Speaking of dishes.....
I am your average general bloke. I make something, I put the pot in the sink. I eat what I've made, then put the plate in the sink. Repeat until sink looks full/plates run out, then do dishes.

My dad does dishes about twice as often as I do, so I really shouldn't complain, but he's driving me slowly mad with his insane ideas about kitchen tidiness.

When stuff's in the sink, at least it's out of the way. He will use a knife to spread butter on something, then drop it on the worktop and leave it. Spoons, knives, caps from milk cartons...... the sink and bin are literally arms length away. This isn't the most annoying thing though. No.

If I put a pot in the sink, to soak, say, he will REMOVE IT FROM THE SINK AND SIT IT ON THE COOKER. Why? Why does he do this? Why why why? It's driving me insane. Often there are two or three pots full of scummy water sitting on the hob, which have to be TRANSPORTED BACK TO THE SINK TO BE WASHED! WHYYYYYYYY?

He seems to think a good rinse will clean even the most grime-caked things too. I need my own place.
( baw__bag contains traces of nuts on, Thu 25 Mar 2010, 14:54, 12 replies)

sinks full of stuff are a pain in the fucking arse
because more often than not it will be also full of rancid greasy water so you have to stick your hand in to pull out the plug.

and it means you can't just crack on with the washing up, which should be correctly done by filling the sink and transporting the plates etc. into it one at a time to be cleaned.

aside from that, get a dishwasher. they are the best invention ever.
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Thu 25 Mar 2010, 15:01, closed)

and because of that rancid greasy water
you can't see the sharp knife you're about to cut yourself on when you reach in to pull the plug out.
(cypherspace is not a toaster, Fri 26 Mar 2010, 1:10, closed)

Thirded!
All that happens is that you get a layer of grease on top of the water that then coats everything when you let the water out or take things out of the sink.

It also means that you can't do anything else with the sink like washing veg or filling a kettle, which is an enormous pain in the arse.
(flimflam_machine, Fri 26 Mar 2010, 12:36, closed)

I'm with your dad...
I wash the least dirty things first (glasses, mugs) and the dirtiest things (pans) last.
So there.
(misspiggy In danger of having to get a job, Thu 25 Mar 2010, 15:06, closed)

me too
In our house I would be your dad and Mr Box would be you.

I really don;t see the logic of washing the greasy trays and pans first, then glasses afterwards, plus its easier to create a washed up stack if you work non-greasy to greasy.

That sink full of rancid water drives me insane too, and I'm the only one who seems to think the sink area needs to be wiped down and cleaned at least once a week
(maggotriddendirtbox fast, feral and sharp as a tack since, Sun 28 Mar 2010, 3:04, closed)

Sorry mate, but i'm with your dad on this
the sight of a sink full of plates and cold greasy water is enough to churn my stomach. My brother does this when he comes to stay and it drives me spare.
( Colonel Dracula Two manky hookers and a racist dwarf, Thu 25 Mar 2010, 15:37, closed)

Dirty things go NEXT to the sink
Washing up occurs IN the sink.

Very few things actually need or benefit from soaking. (as a life-long procrastinatory soaker, I admit this freely).
( Mockingbird Practitioner of SCIENCE, Thu 25 Mar 2010, 15:48, closed)

My dad's system is as follows...
1. Put plug in sink.
2. Fill sink up with EVERYTHING: pots, pans, plates, finest crystal champagne flutes, ashtrays etc.
3. THEN start to add water.
4. Add several hearty squeezes of Fairy Liquid.
5. Start to work your way through pile of washing-up, giving each item a cursory pass of the brush.
6. Place the now foam-covered items in a pyramid on the draining board (resulting in a crockery version of Ker-Plunk when you try to extract the only sharp knife in the house from the pile).
7. Done

Note: Rinsing of dishes is a 'waste of water'.
( ThisCaledonianClown has left it far too late, Thu 25 Mar 2010, 16:16, closed)

No one understands.
Plates and everything are left in the greasy sink.
Dirty pots full of greasy water are put on the hob, often for an entire day. He doesn't lift them out for any reason apart from just...... well, I have no idea why. They just sit there making the kitchen look filthy whereas at least in the sink they're out of the way.

I tend to dump things in the sink and then wash them if they don't magically wash themselves. But sitting filthy pots and sloshing greasy water all over the hob for no reason is surely worse?
( baw__bag contains traces of nuts on, Fri 26 Mar 2010, 2:52, closed)

I might be alone in this, but I can't stand that gathering of greasy water and the inevitable reach-in to pull out the plug, coating your hands in whatever the hell everyone in the house ate today while bobbing for knifecuts.

I wash my dishes in running water, and resoap frequently.

EDIT: Er, whoops. Was meant to be a general reply, not specifically to yours. Oh well.
(Legion, Fri 26 Mar 2010, 3:44, closed)

ok my reasoning
has been that putting the pan back on the cooker with water on breaks up/softens the baked-on crap. As the element is cooling (blardy electric hobs, pffffft).

But come to think of it, I've no idea if it actually works or not, just logically and subconsciously has been something I've done. Might just be ingrained that you don;t put pots on the counter tops in case they scorch it.

To me, putting the pots in the sink clogs it up, and I only have to lift them out to wash the rest of the stuff first.

Thanks for making me question my practices!
(maggotriddendirtbox fast, feral and sharp as a tack since, Sun 28 Mar 2010, 3:07, closed)

It makes me think of the scene in Withnail and I
when they do the washing up.

Also, MTFU and wash up.
( Mrs Entity is in hiding., Sat 27 Mar 2010, 15:26, closed)