Inside: Is your dishwasher not running properly? Give it a quick tune-up and help it run like new. Check out these simple tips to make your dishwasher run like new.
Dishwashers are amazing little appliances. Put your dirty dishes in them every night after dinner and you can wake up to clean and dry dishes.
It's the kind of thing you really get used to and take for granted until the dishwasher breaks.
Last year our dishwasher broke and I spent a week hand washing dishes. It's not bad, but there are other ways I would prefer to spend my time.
To make sure our new dishwasher lasts as long as possible I am trying to give it a regular dishwasher tune-up.
If your dishwasher isn't cleaning properly or you just want to prolong the life of your dishwasher check out these simple tips to make your dishwasher run like new.
Doing a little dishwasher maintenance will help keep your dishwasher running longer.
Simple Tips To Keep Your Dishwasher Running Like New
Giving your dishwasher a deep clean and a tune-up won't take much of your time, however, you will need to run it through a deep cycle.
You won't want to start doing this when you have a sink full of dishes.
Give your dishwasher some maintenance on a day that you have your dishes done and the time to run it once or twice.
You will also need a few things to really get it clean.
- Vinegar
- Vinegar Gel (you can make your own or buy on amazon)
- Citric Acid (I usually buy from amazon)
Once you have everything together it's time to get started.
We will get our dishwashers clean from food particles, grease, and limescale buildup!
Get Rid Of Food Particles & Grease
Even if you pre-clean your dishes before putting them in the dishwasher your machine properly has some food particles and grease in it.
I am always amazed at what I find in ours. Last week when I cleaned it I found a chickpea and we haven't had chickpeas in a few weeks.
The dishwasher is good at cleaning but not removing food, especially large bits of food.
Plus, grease from foods can trap in your filters causing problems with drainage from your dishwasher.
Take a few minutes every month or so to clean out your dishwasher filters. It's one of those easy dishwasher maintenance tips you don't want to forget to do.
Remove any food or debris that is on the filters.
Then, use some dish soap (I prefer Dawn) and an old toothbrush to remove any grease or grime that is on the filters. Rinse the filters off after cleaning.
If you have hard water I recommend soaking the filters in vinegar for about an hour to clean off any limescale or calcium build up on the filters.
Then, put the filters back in place. Now that they are clean they will help filter and clean the water better to keep your dishwasher running like new.
Clean The Spray Arms
Depending on how hard your water is or if you pre-wash your dishes your spray arms can be so gross.
To really give the arms a deep clean I recommend removing them and letting them soak in a mix of water and vinegar. Add a few squirts of Dawn soap to the mixture to help break up any grease.
Removing the spray arms doesn't take a lot of work, however, each dishwasher is different so you will want to look up how to do that based on what style you have.
You can see a simple way to remove most spray arms here.
Once they have soaked for about 30 minutes rinse the spray arms and reattach.
If you don't want to remove the spray arms then I recommend at least checking to make sure they are free from hard water build-up.
You can always add a small amount of vinegar gel to the areas where the water comes out of the arms to break up any limescale deposits. Let the vinegar gel sit for about 20 minutes and then wipe it off.
This will help clean off the spray arms and keep your dishwasher run like new.
Remove Buildup From Seals & Vent
The seals and vents around the dishwasher can easily get buildup on them from limescale and calcium.
To clean the seals I recommend using the vinegar gel. Just take an old toothbrush and apply vinegar gel over the seal. Let it sit for about 10-15 minutes and give a little scrub.
Then, let it sit for about another 10 minutes and clean it off with a damp microfiber cloth.
If you think your vent is clogged with hard water buildup then I recommend cleaning it out. Check your owner's manual for how to remove and clean the vent.
If you notice your dishwasher not drying the dishes all the way on the drying cycle you may have a clogged vent.
By cleaning your seals regularly and keeping your vent free from clogs you can help your dishwasher run like new all the time.
Run an Empty Load To Clean
To clean the inside of your dishwasher and keep it free from grease and hard water stains I recommend running an empty load every month or so.
You can get rid of hard water stains by adding a 1/4 -1/2 cup of citric acid to the dishwasher.
Fill up the soap dispenser with the citric acid and then put the rest of it in the dishwasher.
Then, run the dishwasher on the energy saving load.
If you don't want to use citric acid you can also buy a dishwasher cleaner, but I have found citric acid to be the cheapest and the best for removing hard water.
Once it is done running then open the door and let the dishwasher air dry. This simple dishwasher maintenance tip will help keep your dishwasher running like new for years.
Mix Up The Settings Occasionally
If your dishwasher is anything like mine it probably has 8 million different settings. Most people tend to just use a few.
Every once in a while mix up the settings that you use. For example, mine has a bottle wash setting that I tend to forget about. If I don't use it every month or so hard water and food particles can clog where the water comes out.
By running the different settings occasionally you are keeping them from becoming unusable from not using them.
It doesn't have to take a lot of time to do some easy dishwasher maintenance. Keep your dishwasher running like new with these easy tricks.
Want some other easy cleaning tips? Check out how to remove water stains from stainless steel appliances.
Terri says
Thanks for the dishwasher cleaning tips.
I would like to add a tip :
Every month or so after I have cleaned the filters, I run the machine free of dishes, but add white vinegar and bicobonate of soda, which mousses up and clears limescale and cleans the whole inside for a very small price and natural products.