Im going to guess that you are an engineer or a manager or efficiency expert of some kind. I love the thought process. I listen to my engineer and inventor nieces and nephews throwing around ’improvements’ to everyday situations all the time. brainstorming is fun!

It might work.

We dont eat breakfast or lunch so only dinner, and then there are only two of us. That would mean pretty much the same dishes over and over again. We might get a few odds and thens from making different meals, but those few things could be taken out and put away, or just washed needlessly.

Some of it has to do with how we do dishes too. We never wait for a full load because that would be s month later, so we run ours every night no matter how few.

Our dishwasher just crapped out so we bought a new one and it was $636. Granted we dont need spscial features so we just got a basic one. In that you are right, it would be $1200 for (2), but we just need a twin, so another $636 would net us two dishwashers the same age.

I am not sure if it would work or not, that was why I asked.

You only need one. If you never eat breakfast or lunch, just get what you are using out of the dishwasher before supper and put what you don't need up. It is then empty before cooking. Load and run, repeat the next day.

ETA: Edited for spelling. And, we do use during the day. There are only two of us. Main meal at night. I load all day, run after supper and empty in am. I could go two weeks or more with dishes and silverware, but don't. I would have no dishwasher before I had two and just wash everything by hand.

In my opinion, there is a bit of a cognitive bias here. The OP is likely focusing on the benefits without giving proper weight to their actual habits. One of the things that we all get wrong from time to time is building or buying a house that represents the way we want to live more than the way we do live.

My dining room is a testament to this. We wanted a formal dining room because my parents would often through dinner parties and I romanticized the idea of a dinner party. In reality, we don't actually do that. Our gatherings are much more casual and the formal dining room is largely used twice a year.

I strongly suspect that the OP's intended usage of the two dishwashers will not actually materialize. They are simply more likely to find it far more cumbersome than they intend and will end up with one primary dishwasher and one secondary dishwasher. Or if they start running low on space, one of the dishwashers will become a New York City oven (a.k.a. storage). For this to really be used well, the sink would really need to straddle the dishwashers.

We do most of our cooking from scratch and one dishwasher works for us. This is not to say someone else is wrong, but for a family of four, who makes their own hot dogs (sausages) and makes their own pastas, bakes bread, etc. one dishwasher was sufficient for us. Our kids are now grown and my wife pulls things down from the shelves to load into the dishwasher (however, we rarely wash pots or pans in the dishwasher).

We have a double dishdrawer (one unit, two dishdrawers stacked). There are two of us. We pretty much only use the top one, and it usually runs every day or two, or when we run out of bowls, certain glasses, or spoons (we have extra spoons, but I'll go through a lot if I'm adjusting seasoning on a sauce or risotto or similar.)

The bottom one runs occasionally for its own maintenance or if I make something that takes a pile of large bowls or a couple casserole dishes. Other than that, it's basically spare parts for the top drawer ... Piece needs replacing? Steal it from the bottom drawer to fix the top drawer, order the new one, put the new part in the bottom drawer when it comes in.

The double dishdrawer fits in the same space as one standard dishwasher, so no real space penalty there. Each one is smaller, so they actually work well if you're always doing small loads ... they just don't fit large bowls very well.

Would two separate dishwashers be a selling point? I don't follow the kashrut, so no. Would it be a deal breaker? No, if I wanted to take one out, I could probably replace it with an under cabinet fridge or roll out kitchen cart type thing.

@Travis Johnson the $1200 is the price for one. I like Bosch dishwashers and the one I like is around $1200.

Travis your eating habits are like ours were before covid. (Now we tend to eat home more often as I did get used to eating at home during covid and I actually lost some weight.)

Do the dish drawers because you really do not have the room for 2 dishwashers. Storage in drawers is your friend. Especially in your layout. Plan for dishes to go right next to or right behind the dishwasher. Same with glasses and silverware.

@auntthelma

I am not an engineer or an efficiency expert, I work with high voltage at a powerplant.

@vinmarks

I like Bosch and know they are high end. Back when i worked at a shipyard building multi-million dollar yachts they always put Bosch on the boats. They are nice appliances for sure.

I am super frugal, and while Bosch may be well made, I can get plenty of years out of a cheaper unit. Part of that is that I also repair my own stuff too, But i understand people not wanting to repair things anymore. The dishwasher that just died: it was from the 1970,s. 😀😀😀

I am a dying breed i know. I just always tried to do as much as I could for myself.

Only you know the answer. You are going to be giving up cabinet space to stick in another dishwasher. Is that a problem or not? unless you are doing yourself, you are going to have an electric and plumbing bill. People value cabinet space more than they do dishwashers.

