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Lab Assistant
Original Poster
#1 Old 25th Oct 2018 at 1:51 AM
Default Any mod to fix Sims crowding around the dishwasher after eating?
So, when you have sims eat together, they finish their meal about the same time, and they all crowd around the dishwasher and then they'll wash dishes in the bathroom, unless you have a "no dishes sink."
Aside from that modded sink, was there ever kind of Mod that helped with this issue? Any way to "delay" a Sim getting up to wash their dish right away? Or a mod to force a Sim to move away from the dishwasher when done?
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Lab Assistant
Original Poster
#2 Old 22nd Aug 2019 at 12:28 AM
Bumping.
Test Subject
#3 Old 7th Jan 2020 at 6:58 AM Last edited by Winga2rd : 16th Jan 2020 at 4:52 AM.
I could always turn off auto cleanup after eating and that would more or less work around the silliness of running the dishwasher every time at least one dish is put in it Upsers .
Mad Poster
#4 Old 7th Jan 2020 at 9:59 AM
For me, part of the game play is micro-management and re-direction. After a meal, I will have tasks queued up for the Sims so that one is doing dishes, one goes to the bathroom, others walk somewhere else or do something else, so they can return later to go to the bathroom (another place where Sims seem to crowd).

Addicted to The Sims since 2000.
Lab Assistant
Original Poster
#5 Old 5th Jul 2020 at 1:33 AM Last edited by Daleylife : 5th Jul 2020 at 9:16 PM.
Anyone know where I can get a cloned dishwasher without modifications that I can work with in iffpenicil 2? A modder sent me steps on how to do this, but I need an object (.iff) to do it with. I can only find Sims resource dishwashers that are all flashy.

EDIT: I just extracted the dishwashers using farout. But, I am having a lot of trouble trying to mod the object...
Test Subject
#6 Old 9th Aug 2021 at 1:12 AM
I'd be interested in a mod so that they don't pile up in front of the dishwasher. Sometimes they do not leave in front of him and leave the dishes on the floor.
Lab Assistant
Original Poster
#7 Old 17th Aug 2021 at 5:16 AM Last edited by Daleylife : 17th Aug 2021 at 9:22 PM.
Ecactly @simsgat

Someone assisted me in a discord to force Sims to walk away immediately after using the dishwasher, but it did not help.

EDIT: I meant, the mod did not work. I followed their instructions and they were stumped "It should work."

If anyone can hack a dishwasher and do that, it would really really help.
Top Secret Researcher
#8 Old 17th Aug 2021 at 5:41 PM
In large households, I buy TWO dishwashers, separated by a plain counter, which cuts down on the crowds around a single one.

I've made some mods for The Sims 1 -- yes, The Sims ONE :-) -- which you can find at http://corylea.com/Sims1ModsByCorylea.html
Lab Assistant
Original Poster
#9 Old 17th Aug 2021 at 9:25 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Corylea
In large households, I buy TWO dishwashers, separated by a plain counter, which cuts down on the crowds around a single one.


Yeah, I mean, there is a 'solution', but we shouldn't need to do that. I'm hoping someone can be nice enough to make a mod.

In principle, it makes sense that if a Sim is using an object that others will want to use fairly soon, they would finish and walk away, you know? Instead they have the idle animation right in front of the dishwasher.

I have a sink also, and while a sim may finally move to the sink to wash a dish, they don't always. I'm honestly surprised the devs never noticed this.
Top Secret Researcher
#10 Old 18th Aug 2021 at 3:06 AM Last edited by Corylea : 18th Aug 2021 at 7:00 PM.
Quote: Originally posted by Daleylife
Someone assisted me in a discord to force Sims to walk away immediately after using the dishwasher, but it did not help.

EDIT: I meant, the mod did not work. I followed their instructions and they were stumped "It should work."

Who did you talk to, and what did they tell you to do? I've never used Discord, so I didn't realize there was a place where we could get advice in making Sims 1 mods; I've been working all by my lonesome.

Quote: Originally posted by Daleylife
If anyone can hack a dishwasher and do that, it would really really help.

I was working on a different mod, so I couldn't look at the dishwasher until today. I didn't know how to do it when I started, but after fiddling with it for several hours, I've managed to get the sims to walk two steps away from the dishwasher. While I was there, I also hacked it to break less and to have a better room score, because I already knew how to do THOSE things, so why not? :-)

You can find it at http://corylea.com/Sims%201%20Less%...Dishwasher.html.

