Readers reply: why is there a window on a washing machine but not on a dishwasher?

The long-running series in which readers answer other readers’ questions on subjects ranging from trivial flights of fancy to profound scientific and philosophical concepts

Why is there a window in a washing machine? There's not one in a dishwasher. Chris Fletcher

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Because no kid has ever put a cat in a dishwasher. Michael Dater, New Hampshire

Richard Brautigan, the American poet, would assert that the window allows Romeo and Juliet to watch their clothes tumble together. Bryan Smith, Ontario

Surely they’re there to hypnotise pets, who need to follow the round-and-round motion. Ruth Sayers

Because it's not as interesting or hypnotic. If you put your dishes in a washing machine, you’d definitely want to see what happened, but if you put your clothes in a dishwasher … meh. Tom Wiltshire

So that you can see if there are clothes in it. You wouldn't want to leave damp clothes sitting in a washing machine for too long after a washing cycle. It doesn't matter if you leave clothes sitting in a dryer at the end of its cycle. Paul

So you can observe your astronaut action figures in zero-gravity. Clive Naylor

Answer is simple: there is unending fascination in other people's dirty washing. This can't be said for their dirty dishes. Nick Michaelson

There would be a window if plates, glasses and cutlery revolved beautifully in the dishwasher. Unfortunately, they don't on current models. But it's a bright marketing idea! James Meunier

My guess is that it's because, when not in use, generally, washing machines are empty. Generally, when not in use, dishwashers have a partial load of dirty dishes in them, which might be unsightly along with stuff dripping on the inside of the glass while loading. That said, I own a dishwasher with a window; it even has a little light inside. It's a counter-top model suitable only for one or two people. It's great fun to watch – often better than television. Although, like TV, the plot is repetitive. I even use the fruit and veg washing cycle, which is especially nice for baby potatoes and carrots. Bruce Wilbur

Front-loader washing machines have a shaped door to agitate clothes – top loaders have a spindle-type thing and no glass. But it's to show you that there's water in there if you want to open the door and add something, so that you don't. You can open top-loaders with no adverse consequences. Leoned

It's so you can see the clothes turning pink when you put a red T-shirt in with your white wash. Gobsheisse

There are too many mechanisms in the front door of a dishwasher to give you a view. The soap and rinse aid dispensers, drying vent, and controls are all placed inside the front door. Since most dishwashers are undercounter, there are few options on where these functions can be. If you really need to see what's going on during a scrub, just mount a GoPro and light inside a waterproof box and enjoy. QuackerBacker

To give the people something to look at while they were waiting for colour TV to be invented. Calculus58

Maybe the chemicals and abrasives in the dishwasher tabs would soon make the "window" practically opaque. QuitextOrdinary

If you want to watch your dishes spinning round, put them in the washing machine. Especially recommended after a divorce, with your former mother-in-law's best china. ruby2u

At laundromats, we need to be able to tell which machines have our loads. fabrisse

Back in the day, twin-tub washing machines never had a window. I think the window was a means of viewing your washing, seeing as you could just lift up the lid of a twin tub to see your laundry being washed. Also, babies can be pacified by watching the washing go round. Not sure that viewing plates held in one place while blasted with hot water will have the same appeal. BabylonianSheDevil03

I don't want to see my washing-up piling up – that's why it goes in the dishwasher, out of sight. robanddebrob

The washing machine window is so the monsters that live in your pipes can watch you. Perchance

Microsoft controls the washing machine market. That's why Windows are installed on them. PeteTheBeat

Only tangentially related to the question, but agitating clothes in a washing machine is a big part of how they work. The transparent window is shaped to help this agitation. Dishwashers rely on chemistry – it's the formulation of the detergent that makes them work. Dishwasher detergent is powerful stuff. If you leave plates soaking in a bowl with a solution of dishwasher detergent they will come out clean, requiring only a rinse. (Wear rubber gloves!) MrCassandra

I suspect that there's more than one answer to this.

First, there is a window in a washing machine because they were invented before digital displays, colour-changing lights and control pads that look like the bridge of the Starship Enterprise. You needed to be able to see what your washing was up to. With a top-loading machine, of course, you just opened the lid and looked, but when front-loaders were invented you needed the window. Dishwashers, at least as domestic fixtures, are more recent and were made able to tell you what was going on in them from the start.

Second, dishwasher tablets are horrible things compared with laundry detergent: they contain abrasives as well as detergents. If you think what happens to a plastic beaker or melamine bowl if you put it in the dishwasher, it's not hard to imagine how long a window would remain transparent. (I recently got a new dishwasher and it's already stripped the paint off two of my saucepans.)

Third, even if your clothes are seriously filthy, the water swishing around inside a washing machine isn't anything like as horrible as what's swishing around inside a dishwasher, as anyone will know who has ever had a container turn itself right-side-up in the wash and come out full of dishwasher water. Being able to see your dishes being washed would put you off your lunch. SpoilheapSurfer