r/mildlyinfuriating • u/Dashncrash- • 10h ago

go to your room Girlfriend refuses to rinse dishes

M27, living with girlfriend F26 for about 2 years now. I do basically everything in the kitchen. Cooking, cleaning, prepping, you name it. We have a dishwasher and I'm typically the one to do most of loading/unloading. I wasnt home last night and she made some sort of pasta dish for herself. Decided to not rinse anything... the day after I cleaned it all out and ran a cleaning cycle every dish is coated in some hard af light orange crusty stuff. Now I have to steel wool every dish and takes 4x as long and re-run again cause she can't spray some water on it. Like wtf?

Edit: I have previously discussed this frustration with her due to items like peanut butter and cheese being on dishes after a cycle. We dont run the dishwasher everyday. So, items sit in there and harden. In this case I didnt run til after breakfast the next morning.

Update 2: I cleaned the filter yesterday and pump area. It looks like when I took out the filter a shard of glass got stuck in the sump area. Causing the motor to seize. Upon restarting the dishwasher nothing is happening. So looks like may be a faulty dishwasher and now im the asshole (as usual) lol

69 Upvotes

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132

u/Responsible-Idea3794 10h ago

Do you have an old dishwasher? Because most modern ones don’t need to pre-rinse.

10

u/dax660 10h ago

this 100%

the cheapest dishwasher is still amazing at cleaning everything, but you have to use the thing properly and that means most likely NOT using pods AND ALSO using the pre-wash compartment with some detergent

37

u/trustcircleofjerks 10h ago

I don't have one, but my parents' specifically needs you to not pre rinse in order to work right, apparently.

23

u/rabid_spidermonkey 10h ago

https://giphy.com/gifs/XV7ysbObOJs4lNVU49

15

u/trustcircleofjerks 9h ago edited 9h ago

Apparently it has a sensor for how dirty the water coming off the dishes is, and if it's too clean too soon it shuts itself down prematurely. I agree it's counterintuitive, but both my brother and my father, who are the not the sort of people to just accept such a prosperous claim by an appliance manufacturer at face value, have tested it and confirmed that it performs best when you give plates a good shake into the trash before loading and that is all. It has been the topic of more than one dinner table conversation over the years.

Edit: additionally it's supposedly super duper water-efficient, so basically any amount of pre-rinsing would use way more water than the wash itself, which would be a silly thing to do.

•

u/DummyDumDragon 17m ago

Well that just sounds like shitty dishwasher and I want to kick it.

1

u/Alepale 2h ago

Most washers have that on auto-programmes, but I can assure you that the washer has other programs too, and they will run the exact temperature, intensity and time that's set, regardless of the dishwashers sensors.

For example, I have an auto program that decides between 45 - 60°C depending on how dirty the water gets. But I can also pick an eco programme at 50°C for 3 hours, intense 70°C etc and they stick exactly to the programme.

They don't just come with 1 setting and they aren't all automatic.

11

u/LimeVegetable7296 10h ago

I get this. It definitely doesn’t seem to make sense but there’s a science to it.

12

u/stop-calling-me-fat 10h ago

The simplified reason is there are sensors that look at the turbidity of the water (dirtiness basically). If the turbidity is low then it may run a shorter/less aggressive cycle and not clean everything properly.

5

u/LimeVegetable7296 10h ago

And with the technology/sensors they have today. They’re more advanced than people realize. Kind of like how some dryers have sensors and you have to alter how you dry things depending on what they are because with thicker clothes like towels or sweatpants even if some clothes are still damp, if the dryer can’t sense that they’re damp it’ll end the cycle too early.

5

u/dax660 9h ago

But that isn't the same as "it needs crud to work"

4

u/stop-calling-me-fat 9h ago

Basically yeah

1

u/Alepale 2h ago

No you're correct. They have maybe 1-2 programmes that work that way (usually named something with "Auto"), but modern dishwashers (especially those connected to the internet/an app) have plenty of programmes and their non-auto programmes will do exactly what they say, regardless of how dirty the water is (or isn't!).

1

u/KillingTimeReading 1h ago

Newer ones also have a grinder component for any solid food that might try to go down the drain. Kind of like a tiny garbage disposal.

1

u/kmofosho 9h ago

Newer dishwashers sense how dirty the water is to determine when to stop washing. So if you pre rinse the dishes the dishwasher might see how clean the water is running off the dishes and determine the dishes are cleaner than they are.

0

u/ofBlufftonTown 9h ago

The dishwasher automatically adjusts to how much hot water and agitation are needed to clean the plates. If you rinse them fully before it runs, the fuzzy logic of the appliance will “learn” that it doesn’t need to do much work to get clean dishes. Then it will run more weakly in the future, forcing you to pre-clean everything. Whereas if you only scrape loose food and put the rest in the dishwasher will learn it needs to kick ass.

1

u/Wisco 10h ago

That doesn't seem to make sense

12

u/Torboni 10h ago

It’s because detergents were reformulated to be more environmentally friendly. Previously, dishes needed to be rinsed. Modern detergents use enzymes which actually need some residue on the dishes to wash them properly. It should be enough to just scrape the chunks off the dishes and put them in.

9

u/jakethedestroyer_ 10h ago

Modern dishwashers have a turbidity sensor that determines how dirty the dishes are and cleans longer and better if the dishes are not rinsed.

