Is it true Dishwashers use more electricity/gas than washing up, or just a myth?

stevehead

moonrakerz wrote: »

But with dishwashers you don't have all those dirty, smelly tea towels to wash - more hot water, more electricity, more detergent !

True, but you do have to pay for it, loose space to it, pay for it to be plumbed in and replace it in 10 years.

property.advert

When I had one, we'd near clean the muck off the plates under the tap before putting them into the dish washer anyway (seemed to defeat reason but ...). Then you have the drain on the hot water which is not always easy to calculate, cost wise.

If your use of the dish washer uses the last of your hot water and you need to heat a tank full to have a shower then the cost is astronomical.

Those damn Finish powerballs etc. cost way too much.

Then you have the weekly cleaner.

I guess the cost is way over 27p.

amcluesent

>I guess the cost is way over 27p.<

Well, mine's cold fill so those worries about draining the hot-tank aren't a problem, that 27p covers all the electricity.

As for other costs, say it was £300, used twice a week and lasted 6 years before scrapping = 49p depreciation per run. I'll ignore opportunity costs of investing that £300.

Sundries (salt/rinse aid/'value' detergent tablets) = 10p per run

I'll assume water costs are the same as handwashing.

= 86p per run.

Even if you're on minimum wage, £1.72/week to save 3 hours of washing up by hand makes sense as you could earn £17.40 instead!

jimexbox

I detest washing up by hand, so a dishwasher is a wonderful appliance. Sure I would buy the most economical one I could afford. After that press 'start', sit back with a good book and relax.

matty17r

This was researched on a recent tv programme (can't remember which one) and it was definitely cheaper to use a dishwasher.

moonrakerz

property.advert wrote: »

When I had one, we'd near clean the muck off the plates under the tap before putting them into the dish washer anyway (seemed to defeat reason but ...).

Not needed - that's why there is a trap/filter in the bottom, bet you clean the muck off before you hand wash them ! (see the German study from my previous link.)

property.advert wrote: »

Then you have the drain on the hot water which is not always easy to calculate, cost wise.
If your use of the dish washer uses the last of your hot water and you need to heat a tank full to have a shower then the cost is astronomical.

Dishwasher use very little hot water, they heat only what they need. It is much more efficient to heat the water in the machine than in a tank (gas or electric) That is why all machines (dish and washing) are cold fill only now.
You must take VERY quick showers, too !

property.advert wrote: »

Those damn Finish powerballs etc. cost way too much.

Totally agree - I use Lidl's - a fraction of the price

property.advert wrote: »

Then you have the weekly cleaner.

WEEKLY cleaner !!!! Do you wipe it out with £10 notes as well ???

Premier_2

amcluesent wrote: »

...Running my dishwasher on the normal cycle costs 27p. Well worth it!

There's your answer.

You could boil a typical 2kW kettle non-top for about an hour for that price. How many kettle fulls of boing water would that produce? A good half dozen I suspect.

I only need 2 kettle fulls max. (usually just the one) of boiling water mixed with cold to wash the dishes.

Cardew

Most dishwashers use 1kWh to 1.2kWh per cycle. So way below 27p for electricity. more like 10p - 12p

Apart from washing better - glasses that sparkle - you only have to wash when machine full - and that might save several bouts of washing up.

No contest in my book.

samtastic7

I put my dishwasher on after midnight and the washer too when I can quarter of cost

mech_2

I don't have a dishwasher. I haven't had a close look at one since I was a kid. But I do think it's hard to see how it can be cheaper. Am I right in thinking they just tickle the contents by spraying water at them? Whereas at the sink I can use the coarse side of a sponge to actually abrade things.

If you particularly hate washing up and have never learned how to do it effectively, I can see why a dishwasher would seem attractive. Whether it's actually cheaper or more efficient depends on how well you can wash by hand, how you heat the water, whether you're on a water meter or not, what state your dishes are in etc, etc.

Personally I can't fit a dishwasher into my kitchen nicely, but even if I could I'm not sure I'd bother with one. I am used to washing up by hand. I can't see that it takes much longer than loading/unloading a dishwasher. Washing up a dishwasher load of kitchenware by hand would certainly not take me an hour and a half. Probably not even half an hour. I live in an area with naturally very soft water - I don't find shininess of glasses a problem. My water is heated by a SEDBUK A rated gas combi boiler just 4 feet away from the sink. A bottle of concentrated washing up liquid lasts me circa 9 months. I don't bother with a tea towel, I just let stuff dry on the rack in its own time (it's not one of those useless plastic things, it's a largish chromed thing with two decks).

I think it's a case of "your mileage may vary".


PS: In the test linked to above the hand-washers seem to have been given no opportunity to soak the dishes at all, which for me makes the comparison rather pointless. The only way to get perfect results with minimal effort is to not let anything be dry when you start!