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Original poster

living without the dishwasher

168 replies

tippyteapot · 18/03/2019 20:16

Ive got a dishwasher, had it years. Ive got used to having it....

How common is it to NOT have one? 1 or 2 houses Im looking at dont have dishwasher space and Im thinking about how Id manage without one again. I think I would be fine. First world problem I know!

OP posts:
MrsPlesWearsAFez · 19/03/2019 09:19

We've not had one for two houses (ie 6yrs) now, simply due to the fact that rentals around here don't have space for them (in a 2-3 bed).

Did keep our old one in storage for five years though, as was hoping the hand washing would only be temporary.

If I owned a house i'd knock anything down to make the space.

llangennith · 19/03/2019 09:27

A DW is a necessity not a luxury. Move your washing machine into the bathroom or somewhere else but make room for a DW.

TeaforTwoBiscuitOrThree · 19/03/2019 09:28

We haven't had one for the last five years. Don't miss it, don't want it either.

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Hotterthanahotthing · 19/03/2019 09:58

Still debating this.I have never had a dish washer and neither does anyone in our family.It seems a bit lazy with only 2of us but a teen can generate a lot of washing up.
We also have a minute kitchen and having one would maximise the worktop as it wouldn't have dirty washing stacked up.I also love the idea of washing the oven shelves in there.

wendywoopywoo222 · 19/03/2019 10:11

Had one for years. Swapped the space for an extra freezer and don't miss it at all.

Kennehora · 19/03/2019 11:14

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

SciFiScream · 19/03/2019 11:17

I love my dishwasher but agree with PP it is most definitely a luxury.
A luxury I'd prioritise over other devices (I don't have a tumble dryer for example) but still a luxury nonetheless.

CabbageHippy · 19/03/2019 11:20

oh my word I couldn't imagine the horror, wouldn't be without one

BlackInk · 19/03/2019 12:05

We don't have one and I don't hanker for one :)

When we lived in a house with a fitted dishwasher we did use it, but I don't miss it. The main advantage for me was that it was somewhere to hide dirty dishes until you were ready to wash them.

The whole scraping, rinsing, loading, unloading, dealing with blockages etc. seemed as much (if not more) hassle than washing up to me.

BitchQueen90 · 19/03/2019 12:20

I don't have one. Never have and never will. It definitely is a luxury llangennith they cost extra money to run and I could not fit one in my small flat.

Washing dishes doesn't bother me to be honest. A dishwasher isn't something that interests me.

francienolan · 19/03/2019 17:12

We live in a flat and don't have one. It's one of the top things I want when we buy a place someday.

PurpleCrazyHorse · 19/03/2019 18:12

I would really miss ours. Mostly because after dinner we both want to spend time with the kids before they go to bed (3yo and 9yo), we don't really want to be washing up, or indeed doing that at gone 8pm when the oldest goes to bed.

Putting dirties straight in the dishwasher also stops the cat jumping on the kitchen worktops because she can smell food. Plus the kitchen looks loads tidier with everything in the dishwasher. Ours goes on at least once a day, to a max of 3x a day if I'm baking.

I think it's something that both DH and I value in our lives. Yes, it's a luxury, yes we could wash up (and did so for years in many flats and our old house), but we like the convenience and it was a requirement when we bought.

Hammondisback · 19/03/2019 19:52

I LOVE mine and would hate to lose it. It’s a small one. My second favourite appliance, after my washing machine.

shitpark · 19/03/2019 20:17

I lived without a dishwasher for 6 months, finally replaced the one that couldn't be fixed. Oh fuck me, the relief. At last clean dishes, am shit at washing up, kids were complaining. just using dishes with abandon and sticking them in the thing. I no longer moan about unloading and loading it. I love you, dishwasher

Pinkbells · 19/03/2019 20:19

Of course it is possible to get by without one, but I found when we reconfigured our kitchen and didn't have one for a while that the kitchen looked extremely messy unless we were literally washing up every five minutes. At least with a dishwasher you can put plates in as you use them so they never need to sit on the side. And we missed it like mad! Can you get a slimline one? My Dad has a really slim one, just runs it twice a day rather than once, which is fine.

hsegfiugseskufh · 19/03/2019 20:20

I have never owned a dishwasher and will never buy one.

