Sir, – You report (News, May 12th) that Irish Water has advised handwashing dishes rather than "powerwashing" them, which is something I have wisely never attempted. I checked the Irish Water website and I can only assume that the recommendation was to handwash dishes in preference to placing them in a dishwasher. This advice is also incorrect.
Modern dishwashers reuse the initial water with a cleaning tablet for initial cleaning, and subsequent rinsing with clean water finishes the job. Assuming a full load, this uses ten to 12 litres of water. It is simply not possible to safely handwash the equivalent of a full dishwasher load of dishes and cutlery with ten to 12 litres of water. Could Irish Water please clarify what the advice actually is? – Yours, etc,
DAVID POWER,
Lucan, Co Dublin.