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| How to Clean a Dishwasher – How to Clean Easy |
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| How to Clean a Dishwasher |
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| Dishwasher manufactures tell us that the inside of dishwashers should not need cleaning---after all, it is constantly being cleaned as you wash your dishes. |
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| You know better. There is a slimy feeling on the walls or door gasket of your dishwasher---or there is something black "growing" at the bottom of the dishwasher by the drain---or it doesn't smell very nice---or there is a white coating on the heating element (even manufacturers acknowledge this one as common). |
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| What do you do? |
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| The first thing is to try to prevent as much of this as possible: |
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| 1) Be sure your water is coming into the dishwasher at a minimum of 120°; 140° is even better. If your water heater is a long ways from your dishwasher, before you turn on the dishwasher you may need to run the water into the sink until the required temperature is reached. If the water is not hot enough, the detergent (even gel detergents) won't completely dissolve, and you get the slimy feeling on the walls and gasket of your dishwasher. You also foster the growth of bacteria and mold or mildew in your dishwasher. |
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| 2) Be sure you are using the right kind of dishwashing detergent. Manufacturers usually recommend using certain brands. That is because they have tested those brands in their machines, so they know they will work. Others may do fine, but they haven't been tested. |
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| 3) Be sure you are using the right amount of dishwashing detergent. Ironically using either too much or too little can cause similar problems. The amount you need depends on the hardness of your water, not the amount of food left on your dishes. |
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| Okay, you've got all that under control. Now, how do you clean the dishwasher? |
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| Problem 1: Slimy feeling on walls and gasket ---Use good old soap and water (yes, soap to clean soap residue!) and clean away. Be sure to rinse well. If you don't you may have suds coming out from around the door the next time you use the dishwasher! |
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| Problem 2: Something black "growing" by the grates at the bottom of the dishwasher ---You have a mold problem. This is also what causes a bad odor to "grow" in the dishwasher. The mold is caused by food particles not getting fully pushed through the drain hose when the dishwasher drains. The drain hose is corrugated, and bits of food particles can sometimes collect on the ridges and in the valleys of the corrugation. Given the right circumstances, this can cause a gradual buildup inside the hose, just like cholesterol in our arteries. The presence of moisture and lack of sunlight in the hose allows mold to grow on these food particles. You will want to remove the grates at the bottom or back of your dishwasher (usually removing just a couple of screws will do it) and clean with bleach water (a cup of bleach in a gallon of water) as far down as you can reach. After you have done that, replace the grate, put the rest of the bleach water in the bottom of the dishwasher and run a regular cycle (no dishes, please!). Why not just put the bleach water in and run the cycle? Because that will kill the mold, but will not remove its build-up. You want to remove the build-up first, as far as you can reach---it's easier to remove when it's live. Then kill what's left in the drain. |
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| If your problem was serious enough, you may want to replace your drain hose, too. |
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| Problem 3: Brown spots on the door gasket ---This is mildew. Mildew can also cause a stale odor in the dishwasher. Use the bleach water recipe to clean the gasket, and then run the rest of the bleach water through a cycle, just as for Problem 2. |
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| Problem 4: White coating on the heating element ---This is a build up of minerals, mostly from your water. You may have heard people recommend putting TANG® Drink Mix in the dishwasher and running it through a cycle. This does work to help remove the calcium from the heating element. That is because there is citric acid in TANG®. However, the sugar in it may contribute to other problems you have been trying to clear up. So why not just use plain citric acid---what an idea! You can often buy the crystals in a drug store or in the canning section of the grocery store---it is used for making jelly with a fruit that does not have enough acid in it to allow it to jell. Fill the dispenser cup with the crystals (3--4 ounces), and run a cycle. If the build-up is unusually thick, you may need to do this a second time. |
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| So, now you have a clean dishwasher! How do you keep it that way? After all, who wants to have to go through all of those steps every so often? The best thing to do is occasionally run it empty with a cup of white vinegar and a cup of baking soda. How often depends on your water quality, how often you use your dishwasher, how much food you leave on your plates, etc. |
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| Mmmm—Mmmm. What a pleasure to have your dishwasher looking and smelling nice and clean! |
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| Thank you to Mary Lou Derksen for this “How to Clean a Dishwasher” article. |
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