A dishwasher cleans the dishes but never cleans itself. Grease, food, and limescale build up in the filter, the door seal, and the spray arms, and then the machine washes the dishes with dirty water. A monthly cleaning takes thirty minutes, most of it waiting for the cycles to run, and it is the difference between spotless dishes and cloudy glasses.
White vinegar, baking soda, a toothbrush, and a cloth. No bleach — bleach and vinegar together make dangerous fumes, and bleach damages stainless steel tubs. No dishwasher cleaner tablets are needed: vinegar and baking soda do the same job for pennies.
Empty it and remove the racks. Take the dishes out and pull the racks out. A rack in the way hides the filter and the spray arms you need to reach.
Clean the filter. Twist the filter out from the bottom of the tub, rinse it under running water, and scrub it with a toothbrush. A clogged filter is the most common reason dishes come out dirty — the dishes not cleaning guide starts with the same filter.
Wipe the door seal. Wipe the rubber door seal with a damp cloth, getting into the folds. Mold and food hide in the folds of the seal, and that is where most dishwasher smells come from.
Clear the spray arms. Poke a toothpick into the holes of the spray arms to clear the food stuck in them. A blocked hole means one corner of the rack never gets washed — and a blocked drain means the water never leaves, as the dishwasher not draining guide explains.
Run a vinegar cycle. Put a cup of white vinegar on the top rack and run an empty hot cycle. The vinegar dissolves the grease and the limescale. Run it empty — dishes in the machine dilute the vinegar and the cycle does nothing.
Run a baking soda cycle. Sprinkle a cup of baking soda on the bottom of the tub and run a short hot cycle. The baking soda deodorizes and finishes the cleaning. When the cycle ends, leave the door open for an hour to dry the tub.
A smell means the filter or the seal is dirty — clean both, and the smell goes with them. A white film on the glasses means hard water: the vinegar cycle dissolves it, and rinse aid in the dispenser keeps it from coming back. A leak is a different problem from dirt — the dishwasher leaking guide covers which leak you have and whether it is a DIY fix.
Deep clean monthly. Clean the filter weekly if you run the dishwasher every day — it takes a minute under the tap. Wipe the seal when you wipe the counters. A dishwasher that is cleaned monthly lasts longer and washes better than one that is never cleaned at all.
No, unless the manual says so — and never with vinegar. Bleach and vinegar together make dangerous fumes, and bleach damages stainless steel tubs. Vinegar and baking soda do the job safely.
Food in the filter or mold in the door seal. Clean the filter, wipe the seal, and run the vinegar cycle — the smell goes with the dirt.
Usually hard water film or a clogged filter. The vinegar cycle dissolves the film; cleaning the filter restores the wash. Rinse aid in the dispenser keeps the film from coming back.
Yes, weekly if you run the dishwasher daily. The filter catches the food the spray arms wash off, and a full filter sends that food back onto the dishes.