Does the dishwasher use a lot of hot water?
My energy bill has been up lately and I can't figure out why. The bill says mine is higher than "similar homes near me." The only thing I am doing differently in recent years is running my new dishwasher a lot. I LOVE my dishwasher! Could that and the water heater be the culprit?
Answers ( 1 )
Sure- especially if it is one of those which heats the already hot water entering the tub even hotter, and also runs a heated dry cycle. In order of energy use, the usual household appliances are: HVAC, oven, refrigerator, dryer, dishwasher..
So, here's the deal: Hot water is great, but unless you are worried about institutional-level sanitation, water that is hotter than you can comfortably immerse your hand in is overkill and money flowing to your electric or gas company. You wouldn't consider washing dishes in a sink-full of 130-degree water- you'd scald your hands!; but you seem to believe you need that temperature in a dishwasher. Well, you don't- especially if you are using a good dishwasher detergent. If you run straight hot water, and, once the cold has been run out, you cannot stick your hand in the water stream, turn the water heater down a bit. Mine is set at 115- hot enough for his need for a scalding shower each morning, and not so hot I am spending money for hot water that is going to sit there for up to twelve hours at a time with no one using it. At 115-degrees, your dishwasher should be able to get your dishes clean. If not- it isn't the hot water, it's your lack of scraping/rinsing**, your detergent, or both.
Then there's that drying cycle: Twenty minutes or more of a coil getting hot enough to dehumidify and dry 12 cubic feet of wet dishes- when there is no venting system..Permit me to say "That's stupid". Turn the drying cycle off, keep an ear tuned (or set your oven timer for an hour or so) and, when the drying cycle is reached, open the door, give the racks a shake, and leave the door cracked for thirty minutes or so. The heat already in the machine will be enough to start up evaporation, and the cracked door allows that moisture to vent out, so everything dries pretty toot de sweet..
You may notice plasticware- such as Glad containers and plastic glasses- don't dry as well- true. They don't dry as well with that coil heating up, either, because plastic doesn't hold the heat forcing evaporation- but you likely don't notice it then because they sit in the machine overnight, or, if you do empty it right after it is run, you notice it, but chalk it up to... something or other. Giving the racks a shake and letting everything sit in that leftover heat with a door venting the moisture works, too- and is free.
That's my thing, see- I am a penny-pincher. I live in a desert, and my electric bill has never gone over $160.00; not in winter, when we run an electric fireplace, and not in summer when we run the air conditioning. That's because I set the thermostat to be barely comfortable, never run the dishwasher's drying cycle, and have a lovely 4-line, 15' clothesline for laundry so my clothes dryer use is maybe 30 minutes a month..
I can't abide wasting money on utilities.
**My husband fixes things- used to be his job, but he has graduated to a desk to save his back and knees. However, if you take Cascade's word for it, you can simply toss that gooey, gunky lasagna pan into the dishwasher with Cascade, et voila`! It comes out sparkling. It might- maybe- but the next loads are going to have bits of beef and ground up noodles on 'em. And the grease is going to clog the screens in the dishwasher's bottom- which is where the water drains. And it will soon start to... smell distressingly. ALWAYS at least scrape (or wipe with a paper towel) your dishes- and rinsing is the next best practice- especially if you have a garbage disposal.