7 Tips for Washing a Lot of Dishes - Fast!

This post has been sponsored by 3M . All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Growing up, we did not have a dishwasher. So, I spent 18 years washing every bowl, cup, and utensil by hand. And it’s amazing how fast dirty dishes accumulate. Every time you turn around, the sink is full!

Washing dishes might never qualify as fun, but there are tips and tricks to make the process easier. Here are my secrets for washing lots of dishes quickly.

7 Secrets To Washing Dishes Faster

1. Get the right tools

First things first, you need the proper dishwashing tools. Cruise down the cleaning aisle next time you’re at Kroger and pick up:

Scotch-Brite™ Advanced Non-Scratch Soap Control Dishwand
A good eco-friendly dish soap
Pair of gloves
Wooden drying rack
A few dish towels for drying

2. Do a quick pass to organize

If you’re washing a lot of dishes, a little organization on the front end can really speed up the process. I like to stack my bowls and plates and gather all of the dirty utensils together in one spot.

3. Up your presoak game

Fill your sink dishes, add the water and let everything soak for a couple of minutes. Stuck-on food will be much easier to pry off. If you’re washing big pots or bowls, go ahead and fill them with soap and hot water to soak and then wash them last.

4. Control the soap

I’m a huge fan of being able to control how much soap to use. With the Scotch-Brite™ Advanced Non-Scratch Soap Control Dishwand, I can just press a button and it dispenses soap exactly where I want it to go. No more squirting soap everywhere and wasting half of it! You’ll save time by not constantly reaching for the soap, too.

5. Wash in batches

Batch washing—e.g. all the plates and then all the bowls—is faster than just dumping everything into the sink at once. And instead of reaching for a sponge that will fall apart, the Scotch-Brite Dishwand has a built-in scrubber that attacks stuck-on food without damaging dishes or scratching non-stick cookware.

I wash and rinse plates first so they that will actually fit in the drying rack. Once you do a bunch of bowls and glasses, finding a spot for a plate on the drying rack is impossible. Wash silverware in batches, too.

6. Use the hottest water

I also like really hot water. Like as hot as it will go. Hence the gorgeous yellow gloves. Hot water softens dried-on food super fast, and it evaporates quicker to shortened drying time.

Pick up a pair of gloves the next time you’re grocery shopping because lots of dishwashing does a number on your hands. Kroger is where I get all of my cleaning supplies because they have a broad selection of eco-friendly brands without the hefty price tag.

7. Have a rinse strategy

Rinsing well is just as important as washing well! You can fill the other side of the sink with water and do a dunk and rinse. Also, keep a small stream of water running to make sure the dish is clean and all of the soap is gone.

I try to rinse more than one thing at once, especially silverware. I pick up one utensil, wash it and keep it in my hand until I can’t hold anymore. Then rinse it all at once.