It’s a common misconception that washing dishes by hand is the environmentally conscious approach to getting your dishes clean, but the opposite is often true: using a dishwasher can often be more eco-friendly. By minimising the water used, dishwashers reduce the overall amount of energy spent to get your dishes clean. They don’t only save you time and effort, but reduce your water and energy consumption, too.
How much electricity does a dishwasher use?
The big question around dishwashers is ‘do dishwashers use a lot of electricity?’ Honestly, the answer depends on a range of things, such as how often you run it, the cycle you choose, the time of day you put it on, your contracts with your energy provider and the make and model of your dishwasher.
So, how many watts does a dishwasher use?
Dishwashers can use between 1200-2400 watts, with the average dishwasher using only about 1800 watts per cycle.
The electricity used by a dishwasher is usually needed only on the control electronics and the pump (the heating of the water often comes from being hooked up to the hot water line rather than the dishwasher itself working to heat the water). To find out how much your dishwasher costs to run, you need to know how many watts your dishwasher requires, how many hours you use it for and the cost you are paying on average per kilowatt per hour.
If you invest in a decent energy efficient dishwasher that is certified as being energy-efficient (which also makes it highly economical!), then you can be sure you’re using as little energy as possible. Dishwasher energy consumption may vary for older models, so check your machine’s manual for further information.
When is the best time to run the dishwasher?
What could be better than a machine that washes our dishes for us – and does it more efficiently than we can? Taking away the need to scrub using our own elbow grease, the dishwasher gives us shiny, clean cutlery and sparkling plates at the touch of a button. But when is the best time to run it?
When it comes to turning on your dishwasher, the best time to do this is late at night. There are many factors that play a part in this, including energy costs, usage and even noise. Many people may worry about the noise of running a dishwasher at night. However, it’s usually more of a distraction in the day when you’re doing things (and can cause you to waste more energy by turning the TV up!) At night, the humdrum of the dishwasher is just a small disruption, but it varies from person to person whether it is significant enough to disturb your sleep.
Is using the dishwasher more energy efficient?
When it comes to dishwashing vs handwashing, the idea that using an electrical appliance could save energy is counterintuitive. But when you consider the energy it takes to heat water in the first place, and how much more water you use when cleaning your dishes by hand, it makes a lot of sense. Because most dishwashers are more water efficient, they will also likely be more energy efficient.
