Hand washing v/s Dishwasher - which is better?
Today let’s evaluate whether hand washing is better or using a dishwasher. We’ll compare various parameters and come up with a verdict.
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HOW MUCH WATER DOES A DISHWASHER CONSUME?
The first aspect to consider is Water consumption - A full load of dishwasher uses anywhere between 11-15 liters of water on normal auto mode and about 18 liters on intensive wash mode. Hand washing takes atleast 4 to 5 times more water than this. As per financial express, India is currently facing the biggest crisis in its history. 50% of our population has no access to safe drinking water and major cities like Bangalore have huge scarcity of water. Given this situation, it’s great that the dishwasher saves 30+ liters of water every single day. That’s approximately 11,000 liters of water every year. (Source)
DOES A DISHWASHER REMOVE BACTERIA?
Next aspect to consider is hygiene and washing quality - did you know that the dishwashing scrub that you use is a host for various types of bacteria and needs to be changed regularly? What about the cloth you use to dry your dishes? The quality of hand washing is not consistent and is dependent on the person pursuing the activity. A dishwasher uses hot water, steam drying and strong detergent - which gives most sanitized dishes keeping your utensils free of germs. So again for this aspect, a dishwasher scores points.
HOW MUCH TIME DOES A DISHWASHER TAKE?
Next aspect is the amount of time - a full load of washing in a dishwasher takes anywhere between 1.5 hours to 2.5 hours - based on the dishwasher you are using. In addition, in total you may take about 15 minutes to load / unload the dishes. The same load of utensils can be washed in less than 45 minutes by hand. So amount of time taken is definitely lower in handwashing. So score up for hand washing. (although if you are doing it yourself and not with a house help - it is definitely score up for dishwasher)
WHAT IS THE MONTHLY COST OF A DISHWASHER?
Next aspect is cost - i have made a detailed video which i have linked in the description on how much it costs to run a dishwasher. To summarize - it costs around Rs. 1000. Depending on where you stay, a house help probably charges just as much. However, a dishwasher can easily last for 7-10 years. So even if you have to pay an upfront cost of 35-40K for the dishwasher, in the long run, a dishwasher turns out to be more cost effective and reliable compared to a house help. So score +1 for dishwasher.
WILL A DISHWASHER BREAK GLASS VESSELS?
Next aspect is Breakages and scratches - how many vessels have you or your house help broken in the process of washing? It’s so many that I have lost track of it. A dishwasher uses hot water and detergent to do the washing over brute force that we use for hand washing. Again score one up for dishwasher.
DOES A DISHWASHER LEAVE CHEMICAL RESIDUE?
Next aspect is chemical residue - most dishwashing soaps - both for hand washing and dishwashers - use a variety of chemicals in them and sometimes there is a residue left in the vessels. However, most ingredients in food and anything that might contact food, such as detergent residue, are heavily regulated by the Food & Drug Administration. So even if there is residue - it in general will not be harmful if tested by the FDA. Since this is the case for both hand washing and dishwasher, no score for both
IS A DISHWASHER TOO NOISY?
Next aspect is noise levels - a dishwasher barely makes any noise while hand washing makes tons of noise of vessels banging against each other. God forbid if the person who is washing is in a bad mood, then noise is much higher. So score +1 for dishwasher, 0 for hand washing.
So with all things considered - the scores are at 5 for Dishwasher and 1 for hand washing. I have been using one for over 6 months now and wonder why I did not start earlier. When are you going to start?
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