Is there any household disagreement more common than, “Is it better to wash dishes by hand, or use the dishwasher?” (Well, maybe, “Does the toilet paper roll go paper side over or under?” As it happens, the patented tp holder was designed to be paper side over. Now you know!)
Being curious, as saving water is a topic around our house, I did some research.
In this fun, independent test, the participants compared using the dishwasher (a popular Bosch model) vs. soaking everything in hot, soapy water vs. handwashing each item one at a time.
The results confirmed what I suspected.
Regardless of method, when you hand wash, you use 3.5-5 times more water than a dishwasher. Not to mention the energy used to heat that water, or how much time you waste standing at the sink.
The more dishes you wash, the more water you waste.
Photo by Burst on Pexels.com
You might think that dishwashers fill up to the top with water, or spray a constant stream of fresh water. They don’t.
Modern dishwashers reuse water throughout the cleaning process, utilizing a system of pumps, sprays and jets. Clean water is only used at the very beginning and for the final rinse. During the rest of the cycle, the water is filtered and heated for maximum cleaning.
If you’re a dishwasher fan, now you have some science to back you up when the subject gets, er, heated.
olderfatterhappierdotcom 
I had no idea. I can feel good about my laziness now! Thanks for posting.
LikeLiked by 1 person
And at least when we’re feeling lazy and just dump the dishes in the dishwasher, we don’t have to look at a sink of dirty dishes! 🙂 Thanks for writing, Jen!
LikeLike
I knew the tidbit about the dishwasher. I did not know that about the toilet paper as it has been a ongoing discussion for years among those in my circle. I think I will forward this post on to a few people now…lol
LikeLiked by 1 person
I figure, if the inventor said “over” that must be how it’s meant to go. 🙂
LikeLike