Which is better for the environment, handwashing dishes or using a dishwasher?

Question

And how about when taking in other considerations, such as only using machine when full, using economy settings, handwashing only after shower or other hot water source has filled pipes with hot water, using a rinse tube when hand washing rather than faucet rinsing, any others that you can think of that might change which is better.

typo above: that should read "rinse tub" not "rinse tube".

Note to Sione's questions: the rinse tub is just a second dish tub used to rinse the soap off of the cleaned dishes rather than running fresh faucet water over each one after it is cleaned. There is, I would assume, a cleanliness issue with essentially reusing the rinse water on every dish that is washed.

Also, the washing after showering is refering to dish washing by hand, not washing hands. In the apartment that I live in on the third floor, I have experienced that the time it takes for hot water to reach the faucet in the kitchen is shorter after I have just taken a shower than when I turn on the hot water faucet at other times. So, I was just thinking along the lines of doing as many things that require hot water together as possible, to limit the water wasted while waiting for the water to heat up (the cold water that just runs and is not used during that period - though I often collect that water in a bucket for other purposes, such as plant watering).

Answer 1

There's an interesting discussion of the issue in the first link below, where a guy in the UK compared his hand dish washing efficiency to a dishwasher.

Bottom line is that in general a dishwasher uses less water than hand washing, as long as the dishwasher is full before running. A lot depends on the technique of the hand dishwasher, too. Personally I don't soak the dishes in a big tub - I usually just rinse them, wash with a sponge, and rinse again. I think this is pretty efficient water use.

Other factors that need to be considered are the energy used to run the dishwasher, the energy used to produce, transport, and install the dishwasher, and the harsh detergents used in the dishwasher which could wear out the dishes faster.

So overall it's pretty hard to compare. If you use either one efficiently (if you're a good hand washer or always fill the dishwasher up before running it) it's probably pretty much a wash (pun intended).

Answer 2

There have definitely been a lot of findings that a dishwasher uses far less water than handwashing dishes, but then it's hard to know how to "balance" out the additional water used versus the additional energy used for the dishwasher to run. I've heard more in favor of dishwashers being environmentally friendlier than handwashing. Def you are saving/being more efficient by only running a full load in the dishwasher and by allowing the dishes to airdry (although it takes a longer time, just run the dishwasher w/o the drying setting and leave it open overnight [I find mine allows better drying open where the moisture has somewhere to evaporate]).

On handwashing, you can surely save energy by only washing hands after a shower, but right after a shower, my hands tend to be clean. Also, warm water run to the shower doesn't necessarily "heat up" the pipes to other sinks away from the bathroom where the shower was running. You can use alcohol disinfectant if you'd like, but I'd prefer to sanitize my hands by washing when they really need it. What's a rinse tub? I haven't heard of that. Is it just standing water that you can rinse off in?

Answer 3

I do not know gallon wise for each but I did read that a loaded dish washer uses less water than hand washing. The electricity used is the same since you need hot water for both, Just don*t use the drying button. The hotter water in the dishwasher is a lot more sanitary.

Answer 4

I've heard that using the dishwasher is the more energy efficient route to go and Seventh Generation makes an earth friendly dish detergent for machines as well as for hand washing. I don't know much about the soaps on the shelf in the stores, but they might have something earth friendly as well.

Answer 5

A dishwasher. A recent study established that the average water consumption to hand wash 140 items was 63 litres, whereas a dishwasher can do it in less than 20 litres. Follow the tips below for ultimate energy and water saving goodness.

Answer 6

ever think they just want you to think it conserves energy because they want you to buy a dishwasher? The electric company wants you to run a big machine for an hour or two a day?
The water company wants you to run a machine that will constantly run water for an hour?????

Answer 7

www.energyhog.org shows that hand washing is best. I think you could go a step further and get the dawn detergent that will take one drop or whatever to do a whole sink full. Guess you soap up and pile in one side of sink. Then rinse all at other side of sink.

Answer 8

Studies have incontrovertibly demonstrated that proper use of a dishwasher is much more efficient in terms of energy and water use than handwashing.

Answer 9

the soap has alot of harsh chemicals in it that is bad for the environment. Hand washing, the dish soap is better for the environment.

Answer 10

The only difference I see there, is that by hand washing, you are not using electricity.