4 ms·
Yes there is a right way to stack the dishwasher. Here are the 5 rules
- bediger4000 8mo agoThis is the BBC, but as a N. American dishwasher user, I'm struggling to translate the advice on soap/detergent. "Table" and "salt" are two terms that aren't linked to dishwashers in the middle of N. America. We've got "pods" (bad, manufacture specifies how much soap to use, also kids eat them), and we've got rinsing agent. You get a little bottle of rinsing agent with your dishwasher, and you never put it in again. It's magic. Why would I put "salt" in my dishwasher? The article makes that additive out as preventative maintenance, and I don't think that's true of sodium chloride.
- callmeal 8mo agoIt's the "salt" used in water softeners. Necessary when you have "hard" water. See: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dishwasher_salt https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dishwasher_salt
- tmp10423288442 8mo ago> You get a little bottle of rinsing agent with your dishwasher, and you never put it in again. Speak for yourself. I use rinsing agent regularly, and need to refill it every few weeks.
- mikestew 8mo agoWhy would I put "salt" in my dishwasher? TFA has the answer, it's to soften the water: 'Special dishwasher salt, meanwhile, helps to "soften the water preventing lime scale build up and those horrid white marks on glasses."' In the U. S., if hard water is a problem then the house probably has a whole-house softener, and "dishwasher salt" isn't necessary.
- pokot0 8mo agoIt's a European (maybe rest of the world) thing. It's interesting how different dishwashers are in US and Europe. Two main things for me: - Salt: European dishwashers have embedded water softeners and you add salt once in a while. Only super high end ones have it in US. - Water heater: European dishwasher expect to receive cold water and they heat it internally; US ones expect hot water and only partially boost the temperature (sometimes). That's why you have to run hot water before starting the dishwasher Always wondered how we ended up like this...
- FrustratedMonky 8mo agoMore people need to know this.
- etimberg 8mo agoRinse aid is an interesting topic. There's some evidence that it causes damage to the gut. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36464527/ https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36464527/
- mitchbob 8mo agohttps://archive.ph/2026.02.19-015324/https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwy89lr3pl4o https://archive.ph/2026.02.19-015324/https://www.bbc.com/new...
- lepicz 8mo agoi gave up on stacking - no matter what i do, i get passive-aggressive comments from my wife 'raccoon on cocaine' she calls it :)
- s3graham 8mo agoOof, that scraped up frying pan in #5 should have a trigger warning.
- EvanAnderson 8mo agoI had some really, really bad dishwasher-related fights with my wife and daughter. With that in mind, I found the "right way" last fall when I stopped trying to optimize loading the dishwasher and waiting to run it until it was full. I call it "dishwasher anarchy". It gets loaded haphazardly throughout the day, run at night, and emptied the next morning. It really, really offends my sensibilities. Stuff is in the "wrong" place. We are using a lot more detergent. I assume we are using a lot more energy and water. I also haven't had any dishwasher-related fights with my wife and daughter since we started this new protocol. I guess it's a win.
- WalterGR 8mo agoThe trick is to secret away in the middle of the night and do it correctly. Naturally this only works if the dishwasher has a timer.
- ekjhgkejhgk 8mo agoDid they not care how to do it right, or they did but disagreed on how to do it?
- EvanAnderson 8mo agoThey didn't care about minimizing the number of times the machine was run. They'd put things wherever it suited them without regard for getting as many dishes in a load as possible. We've got a nice Bosch machine. It's never missed getting something clean. I'm actually pretty amazed by it. Since it does well I was trying to make sure all the slots were full before running it. That caused friction.
- ekjhgkejhgk 8mo agoSee, you should've figured out these details before getting married etc. There should be a guide for this stuff. Here's a list of stuff that you don't realize yet, you should make sure you're on the same page as the other person, etc
- drcongo 8mo ago
- WalterGR 8mo ago> Modern dishwashers use a turbidity sensor to detect how dirty the water, and therefore the dish, is. That’s a fun word. US NOAA: “Turbidity is a measure of the level of particles such as sediment, plankton, or organic by-products, in a body of water” Other definitions focus on it being a measure of the clarity of a fluid.
- tetris11 8mo agoI don't really believe it though. How deep does that sensor penetrate? If I put a clean bowl in front of it and the rest are all dirty, does that affect the wash? I'm sorry, but I'm going to keep pre-rinsing. It takes 5 seconds.
