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A New Form Factor for the Dishwasher, Designed for Chinese Cooking Practices

The Fotile 3-in-1 Sink Dishwasher

By Rain Noe - December 8, 2020

Different cultural preferences: In Europe and America, dishwashers are large boxes that we integrate into base cabinetry. In Japan, they're smaller boxes that sit atop the counter. A new type of dishwasher, designed by a Chinese company to cater to Chinese preferences, takes a third form factor: It's built into the sink.

The Fotile 3-in-1 Sink Dishwasher, by the Ningbo Fotile Kitchen Ware Co., "is designed for the cooking habits of China," the company explains. The 3-in-1 moniker is because the unit is designed to wash not only dishes, but produce and seafood. Chinese food preparation practices make it desirable, in NFKWC's view, to locate the unit next to the sink and built into the counter.

You'll notice one of the design variants shown features a window in the lid, whereas in the other, the lid contains touch-sensitive controls. The company indicates that this latter variant is designed to register button presses even when one's hands are wet.

Do you reckon this would ever catch on in the 'States? I think the capacity might be too small for us Yanks, but there was also a point where nobody thought we'd ever drive Japanese-style cars.

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A New Form Factor for the Dishwasher, Designed for Chinese Cooking Practices

Daniel Jordache

4 months ago

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I guess pots and pans are hand wash? I'd probably wash the 6 dishes that way too.

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- Donald Alonzo
  
  Daniel Jordache
  
  4 months ago
  
  Z
  
  Z
  
  Reply
  
  Based on the size of this, I'd imagine you'd be using a considerably larger amount of water doing so yourself. Plus, you might want to consider the potential for items to be steamed for sanitization purposes. This will be much more difficult with hand washing alone. Pots, pans and other large items are pretty exclusively used for preparing uncooked food which is sanitized during the cooking process so a quick scrub with soap and rinse is all that's needed for such items whereas plates, cups and silverware have direct contact with food that is likely well below the temperatures required to kill any bacteria and is in direct contact with the food/beverage that is going into your mouth.
  
  This article also mentions how this product can be used to clean vegetables. A pretty cool addition for people in extremely small apartments, condos or micro homes and a time saver for everyone else who can begin prepping other parts of a meal while their veggies are cleansed.
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- Robert Hebert
  
  Daniel Jordache
  
  4 months ago
  
  Z
  
  Z
  
  Reply
  
  I want one, too...
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Matt Chin

4 months ago

Z

Z

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Going out on a limb here to say all people, everywhere, have a 'cultural preference' for having more usable counter space next to a sink rather than less.

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S R

4 months ago

Z

Z

Reply

So when your dishwasher needs to be replaced in 5-8 years... you also replace your sink? This seems exceedingly shortsighted.

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- Donald Alonzo
  
  S R
  
  4 months ago
  
  Z
  
  Z
  
  Reply
  
  You have a point, they probably would be better off partitioning it in a way that allows for the washing unit or sink to be replaced on it's own but considering that this appliance will likely cost a lot less than a standard dishwasher and is probably intended to appeal specifically to those working in extremely small kitchens, I don't think it'll matter much.
  
  Also, considering the size, you probably won't need a replacement so soon. Most dishwashers break down due to users putting dirty cooking items like pans and baking trays in without getting all of the cooked food off. These residuals end up clogging vital portions of the system, making it work harder to finish the same task and often necessitates people turning their device onto a more extreme cycle to boot. After awhile, things don't get clean when put in in a half rinsed state and people deem the dishwasher "broken" and get a new one.
  
  Personally I think years of watching detergent commercials where a baking tray with a few mm of baked on food is CGI'd with a quick and perfect clean passing in a second or two is to blame.
  
  Does anyone really think a layer of burnt grease is coming off of a pan from a spray of barely pressurized water?
  
  You'd be lucky to get that stuff off with a pressure washer. Clean your cooking items in the sink and I bet you'll find your dishwasher will last you a lot longer.
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Rain Noe

I’m a lapsed industrial designer. I was born in NYC and figured I’d die there, but a few years ago I abandoned New York to live on a farm in the countryside with my wife. We have six dogs.