Washing up vs dishwashers

A quick search on google yields a list of results that indicate dishwashers are more environmentally friendly than washing up.

Now, being a cynical soul, (as well as one who believed beyond doubt that washing up was more environmentally friendly until a month ago) I was initially inclined to believe that this myth had been circulated by the people who wanted us to believe it the most - people who sold dishwashers.

But after looking more carefully, I can see that this is actually true - provided the following:

- the dishwasher is new (ish) and energy efficient - don't just go for the cheap option

- you only run it when it's full

- you don't rinse dishes beforehand

- you don't utilise the drying option

But how is this possible? Surely using our free, natural and environmentally friendly hands has GOT to be more environmentally friendly than powering a machine?

Apparently not.  There's an interesting article on it here: Diswashers vs hand washing (on what is, incidentally, an excellent site called green living tips). 

The energy required to heat up the water, coupled with the amount of water used (especially if rinsing before and after) and the frequency of completion means that washing up is generally more environmentally damaging - with a few clauses:

- The energy and materials required to manufacture a dishwasher are much greater than that required to manufacture a sink (and our hands!)

- Dishwasher tablets are, apparently, more damaging to the environment than most washing up liquid brands

- Running it frequently or when it's not full can be very damaging - which means it can be difficult if you just need to wash a few things to cook with (especially if you have no draining board, as is the case in our new flat!)

All in all, I am still fairly cynical about the environmental credentials of any machine.  It stands to reason that if you do one lot of washing up per day and you are sensible with water, it would be more environmentally friendly.  For many people however, especially with families, this isn't possible and so a dishwasher would be a better choice.

There is also the fact that it saves on time and makes room for other (usually environmentally damaging) activities.  Such as watching TV, going on the computer, writing blog posts...