- taberiand 8mo agoThe sensor isn't in the main compartment, it's in the back reading the water (not a specific bowl or other item)
- bryanlarsen 8mo agoIt measures the turbidity of the water in the hose. You can't put a clean bowl in front of it.
- modeless 8mo agoArticle is wrong. Tablets/pods are silly. The most important thing to improve dishwasher performance is to put detergent in the prewash compartment as well as the main compartment, which you can't do with pods. Second most important (maybe North America-specific) is to run the hot water in the sink to flush the cold water out of the hot water line before starting, so the first fill of the dishwasher uses hot water. More than you ever wanted to know: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHP942Livy0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHP942Livy0
- SAI_Peregrinus 8mo agoAFAIK British dishwashers get plumbed into the cold water line, & heat it themselves. US dishwashers get plumbed into the hot water line, and only do a bit of extra heating. US dishwashers run on 1400W circuits (80% current rule on a 120V 15A plug), UK ones on 2300W circuits (80% current rule on a 220V 13A plug). Nearly twice the available power means they can heat the water properly on their own. They also more often have built-in water softeners, thus the mention of salt. Definitely agree about tablets though, they're trash. Powdered detergent is the way to go.
- lousken 8mo agoI find big differences among tablets, so I'd say it depends. However powder is so much cheaper than it's just a no brainer if you don't have really dirty dishes. For dirty dishes I still prefer a good tablet though.
- tzs 8mo agoIsn't the 80% rule only for continuous loads (3+ hours)? Home dishwashers in the US are considered to be non-continuous loads if the net is to be believed.
- FrustratedMonky 8mo agoNot the insights I was expecting. Thought it would be some fluid dynamics and an actual pattern to stack. Not generic life hacks. And. Don't pre-rinse, is outright is wrong. If the turbidity meter is causing this effect, then the washer is wrong. There should still be a min time, regardless of turbidity reading. To think the plates aren't getting clean because the water is too clear is crazy. No washer works this way.
- foenix 8mo agoHate to be that guy, but I'm not sure this is an HN worthy article to be honest. It's a listsicle that covers the title for a minority of its points. Perhaps one could look at this recent Technology Connections video and its accompanying blog for a more insightful look: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHP942Livy0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHP942Livy0 Alternatively, perhaps a direct link to the video from this article is in order?
- ekjhgkejhgk 8mo agoWhy is this on HN? Oh right because it's "interesting".
- bluGill 8mo agoMaybe, but showing anyone other than your worst enemy this is likely to cost you your friendship. (Divorce if married).
- creeble 8mo agoFor US-made dishwashers, this series (totaling almost two hours!) is educational: https://youtu.be/_rBO8neWw04 https://youtu.be/_rBO8neWw04
- delichon 8mo agoStep one: don't use a dishwasher. I haven't since I left home a lifetime ago and don't miss it. IMHO for a small family it's mostly security theater, and hand washing only a bit more than the rinsing before loading the dishwasher is all that is needed. Sterilization is overkill. Maybe I'll rue that choice when I contract some horrible bacterial disease.
- seanmcdirmid 8mo agoA dishwasher is a game changer, especially if you have a baby, but even if you don’t. No need for a drying rack, no guessing if you cleaned well enough, and less water usage.
- delichon 8mo agoIf your dishwasher is your drying rack, it is hugely space inefficient compared to my wire ones on the counter. The way I wash dishes uses less water than a dishwasher. I suppose dishwasher users consider that inadequate, but I'm a filthy rebel. And I don't really have a feel for whether more cleanliness is a benefit compared to the hormetic effect of exercising the immune system.
- bryanlarsen 8mo agoYou can wash and rinse a full load of dishes by hand with 3 gallons of water? Seems possible only if you aren't rinsing, but a dishwasher rinses too...
- delichon 8mo agoMy guess is that since I couldn't possibly fill the dishwasher before using it, it would be using 3 gallons for one person's dishes per meal, and I doubt I use a whole gallon while hand washing.
- rimunroe 8mo ago> My guess is that since I couldn't possibly fill the dishwasher before using it Do you own very few dishes or something? That's the only reason I can imagine not being able to fill it before needing to run it. Even before having a kid my wife and I could easily fill the dishwasher daily since we cook quite a bit.
- juancn 8mo agoThey lost me at "use tablets", that's plain bullshit. Tablets are probably the worst waste of detergent. A cheap crappy store bought powder well used beats tablets. Lookup the Technology Connections deep dive on dishwashers.
- onewheeltom 8mo agoIf the dishwasher smells or we are out of forks, knives and spoons, I run it. Don’t really care how it is loaded.