The Dish Washing Thread

[SAR_Squid79]

Right before I left for Afghanistan, my wife and I went out on a solo 4 1/2 day backcountry trip out in the Anza Borrego desert. This was the longest trip I've been on with my wife. I think we cooked a total of 7 meals that required washing dishes. Also, in an effort to minimize trash this was the 1st trip where we used no disposable plates, bowls, forks, knives, etc. I was AMAZED at how much water was consumed through washing dishes. By the last day, we thought we were going to have to tap into out drinking water to finish washing the dishes. Washing the dishes is also our most dreaded chore when camping.

SO - what are the tricks of the trade to quickly and efficiently wash the dishes without severely depleting your water supply?

[Connie]

I have lots of tricks for reducing water consumption.

First we carry tortillas, you can use them to wipe out pots, plates, bowls etc. and have a little more food. Second, use a paper towel to wipe stuff out before washing, start with the least yucky stuff first. Third, I sometimes do a "prewash" with a very small amount (about a cup) of warm water and soap, this will get most of the yuck out so that the second wash water isn't disgusting. Fourth, don't put all of the dishes in the washing tub at once because you will have to have a lot of water to reach down to it, start with the glasses and the least dirty stuff and work your way through to the chorizo pan. Last, if the water isn't yucky and you haven't used more soap than necessary, you really don't need to rinse, just dry the stuff off. I think that warm water really helps get stuff clean (and it is more pleasant to work with). Over all, I use about 1 liter of water per dinner for washing, and quite a bit less for breakfast and lunch.

Sometimes we put a tub under the spout when we wash our hands and that is the water I use for my "prewash".

[Desert Dan]

When car camping I try to bar b q dinners and also have a teflon frying pan which makes clean up easy. I use paper plates and paper towels which get burned in the camp fire.

If I was back packing and water was scarce I might go with freeze dried food where you can just add hot water and can eat out of the package.

[adventureduo]

We don't use disposable anything. Just the same aluminum cups, plates and silverware on every trip. We usually try and wipe everything immediately just like Connie mentioned. This usually cuts down the water we use at the end. Also, we usually use a portable sink tub and only fill it 1/4 high so that we have enough water to submerge one plate, but not waste water by filling the entire sink. If we eat a sandwich or anything by hand.. we don't use a plate. If we have chips/trail mix etc, we eat out of the bag. I use the same cup for coffee as i do, for wine, milk, rum and coke, water and so on. A big advantage to cleaning pots and pans would be hot water. You can clean up a dirty pan much quicker than cold water in my opinion. The other thing is trying to use only what you need with cooking. We have one large skillet type pan that i can cook many things on. We also have a bundle of small camp pots, but if i use them i try to use one only. Like a pasta dish with sauce.. cook the pasta and cook the sauce last in with the pasta. I know it's not as good, but there's not a second pot to clean at the end. Just little things here and there.

[ttora4runner]

When I did a four day trip to colorado and utah last year I pre-made alot of my meals to avoid having to take pots and pans. I used the same cup for water, milk and hot chocolate as stated above. I did use disposal plates/paper towels that I could burn if I needed to but I would normally just eat my meals out of the pot that I cleaned them in.

If I used the pot/cup/utinsels I wold heat the water up in the pot clean the cup and utinsel (ya, I can't spell that)then clean the pot.

[discodisco]

Dishes and water consumpition has always been a problem for my family and I, it wasn't until I got into long backpacking trips that I learned a couple of tricks. Buy a 2 dollar back packing food scraper... it looks like a spatula blade... and it pre scrapes everything and is then easy to clean off. Tortilla idea is the most common thing we use. Works for every for each person to use to keep their personal plate clean. As far as prepacked food. We bought a food saver vacuum bags. We put most of our side dishes, or kids meals such as mac'n'cheese or chili in them. These bags can then be boiled in water to cook your food. Then use the water got nice and hot to clean any other dishes you have to cook the main dishes or pasta. Another tip is to coat the bottom of your pots with a very very thin layer of dish soap before cooking. It makes it easy to just wipe off the black soot from the fire. This helps when stacking dishes toghether for storage.

