Connecting a Dishwasher.

[buzzbee]

I have just acquired a Table-Top Dishwasher (Zanussi DS11) from my local Freecycle. There is only one inlet hose, do I connect this to the hot or cold supply? Also is there anything else I should be aware off?

[Rev. Green]

The instructions with mine said to connect either to hot or cold.

I've had it connected to hot for eleven years: the household water is heated by gas so it's cheaper than using the electrical heater in the dishwasher.

[ChuckFickens]

hmmm, rev, you may be a little mistaken there.

when a dishwasher is connected to a hot supply this is what happens..

inlet valve opens, the machine fills with cold water that has cooled in the hot water pipes around the house so the water has to be heated for a second time by the internal element. the cold water in the pipes is then replaced by hot water from the tank that will just cool down again. this drains the tank a bit that is then filled with cold water that has to be heated again.

So if you have a dishwasher on a hot supply you are in fact filling it mainly with cold water that has been heated once already but still has to be heated again. and you are also filling your hot pipes with hot water that will just be wasted and having to heat more water to replace that wasted hot water.

on a cold fill it is only exactly the right amount of water that has to be heated and it only has to be heated once so even if gas was about 4times cheaper than electricity it's still cheaper to fill a dishwasher from the cold pipes.

[Rev. Green]

To keep the reply short I omitted some details. There are always items which I wash by hand - bone china, delicate glassware, knives with wooden or bone handles, soft plastic bowls, etc. - so I need to run hot water to the sink. I start the dishwasher only when the sink is running hot.

Okay, I know I should scrap the delicate stuff ,and wash everything with cold water in the dishwasher, but I quite like it.

[buzzbee]

Thank you, gentlemen, for your observations. As both answers have merit I think I will install both hot and cold connections on the supply and try each in turn till I find the best result.