If you pull dirty dishes out of the dishwasher, don’t blame the appliance just yet. Several common mistakes cause poor cleaning performance. Overpacking racks block water jets from hitting surfaces fully. Using the wrong detergents prevents the activation of cleaning suds. Skipping pre-rinsing lets food bake on. Failure to regularly wipe out interior grease buildup reduces spray power over time. Luckily, the solutions are simple. Just rinse dishes beforehand, leave breathing room on racks, choose dishwasher-formulated detergents, and clean the filter monthly. Understanding these quick fixes helps your dishwasher work like new again. Give your machine a little TLC and it will give you sparkling clean dishes in return.
Common Mistakes That Keep Dishes Dirty
It’s frustrating when you run the dishwasher only to pull out plates still covered in food bits or glasses streaked with soap scum. Often, it’s just a few minor mistakes that stop your dishwasher from living up to its full cleaning potential. Let’s examine the top issues to check if your dishes aren’t getting cleaned properly.
1. Forgetting to Rinse the Dishes First
Why is rinsing dishes first so important for your dishwasher? When sticky foods or dried-on grease get baked on by the heat and moisture of the dishwasher, they become almost impossible to remove. Just a quick rinse before loading makes a huge difference.
Focus on gently rubbing off any chunks or heavily soiled areas with your fingers under lukewarm water. Pay special attention to dishes with dried egg, cheese, pasta sauce, or fatty and oily foods. The small amount of effort upfront saves your dishwasher from having to work much harder to clean those dishes.
2. Using the Wrong Type of Detergent
You might not realize it, but not all detergents work the same in the dishwasher. Choosing the wrong kind won’t activate the level of suds and cleaning power needed to get dishes sparkling clean.
First, confirm your detergent is specifically made for dishwashers. Hand-washing detergent and soap won’t cut it because they don’t contain the right ingredients. If you’re unsure which detergent to use, try a basic powder or gel kind made specifically for dishwashers. Liquid gel detergents often don’t activate and suds up as much.
3. Forgetting to Clean the Dishwasher Itself
It’s easy to only think about your dishes when running the dishwasher. But did you know the dishwasher itself needs cleaning every month or so? Not doing this allows grease, chunks of food, soap scum, and other gunk to build up internally over time.
Focus on wiping down the rubber gaskets, filter, bottom surface, and spray arms with hot sudsy water or an appliance cleaning spray. Remove any debris trapped that could clog key components and reduce cleaning performance. Just those few minutes of dishwasher cleaning maintenance help it run like new.
4. Overfilling and Overpacking the Racks
It’s always tempting to cram in as many dishes and utensils as possible to avoid running the dishwasher more often. But overpacked racks prevent your dishes from getting fully cleaned.
Water needs to reach and make contact with all dish surfaces fully for the best results. Try leaving a bit more space around items. And if things seem crammed in too tight, it likely means you need to run lighter loads more often. It might take longer to work through a backlog, but your dishes will come out considerably cleaner in the end.
5. Not Using the Hot Water Wash Setting
Dishwashers actually rely on very hot water to dissolve, loosen, and cut through stuck-on food debris and oily grease residues. Most machines have specialty cycles and options that boost water heat for this purpose.
If your dishwasher has a steam sanitize, heat dry, temp wash, or other extra hot cycle, you should use it regularly when washing especially dirty loads. The scalding 140°F – 150°F water these settings allow does a tremendously better job cleaning than a standard cycle. Just be cautious of plastics or more delicate items. Reading your manual helps identify which cycle reaches peak heat.
6. Running the Dishwasher at an Inconvenient Time
Believe it or not, when you choose to start your dishwasher, it can impact the cleaning and drying performance. Running dishwashers smack in the middle of quiet nights allows them to finish uninterrupted. Daytime operation fights with disruptive noise and steam.
Loud dishwasher operation is generally disruptive if trying to watch TV, converse, or focus on computer work in nearby rooms. Additionally, letting grimy dishes sit unwashed overnight allows more food residues and oils more time to crust onto plates. For best results, run the dishwasher right after dinner or the last dirty items to get loaded. The heat, humidity, and noise won’t bother sleeping household members as much either.