If you have a large family, some sims will still become impatient and will wash dishes in the sink. How long they wait before choosing a new object to wash their dish isn't a property of the dishwasher, so I couldn't fix it just by hacking the dishwasher.

Edited to add: Since sims wash their dishes in the sink if someone is using the dishwasher, I've also made a version of the kitchen sink that forces sims to take a step or two away from the sink instead of blocking it. (The sink also breaks a lot less than the regular sink.) The sink download is on the same page as the dishwasher and is installed the same way.

I hope you'll like this!

I've made some mods for The Sims 1 -- yes, The Sims ONE :-) -- which you can find at http://corylea.com/Sims1ModsByCorylea.html
Lab Assistant
Original Poster
#11 Old 19th Aug 2021 at 1:12 AM
Quote: Originally posted by Corylea
Who did you talk to, and what did they tell you to do? I've never used Discord, so I didn't realize there was a place where we could get advice in making Sims 1 mods; I've been working all by my lonesome.


I was working on a different mod, so I couldn't look at the dishwasher until today. I didn't know how to do it when I started, but after fiddling with it for several hours, I've managed to get the sims to walk two steps away from the dishwasher. While I was there, I also hacked it to break less and to have a better room score, because I already knew how to do THOSE things, so why not? :-)

You can find it at http://corylea.com/Sims%201%20Less%...Dishwasher.html.

If you have a large family, some sims will still become impatient and will wash dishes in the sink. How long they wait before choosing a new object to wash their dish isn't a property of the dishwasher, so I couldn't fix it just by hacking the dishwasher.

Edited to add: Since sims wash their dishes in the sink if someone is using the dishwasher, I've also made a version of the kitchen sink that forces sims to take a step or two away from the sink instead of blocking it. (The sink also breaks a lot less than the regular sink.) The sink download is on the same page as the dishwasher and is installed the same way.

I hope you'll like this!


THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU! Oh my gosh. Very kind of you to spend the time to figure this out and help out! I spoke to two people. First person I do not want to mention by name. They sent me a guide but when I struggled, I got a "This is so easy!" You know, it didn't feel good to be mocked instead of help.

I then spoke to Rhys, who is the dev of "FreeSO" . Turns out the guide I was sent was indeed missing steps and he showed me what to do there. With the guide, I tried to edit the behavior of the dishwasher with iffpencil. (Have the sims walk away after use.) I managed to get it in the game but the dishwasher did not behave any differently, despite the code being different. It's possible I missed something but I thought I followed his instructions to a tee. But I am thankful again that you did this. Now a major annoyance is gone! I only want one dishwasher in the starter house! lol.
Top Secret Researcher
#12 Old 19th Aug 2021 at 2:21 AM
@Daleylife, you're very welcome!

Unfortunately, the sims still become impatient if the person ahead of them in line at the dishwasher takes more than a second or two to use it. So I have managed to make the sim using the dishwasher take a step or two away and not block access to it, but the sims still run all over the house washing dishes in ridiculous places, because they're too impatient to wait their turn.

I'll be looking at this and seeing if I can figure out where this behavior is coming from and what file I need to alter to adjust it. We'll see.

I just started modding The Sims 1 about a year ago, so I'm still learning. But every new thing I make gives me something new to figure out, so I should learn enough to be able to do cool stuff one of these days. :-)

I've made some mods for The Sims 1 -- yes, The Sims ONE :-) -- which you can find at http://corylea.com/Sims1ModsByCorylea.html
Lab Assistant
Original Poster
#13 Old 19th Aug 2021 at 3:30 AM
@Corylea

