British gas, octopus, eon, edf and ovo customers told dishwasher secret

HOUSEHOLDS MAY BE WASTING MORE MONEY THAN THEY NEED TO BECAUSE OF THEY WAY THEY ARE USING THEIR DISHWASHER 05:37, 02 Feb 2025 Experts have told households the best ways they should be using

their dishwasher to save money and keep costs down. Dishwashers are generally cheaper to use than doing washing up by hand as they use less water and energy. But there is a mistake some

people make before loading the dishwasher. Some may prefer to give their plates and other items a rinse before going into the dishwasher, believing this will help them come out cleaner. But

experts say there is generally no need to do this, as they will come out of the dishwasher clean. Food should be scraped away as usual, while burnt-on stains on pans may be worth soaking or

scrubbing first. The warning comes as both energy and water bills will be rising over the coming months, piling extra pressure onto household finances. READ MORE: NATIONWIDE PAYING £175 INTO

CUSTOMERS' BANK ACCOUNTS GET OUR BEST MONEY SAVING TIPS AND HACKS BY SIGNING UP TO OUR NEWSLETTER Article continues below Ian Palmer-Smith, appliance repair expert at Domestic &

General: "Dishwashers generally use less hot water than hand washing. On average, a dishwasher uses water four times more efficiently than washing by hand, so if you are running a load

when the appliance is full, this can actually ease your energy bills more than you might expect.” He went on: "One of the biggest dishwasher myths is that you need to rinse items before

loading them. In reality, this uses extra unnecessary hot water and typically won’t improve the results. Modern dishwashers use high temperatures designed to break down stubborn stains with

little trouble so pre-rinsing plates is a bit like hand washing your car before taking it to the car wash. “You can save water and skip the pre-rinse; pre-rinsing dishes before putting them

in the dishwasher can waste around 1,115 litres of water each year. Modern soaps and detergents work better on dirty dishes. Article continues below "The enzymes in soaps are designed

to attach themselves to dirt particles and be rinsed away. However, if dishes are thoroughly rinsed, they have nothing to attach to. “However, if you have a pan with some burnt-on food

residue it can be a good idea to give it a soak beforehand. Not scraping away any food before putting items in the dishwasher can cause clogs and eventually need a dishwasher repair.”