# How much do you clean the dishes before putting them in the dishwasher? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [February 17, 2015, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963 "2015-02-17T22:53:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![kambuckta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/53a042/32.png) [@kambuckta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kambuckta)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2015, 8:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/21 "2015-02-18T08:54:27Z")
I don’t have a dishwasher. ---
**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:** [February 18, 2015, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/22 "2015-02-18T14:14:32Z")
It’s a dishwasher, not a garbage disposal. Food goes in the compost bin and the plates are rinsed before going into the dishwasher. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2015, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/23 "2015-02-18T14:38:40Z")
I run mine about every 5 days. It takes that long for two of us to fill it up. I almost never use the dishwasher for pots or pans. It’s for dishes, glassware, and flatware only. I almost always pre-heat plates and bowls before serving, so things like eggs or sauces tend to cook onto the plates more than most folks probably see at their house. Loose chunks and thick accumulations of gunk get mostly scraped off into the trash. Then on early days the dishes get a quick rinse; on the last day they go straight in. I’m not real sure the rinse accomplishes anything. It’s not like the stuff stays wet until the dishwasher runs 3 days later. I’ll have to experiment. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2015, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/24 "2015-02-18T15:08:23Z")
> [@Rhiannon8404](#): > > I’m not challenging your method, and I’m glad it works for you, but I honestly don’t understand what you are trying to accomplish with this. Instead of putting them in the dishwasher already clean and running the dishwasher, why not just rinse the soap off, dry and put away? or let dry in a rack. It seems like you are cleaning them twice. Once by hand and once by machine. Do you not think they get clean enough washed by hand? No, I don’t, because I don’t properly wash them by hand. The half-assed way I do it, I’m not at all sure there isn’t still grease or soap scum or germs all over them. ---
**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:** [February 18, 2015, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/25 "2015-02-18T15:13:57Z")
I worked on Mama Plant’s dishwasher. At what age do Mamas still treat you as a child, yet expect you to be able to repair household appliances? But I digress. There are tiny hoses, the size of aquarium tubing, and a tiny pump to drain the dishwasher. I cleaned “dishwasher stew” from the above mentioned hoses and pumps, and the dishwasher worked again. So I wipe down and rinse dishes in hot water before I put them into the dishwasher. ---
**Author:** ![Moonlitherial](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4bbf92/32.png) [@Moonlitherial](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moonlitherial)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2015, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/26 "2015-02-18T15:19:30Z")
> [@Octarine](#): > > Scrape any chunks or thick residue into the trash, then into the dishwasher they go. Washing dishes before putting them in reminds me of a woman I used to know who’d vacuum her house before the cleaning lady came. It used to be this exactly. Now that it’s just my husband and myself however the dishwasher might not run more than once a week so I’ve found some things just can’t sit that long and still come clean so I actually rinse the occasional dish now. Still rare though. ---
**Author:** ![sandra\_nz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@sandra\_nz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sandra_nz)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2015, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/27 "2015-02-18T15:34:38Z")
Scrape, no rinse, so I’m not sure which option to select. ---
**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:** [February 18, 2015, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/28 "2015-02-18T15:45:08Z")
I don’t really have a good dishwasher, it’s a compact 18" model instead of a standard 24". So, if you don’t rinse the chunks of things off, they tend to stick around. I don’t like scraping bits of rice or eggs off of supposedly clean dishes, so I rinse well, but don’t clean with soap. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2015, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/29 "2015-02-18T15:45:59Z")
> [@sandra\_nz](#): > > Scrape, no rinse, so I’m not sure which option to select. Yep, me too. Although the doggie always gets to lick the ice cream bowl! ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2015, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/30 "2015-02-18T16:17:04Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > See, my theory is just dump them in the dishwasher. If they don’t come out clean then you can wash them, which you would have done anyway. Except now you only wash the ones that aren’t clean, and not everything by default. > > Hell, sometimes I’ll just soak them and put them back in the dishwasher. > > I’m lazy. That’s pretty much me; I have a pretty good handle on what our dishwasher can remove, which is most everything. So I rarely clean things off much- if there’s a really egregious deposit or something burnt-on, I"ll scrape it off beforehand or soak it, but most everything else goes in as-is. I’ve never had a plate come out dirty, only pots and pans, and usually in those cases, there was more stuck crud, or it was burned on in some fashion. I do admit to using the Cascade Complete or Platinum detergent pods; if I used the cheaper stuff, I’d have to do a lot more prewashing. Never really understood any pre-washing beyond the very minimum; if you’re going to go to that much trouble, you’re already 2/3 of the way to hand-washing the dishes anyway, so why bother with the dishwasher at all? ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2015, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/31 "2015-02-18T18:36:48Z")
