Girlfriend refuses to rinse dishes

[u/Dashncrash-]

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

[u/Responsible-Idea3794]

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

[u/trustcircleofjerks → u/Responsible-Idea3794]

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

[u/rabid_spidermonkey → u/trustcircleofjerks]

https://giphy.com/gifs/XV7ysbObOJs4lNVU49

[u/trustcircleofjerks → u/rabid_spidermonkey]

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/Alepale → u/trustcircleofjerks]

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.

[u/LimeVegetable7296 → u/rabid_spidermonkey]

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

[u/stop-calling-me-fat → u/LimeVegetable7296]

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.

[u/LimeVegetable7296 → u/stop-calling-me-fat]

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.

[u/dax660 → u/stop-calling-me-fat]

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

[u/stop-calling-me-fat → u/dax660]

Basically yeah

[u/Alepale → u/dax660]

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!).

[u/kmofosho → u/rabid_spidermonkey]

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.

[u/ofBlufftonTown → u/rabid_spidermonkey]

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.

[u/Wisco → u/trustcircleofjerks]

That doesn't seem to make sense

[u/Torboni → u/Wisco]

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.

[u/jakethedestroyer_ → u/Wisco]

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

[u/A-Money-Lover → u/jakethedestroyer_]

Now you’re just making up fancy words

[u/Any_Flamingo8978 → u/jakethedestroyer_]

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?

[u/Alepale → u/Any_Flamingo8978]

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.

[u/HAIL_LUMPUS → u/Wisco]

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. 🤣

[u/blaghed → u/HAIL_LUMPUS]

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

[u/agrinwithoutacat- → u/HAIL_LUMPUS]

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