Dishwashers are one of the hardest working appliances in the kitchen! They soak, scrub, and dry our dishes so we don't have to! The least we can do is to keep it functioning efficiently and looking it's best! Follow along for some tried and true cleaning tips that will get your dishwasher sparkling in no time!
Weekly Cleaning:
Once a week, clean the exterior door panel with a soft, damp cloth. Dry thoroughly. For stainless steel exteriors, use a commercial stainless steel cleaner. This will help clean the stainless steel, but also make it shine! The control panel can be wiped down with a soft, damp cloth. Take care not to use too much water as it can damage the panel.
Cleaning the Interior:
Start by taking all of the dishwasher racks out. Clean out the gunk in the spinning arms by using a q-tip or toothpick. Wash the grates on the bottom with soapy water, and clean out the removable filter with warm, soapy water as well. Don't forget about the rubber door seal. This can be cleaned with a damp cloth soaked in vinegar.
For musty odours and hard-to-clean grease and grime, use vinegar! Start with an empty dishwasher, place 1 cup of vinegar in a dishwasher safe container and place in the upper rack of the machine. Run a hot water cycle.
Baking soda also works wonders for odours and grime. Sprinkle 1 cup of baking soda on the bottom of the dishwasher and run a hot water cycle.
Hard to Remove Stains:
We all have those mysterious stains that occasionally show up in our dishwashers! Keep reading to find out how to get rid of these common stains...
Red Stains: Believe it or not, these come from last night's tomato sauce! They can be permanent, but take heart, they will fade over time. To prevent this from happening again, make sure to wash off any tomato based food on your dishes before loading them into the dishwasher.
Brown Stains: These are caused by iron or calcium build-up. To get rid of them, use a simple ingredient found at most grocery stores or health food stores called citric acid. Empty your dishwasher, fill the detergent cup with the citric acid, and run a cycle. You may want to run a second cycle to make sure everything is well cleaned.
Rust Stains: Iron and magnesium can cause dreaded rust stains! It can also come from a rusty water heater or rusty water lines. To remove these stains, try a commercial rust treatment.
More Deep Cleaning:
Mildew: To remove mildew from the dishwasher interior or gasket, mix 1 part chlorine bleach with 10 cups water. Wearing rubber gloves, wipe out with a cloth or sponge. Do not use bleach if you have a stainless steel interior, as it can corrode it. Run a rinse cycle after cleaning it out to remove any leftover bleach.
White Film: Hard minerals in water can cause a white film built-up over time. This is easily removed by using citric acid. Follow the instructions used for brown stains (above) to get rid of this build-up.
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