We hear this tip again and again: don’t rinse your dishes before loading them into the dishwasher. Still, from my observations, most people do rinse dishes, potentially wasting hundreds of gallons of water each year.

Today’s dishwashers and detergents are designed to whisk away food bits and leave your dishes sparkling clean. I have tested this with my own new dishwasher and Biokleen Dishwashing Powder. I’ve put in yogurt containers with ½ cup of expired yogurt still in there. (I know I should be better about not wasting food, so I did feel bad about this!) Pans with cheese and bits of pasta still baked on. A dish full of old whipped cream. Spoons coated in dried-up rice. Jars with the peanut butter scraped out.

My dishes always come out clean. I never need to re-wash dishes after they’ve been in the dishwasher—unless I have accidentally blocked the sprayer with a long knife or something. Now I make sure it can spin freely before I press the “on” button.

So if you are a dish-rinser—stop! Try sticking everything straight in the dishwasher. If each item doesn’t come out sparkling clean, you may not be using a good detergent for your water type. (As I mentioned, just one tablespoon of the Biokleen dishwashing powder works perfectly with my soft water here in Portland. I use plain vinegar as a rinse agent instead of Jet Clean or something similar. Check out our dishwashing detergent post to find one that works for you.)

It’s also possible your dishwasher has passed its prime if you need to rinse beforehand—older models aren’t as efficient as new ones.

If you’re a rinser, try quitting for just one load, and let us know how it turns out! Your life could get easier!