I would still go for a sink with a drainboard and NO dishwasher for what you say.

@bry911

In your reply you said”two dishwasher's really need to straddle the sink”, but just to be clear, my intent with two dishwashers is to take the sink out of the equation. We would NOT go from dinner table to sink, but rather put the dishes directly in the dishwasher when we are done. The same with the pots and pans.

Right now we have to do that because there are clean dishes in it that have to come out and be put away, but with 2) units one will be dirty and the other clean. The idea here is, the dishes do not see the sink, nor do they go back into the cabinets.

You take dishes out as needed from the clean dishwasher to eat and other ancillary needed dishes out if cabinets; cook and eat; then put them directly into the dirty dishwasher. When most of the clean dishes are in the dirty one, run that one. Any odd ball ancillary items you put away into kitchen cabinets. in this way you are only putting back the least amount of dishes; most every day dishes would never see the inside of a kitchen cabinet.

The, out of cabinets to use, eat off them, put in sink, pull clean dishes out of dishwasher to put away, and then put in dirty dushes from sink cycle; makes no sense to me. I dont care if my dishes feel homeless not being in s nice kitchen cabinet, saving 3 steps makes more sense. I don't have a life, but i got better things to to then move dishes around the kitchen.

You know; like make 1500 word replies on Hauzz!😀😀😀

In this thought experiment what happens when 95% of the dishes are in the dirty washer and 5% are in the clean washer? You run the dirty and now you have two clean washers. Is you have to put away some dishes (the 5%) somewhere or else you’ll need to put the new dirties in the sink. By extension, you will always need n+1 dishwashers where n is the current number of dishwashers, until you have the same number of washers as dishes. By the principal of reductio ad absurdum your proposal is nonsense. You should just have one dishwasher and empty it when it’s clean. Maybe have some (more ?) children and in about 8 years you can make them unload.

@Susan L

What would be wrong with just leaving the 5% of clean dishes and rewashing them?

Not trying to be difficult here but we often get into mind traps about ”having to do something” when really we do not. Even if i did put the 5% away, that is 95% less. Over time that would add up.

No, you just want to argue, forget it. I have opted out of this sup*d thread.

Get a dog. When your done with dinner set your dishes on the floor. When the dog has sufficiently cleaned the dishes put them in the cupboard.

@Sherry8aNorthAL

I am sorry you feel that way because my personality is not that at all. I am not argumentative, but often ask ”why are we doing things this way”? Now look at the responses even 70 deep: some have not figured out how using two dishwashers would change how dishes are moved in the kitchen.

Its only natural to feel angst when someone suggests there may be a better way to do something. It may not be conveyed, but people feel they are inferior for not thinking of that different way. But they should not! No one person here is smarter than all of us put together.

Ironically I got the answer to my question though no know one said it; the reason two dishwashers is not common is because few people thought of using two.

Now, if you always do what you always have done, two makes no sense, but what if you worked in the kitchen differently. While people on here may or may not change how they do dishes, without question all of us have realized how much we move dishes around. Whether a person chooses to change or keep doing what they are doing, is a personal choice. I am not the kitchen police; do what you want.

But always keep in mind here, 90% of people on a forum seldom reply. Asking deep probing questions like ”why we do what we do” has greater impact that what is dictated on a forum. It makes people rethink how they do everyday tasks.

I can see your point where it feels argumentative, but I am just not that way. Unfortunately saying, I think there is a better way” does hurt peoples feelings.

A great case in point is Dave Ramsey. No one has been as berrated as that guy and yet he has made more everyday people milionaires than anyone. As he points out, people will defend their ways to the death even if its not working for them.

With dishes: I think there is a better way people have not thought about. Right or wrong, its good to get people to think for themselves. In that, my work here has been accomplished.

I think we're done here ? You're lying on the engineer thing too.....: )

@ Travis Johnson

You are correct that most people are change resistors. I will give you that.

Unfortunately many change resistors have had poor experiences that have contributed to that mindset. Not all change is good. Some is just change for the sake of change. At work you see it all the time. Leadership has to be seen as increasing productivity, impacting the way things are done and so they implement change just so they are seen as doing something to improve the bottom line.

In your case, it may be a resistance to change for some responders who didn't like your idea, but I think you also got a lot of well reasoned responses where having two dishwashers would have a negative impact on storage, it would cost more and it would not provide enough benefit to offset the costs.