[X_Trippin]

When car camping I usually bbq everything. If it can't be bbqed than it goes into an iron skillet. With the iron skillet I usually just dump the grease out then wipe it down with a paper towel and call it good. We do use paper or plastic products for our dishes, but like at home recyclables get separated out and everything that comes out with me, goes home with me, and sometimes more since I tend to pick up trash along the trail.

[Connie]

Buy a 2 dollar back packing food scraper... it looks like a spatula blade... and it pre scrapes everything and is then easy to clean off.

Absolutely! I forgot to mention that. Those are awesome (though mine is from Pampered Chef), you can get most cooked on food off with those things.

[DiploStrat]

Dog does the "rinse and hold" cycle - he rinses, I hold. (Canine saliva is antiseptic.) Makes washing much easier. Seriously. :)

http://www.pbase.com/diplostrat/image/103637631.jpg

Except where critters are a real problem, we kept the dinner stuff on the roof and washed everything in the morning with the hot water made for coffee, etc.

[rusty_tlc]

Use all of the tricks above to get the bulk of the stuff off, then wipe with a damp cloth hot water is better. To wash I use a sponge. Get it damp then add a squirt of biodegradable soap. Wipe down each item, then wipe off the soap with a wet cloth.

[matt s]

all of the above including the dog trick. But yeah they get washed after the dog does her thing.

The big one is to minimize the number of dishes used. I have one mug for everything I drink, and I use it for oatmeal in the morning as well. A little rinse and I am happy to use again.

Plates can be minimized by again having only one. I use a wide bowl, works either as a plate or bowl. wipe it out, quick rinse and it's good till the next meal.

Cookware is tougher, but the vacuum pack meals for messy soups and sauces sure helps out. If I can manage it the only thing cooked in a pot or pan is water. Meats I prefer grilled anyway.

[Scenic WonderRunner]

This is what I use to wash dishes. I mainly use it to Rinse! They hold 2.34 Gallons. They have a push button spigot that helps you save water. And best of all!.....they are free! After you wash your clothes of course!.....hehe. Depending on how long I am out on the trails.....I can bring a few more containers, I have extras!

Before washing, I fill a small bowl with soapy water for my cleaning sponge. I wash with the sponge.

Then I Rinse with the controlled spigot (see Red Button!), so as not to waste too much water. The rinsing is the part that wastes the most water.

I just want to add, that using paper plates and cups is not all that bad. You can use them to start your campfire the following night! Then you don't have to carry as much water. Water is weight and space in your rig!


http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i156/ScenicWonderRunner/2009_0513DishWashingContainer0001.jpg

http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i156/ScenicWonderRunner/2009_0513DishWashingContainer0002.jpg

[Nadir_E]

Great suggestions, everyone - I particularly like the laundry-soap bottle re-use idea, too.

Before I got my Engel, I would use the ice-melt from my ice chest as my dish-washing water since it was basically "extra" water.

Recently bought one of those collapsible wash basins - will see how well it works on my next trip.:smiley_drive:

[Currie]

Dry sand works, with a wipe with a "Dettol surface wipe" afterwards.

Plenty of dry sand in the White Desert.....

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b395/Cairodel/Bahariyah%20-%20White%20Desert/DSC00140.jpg

[SAR_Squid79]

Dry sand works, with a wipe with a "Dettol surface wipe" afterwards.

Plenty of dry sand in the White Desert.....

Son of a . . . :Wow1:

THIS IS WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!!! Instead of posting a link to the brand new, top of the line, $1200 ARB Expedition Dish Washer System - you came up with DIRT! AWESOME! This is the most sensible solution I've never heard of. The only problem I see with the sand method is if you're in an area where coyotes, mountain lions, etc. are a concern...

...although I don't suppose it's much different that when your dish water runoff ends up on the ground...

[CharlieV]

I did a lot of backpacking in the past and we did very similar things with pine needles, leaves, etc. We just called it "duffing" you can get your cookware almost clean using what mother nature provides (like the sand above), then do a follow up with some water and soap, bio-degradeable if near a body of water. It may be obvious to some, but never wash your dishes in a stream. It will leave all your leftovers to rot at the bottom of the stream and you will later look like a tool for it. Not to mention the parasites in the water. I had a friend that did that with a bowl of rice while backpacking in Utah, he was later made to pick the rice out.

