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Cleaning Up:  Anyone else ditch their dishwasher?  |
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msdoolittle
True Blue Farmgirl
1145 Posts
Amanda
East Texas
USA
1145 Posts |
 Posted - Oct 14 2011 : 10:18:29 AM
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Well, after a certain event involving a single cockroach, we ripped out our dishwasher, never to have one again. After I saw what our supposedly clean rinse water was running through, I just couldn't stand the thought of my dishes ever going back into that contraption.
So does anyone else NOT have a dishwasher?
For the entire story, I have blogged about it here: http://mylittlecountry.wordpress.com/
:0)
FarmGirl #1390
www.mylittlecountry.wordpress.com |
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Annika
True Blue Farmgirl
5602 Posts
Annika
USA
5602 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2011 : 12:06:39 PM
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I was considering getting rid of mine so that I'd have all of that space for storage and book shelves in the kitchen, but just the word "cockroach" has got me so grossed out that I'll be trying to talk hubby into it this weekend!
Annika
Farmgirl & sister #13
http://pinterest.com/annikaloveshats/
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. ~Leonardo DaVinci
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FebruaryViolet
True Blue Farmgirl
4810 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4810 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2011 : 12:11:48 PM
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We've never had one in our little 1920's cottage. The only time it's a pain is when we entertain and have a lot of dishes, but I'm a "do as I go" kindof person, so that limits the pile up.
My mother has one, but has always used hers for storage!!!!
"Hey, I've got nothing to do today but smile..."
The Only Living Boy in New York, Paul Simon |
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dutchy
True Blue Farmgirl
4427 Posts
4427 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2011 : 1:20:40 PM
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I don't have one, never had one before and never will. I live alone so don't have a lot of dishes to wash :) It is NOT my fave thing to do....but has to be done once in a while lol (*_-)
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Hugs from Marian/Dutchy, a farmgirl from the Netherlands :)
http://pinkprincessdecorating.blogspot.com/
Almost daily updates on me, my home and my crafts
Farmgirl sister # 2410 |
Edited by - dutchy on Oct 14 2011 1:21:06 PM |
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msdoolittle
True Blue Farmgirl
1145 Posts
Amanda
East Texas
USA
1145 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2011 : 1:54:50 PM
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Glad to know I'm in good company! I can't stand roaches, even though when you live where I do, you're gonna have 'em. Still, let's *NOT* give them a good, warm place to hide, right? Oh, you should have seen my face when I lifted up the insulation blanket on the exterior of the washer. It was littered with roach poo and roach carcasses. Mind you, we do not leave out food and I keep a clean house. Even so, they found a place they liked and were camping out there. Besides that, there was no reasonable way to clean out the muck in the 'washer filter, so it was just plain nasty!!!
FarmGirl #1390
www.mylittlecountry.wordpress.com |
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Aunt Jenny
True Blue Farmgirl
11381 Posts
Jenny
middle of
Utah
USA
11381 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2011 : 1:59:13 PM
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I had one for years and when mine pooped out a couple years ago (ON Thanksgiving day of all times!!) I never replaced it and doubt I ever will. If I can do it by handwashing this long with daycare and 4 teenagers in the house it won't be any harder later on. I just feel better handwashing. You KNOW they are clean that way, right?
Jenny in Utah
Proud Farmgirl sister #24
Inside me there is a skinny woman crying to get out...but I can usually shut her up with cookies
http://www.auntjennysworld.blogspot.com/ visit my little online shop at www.auntjenny.etsy.com |
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msdoolittle
True Blue Farmgirl
1145 Posts
Amanda
East Texas
USA
1145 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2011 : 3:37:29 PM
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Yes, exactly! And no more of those lovely streaks that dishwashers tend to leave on glass.
FarmGirl #1390
www.mylittlecountry.wordpress.com |
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Amie C.
True Blue Farmgirl
2099 Posts
Finger Lakes Region
NY
2099 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2011 : 4:14:53 PM
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Yikes. I've never had a dishwasher, and I'd decided to put one in as part of our intended kitchen remodel (no date scheduled, but it helps to dream). I hate to see dishes pile up in our tiny kitchen, and honestly if I haven't been able to control them for the past 10 years are things really going to change?
What's the deal with the rinse water? And the roaches? |
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msdoolittle
True Blue Farmgirl
1145 Posts
Amanda
East Texas
USA
1145 Posts |
Posted - Oct 14 2011 : 4:32:34 PM
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Okay, here is a schematic and explanation of how they work, but allow me to elaborate: http://www.howstuffworks.com/dishwasher.htm
Now, here's my problem with it. The water is held in the bottom, and is sprayed all over your dishes via a pump/jets. What we discovered was that there was a ton of funk (old food bits/slimy stuff/plain nastiness) that was all over the pump housing(?)/under the spray bar as well as the filters/membranes that the water has to pass through. So, regardless of whether or not the rinse water entered the dishwasher perfectly clean, it still had to pass through this funk to be sprayed onto our 'clean' dishes! I mean, there was just no way around it. I don't understand why the manufacturers do not make a model in which you can clean out the filters and around where the water drains. It was nothing but muck. And, we are a family that rinses our plates before they go in the dishwasher. It's not like there's globs of food on anything before they go in. Anyway, I would have never seen this muck if I hadn't have had to disassemble the entire bottom part to get out the roach.