Difficult stuff like eggs and cheese get a quick scrub, and lumps get rinsed off. Just because the dishwasher may have a tiny rudimentary disposer inside doesn’t give you license to torture it with chunks of meat or celery. I’ve found if dishes are “pre-cleaned” too well, it confuses the auto-wash cycle. Apparently, if it doesn’t sense that things are getting cleaner, it just keeps running and running for longer than a “normal” cycle. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2015, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/32 "2015-02-18T19:13:25Z")
We rinse our dishes thoroughly before putting them in the dishwasher. Why? Well, we might not run it for a couple days until there’s a full load. We don’t want the dishes stinking or attracting bugs. ---
**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:** [February 18, 2015, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/33 "2015-02-18T22:06:03Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > We rinse our dishes thoroughly before putting them in the dishwasher. > > Why? Well, we might not run it for a couple days until there’s a full load. We don’t want the dishes stinking or attracting bugs. I run the washers almost every day, ten minutes a day is better than all day. Besides, if Lauren Bacall drops by, I don’t want her to see a sink full of dirty dishes and a pile of dirty clothes. :dubious: ---
**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:** [February 18, 2015, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/34 "2015-02-18T22:08:14Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > I’ve found if dishes are “pre-cleaned” too well, it confuses the auto-wash cycle. Apparently, if it doesn’t sense that things are getting cleaner, it just keeps running and running for longer than a “normal” cycle. How does it sense that? Yes, I am an Instrumentation Engineer and I wonder how things work. Kiss my grits. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2015, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/35 "2015-02-18T22:39:17Z")
Too much gunk plugs things up, so we scrape, then wash. ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2015, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/36 "2015-02-18T23:30:20Z")
[QUOTE=carnivorousplant] How does it sense that? Yes, I am an Instrumentation Engineer and I wonder how things work. Kiss my grits. 🙂 [/QUOTE] The short answer is “With a turbidity sensor” but from there, I don’t know if the sensor and the dishwasher’s controller are looking for the turbidity (cloudiness) of the water to approach some pre-defined value of “clear” or for it to improve by some amount. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2015, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/37 "2015-02-19T00:20:36Z")
How much do I clean? Too damn much. Because that’s what the girlfriend wants. I would prefer to just let the dishwasher do it’s job. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2015, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/38 "2015-02-19T02:47:58Z")
Scrape and into the dishwasher it goes. Except for the dishes used to give the overlords their wet cat food. Those get rinsed so the tuna fish flakes don’t stick around. That’s mostly because they smell, though. ---
**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:** [February 19, 2015, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/39 "2015-02-19T02:50:14Z")
> [@gotpasswords](#): > > The short answer is “With a turbidity sensor” but from there, I don’t know if the sensor and the dishwasher’s controller are looking for the turbidity (cloudiness) of the water to approach some pre-defined value of “clear” or for it to improve by some amount. Thanks! “Soil Sensor: Some dishwashers use a soil sensor, actually called a turbidity sensor to monitor the amount of soil the wash water. The turbidity sensor shines light through a small sampling of dishwater measuring sediment content and adjusts the dishwasher’s cycle time and functions accordingly. Technologies like this are another benefit to solid-state timers.” It shines a light into the water and sees how dirty it is. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Manduck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/manduck/32/256_2.png) [@Manduck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Manduck)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2015, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963/40 "2015-02-19T03:17:30Z")
I remove napkins and large bones from my plates before they go in the dishwasher, but that’s about it. They always come out clean, so why should I do the dishwasher’s job for it? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-much-do-you-clean-the-dishes-before-putting-them-in-the-dishwasher/712963.md?page=3)