Dishsoap-How much does it really clean?

EastLock · November 2010

I got to thinking today, Does dish soap actually kill germs like siliva funk and salmonella and such? If it does, how?

Obviously its been doing something all these years because I have not contracted salmonella poisening from cooking at home. But in a commercial kitchen they use a Quat sanitizing solution or bleach cutting boards. Hand soap actually says "kills 99% of germs" while dish soap makes no such claims on the bottle..

Should I be mixing a cap of bleach or vinegar into my dish water?

dairygirl19 · November 2010

No. Don't mix bleach in your dishwater. IMO that's worse than whatever dishsoap may or may not kill.

Really, don't over think this. The germs in your daily life won't hurt you and in some cases can be helpful.

Before the anti-bac craze people functioned fine and perfectly healthy with soap and water.

Also google research on anti-bac and it's effects. Those chemicals can me much worse than the occassional germ.

EastLock · November 2010

I am fairly "green" outside of my love for bleach. I guess I am just overthinking-you're right.

The average person puts 18 chemicals on their body before leaving the house. Think on that...18! I don't think that counts all the different types of makeup we use, makeup is lumped together as one.

Bodysoap, shampoo, conditioner, shaving cream, leave in, mousse, de-frizz, deodorant, makeup.....on and on....

Same person who shared that with me was also against the antibacterial hand soap. The chemicals are supposed to be very toxic.

CollegeGrrl219 · November 2010

It cleans, because it removes the food from your dishes. It does not kill germs, but it makes the dishes uninhabitable for germs by removing all the food.

Bleach is poison for both you and the germs. If you accidentally ingest it, you'll get sick. I'd rather eat germs than bleach.

I also don't believe that the whole world needs to be sanitized. I think regular dish soap and regular hand soap are enough hygiene to keep us safe. We don't need a bunch of triclosan to kill 99% of germs while the other 1% become super germs.

blue_elle · November 2010

Agree with the pp's and just wanted to point out that anti-bac is relatively recent. Our grandparents/great grandparents often simply used water to rinse off dishes and bake ware. Even now, cast iron and stoneware are, at most, supposed to be scraped and rinsed with water. My grandmother always simply wiped her cast iron out with a towel.

mlee116 · November 2010

If you mix dish soap and bleach, it can create toxic fumes because some dish soap has traces of ammonia in it, so it's a big no-no. I agree with the PP that the soap removes the food, inhibiting bacteria growth. People go way overboard with the anti-bacterial stuff!

blue_elle:
Agree with the pp's and just wanted to point out that anti-bac is relatively recent. Our grandparents/great grandparents often simply used water to rinse off dishes and bake ware. Even now, cast iron and stoneware are, at most, supposed to be scraped and rinsed with water. My grandmother always simply wiped her cast iron out with a towel.

And yes, I do this with my cast iron pot and I've never gotten sick.

SibDec18 · November 2010

I think that handwashing is just fine. I do use gloves so I can use extremely hot water and I count on this and a clean sink (bleached regularly) to minimize germs. I had a friend in high school whose mother used to make her put the clean dishes on a rack in the sink and pour boiling water over them. Not a bad idea, but kind of overkill, IMO, unless you have a sick person in the home.

Doesn't bleach break down to beome salt and water? This is what I have read.

Dishsoap-How much does it really clean?

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