Tell me people don't actually spend $1200 on a portable dishwasher! I hope that is just a joke, glamping at its finest.

[SAR_Squid79]

Tell me people don't actually spend $1200 on a portable dishwasher! I hope that is just a joke, glamping at its finest.
Yes - that was a joke. Although I'm sure there are untold scores of glampers searching for the ARB dishwasher as I type this! :ylsmoke:

[DavidEllzey]

Freezer bag cooking.

No wasted water what-so-ever, clean up is the time is takes to reseal a ziplock and toss it in the main refuse container and very little fuel usage. There are tradeoffs of course but its a good optionfor extended desert trips where water is an issue.

A good resource to start with is - http://www.trailcooking.com/

Dave

[Connie]

The only problem I see with the sand method is if you're in an area where coyotes, mountain lions, etc. are a concern...

...although I don't suppose it's much different that when your dish water runoff ends up on the ground...

Till I read the last line, I thought you were talking about what the coyotes, mountain lions, etc were leaving in the sand before the dishwashing..:xxrotflma

[Cabrito]

Till I read the last line, I thought you were talking about what the coyotes, mountain lions, etc were leaving in the sand before the dishwashing..:xxrotflma

Now that is funny!

I use a combo of everything already mentioned. As for the method used it depends on where, who with, and for how long.

Nobody likes doing dishes...

[Desert Dan]

That sand must be hard on your teflon pans...LOL

Sand works great in cast iron or stainless.

[Flounder]

There's actually a couple issues involved here. One is about water availabilty, the other is about environmental impact. In general, washing dishes isn't always a very green thing. Sure, you can buy relatively environmentally friendly soap, but you're usually dumping said soap in a pristine area with little foody bits that some critter is going to eat. Kind of not in the pack it in - pack it out menatlity.

For those reasons, I almost ALWAYS use dehydrated meals like those from Mountain House. It only takes 2-3 cups of water to hydrate and there's no water usage to clean. It also saves on fuel since you're just boiling water. While there's a trash component involved with the packaging (that I eat out of) I'm dealing with that OUTSIDE of a pristine environment.

You don't have to use the store bought meals. There's lots of options for home cooked versions packaged in Food Saver style bags that can even be re-used.

Frankly, I can't ever bring myself to dump even the smallest amount of food particulates onto the ground. Just not right.

[SAR_Squid79]

There's actually a couple issues involved here. One is about water availabilty, the other is about environmental impact. In general, washing dishes isn't always a very green thing. Sure, you can buy relatively environmentally friendly soap, but you're usually dumping said soap in a pristine area with little foody bits that some critter is going to eat. Kind of not in the pack it in - pack it out menatlity...

...Frankly, I can't ever bring myself to dump even the smallest amount of food particulates onto the ground. Just not right.

As far as that goes, we always scrape our plates into the (contanied) camp fire, and 99% of the food bits get burned up and packed out with our ashes. The worst that gets dumped into the environment is a tiny bit of mashed potatos, or bacon grease residue. I won't really lose sleep over that.

I would say that the dripping oil / trans fluid / brake fluid, etc. that seems to be found under most rigs I've encoutered on the trail is much worse than my little bit of dishwater...

[Scenic WonderRunner]

There's actually a couple issues involved here. One is about water availabilty, the other is about environmental impact. In general, washing dishes isn't always a very green thing. Sure, you can buy relatively environmentally friendly soap, but you're usually dumping said soap in a pristine area with little foody bits that some critter is going to eat. Kind of not in the pack it in - pack it out menatlity.

For those reasons, I almost ALWAYS use dehydrated meals like those from Mountain House. It only takes 2-3 cups of water to hydrate and there's no water usage to clean. It also saves on fuel since you're just boiling water. While there's a trash component involved with the packaging (that I eat out of) I'm dealing with that OUTSIDE of a pristine environment.

You don't have to use the store bought meals. There's lots of options for home cooked versions packaged in Food Saver style bags that can even be re-used.

Frankly, I can't ever bring myself to dump even the smallest amount of food particulates onto the ground. Just not right.


Without trying to pick a fight.

