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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think the dishwasher should be run when it is full?

120 replies

CruCru · 08/10/2014 15:54

DH is taking some time off work and today has proposed that we only run the dishwasher when we go to bed, regardless of whether it is full or not.

If it fills up in the day then he wants us to leave all the dirty stuff on top, run it overnight and then fill it up again the next day.

If we forget to run it overnight, he wants us to only run it the next night.

AIBU to think this is going to be a nightmare? We'll have dirty dishes sitting around like in my old house share. It isn't as though the dishwasher is noisy.

OP posts:
Original poster
CruCru · 08/10/2014 16:02

Sorry, I know it's a petty one.

OP posts:
skylark2 · 08/10/2014 16:06

Why is he suggesting this? Is your electricity cheaper at night?

We don't always run the dishwasher straight away when it's full, but that's because we have solar panels so we try to run it when it's daylight.

LittleprincessinGOLDrocks · 08/10/2014 16:08

As someone who had a dishwasher set alight whilst it was running one day, no I would not put it on just before going to bed. I run my dishwasher during the day when there is a grown up around to keep a watchful eye on it.

Original poster
CruCru · 08/10/2014 16:13

It pisses him off if it is on because he doesn't like the sound, he doesn't like not knowing whether it is clean or dirty (I open it and pull out a mug - if it is brown on the bottom, it's dirty) and he doesn't like it when something he might want to use is in it and it's on.

OP posts:
itiswhatitiswhatitis · 08/10/2014 16:15

God I hate when men take a bit of time off work and suddenly start having brilliant ideas that make no sense and actually cause more hassle.

CallMeExhausted · 08/10/2014 16:18

Here, I only run it after 7 pm, but that is because we have something called "time of use" fees.

Between 7pm and 7am, electricity is cheapest. During daytime hours, the electricity is anywhere between 75 and 100% more expensive. My avoidable heavy use (laundry, dishwasher etc.) is always done during off-peak hours.

Mrsjayy · 08/10/2014 16:18

Just put the dishes in the dishwasher silly man thats the point of them to hide the dirty dishes,

Original poster
CruCru · 08/10/2014 16:20

That's what I think but if it is full then they can't go in there. They have to go on the worktop above the dishwasher. Where I can see them. Ugh.

OP posts:
ErrolTheDragon · 08/10/2014 16:21

Whereas you will be pissed off by the consequences of not just running it when it's full like any sensible person.

YANBU, but you might have to let him have a trial week in which he will probably find he's pissed off by his new regime too.

I won't run the dishwasher at night because it's below DDs bedroom and beeps when it's finished.

He does know that if he needs something that's in it while it's running, he can just open it up, extract the item, restart the machine and finish washing the item by hand. If he can't tell if something is clean or dirty then just give it a quick handwash. It's not exactly difficult.

charlieandlola · 08/10/2014 16:21

Poor you. I hope his time off work will be short. I'd be stabbing myself in the eyes of my dh started issuing domestic commands.

gentlehoney · 08/10/2014 16:25

If the dishwasher is full before bedtime run it, and empty it right away. . otherwise, fill it through the day, run it at night (or evening after you have eaten) and then empty it in the morning before breakfast.

Bouttimeforwine · 08/10/2014 16:27

Thats exactly how I do it, but I am anal in that nobody else is allowed to fill the dishwasher because they can only get half of what I can, in. If it isn't loaded properly, it mucks up the system or I get dishes sitting on the side.

It works well if you can load it properly. Angry

Bouttimeforwine · 08/10/2014 16:28

SO YABU. DH's system is spot on.

crazykat · 08/10/2014 16:30

Yanbu as its not safe to run a dishwasher (or washing machine/dryer) when there's no adults to supervise it.

My cousin was lucky to be in the house when there was a fault with the electrics on her dishwasher. She was in the living room and could smell burning and found smoke coming from the dishwasher. Luckily it was during the day and she was home or they could have lost more than the dishwasher and having to re-decorate the kitchen.

I used to leave the dryer on if going to bed or out an it was nearly finished and then the motor went and would have set alight if I hadn't noticed it was being quiet and checked. One load of ruined towels was much better than a ruined house.

NeedsAsockamnesty · 08/10/2014 16:31

I wouldn't leave it running without being awake.

If it annoys him that much he could use a sink

TimeForAnotherNameChange · 08/10/2014 16:32

You're an adult, run the dishwasher when you bloody well like. He's also an adult, he'll just have to deal with it. I wouldn't even be discussing it with him, in fact I'd probably laugh out loud and suggest that he couldn't actually be serious...

specialsubject · 08/10/2014 16:34

how bizarre. Ours runs when full only, which is usually every other day in the evening. I set it going so that it will be finished before bedtime as we can hear it upstairs. There's also a smoke alarm nearby.

on the odd occasion that it is full earlier than that, I run it.

presumably you have more than one mug BTW?

grenedeer · 08/10/2014 16:35

If you forget to run it & have to wait till the next dh-acceptable time slot won't you start running out of clean things? So, no YANBU.

For those who run it after dinner & before going to bed - what do you do with any dirty plates from the evening? Do they get hand washed straight away or wait until it's emptied? Asking because we do run it overnight but am thinking of changing this (no longer on Economy 7) but dp does snack a lot in the evening so there will be quite a saucepan plus plates at least.

whois · 08/10/2014 16:36

I refrain from running ours after dinner when we are about to watch some TV as it is noisy (open plan living) and then put it on when we go to bed.

happy for it to go on during the day tho if I'm working from home, or while I'm cooking.

How to tell if it's clean or dirty - surely if it's all hot and finished and clean with the 'end' light on then someone opens the door, let's ot cool and then empties it? Why would you leave clean stuff in there longer than that?

heartichoke · 08/10/2014 16:37

ErrolTheDragon - that beeping used to drive me mad on my dishwasher, and stopped me running it at night - then I found that you can turn it off!

Here are the instructions for the Bosch one (courtesy of Yahoo):
Do you see a line under your wash selection buttons? Find the button at the right end of the line (probably labelled Pots & Pans, Half Load, or some other wash setting). Hold that and the power button down until you see a 0,1,2 or 3. Hit the button again till you see a 0 in the display. Then hit the Power button to lock in the selection.

You can google how to do it for other models... it revolutionised my dishwasher use!

Mrsjayy · 08/10/2014 16:38

My dishwasher broke on sunday I am having to do them by hand Sad cru just put it o n

Butterpuff · 08/10/2014 16:39

Bouttime are you my Mum? Fill all day, wash at night, unload before breakfast....but only Mum can do it right. Wonder if I will be the same when I get a dish washer other than DH.

holidaysarenice · 08/10/2014 16:43

You should never run a dishwasher at night.
It is one of the biggest causes Of electrical fires.

My friend is a kitchen designer and his horror stories about dishwashers are awful.

PinkyAndTheBump · 08/10/2014 16:48

Our house rule is that the dishwasher is a place for storing dirty dishes.
It's states are therefore:

  1. partially full of dirty dishes
  2. on and washing dishes.

It has a 3rd state which you can only identify when you go to put something dirty in the dishwasher (known in our house as Schrodingers dishwasher) where it's finished the cycle and all dishes are clean. If you open dishwasher and find it like this, you HAVE to empty in order to put your dirty dish in, as rule (1) states that dirty dishes are stored in the dishwasher.

Works quite well :) even if there are some groans when someone opens it and establishes that it's needing emptying :)

deakymom · 08/10/2014 16:54

i do one load a day anything that is left i wash up by hand x

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