7. Ignoring the Drain Filter
Many don’t realize dishwashers have a small filter assembly that catches stray food particles during the wash cycle. If this clogs up over time with gunk, it can’t drain properly and reduces cleaning spray power.
Check underneath the bottom rotating spray arm for a small plastic filter piece. Pop it out and thoroughly rinse it off every week or two to keep passages clear. Clogged dishwasher filters are actually a very common reason spray arms struggle to rotate and distribute water forcefully enough.
8. Not Consulting the Instruction Manual
Finally, don’t forget to reference your dishwasher’s use and care manual guide, especially when first using or installing any new machine! Each appliance brand and model has its own cleaning programming quirks and features you should optimize.
Manuals help better understand which cycle options, ideal loading patterns, temperature settings, and detergent amounts suit which dish types and soil levels. Following the customized tips from the manufacturer prevents many cleaning headaches from the start!
Fixing Common Dishwasher Problems
Let’s talk about some easy ways to resolve those common dishwasher mistakes we discussed earlier. Just a few quick fixes can boost the cleaning performance of your machine.
1. Pre-Rinse Dishes Before Loading
Remember all that stuck-on gunk and grease that should be removed from dishes first? Make it a habit to pause and spend 1-2 minutes at the sink before casually loading up dirty plates. First, scrape and rinse any large leftovers into your garbage can. Then, give each item a quick wipe and rub it with warm water before sliding onto the dish racks. This small step prevents so many cleaning headaches!
2. Use the Right Dishwasher Detergent
Be absolutely certain you use a powder, cube, gel, or tablet detergent formulated specifically to activate high suds in dishwashers to obliterate food greases – not ones just for hand washing! Always read the label before pouring or placing any detergent into the dispenser cup. Confirm it’s made for dishwasher use and promises to blast away tough foods. The right soap powers cleaning results!
3. Clean Inside the Dishwasher Too
We’re so focused on cramming dirty dishes inside that we forget dishwashers themselves need cleaning love, too! Don’t just load up plates without first glancing inside the dishwasher tub for any lingering gunk. About once a month, give all the interior surfaces a good wipeout, check the drain filter, and make sure no debris is blocking the spray arms. Keeping the wash environment fresh and debris-free is key so water can be sprayed with maximum force to clean properly.
4. Leave Breathing Room Around Dishes
It’s tempting to cram every plate, spoon, and casserole dish in wall-to-wall. But resist! Water jets blast dishes from multiple angles during the wash cycle. So, leave a bit of breathing room around items for optimal cleaning. Water needs to be able to fully hit and cover all dish surfaces – not just the fronts.
5. Use High-Temperature Settings
If dishes come out still greasy or spotted, try upgrading to a hotter wash setting. High temp, heat dry, steam, and sanitize options. Use scalding water from 105°F – 150°F to dissolve stuck-on foods better. Just avoid plastics and delicate items on the hottest cycles.
6. Run After Evening Meals
Does your dishwasher disrupt your household when running? Adjust when you start cycles. Run overnight or immediately after dinner to finish when people sleep. Quiet operation won’t disturb family evenings together either.
7. Check and Clean the Filter
Clogs stop your dishwasher from draining right. Pop out the filter every week to rinse away any trapped gunk so spray arms engage at full blast every time.
8. Read Up on Your Machine’s Care Tips
Your appliance’s manual outlines the optimal use of each setting and feature. Get the scoop on which detergents, loading patterns, and maintenance boost your model’s cleaning power specifically.
Last Thoughts
We covered a lot of ground on common troubles that can stop dishwashers from wowing us. Let’s recap the big points. What mistakes cause dirty dish grief? Forgetting to rinse first, overpacking racks, using the wrong detergent, and letting grime build up internally over time.
Luckily, the fixes are pretty simple when you know what to focus on! Spend a little effort pre-rinsing before loading. Give dishes room on the racks. Choose detergents made specifically for dishwashers. And take a few minutes monthly to wipe out the gunk. It can be annoying if your dishwasher fails you.
Hopefully, understanding the main pitfalls will allow you to get stellar results again. Dishes should come out sparkling and spotless after a little love and care!