And because the thread topic IS...."The Dish Washing Thread".

And I always enjoy my light weight freezed dried food.....mind you!

I would say that is a bit over the Top.

You can always bury your particulates!


Just my opinion.....

http://www.ahappycamper.com/products/soap/campsuds.html


http://www.ahappycamper.com/products/soap/images-07/campsuds-1.jpg

In the 1960's Campsuds became the first biodegradable, multi-purpose cleaner created specifically to meet the needs of the camper, backpacker and adventure traveler. Since then it has been carried to every corner of the planet by three generations of outdoor enthusiasts. Compact, versatile, hard working, convenient and environmentally safe, Campsuds has many imitators, but remains the market leader today. Works equally well in cold water -- salt water too! Just a few drops will handle any cleaning job. Strong enough for dishes and clothes, yet gentle enough for body and hair. Made from natural vegetable-derived ingredients with natural essential oil fragrance. Makes a great helper around the house too!

Camp Suds is a 100% biodegradable, all-purpose cleaner that is versatile and environment-friendly for backpacking and camping use. It can be used to clean dishes, hands, face, or clothing and it works in hot or cold and hard or soft water.


All purpose liquid cleaner.
Use for personal hygiene, laundry or dishes.
Works in hot, cold or salt water.
Biodegradable.
Highly Concentrated. Just a few drops do the trick.

Please remember to use Campsuds with care in alpine wilderness areas.

Use sparingly

Soap up and wash at least 200 feet away from alpine lakes and streams.

Dig a hole 6 to 8 inches deep for disposing of soapy wash and rinse water. This allows bacteria in the soil to completely and safely biodegrade Campsuds.


The Sierra Dawn Campsuds:

This stuff is guilt free and hassle free. After a week of hiking in Idaho, my feet were getting rough. I went to a river and scrubbed with Campsuds and they were almost as good as new. Doubles as shampoo and soap (slightly better as soap, but good overall). Refreshing and not messy. This soap always lathers up no matter how hard the water. The only soap you will ever need on trail.





~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

OR!

Bring Paper Plates and haul out your stinky trash. But First lick your Plate clean!:chef: :sombrero:



.

[UK4X4]

Late again, we use sand too whether in the desert or the beach,then a rinse or wipe down

The dog is also historically used for finishing up the main leftovers

food particulates in the enviroment- fully biodegradable and usually seen being carried off by the local insect community 10 mins after being dropped

I have no quarms about small particles, anything larger gets burnt, eaten by the dog or packed out.

teflon....all our cooking gear is plain old stainless.

We recycle the ice cooler water both for washing and the dog...

1off 20ltr for cooking and washing is usually enough for a 4 day trip, any longer then a second container would be required.

[Flounder]

Without trying to pick a fight.

And because the thread topic IS...."The Dish Washing Thread".

And I always enjoy my light weight freezed dried food.....mind you!

I would say that is a bit over the Top.

You can always bury your particulates!


Just my opinion.....
.
I know what you're saying. I'd just rather be the guy known for being over the top with regard to being low impact than the guy with his own interpretation of low impact....not that you are.

Think how much different the wildlands would be if more people were over the top. I still subscribe to the "pack it in, pack it out" mentality, and will go so far as to include foody bits into that. Not always mind you. Much depends on the environment I'm in.

I'm also not a fire guy, even though some areas are almost improved by camp fires thinning the fuel sources.

I just grew up with crunchy hippy backpacking parents and if they saw me washing my feet in river with Camp Suds, they'd string me up from the nearest pine. By the way, Simple Green is also 100% biodegradeable, but it'll eat your aluminum stove, think what it'll do to a pristine environment. Biodregradeale shouldn't be confused with environmentally neutral.

And yes, I understand that much of my packaging for those backpacking meals goes into a landfill, but better a crappy landfill than an alpine zone.

To each his own.

[Currie]

Son of a . . . :Wow1:

THIS IS WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!!! Instead of posting a link to the brand new, top of the line, $1200 ARB Expedition Dish Washer System - you came up with DIRT! AWESOME! This is the most sensible solution I've never heard of. The only problem I see with the sand method is if you're in an area where coyotes, mountain lions, etc. are a concern...