For me it would not increase my free time. I put dishes away while I am cooking dinner. I don't need to stand and watch the food cook, but I need to be in the kitchen while it cooks. I feed my dogs, may empty the trash, I put away dishes, set the table and talk on the phone all while dinner is cooking. If I didn't have to put away any dishes I wouldn't be able to take that time and sit to watch a television show, it is done along with 27 other tasks and takes maybe 2-3 minutes. It takes 2-3 minutes for a pot of water to boil. Need to watch the pot so I can add whatever to the pot, so then I would be standing and just watching the pot.

If this were my work environment and you were my boss and told me that your great improvement was adding a second dishwasher and taking away my storage space I would be shaking my head and thinking you are one of those idiots who is initiating change to make yourself look good.

This house was well made on the front part, but they missed the mark on the back part in room layout and build quality on the back part.

I'd bet money it wasn't all built at the same time. Maybe not even by the same person. Such is the way with old houses.
This is the river out back, and what we would see from the Master Suite after everything is done.

It's a lovely view. I personally would rather give that space to the living room, where you'd be awake to enjoy it.
Im going to guess that you are an engineer or a manager or efficiency expert of some kind. I love the thought process. I listen to my engineer and inventor nieces and nephews throwing around ’improvements’ to everyday situations all the time. brainstorming is fun!

I'm a language /writing teacher married to an engineer -- and I'm BY FAR the one who's more interested in efficiency!

We dont eat breakfast or lunch so only dinner, and then there are only two of us. That would mean pretty much the same dishes over and over again. We might get a few odds and thens from making different meals, but those few things could be taken out and put away, or just washed needlessly.

Serious thought: You say you only eat one meal a day, and you eat out as often as you cook at home. You're not a serious cook, which I take to mean simple meals, fewer cooking implements dirtied. WHY are you looking at a dishwasher at all? You're only washing dishes for maybe 3 meals per week. Wouldn't it be just as easy to do that small bit by hand? You're talking about using a large percentage of your square footage for a task you'll go days without needing.

You'll say it's about the process, not the quantity -- but I'd say you're putting in a lot of effort for something you barely do. It'd be like building a 4-car garage for a person who only has one vehicle.
Do the dish drawers because you really do not have the room for 2 dishwashers. Storage in drawers is your friend.

I've been saying dishwasher drawers since way upthread!

but just to be clear, my intent with two dishwashers is to take the sink out of the equation. We would NOT go from dinner table to sink, but rather put the dishes directly in the dishwasher when we are done.

I get what you're saying, but it doesn't seem realistic. Dishwashers and sinks go together. It's a functional thing, not just tradition.

You use a coffee cup -- it's easier to drop it in the sink for the moment, move it to the dishwasher when its ready to run. Using your proposed method, you'd open the first dishwasher, inspect the dishes to see if they're clean or dirty (which isn't always evident upon first glance), then deposit your coffee cup. I'm guessing that coffee cup will end up in the sink anyway.

some have not figured out how using two dishwashers would change how dishes are moved in the kitchen.

No, some of us just recognize it as a bad plan.

Also, most people use more dishes than you describe in your house hold, so it would never work. For example, two nights this week we've had meals served on plates, one meal served in a bowl, and one meal served in mini-casserole dishes. And last night I did some serious baking and dirtied up the stand mixer + a couple other bowls and gadgets. Even with two dishwashers, with that much stuff used, we'd have had to move things around to get them into the dishwasher.
Ironically I got the answer to my question though no know one said it; the reason two dishwashers is not common is because few people thought of using two.

No, it's an idea that's kicked around here relatively often -- in fact, duplicating things that don't need to be duplicated is quite common in potential house plans on this board. Most people discard the idea because 1) it takes away a valuable cabinet; 2) it's an expensive idea; 3) it takes away a drawer at the sink, which is needed.
It makes people rethink how they do everyday tasks.

I like this concept, but sometimes we kick around an idea and discard it as impractical.

@Travis Johnson You say you are super frugal. I do not think putting 2 dishwashers in a small kitchen because you don't want to have to empty a dishwasher is exactly frugal. But we all choose to spend our money differently.

Period correct foyer that took a lot of work to get to that point? No. I think you overestimate yourself.

Now that I have learned more and know that you eat only one meal/day and that meal is most often eaten out, my recommendation for number of dishwashers is now.............zero.

I might be remembering wrong, but I thought a DW needs to be near a sink for some reason…maybe it is just cheaper because it uses the sink’s water and drain. However, to comment on a comment above, you can scrape your dishes into the trash and dump your coffee right in the DW, so proximity to the sink is not necessary for those reasons. I do think some dirty dishes will end up waiting in the sink when you find there is not an empty/dirty DW to load and transferring them from a nearby sink after you get the DW ready will be neater and easier.