As far as roaches go, they are attracted to moisture and heat. So, you can pretty much imagine how a dishwasher would attract them! What happened was that they were living on the exterior of the tub under my cabinets! Gross! Not a ton of them, but even one is too many for me. I have no idea how the roach got in there unless they can enter the washer through the outlets where the steam escapes.
FarmGirl #1390
www.mylittlecountry.wordpress.com |
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Cabin Dreamer
True Blue Farmgirl
54 Posts
Brenda
Cortland
NY
USA
54 Posts |
Posted - Oct 20 2011 : 06:03:26 AM
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Ughhhhh! My dishwasher broke a year ago. The door gaskets started leaking. My husband offered to repair it , but I decided to just do the dishes by hand. After all it's just the two of us now - not a huge amount of dishes. My husband was in disbelief that I did not want to use it anymore. After Amanda's story, I am grateful for my decision. I had grown tired of the cloudy glasses and scratched up/ rusty spotted dishes. I really don't mind doing the dishes by hand.
Farmgirl #1954 |
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Ingrid
True Blue Farmgirl
432 Posts
Ingrid
BC
Canada
432 Posts |
Posted - Oct 20 2011 : 07:19:05 AM
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I've never had a dishwasher so don't miss it. The kids help and the dishes are always in the cupboard instead of in the dishwasher.
Give thanks to yourself everyday for all the wonderful things you do! |
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queenmushroom
True Blue Farmgirl
985 Posts
Lorena
Centerville
Me
USA
985 Posts |
Posted - Oct 20 2011 : 09:08:15 AM
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I'm the oldest of 4. One night at the supper table, we asked mom and dad for a dishwasher. Mom said, we already have 4 of them. LOL>
Lorie |
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msdoolittle
True Blue Farmgirl
1145 Posts
Amanda
East Texas
USA
1145 Posts |
Posted - Oct 20 2011 : 5:01:48 PM
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Well, here's another bonus. I will never again have to worry about my dear husband putting my cast iron skillet/candy thermometer/kid's Crazy straws in the dishwasher again!
He said the other day: "Well, you know that the clothes washer is pretty much the same thing. " I told him that you have to draw the line somewhere! Plus, I try to run hot cycles on stuff that may have (ew) fecal bacteria on it, and I also do run a monthly bleach cycle (boo) after I found mildew taking over the gasket. Bleech! But anyway...
FarmGirl #1390
www.mylittlecountry.wordpress.com |
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SylviaE
True Blue Farmgirl
350 Posts
Sylvia
Wichita
KS
USA
350 Posts |
Posted - Oct 20 2011 : 6:36:07 PM
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Have had dishwashers in rentals and military housing but never used them. Have not and will not have one in my house now.
Sylvia E
Farmgirl Sister #2871 |
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acairnsmom
True Blue Farmgirl
1319 Posts
audrey
cheyenne
wy
1319 Posts |
Posted - Oct 21 2011 : 07:42:32 AM
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Interesting topic. I had not thought to check my dw for gunk around the sprayer, but yeah, where would that food residue go? Ewww! When DH was gone so much a couple of years ago I started washing my few dishes by hand and found I rather enjoyed it. Especially in the winter, putting your hands in the hot soapy water felt soooo good! Now if I have just a few dishes, I'll do them up by hand rather than put them in the dw, but I had to go back to work after being off for many years and I find myself using the dw more now. I wonder if you can run bleach in your dw (without dishes) to help sanitize it like you do the clothes washer?
Audrey
Toto, we're not in Kansas any more! |
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njaw09
True Blue Farmgirl
397 Posts
Annie
NJ
USA
397 Posts |
Posted - Oct 21 2011 : 10:04:10 AM
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At my old place where I used to stay (when I was single) I did have a dishwasher but after few years it start leaking and I see puddle on the floor. What was difficult back than was I was living in an apartment. Ever since that situation of leaking I don't want a dishwasher.
I don't have a dishwasher at our house but my husband wants to purchase one for me but I prefer washing dishes by hand. I feel it is a great stress reliever. Don't have to think but just wash, wash, wash.
I don't miss the dishwasher at all.
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queenmushroom
True Blue Farmgirl
985 Posts
Lorena
Centerville
Me
USA
985 Posts |
Posted - Oct 26 2011 : 08:55:47 AM
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I know someone, who for years, would handwash her dishes, then put them through the dishwasher again to sterilize them. I don't know how long it was before she realized that it was a waste of time and money to do both. She now just puts them through her dishwasher.
Lorie |
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Betty J.