...although I don't suppose it's much different that when your dish water runoff ends up on the ground...


Don't really know how to respond to this... If you really are in Afghanistan,
then you are probably well-versed in exactly the method I described, and
do NOT use the "top-of-the-line" ARB System or any other, for that matter.
You would also be aware that coyotes, mountain lions, etc.... are of
no concern whatsoever, as they do not take holidays in the Middle East.
I will therefore take your comments as I hope they were meant....
with a pinch of salt......:chef:

[BIGdaddy]

Don't really know how to respond to this... If you really are in Afghanistan,
then you are probably well-versed in exactly the method I described, and
do NOT use the "top-of-the-line" ARB System or any other, for that matter.
You would also be aware that coyotes, mountain lions, etc.... are of
no concern whatsoever, as they do not take holidays in the Middle East.
I will therefore take your comments as I hope they were meant....
with a pinch of salt......:chef:

he's basically saying, "cool", "good idea"...

not much to respond to...lol. :victory:

[Lynn]

FWIW, I discovered that when I wash dishes with running water and one of those scrubbers that holds the soap in the handle I end up using less water and soap then if I filled basin(s) to wash and rinse.

Especially since the water doesn't have to run very fast, at all.

Kind of counter-intuitive, but true.

[SAR_Squid79]

Don't really know how to respond to this... If you really are in Afghanistan,
then you are probably well-versed in exactly the method I described, and
do NOT use the "top-of-the-line" ARB System or any other, for that matter.
You would also be aware that coyotes, mountain lions, etc.... are of
no concern whatsoever, as they do not take holidays in the Middle East.
I will therefore take your comments as I hope they were meant....
with a pinch of salt......:chef:

I am really in Afghanistan - temporarily. I'm in the US Military, and on deployment. I don't live here, if that's what you were thinking.

I thought your post about doing the dishes with sand really is a great idea that I had never thought of. In Southern California, where I live, and do most of my camping - coyotes, and mountain lions are sometimes a concern.

[R_Lefebvre]

Late again, we use sand too whether in the desert or the beach,then a rinse or wipe down

The dog is also historically used for finishing up the main leftovers

food particulates in the enviroment- fully biodegradable and usually seen being carried off by the local insect community 10 mins after being dropped

I have no quarms about small particles, anything larger gets burnt, eaten by the dog or packed out.

teflon....all our cooking gear is plain old stainless.

We recycle the ice cooler water both for washing and the dog...

1off 20ltr for cooking and washing is usually enough for a 4 day trip, any longer then a second container would be required.

I'm with you. Sometimes I think it's much ado about nothing. Every day in our regular lives we're doing MUCH worse things to the environment than spilling a few Camp Suds. Sure, you'd like to think you could leave wilderness areas "pristine", but I think that's a bit of an fantasy.

[Mike_rupp]

Frankly, I can't ever bring myself to dump even the smallest amount of food particulates onto the ground. Just not right.

Yet you don't seem to have any qualms about taking a car into an pristine area. What about all of the particulates coming out of your tailpipe? Are those environmentally neutral? What is worse: backpacking into the pristine zone and leaving a few crumbs of food or driving your Land Rover into the pristine zone and leaving zero food crumbs on the ground?

This environmentalism is getting out of control.

[Connie]

I have rules that I expect myself to live by, but most of them I don't expect everyone else to live by. There is nothing wrong with that.

[Zepset]

Take it from one who was on KP "Kitchen Patrol" as a private in the Saudi Desert. I spent many moons washing dishes in the field. Like everything else, it comes down to using the correct toos for he job. I have a sweet campming dish rack and wash basin setup from Campor.co.za that is extremely convenient.

Ramble on......

Zepset

30035

30036

[Connie]

That's a nice sink set up.

We have mesh bottomed camp chairs, so we usually use that for the drying rack.

[Flounder]

Yet you don't seem to have any qualms about taking a car into an pristine area. What about all of the particulates coming out of your tailpipe? Are those environmentally neutral? What is worse: backpacking into the pristine zone and leaving a few crumbs of food or driving your Land Rover into the pristine zone and leaving zero food crumbs on the ground?