I'll go CDR on better.

Have enough dishes to last a week, run a single dishwasher once a week, and call it done.

I determine this to be about six plates, six forks six knives, a half dozen mugs and I will pray same in wine glasses . You definitely need that. Three pots /pans probably as I would guess some of the meals are take out.

Use five minutes of your busy week to store all on Sunday night and....repeat.

Anything else is a waste of money and a fry of brain cells.

And another take on things….my dear mother noticed the irony of something years ago: we at once purchased machines that make the “heavy-lifting” easier, then need to purchase gym memberships to eliminate the fat we gained as a result of using those machines. Next came came the inevitable complaints that we are wasting energy. So, there it goes.

All I can say Travis is.....glad I'm not married to you. You have no clue. You're one of those narcissistic people who loves to argue for the sake of argument. Give it a rest and do whatever the heck you want.

This isn't even a new flavor of Dunning-Kruger... we see this type of idea/post all the time. Where someone let's some small personal quirk drive an entire design concept right off a cliff, all the while convinced they are the only person who can see the brilliance of their plan.

This is not really even an original idea... a significant percentage of homeowners use dishes right out of the dishwasher without officially unloading it until they need to do another load. The only difference you have is now those dishes don't have to wait in the sink or on the counter to be loaded. You are quite literally letting letting "I hate unloading the dishwasher" drive your design. Rewashing clean dishes because you don't want to unload them isn't even new... plenty of people do that.

You haven't stumbled on a better way to do something! Seriously... You have just found a way to make a simple task more difficult. I like my dishes convenient to food preparation areas. My plates and pans are convenient to the cooktop, my coffee cups are near my coffee maker, my glasses are convenient to the refrigerator, etc. I find the entire idea of having to walk to my dishwasher because I am too lazy to put dishes near their most convenient location silly.

No, most people do not have two dishwashers not because they haven't thought of it but because they are an inefficient use of space. As I said, we have two dishdrawers, and the lower one usually gets run for its own maintenance ... empty. It gets used for real maybe once or twice a year? We could just as easily have a small drawer with some dishwasher parts in it replace its primary function. The space it takes would certainly be better occupied by kitchen storage ... we have that all over the house becuase it doesn't all fit in the kitchen, but then, we cook a lot.

The more you over think a given task, the more daunting that task will appear to be. Save a brain, and just do it. Pat your own head: ) Both the head pat, and the task will burn a few calories....that's for CDR up there.

Now that I have learned more and know that you eat only one meal/day and that meal is most often eaten out, my recommendation for number of dishwashers is now.............zero.

It is the practical answer.

I might be remembering wrong, but I thought a DW needs to be near a sink for some reason…maybe it is just cheaper because it uses the sink’s water and drain.

Sinks and dishwashers gang together for several reasons:

- Consolidating your plumbing is a budget choice, as the two share a drain.

- Consolidating your plumbing lessens the amount of space that can have a leak.

- Dishwashers come with relatively short hoses, so placing them near the sink is just easier. Sure, you can work around this, but it's going to take more effort /money.

- Most people leave dirty dishes in the sink, so it's convenient to load them over to the dishwasher from that location.

- Most families accumulate dishes in the sink, then put them into the dishwasher. Keeping the two items close together limits "dribbling" across the floor.

Where someone let's some small personal quirk drive an entire design concept right off a cliff, all the while convinced they are the only person who can see the brilliance of their plan.

That's exactly what we have going on here.

"all the while convinced they are the only person who can see the brilliance of their plan."

I think I'll slap that gem on the fridge in a home where the couple insists on staying, with two kids and an aging dog, through an arduous renovation in the dead of winter..........................despite admonishment from all involved.

Just curious. When you dine out, how long does it take you to select the joint?

But always keep in mind here, 90% of people on a forum seldom reply.

🤫

If you want to jump back and worth, maybe consider a dishwasher drawer? Unless you plan on all paneled, it would look a bit silly to have two.dishwashers.

Two dishwashers would be worth it IF you do a lot of dishes ALL THE TIME. But the way you describe being emtpy nesters and rarely cook, you would probably be better off with a dishwasher drawer. Then get off your rump and put away the clean dishes after they are washed. It only takes a few minutes, especially as there are so few. I'm a self-professed lazy-*ss, and I still put away my clean dishes.

@JAN MOYER

It takes awhile to pick out a restaurant for sure!!

Usually it begins with ”where should we go”, quickly followed by, ”Not it”. If the kids sre home our daughters chime in with ”not it”. as well.