True Blue Farmgirl
1403 Posts
Betty
Pasco
WA
USA
1403 Posts |
Posted - Oct 26 2011 : 09:08:58 AM
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I have a dishwasher and I use it about every other day. I have never found any food bits or nastiness on any of my dishes. When someone does dishes by hand, all the germs on the hands plus the ones on the dishtowel are spread nicely over the plates, glasses, silverware, etc. What is the difference--germs are germs?
Betty in Pasco |
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msdoolittle
True Blue Farmgirl
1145 Posts
Amanda
East Texas
USA
1145 Posts |
Posted - Oct 26 2011 : 09:22:49 AM
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I don't miss it, either...I promise you I don't. This way, the dishes tend to get done even faster (cause I hate looking @ dirty dishes) and I find that I do enjoy doing it (who would have thought???). Audrey, I don't know about bleach for a few reasons. One is, I do not know all the chemical contents of dishwashing powder/liquid, so it is possible it could create dangerous fumes. Two is, bleach is powerful stuff and I wonder if it would degrade the plastic in the washer. Lastly, if you have a bunch of muck in the filter (as I did), bleach isn't really going to do much anyway, because you can't disinfect muck, you know? Back in my vet tech days, there was a saying (it's a little gross, and I'm gonna ad lib a bit) "You can't disinfect a (piece of poo)" meaning, if you have a wad of nastiness, you can spray it all day with a disinfectant and it ain't gonna do much. Know what I mean?
I'm also a lot happier knowing that now the dishwash chemicals aren't going out into my field lines anymore!
Betty, I would just say that if you saw the muck I saw...it was disgusting. True, any form of dishwashing isn't going to be sterile...nothing much is unless you run it through an autoclave! But, I will say that I wash all my dishrags and towels every day. If I used a dishrag to wash dishes, it immediately goes into the washer. I don't want to spread any funk any more than I'd have to. I just wasn't comfortable with the thought of my clean dishes being sprayed with water that had just run through grey slime. I am sure that other dishwashers may be more efficient at rinsing out the 'muck' than mine was.
FarmGirl #1390
www.mylittlecountry.wordpress.com |
Edited by - msdoolittle on Oct 26 2011 09:27:22 AM |
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Catherine L
True Blue Farmgirl
408 Posts
Cathy
Newton
Texas
USA
408 Posts |
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Betty J.
True Blue Farmgirl
1403 Posts
Betty
Pasco
WA
USA
1403 Posts |
Posted - Oct 27 2011 : 11:16:41 AM
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Doing dishes by hand washing is also a good way to keep your hands and feet warm in the cold of winter--not so much in the summer though.
Betty in Pasco |
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Sweet_Tea
True Blue Farmgirl
194 Posts
Tara
Newberry
SC
USA
194 Posts |
Posted - Nov 01 2011 : 07:47:33 AM
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I have a dishwasher.. but I use it as a drying rack :)
I hate the noise of it, and I hate the way it washes.. So I hand wash and place the cleans ones in the dishwasher to dry..
Farmgirl Sister #2974
~ http://notsosweettea.blogspot.com/
"The air of heaven is that which blows between a horse's ears"
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msdoolittle
True Blue Farmgirl
1145 Posts
Amanda
East Texas
USA
1145 Posts |
Posted - Nov 01 2011 : 10:59:05 AM
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Most people I have talked to actually use it for storage. I can't wait to get my shelves in that empty space!!!
FarmGirl #1390
www.mylittlecountry.wordpress.com |
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debtea2
True Blue Farmgirl
1853 Posts
deborah
nutley
nj
USA
1853 Posts |
Posted - Nov 01 2011 : 8:07:48 PM
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well i'd give it up if i wasn't such a klutz
when i wash dishes and glasses
i wind up with least than a set each time
and though i really love shopping for new dishes
and glassware it was getting pricey...LOL
but i have a contract w/the company and call every couple
of months and have them clean it..i never saw any gunk or roaches..
few years back i lived in another house and did not have a DW
and found roaches..yuck..moved soon afterwards..
blessings
inch by inch we find our way
jersey farmgirl
#1330
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msdoolittle
True Blue Farmgirl
1145 Posts
Amanda
East Texas
USA
1145 Posts |
Posted - Nov 02 2011 : 5:06:48 PM
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Yes, my husband is famous for breaking glasses as well! Lol. Oh well :0(
Cockroaches are just too prevalent down here (in the Gulf states). With our mild winter temps, there's just no way to fully eliminate the things. At least these are the Smoky brown cockroaches and not the German cockroaches. Germans are the ones that infest houses by the thousands. Ugh! For whatever reason, the Smoky Brown roach resides in great numbers out here in the country. Bleech.
FarmGirl #1390
www.mylittlecountry.wordpress.com |
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Fannie
True Blue Farmgirl
67 Posts
North Huntingdon
PA
USA
67 Posts |
Posted - Nov 06 2011 : 04:59:34 AM
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NO! I still have him...(my DH) Don't know what I would do without him.
Fannie
Farm Girl #2746 |
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Cleaning Up: Anyone else ditch their dishwasher? |
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Anyone else ditch their dishwasher?
