Washing dishes by hand or using the dishwasher  

Depending on how you wash them I think that washing dishes by hand definitely uses less water than using the dishwasher. The Dishwasher just tends to be more convenient which is why a lot of people use it over hand washing the dishes these days. I know I'm guilty of it. I only hand wash a dish if I need it immediately.

According to manufacturers, dishwashers use less water for the dishes that they clean than washing by hand. I also believe that they kill more germs. It takes me about ten minutes to unload and reload the dishwasher, then for the lenghth of time it is running it is of no concern to me.

I don't really know how much water a dishwasher uses as I don't use one. but they do use more electricity because of keeping the water hot and the dryer in them. It is just so easy to wash them by hand. You really need to have a full load for them to be efficient and I don't like have the dishes set around that long. Like you said it only takes about 10 minutes to wash up. Then it's don't and you don't have to come back to put the dishes away.

Although it definately depends on how many people are using the dishes as to how many you have to wash or how often you have to run the DW.. for just two... I actually did the math. I took my electric bill, water and gas bills...check the billing cycle and started first, doing all dishes by hand. At the end of that billing cycle I made the proper calcuations. Then the next billing cycle, I did them all by hand. During both periods I was careful to make sure I wasn't using any more water from one time to another...timed by washer/dryer usage and showers.

At the end of the second period, I did the math....know what i found? None of the bills changed! Within literally a few pennies one way or the other...the bills were the same. So in my case...since it didn't matter in cost, I use the dishwasher and use the time for something else.

I have since moved to another apartment and did the same thing...and still no difference in the bills.

When I was a child I grew up with a dishwasher at my parent's house. I hated it simply because emptying it was MY JOB! lol Now that I'm a grown up I've always had to wash dishes by hand. I don't enjoy it but I also don't mind it. Actually the apartment my husband and I are moving into this summer has a dishwasher. It'll be interesting to see how often we use it. I think it'll be more difficult for a couple to fill it before they run out of dishes in order to run it! lol We shall see though. So in my opinion - either one is work. Maybe loading/emptying a dishwasher takes a little less time but I see them as being about equal in work.

I live alone but in spite of using small amount of dishes every time, I wash them in the dishwasher. I use all my everyday dishes and mugs until I fill the machine to save water and detergent. I clean soiled dishes with a brush and cold water (sometimes I also use hot water from boiled potatoes if the have oil). I also use the used paper napkins to clean them further. All this is done with no soiling my hands and with little water. If I hand washed them, I´d only use running warm water which is expensive.
I only hand wash pots and skillets and some knives that I want to keep sharp.
Happy posting!

We wash our dishes and all that through hand. We don't have any dishwashers, cause I think they tend to use up more water as compared to when you just wash it by hand. It's also easier, and would take you less time as compared to using dishwashers.

I take too long to wash dishes, so I believe I would use more water washing them by hand than by using the dishwasher. I only wash them in the dishwasher about once a week, and I know they are much more sanitary than doing them by hand. though no one I know has ever been sick from my dishes, I still am concerned about germs and such.

I prefer washing dishes in my bare two hands.

I don't know which uses less water but we don't have dishwasher so I wash the dishes by hand and It is helpful for me at least I can do some little exercise to it.I think dishwasher will take more time than by doing it yourself.It will also make you not feel lazy but the advantage in dishwasher is that,it will also not make you more stress when you are already stress from work and in any activity you've been through.