So being the only male in the house, I start saying places.

Then it starts: no one can say where to go out to eat, but everyone has a reason not to go where I suggest. 30-40 minutes later someone chimes in with, “I guess so”, and by default, a place is chosen. This is to the chagrin of 50% of the others in the house, but lacking jnput, we inevitably go.

At the conclusion of the meal, at least two say, ”that really did not hit the spot”.

Suggestion to improve that conversation: instead of doing the whole "not it" part, skip to the listing part, but don't wait for responses on each one, list a bunch and decide amongst them, so more like this:

Person 1: Should we make something or go somewhere?

Person 2: I don't want to cook.

Person 1: Okay, restaurant or take out?

Person 2/3: Let's go somewhere.

Person 1: Okay ... I don't really feel like sushi, so could go for pizza, chinese, italian, or thai. Which sounds good to you?

Person 3: We had pizza a couple days ago; I'd pick chinese or thai of those.

Person 2: I guess if it's between chinese and thai, I'd pick thai.

Person 4: I don't want thai.

Person 1: Okay, Person 4, would you want chinese?

Person 4: I could find something there,

Person 1: How about you, Person 2, would you do chinese? You like their scallion pancakes and the chicken and broccoli, right?

Person 2: I guess.

Reason: if you give one option and wait for a yes or no, you can end up with a "no" for everything. If you start by stating a list of your preferences, you're more likely to get a positive response to something, which can then drive the conversation forward rather than going back and forth.

I think the question was rhetorical.

@BlueberryBundtcake - 6a/5b MA

Thanks, because its getting even harder to find a place to eat with everything shut down and that gunman on the loose!

About all we have now is fast food restaurants.

Hopefully they find him and not because I need better places to eat.

I never thought it would happen here: Lewiston Strong!!

There is actually a fair amount of research that suggests the way to make a decision about things like this is to avoid framing it as a decision, as making a decision is a different neurological process than discussing preferences/likes.

So start out by saying something like, "I have been craving Chinese food and Burgers, that's a weird combination, right?" Often others will respond with some version of their cravings, and then you have narrowed down the type of food. Then ask if they have been craving any particular restaurant or tell them a restaurant you have been thinking about and then ask if they want to go to that restaurant.

As anj_p said, the question was rhetorical.

I wasn't referring to the shooter issue, but on the restaurant topic.

Just shoot me!!?? ( really bad pun, NOT intended for anyone in Maine or near it)

" Mom and I are going out for dinner....you gals are welcome to join us"

Where? Here.........

UGGHGHHHH!!!

"Okay! Bye! Call Grub hub if you have money and if not? Help yourself, and CLEAN UP what you use eat, make etc

You and the Mrs? You alternate picks. Your picks. her pick back and forth it goes. Write it down if you can't remember who picked the LAST ONE".

IF THE GIRLs ARE BUYING? They pick and you don't go or you don't argue and you tag along.

Next?

I strongly suspect the OP didn’t post on Houzz to get advice on how to pick a restaurant.

In fact, @JAN MOYER brought it up to make a point and is now actually answering as if the OP asked for help…

So I submit, the advice on decisiveness needs to be applicable to actual Houzz things in addition to restaurants. l don’t think, “I am remodeling the kitchen you are welcome to use it,” is going to work out well for the OP. Neither is alternating remodeling decisions with the misses.

The advice I gave a few posts up (reframe decisions into likes and preferences) works for all decisions, not just picking restaurants…

Wow - I never knew something like deciding where to go to dinner could be this complicated or that you would have to determine the best way to communicate and come to a mutually acceptable solution. I usually call my siblings or send a text and say "Tuesday is prime rib night over at the Quentin Tavern. Want to go?" Conversations from my siblings are pretty similar "were going to try the new restaurant that opened on Chestnut Street on Friday - want to come along? One person makes a decision to go out and invites the other family members. You want to go or you don't.

I need a t.shirt that says ”thread drift happens”…

I dont think it is a bad thing as it allows us to realize we are not just cupboards and cabinets in the right places, or dishwashers here and there, but real live people with spouses and children where struggles are real and where we live in a world with evil people among us.

Its nice to get to know people on a deeper level.

The shooter has been found, the shelter in place orders lifted, and schools reopened. I get to finally sell one of my houses Wednesday (a 1930 four-square for people who like such details) now that the title company has reopened due to the shooting.

But that is what it is about right? We ALL love old houses so we have that in common.

I don't like old houses......don't generalize.

@User

My bad. I forgot this was on other sub forums, I typically only go to the old house sub forum.