I put flatware in the dishwasher randomly on purpose–business end down. If you put all the spoons or forks together, they nest and don’t get clean. I usually get one of my kids to put away the silverware, and I don’t want them grabbing pointy ends.
Business end down, so that you only touch the handles when you remove the cutlery from the dish drain/dishwasher. Also, if by some freak accident you trip and fall, you won’t get stabbed by a business-end-up knife or fork.
This when I’m handwashing at home.I but them pointy end down if I’m using a dishwasher tho’.
THAT’S WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT! >high-fives Nava<
Okay, it’s only fair I tell you what the issue is. I do it like Nava does. Forks & spoons UP in the drainer, so THEY DON’T GET TANGLED and you can tell what they are. Knives DOWN in the other compartment because they’re sharp and the handles take up too much room. I don’t think you should “wash” dishes using only the hot-water pressure hose thingie and NO SOAP. I think you need to wash the BACKS of things. And I don’t see how you can pick them up to “wash” them and then put them up in the drainer, some up, some down, any which way, all mixed together.
I couldn’t even do it that way in my sleep.
Having never had a dishwasher, I realize you guys are right about the nesting thing. My mistake.
Although, Buckler of Swashing, I do feel your pain!!!
Flatware goes into the dishpan with the dishes. All the dishes get washed, then I pick up flatware by the handful to wash. First I put the whole handful in the same direction, then I wash each one in turn. They go into the drainer by kind, spoons in one section, table knives and forks in the other, business end up. Sharp knives get washed individually, having been set aside so I don’t slice myself on something in the dishpan I can’t see. The small ones go into the drainer container business end down, the big ones go into the dish drainer rack where I can see them, with the handles toward me. When I get ready to put them away I take out the sharp knives first, then I grab the whole group of table knives, then the forks, then the soup spoons, then the teaspoons. Makes me feel very organized.
I put all of the cutlery into the sink along with the plates when I wash up. The knives, forks and spoons get cleaned last, in whatever order I fish them out of the water.
Dishwasher user here.
No sorting, as to prevent nesting.
Business end down to protect against freak accidents and to facilitate unloading by the handles.
I learned in Home Ec many years ago that in the drainer:
- knives should go business-end down so you don’t stab yourself accidentally
- forks should also go business-end down so that you don’t stab yourself
- spoons should go business-end up so that you can tell them apart from the forks, and you don’t have to worry about stabbing yourself.
I believe you don’t need to worry about telling the forks and knives apart, the handles should be different enough.
They should all be washed as individuals, of course. Cripes.
This works for me washing dishes and using the dish drainer. For a dishwasher, I can see how mixing them up more would probably be more efficient, but I don’t use a dishwasher because I have this weird thing where the dishes that come out of it smell weird and unpleasant to me.
All flatwear and steak knives go haphazardly into the dishwasher business end up, otherwise it won’t clean them (so sayeth the Husband). The big knives I generally hand-wash in the sink. Not too worried about touching clean dishes with my hands because I unload the dishwasher after I’ve handwashed pots, pans, large bowls and big knives. My hands are clean.
I used to care more, but now I’m just happy when the dishes are done and put away. I’ve lived without a dishwasher and thank the universe daily that I now have one.
Swish silverware through soapy water? :eek: That does not get the crud off. You need elbow grease when doing it by hand. Would you fill the shower head with liquid soap and expect that to get you clean just by standing under the resulting water?
Also, I stuff things into the dishwasher containers business end down. That reduces me getting poked by a fork or a knife when getting them out. shudder
I load the dishwasher with the business end up, always. It’s my own peccadillo that is based on only three theories. None of which holds water, BTW.
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If the pointy bits are up, there is less food stuff to get fouled up between things like fork tines and plastic grates at the bottom of the basket.
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If the pointy bits are up, the knivies won’t cut through the plastic coating at the bottom of the plastic.
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If the pointy bits are up, and the plastic coating is cut away, the knives will likely dull less.
These are only theories and have no basis in reality. It is simply my reasoning.
My rule remains, business end up.
I remember my sister waxing ecstatic about the time saved by sorting the silverware as it goes into the dishwasher.
:dubious:
Either way, you’re taking time to sort – either when you load or when you unload. I’m not seeing how sorting while loading is a time saver.
I’d say sort where you hate it least. If you hate loading, throw it all in there and sort when it comes out. If you hate unloading, vice versa. (And if you hate both, like I do, none of it matters!)
Business ends up, except for knives, on the theory that business ends up get exposed to more swooshing water. Knives down so I don’t stab myself.
I don’t sort stuff by type, except that I put the spoons in the drying rack with the business side up, and everything pointy business side down because I’m horribly paranoid and saw something on Oprah or somewhere years ago about a kid who died after falling on the silverware in a dishwasher.
My husband puts most everything business side up. I don’t complain because I like when he does dishes.
Business-end up, except for sharp knives.
Putting a fork in my mouth after its tines have touched the bottom of that anaerobic cesspool at the bottom of the drainboard cutlery well isn’t very high on my list of preferences.
Good point, Larry Mudd!
Good lord. I just cram it in any old way, except I put the knifes in point-down so nobody gets cut taking them out, or falling on them if the dishwasher’s open. This is one of those cases that I’m just happy to get the damn thing loaded and on my with my life to put very much thought into!
This is what/why I do. And besides, he unloads, so what do I care? 
Business end down in the dishwasher, sorted by type. Makes it lots easier to put dishes away. I’ve never noticed any issues with nesting, but I do scrub off the food bits before putting things in the dishwasher. Plates are sorted likewise, all in a row, by size. This not only makes them very quick to put away, but allows the most dishes to fit in the dishwasher.
My wife, on the other hand, puts dishes and silverware in randomly, without scraping the food off…
… Then waits for me to empty the dishwasher.
Following Hilarity N. Suze’s law, I now am in charge of laundry and dishes.