All of which I’ve told my wife (We also watched the episode of Stephen Colbert visiting the Consumer Reports dishwasher lab). To her credit, my wife now does less pre-rinsing, which our analysis shows can waste up to 6,500 gallons of water a year. But whenever we eat smelly food, fish for example, the tension returns. And not without reason, I’ll admit, since these food scraps can get fetid fast.
In my convert’s fervor, I’m willing to tolerate the smell. My wife, not so much. They say a happy marriage is all about compromise, which takes me to the rinse-and-hold cycle. On fish night, we’ll now load the dishes and run the shortened cycle, which rinses the dishes in a couple of gallons of water, far fewer than if we pre-rinsed. When the dishwasher is full, we then run it on the normal wash cycle.
Rinse-and-hold cycles are fairly common on dishwashers, including many of the nearly 50 models listed in our Ratings. If your marriage is like mine, it’s a feature to have and to hold.
—Daniel DiClerico
Maybe I'm a rinse-hold over since washing copper bottom pans in the D/W leaves spots. So wash by hand saving water for rinsing to remove food scraps on dishes etc.Saves electricity and reuses water otherwise drained away. Also do not need to clean D/W filter as often.
The smell problem can be eliminated by an even more radical solution-don't use the rinse-and-hold! We have found that no smells develop if we just let the food dry out; we prop the door open a bit at all times so that the food in the dishwasher dries out completely--dry food just doesn't smell. And our dishwasher doesn't have the least problem getting that dried up food off either!
How much energy is used by the rinse and hold cycle?
Daniel what you really need is a Dish Squeegee!!! The hottest new kitchen gadget on the market will save you money, time and water!!! Just featured in All You Magazine (Sept. 24th issue 9) as one of 20 smart gadgets costing less than $20.00, the Dish Squeegee costs around $6.00 and eliminates the need for pre-rinsing your dishes prior to loading in your dish washer! It is also listed here as one of the best kitchen gadgets of all time!http://www.helium.com/items/1938957-best-kitchen-gadgets-under-20
Check it out at www.amconservationgroup.com and hope it helps eliminate the dish arguments with your wife! Best of luck!
I noticed that CR's recent report of non-phosphorus DW detergents didn't fare nearly as well as their predecessors. Some enviro-nut sneaked in this provision a few years back, obviously without realizing the larger consequences, i.e. thorough cleaning. Even after a couple of years of notice, the manufacturers still had trouble passing your tests. I found it interesting to note that commercial DW detergent, used in restaurants, commercial kitchens, hotels, hospitals, nursing homes, etc. is exempt from the law! Why? Because it represents a potential public health risk! Guess where I'll be buying my DW detergent from now on?
Previous
