Counter-top dishwasher worthwhile as stopgap before new kitchen?

[HettyMeg]

Does anyone have a counter top dishwasher?

We moved into our new house a couple of months back and we are putting in a new kitchen but won't be until the spring/summer for various reasons. We are also due a baby in Feb. Washing all dishes by hand is proving hard to keep on top of - We had a dishwasher in the old house so are used to it. We also cook from scratch most days so we use a lot of pots and pans, etc. I am spending at least half an hour washing dishes every day, compared to 10 mins of loading a dishwasher. As working parents it just isn't working and I'm losing my mind...

However, there is no point in fitting a dishwasher now when we are due to replace the kitchen in 6-9 months.

Has anyone got one of those counter-top dishwashers or are they too small to be effective?

Failing that, any good tips for washing dishes? No, I can't believe I just asked that but feeling desperate!!

Thanks.

Why don’t you invest in an integrated dishwasher? Then you can have it installed in the new kitchen with the appropriate door and get the benefit of it now.

I think countertop ones are good for studio flats where one person eats one meal a day and only has a coffee cup and a bowl/spoon from breakfast. They’re also not cheap. Can you get a second hand dishwasher and just plumb it in temporarily? Doesn’t have to look fancy, just has to save you washing by hand.

We have one in a family of 4 and it’s my favourite member of the family. We will have a proper dishwasher one day but like you we are waiting (for 15 years and counting) to fit a new kitchen.

it doesn’t fit large plates, needs creative stacking and if you can find a way to plumb it in rather than top-fill it like we do that will save you time. But I would immediately replace ours if it was to ever stop working!

When we were doing major renovations, we had the plumber put a temporary water supply from the downstairs shower for the washing machine and drained it into the shower tray. Now I'm not assuming you have that arrangement and could put the dishwasher there, but what I am saying is look around your house and see if there's any where you could hook up a temporary water supply and somewhere to drain it. Think laterally. Good luck. 😊

This is what I was going to say just buy one now and have it installed in your new kitchen.

We had a kitchen extension and we kept our dishwasher until the new one was fitted. It was just in the middle of the room still plumbed into the original pipework with a temporary drain the builder knocked up for us.

Is there any way you can get an integrated one now and get it plumbed in somehow? When we had no where to drain ours to we just had it drain into a large plastic tub that we emptied into the drain outside. We ran it in the day to see how much water it would pump out to make sure the tub was large enough.

We aren't at the designing stage really, so would struggle to decide where to put it. Also space is at a premium, the kitchen project involves extending the kitchen

Very small kitchen, I have one and it is great for 2 or 3 people. I do hand wash the pans, but a load a day and that and I'm done. Mine was pretty cheap though and you can probably sell it on when your new kitchen is done.

If you're about to spend five figures on a new kitchen, you're allowed to spend on temporary measures to make living bearable. If that means a countertop dishwasher that you give away afterwards, go for it.

We put our washing machine & dishwasher in a Keter box on the patio, and plumbed them in to the garden tap. Not the most convenient spot; but better than not having them for the duration.

Beware if you buy an integrated dishwasher, and you don't secure it under a counter, it topples over when you roll the bottom drawer out! It works once closed, but is a pain to load & unload.

Good luck with the project!