10 Reasons to NOT Use Your Dishwasher

I agree that it takes less time to hand wash dishes. My girls LOVE washing dishes, but do not enjoy messing with the dishwasher. I, too, dislike the dishwasher business… which is why my husband does the dishes in our home! Unless we have (like you said) a large meal, he tends to hand wash most of our dishes; it just makes more sense.

Could I go without my dishwasher for 30 days?  I say… nope.  Why?  I as a single mother and have lot of things on my plate to take care of.  I prefer to continue by using my dishwasher.  It was interesting to hear your perspective on this topic.

I just replaced my dishwasher after being without for about 3 weeks.  My kids (18,21 & 23- young adults) rinse their dishes and place directly into dishwasher!
I clean up dinner dishes and program to run while I am sleeping.  The dishes are put away in the morning. The kitchen stays clean, no dirty dishes to look at ever! This works for my family.

Thought-provoking post.  Our dishwashers have been a problem for over 16 years in our home.  We’ve had several models. 

This would certainly solve some problems we have with people not doing their part of the meal cleanup because they have to wait for others to finish…we’d all be in it together.  It would take all of us to clean up, for sure.  I’m thinking short, wide glasses would be a good investment instead of the tall ones.  We already have smaller glasses for the youngest kiddos.  Hmmmm.

I couldn’t disagree more.  Washing dishes by hand takes longer and because my wife and I hate doing it they often get cluttered anyways.  Also it is a common misconception that this saves water.  I know you didn’t mention that as a reason though.  We have not had a dishwasher for the last year and can’t wait to move to somewhere that we will have one.

I haven’t used a dishwasher in about 10 years. Have one. Don’t use it. We store extra pots and pans in there.

I think where you fall on this one really leans heavily on your history with dishes. I grew up in a house without a dishwasher. A family of 5 creates a lot of dishes. And often those dishes would sit on the counter waiting for someone to have the energy to wash them. Sometimes they would “soak” for too long resulting in a disgusting bouillabaisse of dishwater and food particles that had to be emptied before the dishes could be washed. I swore I would never suffer that as an adult. 

And, until a few years ago, I made true on that promise to myself. We moved into an older home that did not have a dishwasher; I lasted a whole year without a dishwasher.  I felt like a slave to my kitchen. I would prepare a meal, eat a meal, clean up a meal, and then turn around and do it all again. Eventually, I became the queen of “stacking.” I would rinse dishes off and stack them for washing later. Unfortunately, the counter space available for waiting dishes was teeny. A year was long enough. I broke down and bought a portable dishwasher, one that has to be rolled over to my sink and connected to the faucet and plugged in. While it’s running I can’t use my kitchen sink and it takes up the bulk of my kitchen floor. But it was the best $500 I have ever spent. 
My dishwasher means less clutter on my counter because it’s run at night and emptied in the morning. When we use a dish we put it in the dishwasher. I use 7th Generation Free & Clear DW detergent, which works great! The dishwasher uses WAY less water than hand-washing dishes, and I feel like the dishes are cleaner coming out of the dishwasher. 

I appreciate the mindfulness of hand-washing dishes. But I choose to be mindful in the amount of dishes I use to prepare meals, so that the dishwasher is not crammed full, making it easier for it to do its job.

I have been running the “no dishwasher” experiment for 20+ years (8 of which I have had with all 4 of my kids).  So we have tons of dishes to wash daily.

I think a dishwasher would be extremely helpful in my case. But we have obviously gotten by without one.  The kids are helpful with it.

In my case, washing by hand causes more counter clutter (I have a tiny kitchen).   

I’ve only ever lived in a house with a dishwasher for two out of my 40+ years, when I house-shared with someone who already had one. I hated loading and unloading it, hated listening to it chugging away endlessly during the evening, hated how things often came out less clean than if I’d washed them by hand, I *hate* the smell of dishwashers (every one I’ve ever tried just stinks), I simply hate using the things.  I far prefer quickly rinsing and washing dishes by hand. Don’t want one in my kitchen, would far rather use the space for storage.

I’m with you, Joshua!

Almost everyone disagrees with you! I live in France. Water is expensive. Modern dishwashers hardly use any water – mine uses 8 litres for the whole cycle. You can run 8 litres down the drain just washing a saucepan (which rarely fits into a plastic washing bowl). No dishes training around my kitchen, everything goes straight in the machine and I wash at night. Or in the evening. Modern dishwashers are also virtually silent, so it’s not even a disturbance! No, no, a dishwasher every time for me!

I have a dishwasher.  We have a love-hate relationship.  He loves to make me jump through hoops, I hate the half washed dishes.  I will dutifully rinse each dish and load the dishwasher just the way he likes for “optimal” cleanliness. Buy the better soap because he is finicky. Wait until off-peak time to run him through his many cycles.  If I am very lucky half my dishes will be clean in the morning!  I have had it.  I have been happily married for 17 years and though I love my husband very much, I am not quite sure that he receives as much attention as the dishwasher.  The dishwasher may use less water.  However, it uses more electricity than hand washing. The cost for the dishwasher detergent that is not multi-purpose is outrageous. The time spent on this relationship is ridiculous.  Thank you for this article.  I am giving up on my dishwasher.