I want to start by saying I am very happy you made this. It's a lifesaver. As you mention a few issues with it, just wanted to share my experience: In my use of the mod just this short while-- in a smaller house with three sims, it works perfectly well. Have yet to have a second Sim grow inpatient and wash the dish elsewhere. Now, you mention the sims 'running all over' to wash dishes. From what I've seen, it appears the modded dishwasher has higher priority or something like that. It wasn't multiple sims who were finished eating and getting impatient, it was one sim who just wanted to use your dishwasher no matter what. They had an unmodded sink and an unmodded dishwasher in the same room and yours was a ways away on the lot and they would use yours. Whatever the cause, I am glad you are looking at it though. And I mean at the end of the day, this still helps me a ton and I know others will like it too.
Top Secret Researcher
#14 Old 19th Aug 2021 at 6:02 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Daleylife
In my use of the mod just this short while-- in a smaller house with three sims, it works perfectly well. Have yet to have a second Sim grow inpatient and wash the dish elsewhere. Now, you mention the sims 'running all over' to wash dishes. From what I've seen, it appears the modded dishwasher has higher priority or something like that. It wasn't multiple sims who were finished eating and getting impatient, it was one sim who just wanted to use your dishwasher no matter what. They had an unmodded sink and an unmodded dishwasher in the same room and yours was a ways away on the lot and they would use yours.


@Daleylife, I tested the mod in a household with eight sims, and 2 sims used the dishwasher, 2 sims washed their dishes in the nearby kitchen sink, and the rest of them headed for the bathrooms, to wash their dishes in the bathroom sinks. So my sims used the sinks just fine and did not seem to use the dishwasher to the exclusion of all else.

I have not changed the advertising of the dishwasher; it's exactly the same as in the unmodded dishwasher.

I can think of three possible explanations for why you're seeing different behavior than I am:

1. Sims can be whimsical. They sometimes do strange things for no good reason. :-)

2. It's possible that my increasing the room score of the dishwasher has convinced your sim that the modded dishwasher is "better" than the unmodded one. I've made a version of the dishwasher with the room score changed back to zero and uploaded it to the same page as the first version; you can try that one and see if you like it any better. Both dishwashers have the same GUID, so you can only use one of them; don't try to use both.

3. The sims in my test household had Active scores of 7. It's possible that less active sims are really keen to use the dishwasher, because washing dishes in the sink is too much work. :-)

Anyway, that's all I plan to do with this dishwasher. I've done what I was originally asked to do -- make the sims move away from the dishwasher after using it. My sims are not performing the behavior you're reporting, so I can't reproduce your problem to test it. I've made a Room Score Zero version for you, in case that's what has them all heading for the modded dishwasher. That's all I can do; I'm done.

I've made some mods for The Sims 1 -- yes, The Sims ONE :-) -- which you can find at http://corylea.com/Sims1ModsByCorylea.html
Lab Assistant
Original Poster
#15 Old 19th Aug 2021 at 9:13 PM
@Coreylea I did some more testing in another household and it appears Sims are drawn to dishwashers in general. There's a distance threshold apparently independent from your mod. Unless I put a dishwasher on a tile a certain distance away on the house 'map', a Sim would want to use it, unmodded or modded.

Now maybe there are other factors at play but it looks like it wasn't your mod after all. Thanks again for making it and I can get modded doors to prevent Sims from using appliances I don't want them to use.
Top Secret Researcher
#16 Old 19th Aug 2021 at 9:28 PM
Quote: Originally posted by Daleylife
@Coreylea I did some more testing in another household and it appears Sims are drawn to dishwashers in general. There's a distance threshold apparently independent from your mod. Unless I put a dishwasher on a tile a certain distance away on the house 'map', a Sim would want to use it, unmodded or modded.

Now maybe there are other factors at play but it looks like it wasn't your mod after all. Thanks again for making it and I can get modded doors to prevent Sims from using appliances I don't want them to use.


No, I don't think it's my mod. The dish-washing advertising is 100 for dishwashers, 30 for kitchen sinks, and 10 for bathroom sinks, and I didn't change this in my mod. Maxis did this deliberately so that sims would preferentially use dishwashers if they had one but could use the other possibilities if necessary.

The Init BHAV of any given object sets the function points of an object, and Maxis sets those so that sims will use objects in ways that make sense. Modders sometimes give their objects ridiculously high function points so that sims will use their object to the exclusion of all else, but I didn't do that; Maxis already set the dishwasher high, because why would you hand-wash your plates when you have a dishwasher? :-)

Of course, in the real world, I hand-wash my nonstick frying pans because the dishwasher is hard on the nonstick surface, but the sims never have to wash cooking utensils; in the sims' world, those things just vanish. :-)

I've made some mods for The Sims 1 -- yes, The Sims ONE :-) -- which you can find at http://corylea.com/Sims1ModsByCorylea.html
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