Does a second dishwasher cycle wipe out the eco-cycle savings?

I’d scrape off ordinary food and use eco, but I’d choose a stronger program for baked-on or heavily soiled dishes rather than routinely rinsing everything or risking a repeat cycle. For a mixed load with just a couple of stubborn items, I’d still lean toward eco if they can be positioned for good spray coverage; if those items keep coming out dirty, the stronger setting may be the better trade-off.

You mention positioning stubborn items for good spray coverage. How would you balance waiting until you have a fuller load with leaving enough space between dishes for the water to reach them?

I’d wait for a fuller load only while the dishes can still be arranged with clear paths for water to reach them. A tightly packed rack may use the space, but it can undermine cleaning - especially for the stubborn items you mentioned. If adding more dishes means blocking spray access or nesting items together, I’d run a smaller, well-spaced load instead.

If a load needs another wash, I’d first check whether dishes were nested or blocking spray access. If they were well spaced and the same heavily soiled items still come out dirty, I’d lean toward choosing a stronger program next time rather than rerunning eco.

If everything was clean except one or two stubborn pieces, I wouldn’t assume the whole load needs another cycle. I’d set those aside and, next time, give them better spray access or choose a stronger program if the residue is baked on. If several similarly soiled dishes keep coming out dirty despite being well spaced, that would make a program change seem more worthwhile.