Some people are pretty obsessive over their dirty dishes—they can’t stand leaving anything (not even a spoon!) in the sink. Others are a little more lenient—a spoon and a few plates are okay, but nothing that will sit for too long.
And other people, well, they just don’t care at all. Life is too short to do dishes, they say! Let ’em pile up!
Where do you stand? Do you always or usually always wash your dishes right away, never leaving anything in the sink? Or do you maybe let them sit throughout the day but wash them every night, never going to bed with a full sink? Or do you leave them until it’s absolutely necessary to wash them?
If you answer “other” in our poll, please leave a comment and share your answer. Thanks! And, hey, no judgment here.
Washing dishes is part of the bedtime routine. Have fancy dishwasher, but still wash by hand.
I love the dishwasher! It does a good job and uses less water than hand washing. I would rather be out doing something else, or sleeping.
They’re rinsed and placed in the dishwasher until full.
Do you let the toilet fill up before you flush it. Dirt dishes have bacteria/germs just spreading in the sink and more if you’re sick. When finished eating the dishes get done. First easier to clean and 2nd I have stopped that spread of unknown growth.
In the fifty years we’ve been rv-ing, I’ve always washed the dishes when there were enough to warrant warming and using the water. We have NEVER gotten sick because of the delay.
In fact, the only time I’ve come down sick while camping was in 2022. It was Covid.
In fact, the friend with me didn’t get sick. Go figure!
We wash or put the dishes in the dishwasher immediately except when boondocking. Then they are wiped out and stacked. All the days dishes are then washed at together at night to use less water.
Our trailer is too small to allow clutter, especially dirty dishes.
We use very few dishes. I spray them with vinegar and leave in a pile until worthy of heating up water. I can wipe out the pot or pan to be used again depending on what was cooked in it. Usually ends up to be every other day.
What? There’s a sink under there?
We put the dirty dishes in a dishpan on the counter, then wash them all at once when it’s full.
It depends on how many dishes were dirtied and how dirty they are.. greasy sticky washed; cereal bowls or plates from toast/bagels are rinsed and put in the dirty dish plastic pans for later (I try not to do dishes inside the trailer).
Thank you, RV Travel! I answered that we wash them soon, but not immediately. In fact, it depends on whether we are at home or in the RV. At home, the dishes, etc., get wiped out, rinsed, and put in the dishwasher after each meal. Once the dishwasher is full, then we run it (usually overnight and put everything away in the morning). In the RV, we wipe out the dishes, sometimes rinse them, let them accumulate in the sink beneath one of the sink covers until there are a lot or we are leaving the campground for another destination. Washing daily would fill the gray tank faster than we’d like. Happy new year and safe travels! 🙂
At home I put in off to ling, but in the RV I do them daily. Once.
If we are relying on our onboard tanks, they set until we run out of the silverware and other stuff we need. If we are in a park that has dish washing sinks, we will use the real plates and wash the dishes every other day weather permitting. At home the wife uses the dishwasher, if I am doing the meals, I wash the dishes as soon as i am done with them.
I retired before my wife (many years ago) so I took over cooking duties, which includes washing dishes. For year’s I hand washed. Just seemed more efficient for two people. But last year I was convinced to use that fancy machine. I still rinse before loading. Either way, they are done immediately. Just seems more sanitary and neat.
We wash dishes once a day, usually in the evening, to conserve the amount of water we use when dry camping.
I wash dishes once a day after dinner when dry camping by wiping with a wet paper towel the dishes used before putting them in a dishpan to do later. When I have hookups I do them after every meal.
Like many things, it depends. Certainly we won’t travel with loose dishes that can be bounced around. We use less water than washing only a couple dishes at the time. And dishes can be easier to wash if they have a chance to soak for a bit to soften baked on food.
It depends. While camping in our small TT, we may only wash dishes once a day, if we’re using paper plates and bowls. We do try to conserve water. The cups, glasses, and silverware will stack next to the sink. If we have pots and pans, we do dishes immediately.
At home, I prefer to load and run the dishwasher ASAP. However, given the fact that a wash/dry cycle is almost 3-1/2 hours, on some days, we have a sink-full by the time we can empty the dishwasher. (Sink-full = 1 dishwasher load)
We now have a dishwasher that we only use once in awhile just to keep it exercised. We have found it is a perfect place to let our dishes dry. We always keep our sink empty or at least not overflowing. For some reason we feel it makes the RV feel smaller when there is a mess on the countertops.
If RVing, I use paper plates and bowls and plastic silverware. At home I load the dishwasher as I use the plates and silverware, then turn it on before I go to bed.
Hmmm! I just assumed the dishes get washed the same way my meals get prepared. I guess I will have to check on how that is all accomplished.
When we were on the road our dishwasher was the thing I missed the most!
We load our dirty dishes into a dishwasher
I clicked other because we don’t leave dishes in the sink nor wash them right away. We put the dishes in the dishwasher and run it when full but we’ll wash pots and pans right after we eat. I don’t like clutter. If we are entertaining, we will leave dishes until our guests leave.
What dishes?..I use paper plates. I do rinse my Ale Muggs before putting them back in the freezer.
Years ago when Joyce was still alive she worried about the dishes. It was tough to explain we are not at home with unlimited water, etc.
With the travel Trailer I would just put the dishes in a soapy bucket in the bed of the Silverado and let them swish and wash until we got home. She liked that idea. Then take the garden hose and blast anything off when we hit the driveway.
After that into the house to make sure they are sanitary
Made us both happy!
P.S. In the Boy Scouts we just put the pans in the river or creek and scrubbed them with the gravel.
60 some years ago, I’m still kicking.
Food sure tasty back then with a few ashes added for seasoning…