Dishwasher-Less

[KMMO320]

we live in a small apartment without a dishwasher. I mentioned to hubby that we should buy a portable apartment dishwasher (we had one a long time ago) but he said absolutley not, we cant afford it

What should I do? Am I destined to be sick forever? The whole family going gluten-free is also out of the question..how do I clean everything, kee gluten-free sponges..help...

[Adalaide]

I don't have any issues and I don't use a dishwasher, although everyone else in the house does. I determined that I was continuing to get sick because people with gluten on their hands (even sometimes from a dishtowel that was CCd) were putting dishes away and/or getting dishes out of the cupboards. I now have my own plates and bowls on top of pots and pans, I also use plastic cups. I wipe down the doors on the cupboards once a week because god knows what people were touching before they touched the doors. I don't have a separate set of dish cloths and towels, but I do only use clean ones every time I need one. Learning to navigate a shared kitchen is a process, don't expect to get everything right immediately.

[Lisa]

we live in a small apartment without a dishwasher. I mentioned to hubby that we should buy a portable apartment dishwasher (we had one a long time ago) but he said absolutley not, we cant afford it

What should I do? Am I destined to be sick forever? The whole family going gluten-free is also out of the question..how do I clean everything, kee gluten-free sponges..help...

A dish washer won't clean your dishes any better than you would. That's okay gluten is a crumb on your plate, it's not a bacteria.

Breath deeply, and then take small steps. Walk around this place and you will learn lots.

[KMMO320]

Thanks, I think I am mostly worried about keeping sponges.separate, and worrying that others use the wrong sponge when Im not around, etc

[kareng]

I get pink and blue sponges. Pink is for gluten-free. It might be a bit of a pain but you could put your pink sponge in a bowl or plate and put it in the cabinet under the sink when not in use?

[Takala]

Thanks, I think I am mostly worried about keeping sponges.separate, and worrying that others use the wrong sponge when Im not around, etc

Sweetie, you need to be buying paper towels in bulk. Paper towels are your Very Best Kitchen Friend. For what you spend on just one trip to the pharmacy, you can buy a year's worth of pick-a-sizes that you can pull off a whole or partial paper towel. That and you put whatever sort of safe soap (I have extremely sensitive skin) in an extra pump dispenser on the kitchen counter. You also put some plain baking soda in another dispensing plastic bottle you can just squeeze or shake it out of, even if it is an old plastic water bottle. Another dispenser bottle has the pure apple cider vinegar. Put some water in a spray bottle with a dash of vinegar and a dash of some sort of gluten free alcohol (your choice, we're trying to cut grease), to wipe down the counters with the paper towels. With this combination, you can clean most of the kitchen and dispose of the gluten carrying paper towels in the trash.

I have a very small kitchen for a regular size house (this was stylish in the 70's ) with old tile that is just too beautiful to tear out, but it can never be really "cleaned" like a normal countertop. I spritz the counter top where I will be working with the water-vinegar-alcohol solution, wipe it with the paper towel piece, throw that out, then lay a fresh towel piece down on the counter where I will be working. I use vinegar and baking soda to scrub a lot of things, with a paper towel.

If you use any sort of dish towel, they should be replaced daily with a freshly laundered one. If you are using sponges, (I hate those things) make a sponge holder out of the cut off bottom of a plastic soda bottle - be creative, you want to keep the thing out of sitting in liquid - and put it where it is really inconvenient for them to reach it.

I replace the scrubbie things regularly. Once things are scrubbed, rinsing takes care of the rest of it.

[Adalaide]

I have to agree with Takala that sponges are not your friend. Not only are they simply gross, being by far the most germ ridden thing in a house, but once they're contaminated with gluten then that's that. If disposables like paper towels aren't in your budget you really should pick up a large pack of dishcloths and dishtowels so you can use a clean one every time you need one.

[KMMO320]

I have to agree with Takala that sponges are not your friend. Not only are they simply gross, being by far the most germ ridden thing in a house, but once they're contaminated with gluten then that's that. If disposables like paper towels aren't in your budget you really should pick up a large pack of dishcloths and dishtowels so you can use a clean one every time you need one.

then what do you use to wash dishes? (without a dishwasher)

[Adalaide]

I use a dishcloth to wash counters and dishes. My husband would have a cow if I even thought of it, but you can also buy disposable cloths you can use to do dishes. They're usually with the sponges and you can pick up a pack of 4 or 6 at a dollar store. I'm fortunate I have a washing machine I can use so I can just throw in my rags and towels every 2 days.

[frieze]

you don't need anything to wash dishes.....no sponge no dishcloth. soap, water, and hands will do the job. paper towels for wiping down counters etc.

[pricklypear1971]

then what do you use to wash dishes? (without a dishwasher)

I've been known to use a ball of paper towels to wash something.

I suggest having your own fresh, clean supply of dish rags (will be cheaper) that you change out every time you go in the kitchen. I buy them in bulk at Target or Kmart. You could even buy them second hand since you can wash them with soap.

I have a big pile by the end of the week. I wash on sanitary (super hot) and dry and fold and am good to go.

My house is gluten-free except for a few straggly gluten things that wander in (on the kid and hubs). I'm more likely to grab a paper towel at those times but I change my kitchen towels and rags out daily, almost. I cook 24/7 now so they're always getting dirty, anyway.

And hubs is notorious for not using soap when he handles raw meat. grr.

[JNBunnie1]

And hubs is notorious for not using soap when he handles raw meat. grr.

Time for a beatdown, idn't it?

[pricklypear1971]

Time for a beatdown, idn't it?

He gets so offended if I point it out.

Now you know why it's a gluten-free house.

[Takala]

then what do you use to wash dishes? (without a dishwasher)

The Husband.

We do have a dishwasher, now, but we have lived in a lot of places in the past that did not have one. Then we've been on really cranky septic systems that made scheduling the dishwasher interesting, after I had pre rinsed and pre scrubbed the stupid dishes going into it, to the extent it was more to just get them off the counter and out of the sink while waiting for the leach field to drain some more.

We now have done the second replacement of the septic system in the second house, and are currently able to do dishes just like normal people with indoor plumbing in the 21st century after over a decade of "waiting for drainfield." We have nearly finished the immense project to re- do the fences in THREE PASTURES that it took to protect this Wonder of Modern Toiletry's pipelines to cross, just have to replace 2 driveway gates, and figure out how to get electricity back out to the doughboy pool, because we had to tear that out. Actually, it was four pastures, because since we had Super Fencing Guy out here with his Super Equipment, it made sense to replace the one fence line in the back at the same time. Before we could do that, we had to build some other stuff in 2 different areas, to pen the horses up or out, using the pastures we were tearing all the old stuff out of. Good God.

edited to add:

If they're tired enough from doing other ***, they will eventually give in on the dishwasher, because other than I clean up when I make something, as in I wash things up as I go along, I'm not doing the stupid dishes, either. Oh, and all you have to do is "do the dishes" a few times as they are trying to take a shower while using water pumped from a well (pressure drop... ) and having the drains back up, and they get the idea.