Which, do you think, is the best way to clean your dishes: washing by hand or running them through the dishwasher?
If you said, "Nice try... You have to do BOTH to get the best clean!" then you may be shocked to learn that was not a trick question, and the correct answer is not both.
At this point, your dishwasher is probably as high-tech as your smartphone, so you're definitely better off only using your dishwasher. No matter how much cleaner you think your dishes are by double washing them, you may just be wasting hours standing at your sink.
Why Your Dishwasher is President of the "Clean Plate Club"
If you can't take the heat, get away from your dishes. Your dishwasher can reach temperatures up to 145°F, while the tap water coming out of your sink normally clocks in at a maximum of 120°F. And even though you may be getting 120°F water, your hands likely can't physically handle that much heat for an extended period of time. The hotter water in dishwashers means your dishes come out truly sanitized.
Watch your waste. Dishwashers are hands down more energy and water efficient than traditional hand washing. So, unless you can wash eight FULL place settings without running your sink for more than two minutes or using more than 4.5 gallons of water, your dishwasher just gets the job done better with less wasted time, energy, water, and effort.
How to Maximize Your Dishwasher's Results
Scrape it off. As much as you may think you need to rinse your plates, we promise you only need to scrape off any food debris and put the dishes straight into your dishwasher. Rinsing just wastes your time and water. It also might make your dishwasher wonder if you trust it.
Fully loaded. Your dishwasher doesn't let you adjust your load size like your washing machine does, so you really only win when you wash full loads.
It's Tetris time. Be sure your larger items don't block the water. To do this, load your larger dishes, pots, and pans in the back, front, and sides, and load the smaller items in the middle area.
Bullseye! Load your dishwasher so that the dirty surfaces "face" inward toward the center of the dishwasher. Since the water is sprayed from the middle, this guarantees the surface area that needs the most cleaning gets the most cleaning.
Stop spending your evenings hunched over your sink washing dishes, and let your dishwasher get the job done right! If you don't think your dishwasher is running at peak performance, wonder if it's time for an upgrade, or if you have other serious plumbing problems, just give us a call at (864) 242-5511, or click the banner below to schedule service online!
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