Pre-sort to Save Time

[rgsparber]

One of my least favorite chores is putting away the silverware. The only way to make it less distasteful is to shorten the time. This article explains how pre-sorting the forks and spoons lets me get back to my shop quicker.

No, I have not lost my mind. This pre-sorting technique works just as well in the shop as we sort, for example, fasteners.

If you are interested, please see

https://rick.sparber.org/presorting.pdf

Your comments are welcome. All of us are smarter than any one of us.


Thanks,

Rick

[mklotz]

I do something similar with a variation dictated by the fact that the cooking flatware is kept in a different drawer than the table flatware. Since I'm the one who loads the dishwasher most times it works well. However my wife is allergic to any form of organization so when she "helps" the system falters a bit.

Sorting is a classic and very important problem in the world of computer programming. Numerous, ever faster algorithms have been developed. If you want to jump down that rabbit hole, a good start is here...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sorting_algorithm

These algorithms are for list sorting, e.g. alphabetizing a list whereas our problem is more of a heap sorting problem. Rather than ordering the flatware by size or color, we want to create heaps of knives, forks, teaspoons, tablespoons, etc.; ordering within the heap is unimportant.

My approach to the boredom of such tasks is to not waste much time on shortening the task time but rather keep an inventory of problems that I can work on mentally while mindlessly sorting, cleaning, polishing, whatever.

[Jon]

Interesting. I admit I intentionally intermix the different kinds of utensils, I guess habitually, to avoid nesting, possibly as a holdover from when utensil caddies lacked the flip-down organizing tops? At least I have progressed to removing the utensil caddy and placing it on the counter above the silverware drawer prior to unloading it. I still see people fail to do this.

I am also curious about utensil caddy placement in the dishwasher door. I wonder if this is gimmicky, or if there is real utility in the ability to load utensils without pulling out the bottom drawer, and this will be the standard going forward (like the third top drawer/tray for large utensils).

[rgsparber]

Marv,

I hope you know me well enough to realize I love "rabbit holes"! Very entertaining read.

Thanks,

Rick

[mklotz]

Marv,

I hope you know me well enough to realize I love "rabbit holes"! Very entertaining read.

Thanks,

Rick

Absolutely. A good technical rabbit hole, especially one rich in mathematics, is something to be slowly savored like a good cigar and an old brandy. I'll see if I can find some other juicy ones.

[Frank S]

I do miss having a dishwasher even though of the houses that I have lived in where I had a dishwasher we almost never used them for washing dishes. there were a lot of other things I found them useful for. like washing athletic gear my caps that I wear. and don't tell the misses some of my tools and parts

[DIYer]

Thanks Rick! We've added your Presorting Method to our Storage and Organization category, as well as to your builder page: Rick's Homemade Tools. Your receipt:

Presorting Method by Rick Sparber

tags: sorting