Useless bloody things. You still have to rinse everything before you load it and then everything comes out squeaky. Ergh.

lotusbell · 19/03/2019 21:29

Never had, never really desired one. I don't like the idea of loading it up so that it's full enough to put on, i'd end up washing a few bits by hand suxh as my favourite mug for coffee. I don't like washing up and have an annoying tendency to fill a bowl up then go off and potter, find another job to do and forget the washing up, but I still think by the time I've loaded it up I could be done most of it by hand. I tend to wash as I'm cooking anyway. Plus, could not be arsed buying tablets, rinse aid etc and having to unload. Then there's the environmental impact.

TheFormidableMrsC · 19/03/2019 22:43

Mine broke yet again recently...it appears it can't be fixed and I can't afford to replace currently, so I am washing up. I don't mind washing up, it's just me and small DS now. However, I do mind having this large, useless appliance that will have to stay there for the foreseeable otherwise I am going to have a great big ugly gap in my lovely kitchen. Pissed off frankly. I look forward to saving up enough to replace!

recklessgran · 19/03/2019 23:57

Just about to remove a cupboard in our tiny kitchen as I can't cope without one having downsized two years ago. I thought it would be O.K as there are only the 2 of us now, but it isn't. Miss my D/W so much and can't wait to have it back. Apart from anything else I am sick of bleaching teaspoons......

OnlineAlienator · 20/03/2019 00:50

I cook everything from scratch and have still never had a dishwasher. I even have to boil hot water in a hob kettle and it still seems less of an arse than all the loading, unloading and waiting. If you wash as you go and make canny use of a soak i just dont see why its seen as so time consuming to hand wash? Fine to prefer a DW but its pure personal preference.

FrugalFanny · 20/03/2019 00:59

Never had one and don't want one.

In fact the only person I know who had one was my mum and it seemed to me such a bloody faff to load it all up and then take it all out again, that I never used it even when we stayed there.

I work from home and wash up as I go along - if I use a pan a plate or a cup I wash it up - takes seconds. In the evenings after dinner I really enjoy washing up and cleaning the kitchen. I stick my music on and Wash up, dry and put everything away, wipe down the worktops and a sweep of the kitchen floor, so it's all nice and tidy before bed.

Lweji · 20/03/2019 01:01

You still have to rinse everything before you load it and then everything comes out squeaky. Ergh.

No, you don't.
And squeaky? As in not greasy? Are you a non-rinser? Confused

Whatwaswrongwiththatusername · 20/03/2019 01:06

I never used to have one - was of the camp of 'what's the point?' - but as my mobility started to take a nosedive and I found it harder to manage I could then see the point if I e. So when I had my kitchen refitted a few years ago I made sure to mark out a space I wanted for a slimline one. Couldn't afford it straightaway, but eventually I did and it really has helped! Now I feel wasteful when stuff is washed up by hand (other than non-dishwasher safe or badly baked on dishes/baking trays) because of the extra water wasted! Being on a water meter makes this (almost) as an important reason as my health. Also means I get a bit irritated cos it means it'll take longer before I can put it on and use the stuff I need that's in there. But that particular foible is just mine...😁

Whatwaswrongwiththatusername · 20/03/2019 01:11

Admittedly I find the unpacking and putting away physically hard work so it's so helpful if that's done for me occasionally. Generally find the stacking not too bad as it's usually a bit by bit job, apart from straight after a big meal cooked for more people, instead of just me, but usually if there are others here I'm happy to delegate that bit 😊

1forAll74 · 20/03/2019 03:58

i don't have a dishwasher, or even a washing machine. Most people I know though,do have a dishwasher, and have seen some numpty people,just put a few mugs and spoons in it and start it up., which seems total madness to me.

I am not sure how much water they use, but probably quite a lot with all the washing and rinsing etc.