We run it pretty much every day for our family of four. A couple days per week we have a big cooking/baking day or have a party when it gets run 2 or 3 times.

Pretty much EVERYTHING goes into the dishwasher and no pre-washing. Bosch rocks!

OP, I think my family outruns yours.
2 adults and 2 elementary school kids. We run DW at least 1-2 times a day, on weekends even more. With my parents visiting with us, it is now more like 2-3 times a day. We only wash by hands utility knives, and pots that have plastic handles, the rest goes to the DW (for the same reason that some people mentioned - efficiency). We cook a lot from scratch (and therefore use a number of dishes), take our lunches with us (lots of containers), and always use a set of knife, fork and spoon, and plates for every type of meal, even kids. This is why we go through a lot of DW use.
So, why do you think you have a problem?

The critical question is what brand of DW you have. We have a Bosch. Love it for a lot of things (hate it for a few), but the biggest difference between it and an American dishwasher is the size. European dishwashers are smaller inside and fit fewer dishes. As a result, we have to run it every day; very rarely twice a day for a family of four (three of whom eat three meals a day here).

Anonymous wrote:

13 year old DW is too old for a young child and all the food prep you do.

This really set me back for a moment. Then I realized that "DW" was dishwasher.

PP here: OK got my laugh of the day! Thanks!

Family of six, we run it once a day. Sometimes when I cook a lot all day I have to run it twice.

I am one of the previous posters who said running current dishwasher is more energy efficient than washing by hand, and I would just like to echo the people who have pointed out that you need to load it properly.

That's not a skill my soulmate has. Luckily I am not the sort to brood or seethe about that sort of thing.

13 year old DW is too old for a young child and all the food prep you do.

This really set me back for a moment. Then I realized that "DW" was dishwasher.

Anonymous wrote:2 adults and 2 toddlers. When only 2 adults, we ran it twice/week. When the kids arrived, we did a load every day because I wanted to run the bottles through the dishwasher for better cleaning and more exposure to hot water. We ran it once every night. The toddlers are now transitioning to sippy cups so our bottle usage has dropped alot. We now run it every other night except for times like this week when we have a family member visiting and we're using more dishes, so back to every night. When she leaves, we'll be back to every other night.

Forgot to add, I made much of their baby food and even when I was making the food, it was still only one load per day. I won't put my good knives in the dishwasher. It's bad for the blade and edge. I cook in a pot and hand wash that. I hand wash my food processor bowl and parts (you are not supposed to wash the blades in the dishwasher, not good for the blade and edge). So, it really did not change the contents of my dishwasher loads much.

Old dishwashers dont fit less, but cheaper ones do. Higher end dishwashers have sophisticated racks that let you fit tons. But this generally applies for standard dishes and glasses. Things like strainers and icecube trays will always take up lots of space as they are awkwardly shaped.

Agree that dishwashers are more efficient than handwashing a whole load. Just dont rush an extra load to wash two pots because you dont feel like hand washing them.

We are a family of 4 (toddler and preschool). We do one load most days. Could probably do every other day more often, but we dont own that many dishes so sometimes i run on the extra small load setting so we have clean coffee mugs in the morning and cereal bowls.

2 adults and 2 toddlers. When only 2 adults, we ran it twice/week. When the kids arrived, we did a load every day because I wanted to run the bottles through the dishwasher for better cleaning and more exposure to hot water. We ran it once every night. The toddlers are now transitioning to sippy cups so our bottle usage has dropped alot. We now run it every other night except for times like this week when we have a family member visiting and we're using more dishes, so back to every night. When she leaves, we'll be back to every other night.

2 adults and 1 toddler: we run it anywhere from every other day up to 2 times a day
I almost always bring lunch and we pack 2 meals plus at least 1 snack for our todder each day (3-4 plastic containers for toddler, plus 1-2 for me and possibly another 2 for DH).
Pots and pans are washed by hand as well as large bowls that are easy to clean. A lot of cooking = a lot of dishes (potentially). We generally don't eat out, so there are dishes from dinner every night and usually 3 sets of dishes each day on the weekend. We try to get as much in as possible before turning it on.

2 adults and 1 toddler. We run it every other day. We did run it twice on thanksgiving. I handwash pots and pans though.

Anonymous wrote:Running a dishwasher actually more energy and water efficient than hand washing dishes. If you are generating enough dishes for three loads, just run the dishwasher.

My thoughts exactly.

Family of five every other day.

OP: once a day, or every 2 days. Here is what I found: Dishwashers are a standard size on the outside, but the interior/space design of newer/better brands is used better and holds MUCH more. I kept wondering with the old dishwasher (Kenmore) that came with my house, why it would only hold a few things. Try a new dish washer (we have GE) and you will find there is room for much more, and it gets MUCH cleaner. 13 year old DW is too old for a young child and all the food prep you do. Plenty of room for the cutting boards, large pans, ect. With 2 kids and lots of home cooked food, I am not doing a lot of hand washing of the dishes ! Good luck.