This environmentalism is getting out of control.Well, to be frank, I don't actually use my vehicle too much in the backcountry. Scott and I have had short discussions about this. My overlanding is really just transport to the backcountry where I usually begin my prefered adventures on foot or on bicycle wheels. That's just my preference. I not only approve of people who travel exclusively by vehicle, I think it's pretty cool...or necessary for some. So, in the context of how I like to travel, I try to limit that tail pipe ugliness as much as possible and then take that same approach when I'm on foot with things like food crumbs.

It's probably over the top, but it's a standard I hold only myself to.

[Mike S]

I use a set of teflon coated cookware. This saves most of the dishwashing hassle - just wipe out with a single paper towel, hit it with a sponge and soap, rinse with 1/2 pint of water and done. I do not use paper plates or plastic cutlery, prefer the real deal, and they can be cleaned the same way as the teflon pots and pans. Shouldn't take more than a couple pints of water to do all your dishes. Clean them immediately after using and it is pretty easy.

The only disposable stuff I use is paper towels. Then they burn or are packed out.

[Flounder]

What you cook has much to do with this. Rice is much easier to clean than mac'n cheese.

[lowenbrau]

This thread makes me appreciate the abundance of fresh water in the places where I travel. I rarely even think to bring water with me except for a few bottles for drinking. Even then I generally refill the first one over and over at mountain streams. I prefer the taste of "fresh" water and, thus far, have managed to avoid any unfriendlies. Perhaps growing up drinking untreated lake water helped. I occasionally struggle to find places far enough from water courses to use camp suds. It is pretty hard on fish.

On our first Moab trip the trail leader was barking out instructions about crypto biotic soils and the three bounce rule and I was frantically making mental notes and then he got to the part about drinking water and said he expected us to have consumed three bottles by lunch. I shrugged and looked at my GF who was driving that day, we only had one bottle for the both of us for the day. It simply wasn't something we really thought about. We did have a tarp though, in case we had to make repairs in the rain.

This is what the area where I grew up looks like from satellite.
http://www.satelliteimpressions.com/image/kenora.jpg

[juicebox]

Chalk me up as another fan of using dirt.

I worked at a wilderness therapy program for "at-risk" youth for a number of years and we would never use any water, at first it was a little weird but now it's just second nature.

Stainless steel is the best, any teflon coated pan or dish won't be a good candidate because the dirt is obviously abrasive.

I used to also burn out my pot when I was finished eating by just simply putting it upside down in the fire. This was awesome for a few reasons. First, it was ready to just be wiped out in the morning. I would just wake up and get it out of the fire and wipe it out with my bandana. Second, putting my pot over the fire saves the coals overnight during the fall/winter. (or anytime really, especially during rain) That way, I just had to dig a couple inches in the coals in the morning and get some dry bark and we had a fire going again.

I still use my burnt pot, but as you can imagine, it's pretty hard on the finish. it's not stainless steel anymore. So when I bought another S.S. pot I told myself I was just going to use dirt and I saved my burnt pot for making bread or as a coal-saver.

[off.track]

when backpacking, i don't use dishes. i just eat straight out of the pots. if i need another dish, i'll use the lid. then i wipe it with a bandana and rinse it good w/ some scalding water.

[craig333]

I've never really been able to decide on the non stick vs ss or aluminum. Pros and cons of each seem to even out. I suppose it depends on where you go. Most areas I go have water. If I were doing more desert areas I'd definitely go aluminum and use sand/dirt to clean.

I'm a big fan of tortillas. Works great for breakfast and a lot of dinners. I go back and forth on paper plates. Definitely go paper though if its a large group.

[off.track]

what are the cons of non stick? i'm thinking of switching from my SS gear.. tired of scrubbing. :D

[toyota_jon]

one of tricks i used growing up hunting is eatting the cup-o-noodles. you eat the noodles for dinner with usually beef jerky, then in the morning you use the cup for oatmeal. i'm usually a pretty light eater when out on the trail. my usual menu is oatmeal and a bagle with coffee in the morning. sandwhiches/ granola bars/ gorp during the day. night is soup/ dried meat/ cheese sometime sub with a freezedried dinner bolstered with extra rice or noodles as necessary. needless to say i hate doing dishes. bout the only thing that i need to wash is the coffee pot. and really thats just a quick rinse.

