TIL I was rinsing my dishes before the dishwasher for 28 years

I always scrubbed every plate clean before loading because my mom said it was the only way. Then my neighbor in Denver told me she just scrapes big pieces off and lets the dishwasher do the work. Anyone else waste years doing extra work because of an old rule?

2 comments

2 Comments

alice8914d ago

My repair guy told me the EXACT same thing. The sensors in modern machines get confused if everything goes in spotless. They basically think the dishes aren't dirty enough and cut the cycle short, so you end up with half-clean dishes anyway. Plus all that pre-rinsing wastes like 4-6 gallons of hot water per load, which is just brutal on your utility bill. All that time, all that water, and you're actually making the machine work WORSE.

wells.karen14d ago

Ngl this one actually hurts my soul a little. 28 years is a long time to be doing all that extra scrubbing for nothing. My mom told me the same thing growing up, I used to stand there rinsing every single plate like my life depended on it. Found out a couple years ago from a repair guy that pre-rinsing can actually mess up the sensors in newer dishwashers because they expect some food particles to trigger the wash cycle. All that wasted time and hot water for nothing.