Commercial dishwasher manufacturers are always trying to find ways to
save water. This is not the one of those. I have no shortage of water, and any water that is used, can flow right back into the pond where it is sourced.
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Whenever I use a dishwasher, I find that it takes several days to get a full load, so all of the dishes are rinsed ahead of time, to prevent food from drying on or mold from developing.
I have several friends who use a dishwasher in a single person household. They do the same thing. They aren't going to stop using the dishwasher.
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When dishes are rinsed immediately, and then more are added later and rinsed on top of them, all of that water leaves them pretty clean.
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Rather than putting them in the sink first, as many people do, it would be much more convenient to simply deposit them in the dishwasher, without even washing off the big chunks of food waste.
I envision using a pond pump to move pond water through a filter and then directly into a dishwasher that uses 5 to 10 gallons per minute. Water would not be recycled within the unit. It would simply flow over the dishes and then back out through a big 3 inch pipe. Food waste would not need to be pulverized and would never be run through any sort of pump. It would accumulate at the beginning of the grey water system, and then the water would flow back into the pond.
There is only about five feet of elevation, between pond level and a place where the dishwasher could go. Therefore a 12-volt pond pump could move a lot of water, without using very much electricity.
Rather than using the jets that come with a recycled dishwasher, I think it would be better to use those spinning irrigation water distributors. They would be less likely to clog.
The system could be set up with one of those twist dials, that allows you to activate the pump for 10 seconds, 1 minute , 5 minutes etc.
Whenever new dishes are added, the dial could be set to allow a few seconds of rinse time. Once it's full, it could be set to run for a few minutes.
Experience has shown me that regular rinsing with plain, cold water, gets rid of most dirt on dishes.
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Clean Water Wash and Rinse
After the dishes are basically clean, they could be rinsed with clean water that is
solar heated or heated on the
wood stove or whatever. Soap could be added. This water could be recycled within the unit, in order to save
hot water and soap. A small heat tolerant, bilge could be set up in the bottom. Once everything is clean, pull the plug, and let the soapy water, flow down the drain before activating the Clean Water Rinse system. Done.
Using a dishwasher like this would require a few separate steps, but they are all very quick steps.
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Alternatively, the dishwasher could be used only for the rinse cycle, using pond water, then when there's
enough dishes to be bothered, fill the sink and wash the dishes, in hot soapy water, like a normal person.
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Another alternative
Use one of those big restaurant style sinks, and just run lots of water over the dishes as they are cleaned from the table. Deposit them in the largest sink. Keep going for several days, until there isn't another clean dish in the house. Then wash the dishes by hand.
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The dishes in these photos have been rinsed with cold water only. They often sit for several days like this, becoming cleaner with each successive rinse.