[mmtoy]

I think part of using less water is meal planning.

I like to cook most meals (for shorter trips) before the trip, freeze, and just reheat in camp.

For example, I'll make and wrap burritos in foil (or not at all if I expect to have a grill) and freeze them and then just put them in the coals of the fire (or on the mainfold, depending on travel time). Or, for another example, I'll cook spaghetti and put it in a freezer bag or other liquid-tight container, freeze it, and then put the container in a small pot of water to re-heat. The water can then be used for beverages or washing, depending on needs, and if I'm solo, all I dirty is a fork and the container. If the container is a freezer bag, I'll re-use it to seal up the dirtier trash. If not, it's washed as below.

For long trips, I like to eat all day in the form of snacks. I'll have a breakfast of oatmeal (in my mug used for coffee/cocoa, without cleaning, rinse with water that I drink), some fruit, maybe a bagel, and a hardboiled egg or some similar protein. By 9:00 or 10:00, I'll have a large snack, usually trail mix, a piece of fruit, and some jerky. Have a sandwich or two for lunch (knife needs cleaning, but not with water), another snack mid afternoon, and a light meal for dinner. Very little that requires water to wash, and the dinner meal will be as above for the first few days (I only have a cooler) and then something that needs cooking for the last part of the trip.

Hot water does clean better because the higher temperature lowers the surface tension of the water, which makes it a better solvent. That's the same thing soaps/detergents do. When I'm solo, I don't use soaps at all to wash, just water that's almost too hot to put my hand into--no need for rinsing but scraping before washing is essential. My wife likes soap.

If I'm in the desert, I'll use the sand method, but tend to stay away from using organic materials: I don't know what kinds of molds or other microcritters are living on it. I do not use the sand method on beaches, especially near civilization. I know that there is still the possibility of finding microbes in the desert sands, but I think it's a lot safer where it's drier. If I'm concerned, I'll wash with water instead.

[whitecon]

what are the cons of non stick? i'm thinking of switching from my SS gear.. tired of scrubbing. :D
One of the cons of non stick is that you have to be careful when you scrape the pan or you will scrape the coating off. It's advised not to scrape it with anything metal. In the past I used a Bamboo spatula or something of the like.
If you not backpacking, I would use cast-iron due to its durability and efficiency. A properly seasoned cast-iron skillet, pan, or pot will take on the properties of non-stick. Most chefs dont wash cast-iron. Depending on what has been cooked, they will just wipe it out (water savings).

[SunTzuNephew]

Folks, doing a good, thorough job of washing (getting all the food off) followed by a very hot water rinse (>160 degrees F) is highly recommended to prevent GI illnesses.

The military learned this a very long time ago: More soldiers have been taken out of battle by dirty messkits than bullets.

The military's solution now? No mess kits :). Before that, it was a trash can filled with boiling water as a final rinse.

[Corey]

I saw this posted over on IH8MUD's camping section.
TriLite Wash Station (http://www.colonialmedical.com/product.php?productid=21759)

http://www.teardropshop.net/media/catalog/product/cache/1/image/5e06319eda06f020e43594a9c230972d/f/i/file_1_2.jpg

Since selling my tent trailer (which had a nice sink and catch container outside) I bought two wash pans for doing the dishes when camping, and used them this past week along with a small drying rack.

http://www.pnw4runners.com/camping_trips/aug09/20.jpg

I do the dishes on the ground in the pan, and with me getting older my knees do not like to be in that position for very long.

That rack I posted above I saw on MUD seems pretty ergo.
I also switched from regular dish soap to the Campsuds.
I even shower with it and use it as shampoo when camping.

