Doing the dishes by hand sounds simple, but we all make mistakes.
Do not put on gloves, do not soak dirty utensils, use only a container…
For a long time, I made all these mistakes.
But since I no longer make them, I save time and my dishes are perfect.
Here is 12 mistakes to avoid when washing dishes by hand. Look :
1. Let the dishes pile up
Let dirty plates pile up is not a good idea.
It’s true that it’s not a piece of cake…
But it’s even worse if you let it pile up.
The more there are, the less we have the courage to do it.
There motivation to do housework is even harder to find.
Then, the longer we wait, the less we want to do it.
Because the dirt has had time to dry and become encrusted.
And in the end, you have to do this dishes…
Unless you use one of these tips for not doing the dishes.
But we advise against it!
2. Do not soak the dishes
That being said, it has to be admitted…
It happens to everyone not to do the dishes right away.
Lack of time, fatigue… No problem!
In this case, there is an alternative to make your life easier.
Just plug a sink tray and fill it with hot or lukewarm water.
Pour some washing-up liquid in it and put the dirty utensils in it.
let them soak The required time.
It’s a kind of prewash
You’ll see, it’s even easier and faster to wash it like that.
You can even use this trick to degrease it even more easily.
You can also soak it in a basin.
3. Wash the dirtiest dishes first
Personally, I always made this mistake.
I always started by washing the dirtiest things.
Pots that have snagged, very dirty gratin dishes, greasy pans…
Until my grandmother told me it was a mistake.
It is better to start by cleaning what is less dirty.
That’s to say ? Glasses, cutlery, plates and finally pans…
The reason is simple.
This allows you to wash as many utensils as possible with clean water and a sponge.
4. Over-scrubbing pots and pans
Speaking of pots and pans…
Here’s another mistake I made regularly:
rub too much pots, casseroles and skillets.
It must be said that when there is burnt fat, you have to work hard to get it off!
The problem is that we damage the bottom of these utensils.
Their coating is fragile. And once the coating is damaged, the pan is finished.
Luckily, I discovered a genius trick for scouring the bottom of scorched pots and pans.
You just have to use baking soda and white vinegar to strip the burned area.
This allows you to find nickel pans, as if they were new…
Effortlessly and without rubbing! Find out how to do it here.
5. Badly empty the plates before washing them
This is another mistake that we often make (well that kids often do to be honest)…
Far too often, we put dirty plates and pans directly in the sink without emptying them…
Or by emptying them badly !
And inevitably, it soils the sponges and the water for washing or rinsing the dishes.
But the worst is that in addition there is a risk of clogging the pipes of the sink.
So to avoid clogged pipes, you have to think about emptying the plates.
6. Not cleaning the sink before doing the dishes
We don’t necessarily think about it.
But doing the dishes in a dirty sink… That’s not the best.
So before you start, check that the sink is clean.
This is not the case ? It’s not serious.
You just have to clean your sink using this method with baking soda.
You’ll see, it’s super easy and quick to do.
7. Wash the dishes with a dirty sponge
Sponges are real nests of microbes.
And doing the dishes with a dirty sponge really doesn’t make sense.
Do not hesitate to change it regularly.
But to prolong the life of your sponge, you can use baking soda and white vinegar, as explained here.
This trick allows you to clean and disinfect it.
This makes it possible to change them less often and to make some additional savings.
You can also use a tawashi.
It’s super practical and you can wash them as many times as you want.
8. Use the same cloth for dishes and hands
It is important to use a special tea towel to dry your utensils.
It’s more convenient to make room on the drainer as you go.
But it is also a question of hygiene.
If you wipe your hands with the dish towel, you can leave bacteria there.
And these can migrate onto clean dishes! yuck!
Not only do you need a tea towel dedicated to the dishes…
But in addition, it must be changed regularly: every 3 to 4 days or so.
You can use white vinegar to machine wash it and disinfect it well.
9. Use the same sponge for dishes and cleaning
The sponge is like the dishcloths.
Not only must it be clean, but it must also not be used ONLY for washing the dishes.
If you use your sponge to do housework, clean the worktop, or even a stain on the floor, cutlery and plates…
You risk a cross contamination between the different cleaned surfaces.
Imagine bacteria on the floor ending up on your plates!
It doesn’t feel like it, does it?
10. Not wearing gloves
If you’re like me, you always forget to put on gloves to do the dishes.
This is a mistake, because you quickly end up with damaged and dry hands.
Doing the dishes takes about 15 minutes on average.
And all the while, our hands are in contact with dirty water, high pH cleanser…
The skin of the hands is attacked.
You can even develop eczema, because of the irritants in dishwashing liquid.
Why put yourself through that when a pair of gloves can easily preserve them?
In addition, they will also protect them from too hot water. It avoids small burns and too dry skin!
11. Do the dishes in cold water
Do you think you can save money by washing the plates in cold water?
It’s a bad idea!
Cold water does not allow to clean and especially to degrease in depth the clogged pans.
It is really recommended to use hot water.
For what ?
Because the heat eliminates fat encrusted in dishes, plates or pans.
12. Let the water run
Did you know that we use 200 liters of water every time we do the dishes by hand?
If you let the water run while you soap and scrub a plate, then rinse it…
We spend about ten liters of water every minute that passes.
It is therefore a ecological disaster…
And in addition it weighs on the water bill and it ends up be very expensive.
Fortunately, there is an effective and much more economical trick to do the dishes.
To use less water, simply fill one of the containers with hot water.
Put some cleaning product in it and soak your dishes in it for a few minutes.
Then fill the 2nd tub with clean hot or lukewarm water.
And rinse the plates, cutlery, glasses after having cleaned them with the sponge. Easy, isn’t it?
If the water gets too dirty, just change it once. It always costs less than letting the water run!
It’s a great technique to wash everything efficiently and quickly.
Do you have a single bowl sink?
No problem, just use a basin.
Your turn…
Do you know any other mistakes not to make when washing dishes by hand? Share them with us in the comments. We can’t wait to read you!
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Also to discover:
Should You Use a Dishwasher or Do the Dishes by Hand?
29 Tricks To Make Washing Up EASIER.
