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Ask HN: Are Dishwashing Machines Bullshit?

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Ask HN: Are Dishwashing Machines Bullshit?

#1
When I was a kid, we had a dishwashing machine. It wasn't good enough that you could just put the dishes in after eating, you had to pre-clean them. I don't remember exactly how long it took, but it was at least 30 minutes.

As an adult, I've never owned one, and since becoming responsible enough to clean my dishes frequently, I've never seen the point in owning a dishwasher. I don't think I'm getting sick or anything from my hand washed dishes.

Is there real value in a dishwasher that I'm not understanding?

Re: Ask HN: Are Dishwashing Machines Bullshit?

#2
You don't have to pre-clean dishes. This video is a bit long-winded but gets the point across. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rBO8neWw04

One person doing one person's worth of dishes is pretty manageable. Once you get more people involved, or if you're getting a lot of utensils dirty while making something fancy, it can be a whole different story. Also, I think they use less water than washing by hand, but again this depends on how many dishes you put in there at a time.

Re: Ask HN: Are Dishwashing Machines Bullshit?

#5
post #4

No, dishwashers are not bullshit. They wash more dishes with less total effort. Our family of four runs that thing at least once a day. Had washing does not scale. They are probably not worth it if you live alone and are diligent.

Living arrangements with restricted access to water (e.g. relying on RV or boat tanks or off-grid) may utilize a dishwasher to save water, and also save on energy to make hot water.

Re: Ask HN: Are Dishwashing Machines Bullshit?

#6
I doubt it. I have a dishwasher but don't use it. I wash and dry dishes by hand. It takes no more than 10 minutes to wash and dry two persons' dishes and cookware. I often cook and wash dishes at the same time!

But I've been washing and drying dishes since I was a child and my early years of conscripted dish washing were spent learning to optimize washing and drying procedures. So I'm very fast and efficient.

For a family of more than 4 persons, a dishwasher likely is handy though by no means a necessity. In the absence of a dishwashing machine, one person washed and a second dried.

As for the "pre-clean" phase - soak dishes and utensils in a sink or bowl of warm soapy dishwater for 5-10 minutes to loosen/remove most food residue. Then the dishwasher (wo/man or machine) will work properly.

But the true conundrum is this: in all my years of washing dishes both for myself and for commercial firms (college jobs as dishwasher) I have always washed knives - sharp knives. Yet I have never cut myself on a knife or a sharp utensil. I have learned that I can grab a handful of sharp knives from a soap-and-water filled sink blindly and quickly without fear of cutting my hand.

Something is going on that I don't understand: possibly the soap modifies surface tension around the blades and prevents them from penetrating my skin. This happens whether my hands are dry or soaked by hours of dish washing. Any ideas what is happening here?

Re: Ask HN: Are Dishwashing Machines Bullshit?

#8
post #6

I doubt it. I have a dishwasher but don't use it. I wash and dry dishes by hand. It takes no more than 10 minutes to wash and dry two persons' dishes and cookware. I often cook and wash dishes at the same time! But I've been washing and drying dishes since I was a child and my early years of conscripted dish washing were spent learning to optimize washing and drying procedures. So I'm very fast and efficient. For a f…

No idea about the knives, but a huge non-US innovation is a drying rack. Wash the dishes, let them dry, put them away when you have time. If I had to dry them with a rag, I think my opinion would be different.

Re: Ask HN: Are Dishwashing Machines Bullshit?

#9
Of course not. They save a lot of time if you know how to use them properly. Load it up tightly but without blocking the water spouts on the bottom and top, then load up detergent on BOTH slits (one big hole, and a smaller one for pre-wash), then warm up the water by opening the tap for a bit, and then press start with appropriate settings. It saves hours and hours of washing for me.
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