[off.track]

One of the cons of non stick is that you have to be careful when you scrape the pan or you will scrape the coating off. It's advised not to scrape it with anything metal. In the past I used a Bamboo spatula or something of the like.
If you not backpacking, I would use cast-iron due to its durability and efficiency. A properly seasoned cast-iron skillet, pan, or pot will take on the properties of non-stick. Most chefs dont wash cast-iron. Depending on what has been cooked, they will just wipe it out (water savings).

thanks. why would you have to scrape NON-STICK? hmm.. and yeah, i am thinking of switching out my backpacking pans and donating those to my truck gear.

i actually use CI a lot.. tend to drag at least one 3 leg oven, a skillet and lately even my griddle. . you add all the other things that go with a duch oven and it's a big load.


on scrubbing.. i use those plastic net bags that onions and other veggies come contained in. they are free, work great and after the trip you pitch it and replace with the next set of onions bags.

cups, i have never been able to go out, even backpacking, with just one cup.. i just can't handle floaties or oil slicks in my tea.. i'm sorry. :D :D so i always have two.. one plastic insulated mug for all purposes and then my plastic insulate tea cup. but then, i have also always hauled at least a bit of sugar up and down mountains. :D

thank goodness water is not in short supply around here either. :ylsmoke:

[SWbySWesty]

Here's your ARB sink...not really, but sorta:

http://www.rei.com/product/752731

http://media.rei.com/media/tt/a89a9aa1-3eed-4bae-be25-365bab36be58.jpg

[Joanne]

I often find myself cooking for larger groups of people. We have a setup that works well in that environment. On the left is the Coleman instant hot water machine. It speeds up the process significantly. The blue Lowe's water container is actually our hand washing station. It's full of hot water, has a soap dispenser sitting on the top and we replaced the cup holder with paper towels. On the right is the three station dish washing. Since the photo was taken, we've added another dish pan below the other three to hold the bleach water and cleaning rags. This setup has been inspected by the local health department at a couple of different events and they always complement us it. Being made of PVC, it's light, cheap, and we can knock it apart for easy transportation.

http://www.camp-cook.com/forum/washstation.jpghttp://www.camp-cook.com/postings/washstation.jpg

I realize that this is much more than most of you need, but it's ideal at a group base camp.

Joanne :chef:

[DontPanic42]

Joanne,
You have a very nice looking setup - clean and efficient. We use a similar setup for our chuck wagon but since we have to be period specific (late 1800's) we use metal wash tubs, wooden tables, and a wood fire to heat the water. A water barrel, enameled wash bowl, and lye soap for hand washing. We do keep plastic bottles of bleach and dish soap out of sight but within easy reach. Same principle but I'd rather pack up your setup than ours. Great design
Bruce

[Joanne]

Joanne,
You have a very nice looking setup - clean and efficient. We use a similar setup for our chuck wagon but since we have to be period specific (late 1800's) we use metal wash tubs, wooden tables, and a wood fire to heat the water. A water barrel, enameled wash bowl, and lye soap for hand washing. We do keep plastic bottles of bleach and dish soap out of sight but within easy reach. Same principle but I'd rather pack up your setup than ours. Great design
Bruce

Ours might be a bit easier to pack, but I'd sure love to cook on a wagon team. You just don't see 'em here in Vegas.

Joanne

P.S. - drop by camp-cook.com sometime! We'd love to have another DO cook to chat with.

[RMP&O]

I find 2 5gallon buckets work just fine. One with soap and or bleach and one with clean water to rinse. When you are not using the buckets you can fill them full of gear. I like the bucktes with the heavy duty screw on lids....you can even get them water tight. For items that don't fit ina bucket...well it is big enough then to just wash out of the bucket!

They have worked for me on river trips and car camping. On the river we just set the clean dishes in the boats to dry. Car camping I have found some netting works great to dry dishes. I use a military netting that is super cheap and very tough. You can hang it anywhere full of dishes.

I recently picked up this though to save some space....

http://www.hotcampshowers.com/inc/sdetail/739

Personally...I see no need to get complex or spend lots of money on a sink and or dish washing set up. Unless you have tons of room, weight is no concern and you have cash to burn. :)

[RMP&O]

Oh and backpacking or on the river and even car camping.....

I really like to use the MSR water bags. With the small nozzle you use very little water to wash hands or do dishes. You can even use them to shower! When not full of water they pack up small. MSR filters also screw right on the bags.....very nice invention! I have had one of my MSR water bags since about 1991....never had a leak in it!!

http://cascadedesigns.com/msr/water-treatment-and-hydration/basecamp-water-treatment-and-hydration/hydromedary-hydration-system/product