[TehShrike]

My mental model for diswashers got a lot better after watching some Technology Connections: https://youtu.be/jHP942Livy0

[relwin]

Best advice from TC: verify the water is hot before starting the dishwasher. Especially if your water heater is located a ways from your kitchen and the pipes aren't well insulated.

[robocat]

Cold water only connection for all dishwashers I've seen in New Zealand. Dishwashers have an internal heating element.

Are modern US dishwashers plumbed into hot water?

NZ has 240 Volts (10 Amp 2400 Watt appliances are normal - anything above that needs special wiring). And NZ environmental regulations might be involved too (modern washing machines can be crappy because they try to skimp on water usage - our regulations can be overkill).

[neilfrndes]

For me, moving away from pods to a dishwasher liquid (cascade 3x from Costco) made the most difference. I add some liquid in the prewash and some in the main compartment. I had to figure out the right amount to add in each via trial and error. I don't pre rinse or run the hot water beforehand, my dishes come out clean.

[ac29]

I wonder how much this really matters. For me my dishwasher is far enough from the hot water heater that it generally takes several gallons for the water to run hot. But the wash cycle is 2+ hours long and uses very minimal water (~3 gallons/cycle). Even if I preheated the lines using the tap near the washer, it wouldnt even be lukewarm by the end of the wash cycle.

[BrandoElFollito]

There are no dishwashers in Europe that can be connected to hit water. I had no idea that this is a thing somewhere.

Are US washing machines connected to hot water as well?

[gwbas1c]

The best way to do that... Pre-rinse!!!

[ludicrousdispla]

I can't recall ever using a dishwasher that had a connection to the hot water line.

[spiffyk]

Not sure why you were downvoted. This sounds like absolutely crucial advice for people in countries where dishwashers don't heat the water on their own. I've never seen one like that in my life, but yeah, sounds important.

[cush]

I feel like the two types of dishwasher people are clearly delineated by those who have and have not watched the Technology Connections videos on dishwashers.

1. Powdered detergent people who sprinkle some soap in for the prewash

2. Tab people who attest that they need to pre-rinse their dishes before they put them in the dishwasher

[conradludgate]

How about a third :)

I've seen the technology connections video, continue to use pods, and continue not to pre-rinse the dishes

[rainsford]

I've seen the video and tried switching from pods (which I assume is the same thing as a tab, just never heard that name before) to powder with some power in the prewash compartment without prerinsing the dishes.

Other's results may vary, but I found my dishwasher would eventually get clogged with the TC approach, even though I clean the filter regularly and wasn't putting in dishes with absurd amounts of food still on them. Since I switched back to pods and prerinsing, the clogging went away. Maybe my dishwasher or the install has something goofy about it, but it was definitely a failed experiment for me. Although I still think the TC argument is a solid one in theory.

[al_borland]

Dishwasher companies have tried for a long time to get people to stop pre-washing their dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. I remember ads from the 80s or 90s with people putting full cakes, or a baked on lasagna pan into the dishwasher and it coming out clean.

Almost everyone I know still does excessive rinsing in the sink first. I have never done this and it’s always been fine.

I learned some things from the TC videos, but it was more about refining things, it didn’t drastically change what I was already doing.

[bradfa]

I’m a Bosch dishwasher powder soap with some in the bottom for presoak but still pre-rinse type person. Clean the filter once a month (takes 2 minutes literally) use jet dry (or equivalent) and I have zero complaints about how my 20 year old dishwasher performs!

[nly]

Pods work fine without prerinsing

[chewbacha]

You know, the hot water tip is great, but cleaning the filter is really the best thing I’ve found to keeping it working well. Residue always seems to indicate a dirty filter.

[lolinder]

I think it depends on the kind of residue. If we're just talking about caked-on stuff that you recognize that didn't wash off, I'd start with hot water and adding the pre-wash powder. But if you get stuff on your dishes that you don't recognize... yeah, that's a filter.

I once stayed with family at a vacation rental where the dishwasher left things worse than we put them in—a thick gray residue plastered over everything. We were going to be there for a week with 30 people, which meant we had a lot of dishwashing to do, but by the time I became aware of it the rest of the family had already given up on it and had started washing dishes by hand.

I took one look at the output and knew immediately what was wrong thanks to TC. An hour later (it was that bad) the dishwasher was working flawlessly and we saved hours in dishwashing time over the week.

(We also told the rental owners that their cleaners weren't taking care of the dishwasher. I didn't ask for them to pay me for the time, but I probably should have!)

[hinkley]

I can't decide if it would be cool to live next door to him or if I'd never get anything done ever again.

[shellfishgene]

Note that European dishwashers are quite different in a few aspects.

[mjamesaustin]

Welp, thank you for that. About to use my dishwasher for the first time since childhood.