Reducing Your Dishwasher’s Water Consumption

Dishwashers are convenient appliances for many people. However, most people are usually not sure about what to do to make them use water more efficiently. This not only reduces the cost of using the dishwasher, but also has a positive environmental impact as well. Some of the common measures one can take to increase this efficiency include:

Wash dishes in batches

Every time you use the dishwasher, make sure that it’s as close to full capacity as possible. If you want to wash one or two dishes, you can either have them accumulate so that you can do this, or wash them by hand. Using a dishwasher to wash only a handful of dishes can waste water and soap.

Buy one that closely matches your needs

When buying a dishwasher, you have to take into account your current circumstances. If you have the money and live alone, you could buy a large one if you wanted to. The downside of this is that it would end up wasting more water and give the same results as a smaller one.

Make a habit of cleaning the dishwasher regularly

With time, food particles and other debris could clog some of the inlets and outlets in the dishwasher. This results in increased use of water and soap to wash the dishes, and it may also not clean them adequately. Making a point of thoroughly cleaning the dishwasher will help avoid this. How frequently this is done should be proportional to how frequently the dishwasher is used.

Proper installation makes a whole lot of a difference

Installing a dishwasher is simple. However, casual mistakes such as not tightening the plumbing could result in leakages that increase water wastage when the device is in use. This also increases the risk of damage to the dishwasher. If you want to install the device on your own, make sure that you go through the instructions before doing so, and that you have all the tools you need before you start. If not, consult a reliable contractor to do the installation for you.

Take regular service and maintenance seriously

Servicing and repairing the dishwasher regularly will increase its efficiency. Servicing simply means asking a contractor to inspect and make any necessary repairs to the dishwasher on a regular basis, even if it does not have any problem. It helps to keep the dishwasher functioning optimally. If you have to make any repairs to the device, consulting a professional will result in a more long lasting effect.

You don’t have to pre-rinse

If you have a modern dishwasher, there might not be any need to rinse even heavily soiled dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. Most of them are capable of thoroughly cleaning the dishes even when in this state, so rinsing them is essentially wasting water.

Don’t load the dishwasher randomly

Dishwashers are designed to hold dishes in a certain manner to optimize water circulation and cleaning. Following the manufacturer’s instructions regarding this will result in more efficient operation.