I agree that I won't run it unless mostly full or special circumstances (going to cook a lot or have lots of people over) but I don't understand how small households don't use the dishwasher! Assuming you are eating most meals at home we (2 people) run the dishwasher about daily on average. Between pots, pans, food containers and plates I find it full up quickly. I think people who don't use it are just afraid to put cookware inside. Except for a few particular items you can get almost everything dishwasher-safe these days.

And even if you do have a period between cooking where it does sit for a few days running a dishwasher even a quarter full uses less water, power and soap than washing by hand. So doing that occasionally if it is starting to smell isn't an issue.