the great dish debate
when you wash dishes (not in a dishwasher), do you wash them with clean water or with dirty water? (i've had this conversation with a few people and it always seems to go nowhere. by putting it online i can ensure having all the talk time to myself, as well as the last word.)
most people fill up the sink with clean water and a few squirts of detergent. then they proceed to wash each dish in the soapy water which, as expected, gets dirtier and dirtier with every dish cleaned. that process doesn't get anything clean, save for the few at the beginning that actually got the clean water. how can something get clean if the water rinsing it is full of food? you're basically washing a dish with soup. dinner soup. (dinner soup is made by mixing assorted pieces of whatever-you-had-for-dinner into a soapy water base.)
the same principle goes for taking baths. whoever thought up the sick and twisted idea of bathing for cleanliness should be made to bathe in his own sweat. what good will it do you to wash off the day's dirt, sweat and grime, and then sit in it?? worse yet, why would you use that dirty sweaty grimy water to "wash" off the rest of your poor body? you're just relocating your dandruff to the rest of your body, and, bonus! your foot fungus can get into your ears too. what a nice relaxing way to end your day.
i don't care how much soap you dump into the tub or the sink, it doesn't change the amount of gunk floating around in there. my mom believes that liquid soap in dirty water actually cleans the water itself, neutralizing germs and even liquefying food particles. she used to get upset with me when i'd do the dishes, because i liked them to be clean at the end. she thought i took way too long. (then she'd usually end up doing them herself, and i was okay with that because it DID take a long time.)
here's how i would (and do) wash the dishes in the absence of a dishwasher (and, might i add, ONLY in the absence of a dishwasher). put a tiny dribble of soap on the dirty dish. wash the dish with a clean rag or sponge. rinse the dish with clean water. set it aside to dry. repeat with each dish.
those who mock me are quick to point out that this wastes water. my response: are you really willing to sacrifice cleanliness for an infinitesimal decrease in your water bill? you can use old water to wash your toilet or the garage floor if you want, but your dishes?? the scoffers and doubters also think my way is too much work, boo hoo hoo. no, i don't enjoy handling the soap bottle 25 times, but i enjoy eating with particle-free tableware. i suppose cleanliness is a losing fight, though...anyone who tries to clean themselves with their own grime won't be persuaded to wash dishes correctly.
posted by Nikki Moore @ 1:18 PM
9 speaketh
9 Comments:
I would like to know what exactly goes on in a dishwasher. If you are packing that thing to the brim, how do you expect everything to get its fair share of water and soap, you can't even fit that much detergent in there in the first place. I don't want to stir up an argument here, especially not with you ;), but it seems that because all you see is what goes in and what comes out, you assume that they are all clean. I can get dishes to look like that washing them myself. Just don't watch me wash them.
you're right about not knowing what goes on in a dishwasher. i suspect it has a lot to do with the high pressure water squirting around (getting the food off) and the high temperature (killing the germs). but maybe that's just what they want us to think.
I'm sure you thought I would disagree, but just the opposite. although I use a slightly different technique when I wash the dishes. I take the soap bottle, and when all the dishes are in the sink, and make a bunch of little lines all over them with the soap. it gets them all some soap, and I still only have to touch the bottle once. it's a good thing Mom doesnt see how much soap I use or she would blow a gasket. :)
i think the art of handwashing has been lost on our generation, except, of course, by me. or it could just be my ocd expressing itself. but anyway, probably the most important part of handwashing is the pre-rinse. this takes care of any chunks of food that might muck up your water when you get around to washing those things. after that's done, you can actually start washing, but always start with the less dirty things, such as glasses, silverware, etc. then you can move on to the plates. at this point, it is appropriate to check the water clarity and temperature and, if need be, change the water. speaking of temperature, hot is good. i once had a roommate who washed dishes in cold water. why would you do that? i have no answer.
the problem with putting soap directly on the dish is that the dish soap is designed to be dissolved in the water. direct application leaves a residue, and i guess i don't know about you, but i don't like eating soap. that's probably enough from me.
well, i stopped reading after the first paragraph because i got bored, but my understanding of how water works is that when you wash the food off into the water, its not going to reattached itself to the next dish that goes into the water. Same with bathing, when you wash off dirt, it doesnt come back around and reattach to your skin. Idk, maybe you have some crazy sticky water or something...
jake, i don't have to listen to anything you say (especially the part about my blog being boring) because you don't wash any dishes, at least not your own.
Whatever, I have one question for you... why not
Behold...I live!
This is a fascinating topic to be sure! The water, although it contains contaminants, does not, with the help of the soap, actually reapply said contaminants. This is because soap is a surfactant, or emulsifier, that actually allows the water to form stronger bonds with said contaminants than said contaminants form with the dishes. True, there is a possibility that a stray contaminant might not have bonded properly and so it gets redeposited on a dish...but that's a realistic fact that must be considered when just running "clean" water from the tap over the dish as well. There is a limit to how long this works as once the water-soap solution has reached its saturation point, it cannot accept (technically adsorb) anymore contaminants, the contaminants will just start to float around in the water looking for something to stick to.
The solution is to use quality soap and to change your water once the water-soap solution has reached its saturation point.
ya, scotty pretty much what i said except for the abundant use of "contaminants"
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