# How clean are your dishes before you put them in the dishwasher? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 16, 2019, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736 "2019-08-16T13:26:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/21 "2019-08-16T16:41:55Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Heh. I usually do the dishes, and I’m not a wife, nor a husband. I…_probably_ should have quoted the OP. :o ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/22 "2019-08-16T16:51:31Z")
Scraped and rinsed. For some things, like dried egg, washing is needed. I keep hoping that this dishwasher will crap out so I can get one that does a better job. Regardless of what it comes with, I would never dump food (other than small crumbs) into the drain system. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/23 "2019-08-16T16:59:05Z")
I put the dishes in a pan of soapy water, and give them a mild cleaning before putting them in the dishwasher, soap and all. The same pan is used for pots and frying pans. My excuse is that we got our first dishwasher in 1962, and I’ve never trusted them. I was visiting my daughter a while back and she thanked me for rinsing the dishes before putting them in the dishwasher, so I trained her well. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/24 "2019-08-16T17:09:34Z")
Dog pre-wash or scrape. The dogs get the plates as their reward for doing down stays through dinner. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/25 "2019-08-16T17:16:34Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > I do not like using the dishwasher, but my gf likes to run it occasionally to keep the seals happy. …no, no jokes about pinnipeds in your kitchen. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/26 "2019-08-16T18:07:58Z")
I rinse just to get the chunks of non-soluble stuff off. Having grains of rice dried tightly to a wine glass is just not what I bought a dishwasher for. Egg needs to be scrubbed harder, anything guaranteed to liquefy, like ketchup, can stay on if it survives the rinse. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/27 "2019-08-16T18:32:54Z")
You forgot: 5) I don’t have a dishwasher other than my spouse and I doubt you mean him/her and 6) Pie. Every poll should include pie. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/28 "2019-08-16T19:34:02Z")
I rinse off to remove particulates and obvious goop, doing a pre-scrub on the caked-on items. Had an enjoyable experience a couple nights ago when Mrs. J. inspected the dishwasher load I’d put in, and spotted a frying pan that had been sitting in the sink laden with crusted-on residue. “You have to scrub these first” she said reprovingly, turning over the pan - to find that I had already done that. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Strangelove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr.strangelove/32/6613_2.png) [@Dr.Strangelove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Strangelove)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/29 "2019-08-16T20:46:58Z")
I just scrape off the big chunks and bones. I used to be an avid pre-washer. Then one day I decided to see what happens if I don’t. Answer: I’d wasted hundreds of hours of my life pre-cleaning things. **Chefguy** is right about the egg, though. Egg+plastic especially needs to be cleaned going in. Something about the way the proteins coagulate or something. But everything else, even with cheese that’s been dried on for a week, comes out totally clean. ---
**Author:** ![ThisSpaceForRent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thisspaceforrent/32/345_2.png) [@ThisSpaceForRent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ThisSpaceForRent)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/30 "2019-08-16T21:10:20Z")
i AM the dishwasher…so Very Clean. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/31 "2019-08-16T21:53:17Z")
Just scraped off. While I only got a dishwasher three years ago for the first time, I was instructed _not_ to rinse dishes off. Something about enzymes and grime needing to be there for the dishwashing pods to work their best or something like that. At any rate, It’s worked great for me, so I see no reason to waste more water and add extra work, as my dishes come out like new. Seriously, how did I go over forty years of my life without a dishwashing machine? Damn things are miracles, as far as I’m concerned. ---
**Author:** ![Mallard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Mallard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mallard)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/32 "2019-08-16T21:54:06Z")
Having owned dishwashers or had one in the family going back over 50 years, I’ve never seen one yet that didn’t require at least some rinsing of dishes first (eg breakfast oatmeal dishes when the dishwasher goes on in the evening) to ensure no rejects. The other one I’ll add is the necessity to shake off plastic items once the cycle is done but before drying is complete. ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/33 "2019-08-16T22:51:22Z")
Scraped and lightly rinsed. Seems to work. ---
**Author:** ![Aspidistra](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aspidistra/32/3894_2.png) [@Aspidistra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aspidistra)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/34 "2019-08-16T23:09:44Z")
If I’ve been to the trouble of hand-washing a dish (which in fact I do all the time - our dishwasher is kinda useless at a wide variety of possible grime) then I’m certainly not sticking it in the dishwasher after. It’s clean! Because I washed it! “Sterilizing” is just pumping unnecessary chemicals into the water ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/35 "2019-08-16T23:16:00Z")
We have two dishwashers: me and my husband. ---
**Author:** ![Icarus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icarus/32/72_2.png) [@Icarus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icarus)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/36 "2019-08-16T23:43:49Z")
> [@Nars\_Glinley](#): > > My wife has always insisted that dishes be clean (as in washed with soap and water) before putting them in the dishwasher So, why not just rinse and dry them and put them away after that effort? I am of the opinion that your wife is mistaken. But I understand that some things aren’t worth arguing about. ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2019, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/37 "2019-08-16T23:54:20Z")
> [@Icarus](#): > > So, why not just rinse and dry them and put them away after that effort? I am of the opinion that your wife is mistaken. But I understand that [bold]some things aren’t worth arguing about.[/bold] Bolding mine. Bingo. ETA: Not sure what’s wrong with my bolding but you get the point. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2019, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/38 "2019-08-17T00:25:04Z")
What’s a dishwasher?😃 When I was growing up my dad said he had three, then he’d rattle off the names of me and my two sisters. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2019, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/39 "2019-08-17T00:26:41Z")
> [@Nars\_Glinley](#): > > Bolding mine. > > Bingo. > > ETA: Not sure what’s wrong with my bolding but you get the point. The bold tag here is [noparse]\*\* and \*\*[/noparse], not [bold] and [/bold]. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [August 17, 2019, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736/40 "2019-08-17T00:31:09Z")
[Here’s one of many articles I had read](https://www.goodhousekeeping.com/home/cleaning/a33322/stop-prerinsing-dishes/) after getting my dishwasher suggesting that pre-rinsing is not necessary and even counterproductive. Like I said above, with my dishwasher, all I need to do is scrape off the food and the dishes comes out sparkling like new. And here’s the enzyme thing I was vaguely remembering above: > [@](#): > > The makers of the dish detergent Cascade discourage customers from pre-washing or rinsing dishes because it actually inhibits the cleaner from working. “Enzymes in Cascade detergent are designed to attach themselves to food particles,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “Without food, the enzymes have nothing to latch onto, says P&G.” > > In other words, your precious detergent just might rinse away before it has time to do anything if your dishes are gunk-free. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-clean-are-your-dishes-before-you-put-them-in-the-dishwasher/838736.md?page=3)