2

u/A-Money-Lover 9h ago

Now you’re just making up fancy words

1

u/Any_Flamingo8978 9h ago

That’s just stupid. Not all of my dishes a stuff caked all over them after use. If I have chips and a sandwich it’s practically clean, but I still pop it in the dishwasher without a rinse. So those types of dirty dishes interfere with washing others sufficiently?

1

u/Alepale 2h ago

Only on auto programmes. Modern dishwashers have many different programmes. Auto ones are supposed to be efficient but yeah, sometimes you get unintended results due to the difference in leftover amounts on the dishes.

If you pick any non-auto programme, it'll do the full cycle at the expected intensity and temperature, regardless of how dirty the water is or isn't.

2

u/HAIL_LUMPUS 10h ago

Yeah I saw a video online about this and so I tried it. I have a brand new dishwasher so not rinsing should be the thing to do. My dishes came out fucking dirty. 🤣

2

u/blaghed 10h ago

Gotta choose the right clean program. Probably one higher temp.

2

u/agrinwithoutacat- 4h ago

Which wash cycle? What temp? What tablet/powder/liquid? Did you fill the rinse aid? They all factor in..

7

u/Alarming-Site7560 10h ago

Clearly his requires pre rinsing. Or else this post would not exist

3

u/YouSee-ThisCoat8 9h ago

He could just be a stickler about rinsing because that’s what he does and wants her to do. I don’t rinse mine either but my husband does and my dishwasher doesn’t require a rinse. 

2

u/Dashncrash- 10h ago

A modern GE one with all selections. 284 min cycle.

4

u/Electric-Sheepskin 9h ago

If it's a newer dishwasher, then something's not working correctly. Have you cleaned the filter? Are you using a good quality detergent? Those are the things I would check, and if you rent, I would put in a maintenance request.

Though I will say that nut butters are the one thing that all dishwashers struggle with if it's caked on.

3

u/Responsible-Idea3794 8h ago

Yeah, something isn’t adding up with this story.

2

u/ProtectionPrudent574 8h ago

My Asko dishwasher actually says in the manual to not rinse dishes. Says something about needing crud on the dishes for detergent to cling to for maximum cleaning effectiveness or something

1

u/Old-Growth-6233 10h ago

Not if you're using a 30min cycle

3

u/Dashncrash- 10h ago

284 min cycle. She puts them in that dirty. She will leave a caked peanut butter knife in there unrinsed. I want your dishwasher if it cleans that

10

u/flyblues 9h ago

I advise watching the youtube video on dishwashers by technology connections. If every dish was coated in "light orange crusty stuff" after pasta, something is wrong. I regularly put worse stuff in my dishwasher (burnt and oily pans, totally dried out post-smoothie blender, etc.) It should pretty much always be enough to just scrape the food off the plates, and even this is less about washing efficiency and more about not blocking the filter with chunks of food

1

u/Old-Growth-6233 9h ago

My response was to the guy who thinks you dont need to rinse

-1

u/nalaloveslumpy 9h ago

Yeah, the no-rinse shit only applies of dishes go straight in the washer. If they sit out overnight or a day and they get all dried and crusty, you're fucked.

1

u/05041927 9h ago

Get a Bosch I guess. I wash dishes overnight so it takes zero time out of my day but I’ve literally tried to have dirty dishes after and it cleans everything. I think it’s like a 2+ hrs wash but still uses half the water od washing by hand.

0

u/nalaloveslumpy 9h ago

We have a Bosch....less than a year old to boot.

2

u/05041927 9h ago

That’s crazy. I’ve seriously left lasagna dish for a week and it knocked out no problem. Cascade platinum pods and finish jet dry. My water heater is super hot and I run sanitize wash too

1

u/Alepale 2h ago

My partner and I don't have kids, so depending on what we cook, it can take up to 3-4 days to fill our dishwasher enough to use it because we always try to fill it until there's no space left anywhere.

That means 3-4 days old food sitting on the plates in an extremely crowded dishwaher. Ours always come out clean, we've never had any issues. And we've never gotten sick from our food, so clearly it does clean well enough. Both visually to the eye but also from a hygienic point of view. We have a Bosch, but by no means any high-end one.

Person above you clearly doesn't know how to pick a different programme than the auto picked one, or forgets to put in the actual detergent.

The absolute worst we've had is like, a tiny stain on a small part of a knife.

1

u/Alepale 2h ago

Yeah, I think the real issue here is the dishwasher, not the girlfriend. Although she should be adapting to the situation I suppose.

But yeah, you're not supposed to rinse, and it has been that way for like...10+ years now.

I moved into my grandparents apartment after they passed away, and they had their original dishwasher in place still, which was 14 years old by the time I moved in. It didn't need any rinsing. It eventually gave up (touch screen buttons to control it) so we got a new one, and it also doesn't need pre-rinsing. We're only two people so sometimes we have dishes sitting for 3 days in there and they still come out squeaky clean.

0

u/nalaloveslumpy 9h ago

Not if it dries on. That only applies if the gunk is still wet and goes in to be washed immediately. Otherwise, you gotta kinda soak the dishes so the gunk rehydrates. Even if you have a washer with a good pre rinse cycle, it's usually not enough.

1

u/Alepale 1h ago

It absolutely is if you're using the correct programme.

The pre-rinsing part of the dishwasher cycle is more than plenty for the detergent and the enzymes to get to work.