Simple Tech = Common Sense Design
At the other end of the design spectrum from the energysucking gizmology that now pervades our lives; simple tech is quietly bringing back simplicity and sustainability as a worthwhile goal for industrial design. Here’s a good example; a low tech kitchen appliance that would go well beyond a simple energy star rating for efficiency.
This practical and simple energy efficient dish washer/dish storage unit by design students Schwartz and Steiner at the Bauaus Universität Weimar is a great example of the simple tech that the world needs now.
It is a reduction of a machine to its essentials, orientated to user-needs. This dish washer builds on the movements that we already make…
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First:
We need to clear the table of dishes after eating, so; at the table we would just stack the dishes right into these racks, then we carry the racks to the sink…
…then just lower the dishwasher lid to create the (let’s hope it’s water tight) simplest dish washer imaginable - to give the dishes a wash.
(Note the real simple propeller at the top of the lid; this must use very little energy use to run.)
Now remove the lid - take the rack back out of the sink and hang it on the wall. Let the air dry it.
Here’s the wall hook thingie… I like the concrete wall by contrast with this red and white plastic.
Now you can do something useful with your life till the next time you use this.
This is design that respects the users time. There’s no need for a 30 page manual in 12 languages to do 3001 pointless things with a gizmo that you don’t have time to do anyway. It’s simple.
Technology does not have to be a time sink. Or an energy hog.
Via Dezeen
Hmmm. that’s okay. attach a bike to the dishwasher and make it pedal powered–then you might be on to something.
Wizard,
It’s using the water pressure to spin the propeller, which most dishwashers do, IIRC.
My problems with this set up is that you’re getting water from the top down so everything (dishes, cups, pots, etc.) that needs to drain as it’s being washed is going to … not get washed.
It may win an Art Contest, but an Engineer will insult you, a Health Inspector will shut you down and lock you out, and as for what a Home Inspector will do….
Hanging racks off the wall to air/drip dry with nothing to catch the water? Can you say Rot & Toxic Mold in the floor and wall? Yes, yes you can. Put that sucker in and you’ve flushed you Home Investment down the drain in about 6 months.
And for something that stupid, Home Owners/Renters Insurance isn’t going to cover you.
@ Michael Antoniewicz II Yes, I agree with you on this flaw:
“Hanging racks off the wall to air/drip dry with nothing to catch the water? Can you say Rot & Toxic Mold in the floor and wall?”
I’d say take this great start at a new concept back to the drawing board and find a solution that problem. Seems easy to solve.
Got a nice idea for how to do that? Stay in keeping with the design:
Uhmmm how about we try washing the dishes by HAND? Uses only the energy needed to fill both sides of the sink. One side with soapy water, one with clean water.. then either put in a rack next to sink to dry or do the dishes one at a time. wash, rinse, dry, store. Its how I’ve been doing my dishes since I was about 10 or so. See? A concept so simple and energy efficient a 6yr old could understand it.
I’m with Michael.
It is a flawed design from a health perspective. While it may “look pretty” (*NOT!*) it is not going to work.
Deep objects such as glasses, jars and bowls must be either filled/emptied/rinsed/drained, or washed from the bottom. A standard dishwasher design sprays from the bottom, into the upside-down glasses, thus ensuring that the soap and water reaches all crevices, then drains back out. Likewise the rinse sprays up from the bottom and drains out. If the water sprays from the top only, it will either *not* reach the inside of glasses or bowls, or not drain out. Either one is a formula for food poisoning.
Also, modern dishwashers are water and energy efficient in that they pressurize the water to ensure that the rotary spray (from the bottom) is sufficient to loosen dried on food. This cuts down on the need to pre-wash dishes and allows fewer runs of the dishwasher since you can wait to wash only when the machine is full. In order to ensure thorough cleaning with this design, it would be necessary to either (1) pre-wash/rinse the dishes - in which case it would be more economical to hand-wash (I’m with Sean on this one); or (2) wash partial loads immediately after each meal/snack, cup of coffee - which would be wasteful of water.
“Green” energy and water conservation are excellent, and we all need to do what we can and simplicity in design and technology is admirable. Unfortunately this is a case of a *deeply* flawed, poorly considered design that is in fact *more* wasteful then the “complex” tech it proposes to replace. The added danger of leaving the user in danger of critically harming their own health is an added detraction, although some might just consider that evolution in action.
Not to beat the horse to death but the thumbs down is correct for all the reasons stated plus the unlikelyhood of the design being rigid enough to maintain a good seal
sanford
It’s ugly. It’s too small to be effective.
The design doesn’t take into account efficient use of kitchen space, beaucoup cubic feet are wasted, something that won’t happen in a modern kitchen. Heck, it didn’t happen in old kitchens.
Unpainted, un-sealed concrete walls? Right.
Others have posted regarding how dishwashers REALLY work and on the health aspects.
All in all, a restaurant washer would work much better. Handwashing, as pointed out above, would be much more efficient.
Effective design grade: F.
@Michael, Sean, Rob, Sandford, Leon: Pull your heads in. It is possible to critique a design constructively without insulting the designer. I don’t discount that there is truth in some of your criticisms, but why not try offering solutions rather than throwing out the whole idea?
For example:
Could the system incorporate another removable rotor at the bottom?
Include a simple rubber/silicon seal with clips/locks that shut it off when they are opened as a safety feature? Or make the system pressurised with a valve that shuts off if there is a reduction in pressure?
If you hang the racks over the sink’s draining rack you will have less risk of issues with mold and water damage.
Feel free to criticise these suggestions, but remember that sometimes the silliest, most unrealistic suggestions result in the most profound solutions if they are explored before they are dismissed.
@Leon: this design is clearly about function, not aesthetics, so don’t pick on the presentation. You can order one in green and put tiles on your wall if you don’t like modernist minimalism. Also, you complain about wasted space but it uses up MUCH less room (and embodied energy) than the sink+washer+storage combo it is designed to replace. Most people cannot afford/justify a restaurant washer, and handwashing - though efficient - is time consuming.
@Sean: True. But you keep telling yourself that most everyday consumers in developed countries will all quickly go back to basic, sustainable activities instead of high-tech, low-effort solutions. In the mean time, some of us will be working on ideas to reduce the footprint of said consumers and try to wean them off their unsustainable consumption without ham-fisted cold-turkey demands. Meet you half way.