I've never had a dishwasher that completely cleaned off stuff left on dishes or silverware. I always rinse and use a little scrubber quickly and then put them in the dishwasher. Why wash if you're just going to have the dishwasher wash? Well....because I don't always use soap when I rinse so the dishwasher sanitizes them and dries them for me. I do it right away after I use them so the stuff doesn't get more stuck. And yes....even tea cups. LOL. (you're not the only one) And I clean out my sink and polish the faucet afterward. I hate dried up water spots and want my chrome to shine. LOL. My Revereware pots with the copper bottoms get a quick scrub down with copper cleaner. So, I too, like my kitchen organized, clean and tidy. There's not a whole lot of space to work so I need to clean up as I go along when I'm cooking. So if I'm through with one or more pots or pans while something else is simmering on the stove, I'll wash those, dry and put away while I keep an eye on the stove.... (by hand because I don't think the dishwasher is good for some kinds of pots and pans, plus I'll probably need them again and they take up too much space in the dishwasher and I don't want to waste electricity by running the dishwasher more than necessary due to large items in there) lol. My water is free and I have lots of it. My hot water tank is propane and it doesn't use very much to make hot water, so, there's my logic. LOL. After each time I use the stove, I take off all the burner covers (it's a propane stove) and use Windex on the stove....hate any grease left on that or the hood. It just builds up if you don't get it right away. It actually takes less work to do it that way IMO than letting things pile up and letting food particles harden or grease build up on the stove. Plus, it's gross.