For years I hand-washed all my dishes. I dreamed of the day when I wouldn’t have to spend an hour a day scrubbing dishes and baby bottles.
When I finally got my dishwasher, my second-born was only 2. We had no problem filling up the dishwasher every day. I would run the dishwasher every evening and unload it in the morning.
At first I used the normal setting for all my washes, but then I noticed times when the dishes weren’t as clean, like when I threw in the pot from mac & cheese or the bowl still caked with pancake batter. So, one day I tried the pots & pans cycle and was impressed by how clean everything came out. I never considered how much extra water or energy this was consuming.
Recently I read an article that explained how to use these settings properly.
- Light Wash: Use on dishes that have been pre-rinsed and are basically clean.
- Normal: Use on dishes that have had excess food scraped off and have not been sitting for more than a day.
- Pots & Pans: Use on dishes that are excessively caked with food or have been sitting for several days.
- Rinse Only: This setting is more for sanitizing than it is for cleaning.
- Upper Rack: Cleans only the dishes on the top rack.
This meant that I should be using the normal setting on most days. Last night I had a full dishwasher loaded with cups, plates, Tupperware, and flatware (no bowls of goo). I set the dishwasher to normal and my dishes came out sparkling the next day.
From now on, I intend to save the pots & pans cycle only for the loads that truly need it!
