I don't use it every time I was dishes. Mostly when the drain needs a little refreshing.

I only clean the dishwasher with Lemishine (citric acid crystals).

Chloecat..what auto dishwasher detergent do you use?

You said "dishwater" not "dishwasher".

I do not use bleach when I hand wash dishes. Just a squirt of Dawn & hot water.

However, when I was 14 I was a dishwasher in a restaurant. And when the dishwashing machine broke occasionally we had to wash dishes by hand & use the 3 sink method per law. Wash, rinse, bleach. But not a lot of bleach as it makes the plates VERY slippery.

Also, you'd be surprised at how "unclean" dishes are at restaurants. Many times I've had dried food stuck to my plate or lipstick on a drinking glass.

Your sink drain should not stink.

Nope, never considered it. I wonder why your drain gets to stinking?

No but we use Scott/Pawprint's 3 step method when camping.

This is something I saw on a pysics forum on why it's a bad idea to mix bleach with dish detergent:

Mixing cleaning formulas with residue from chlorine bleach can be a bad idea. Dishwashing detergents may often contain ammonium compounds (having ammonium cation) which could react with hypochlorite; I don't right now know what the products would be to this reaction, but they may be toxic. Also, if sufficient residue from the hypochlorite solution were still present, by its being alkaline, your adding liquid dishwashing detergent containing possibly an ammonium compound may release ammonia, but you would likely smell this.

Reference https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/reaction-of-dish-soap-and-bleach.451722/

If your drain stinks you may have a plumbing or a vent problem. Regularly used drains don't smell. Bleach may be just covering up the real problem. I would have it looked into before it becomes a larger even more expensive problem.

I use Fabuloso to hand wash the garbage disposal/sink. I'm not saying it's right...I just do it.

I agree, drains shouldn't smell.

Chlorine bleach used to be a common ingredient in dishwasher detergent and it isn't anymore. As I recall, it was discontinued because it (with the high water temps in the machines) caused clear glassware to get cloudy. It's probably not a good idea to add it to a dishwasher. Also, most dishwashing detergent these days have enzymes and the addition of bleach could neutralize their effectiveness or the effectiveness of other chemicals in the powder.

If there is a smell, that means there's a problem to find that needs fixing. Keep the bleach out of the machine.

No bleach in the dishwasher, in the sink. I use plenty of water and run the disposal a good long time but it will still smell after sometimes when running food or leftovers down it.

I've put a little bleach in a sink of dishwater when someone in the house has something contagious and I needed to do a few things by hand, but never as an ongoing continuous practice. My hot water tank is set hotter than the 'recommended' temp too. There are definitely times my sink has smelled a little beachy....like after cleaning clams. In that case after cleaning it, I'll run hot water into it until a few inches deep, add a splash of Clorox, then let drain. No more sea and surf smell at the sink.

I do use my dishwasher almost daily though. If a few things I'll run Quick Clean Up. A larger load is a Normal cycle and always with the sanitizing rinse.

The only thing I've ever used to clean my drains or get rid of a smell was some citrus rinds in my garbage disposal.

I have 2 full size dishwashers and they both get used almost daily.

I don't wash anything by hand unless it is an absolute necessity.

I use a Jay cloth to wash my dishes so before I was my dishes I put my tea cups and my tea pot in the my rinsing sink along with the cloth and add a bit of bleach to disinfect the Jay cloth and remove stains from my cups and tea pot. Rinse out then add them back to my dishwater to wash them.

Most odors from disposers are caused by the splash guard. If you use the disposer often, clean the underside of splash guard weekly. Some are removable for easy cleaning.

Baking soda, vinegar, and boiling water is what I use as a preventative. For
clogs a plunger or clean out the drain trap.

Clorox to disinfect cutting boards & prep
areas after handling chicken for example. For dishes when necessary to prevent
the spread of a virus.

My preference is to avoid hazardous chemicals such as Drano that are often not
effective and can be harmful.... Just my opinion.

There are still dishwasher detergents available with chlorine bleach, Cascade gel in the lime green bottle (not dark green) has chlorine also Palmolive Eco gel has chlorine.

DW detergent for commercial use, think resturants, still use chlorinated dishwasher detergent because they usually have dishwashers with much shorter wash cycles.

Enzyme based detergent takes at least 20 minutes for the enzymes to do their job. Another thing..water temps at and above 140F will kill off enzymes in dishwasher detergent same as enzymes in laundry detergent.

Most of you probably have newer dishwashers with looong wash cycles so enzyme based detergent is beneficial for you. But if you have an older machine as I do 23 years old and holding it will have a short wash time under 20 minutes and more like 12 to 15 minutes which means the enzymes did not have enough time to do their job this is when chlorine is beneficial. And yes, chlorine added to a dishwasher will kill the enzymes, however its likely not going to damage dishes other than fine china.

Elmer, chlorine was simply removed from many detergents because enzymes were introduced. It was never discontinued just swapped out for enzymes.

Scott,

A drain that is seldom used will emit sewer gas odors. The trap can dry out in 14 days. Most newer homes in my community have a trap primer over floor drains in mechanical room to eliminate drain odors.

Many elderly folks (not that you're elderly) have odors inside the house caused by sewer gases seeping through unused sinks, toilets and bathtubs. Sink drains, tub drains and toilets should be flushed with water at least once per month.

Often the smell in a sink is simply food particles that are stuck. An occasional baking soda/vinegar treatment with hot water chaser as already mentioned will clean out debris and freshen the smell to boot.

If you want to save water and thereby save some water heating costs dishpans can help for the small "loads". For decades now when I'm cooking I put a few inches of hot water in the sink with dish soap and as the utensils and prep tools and bowls get dirty (and I'm finished with them, into the sink and let them soak. Particularly effective with sticky stuff, beaten eggs, etc. And really simplifies the dishwashing later. I usually do up the dishes before eating then it's just the meal dishes after, which can be soaked if you want to wait until later to finish them, which I usually do. I've always found it repulsive to finish a nice meal and then have to start washing dishes. I prefer to sit back, enjoy it, enjoy the company when with others and not have to feel rushed to go to work. Others feel differently and that's fine for them.

I miss camping. The wash/rinse/sanitize is SOP for many campers. Although I always heated water, hot water is not mandatory for a lot of dishwashing if you follow other safe handling and safe washing procedures.

I had a dishwasher in my first apartment. Haven't had one since. Really has not been something that I've missed. I don't particularly like doing dishes but by taking away the hardest part of the work, it's not an issue for me. And when I'm not feeling well, in a hurry, particularly lazy or other situations I break out the paper towels and plastic SFKs. Having good non-stick cookware made a big difference in the dishwashing chore and having other dishware that is conducive to quick/easy cleaning also helps. I nearly bought a dishwasher but after a few changes like the above I don't have the compulsion to get one now. Besides, my kitchen isn't exactly designed well for a dishwasher. Even a portable would be problematic.

I almost forgot about the little countertop dishwasher I had for a while. It worked well for a few things, not so well for a lot of things. It went to the landfill.

I was considering a countertop dishwasher to use when my Kitchen Aid drops dead someday.

Daily I use so few dishes it would be perfect. Unless I cooked and had lots of pots & pans. But that's usually only on holidays.

I've priced them and oddly enough they cost about the same as a bottom of the line full sized dishwasher.

I run my dishwasher about once a week as I live alone. I DO rinse the dishes before putting them in the dishwasher - I don't wan the smell or food dried on plates. I hand wash sterling flatware and pots and pans.