn't fair to anyone involved (including you), so is not a good way to go.

Another thing with the exact approach you've taken by adding a new question in the comments, comments are only there to help clarify the question or answer at large. It should never be used to add a new question, or to modify the original question. It's just not how it was designed to be used.

Hopefully this helps clear things up?