How To Clean A Dishwasher

There are times when you need to know how to clean a dishwasher, although generally a dishwasher will keep itself pretty clean (at least on the inside) at the same time it cleans your dishes.

Photo courtesy of anamoly23

Cleaning The Outside Of The Dishwasher

To clean the exterior of your dishwasher use a clean, damp sponge with a mild detergent. After washing, make sure to rinse with a clean sponge to remove any soap residue.

When cleaning the outside of your dishwasher make sure you do not use too much water, or spray a cleaner directly on the controls, because you could wet down the controls or electronic portions of the machine causing damage.

Using Vinegar To Clean The Inside Of Your Dishwasher

Typically, what needs to be cleaned inside a dishwasher is the residue of hardwater which builds up with extended use.

The easiest way to do this is to use white vinegar. Vinegar is acidic in nature, and will naturally break down alkaline hard water deposits.

With an empty dishwasher, place a bowl or cup filled with vinegar in the top rack and run it empty, WITHOUT detergent.

If you do this every couple of months you will keep hardwater deposits from building up in your dishwasher.

Removing Detergent Stains From The Inside Door Of Your Dishwasher

If you get a stain on the inside door of your dishwasher, looking like it is dripping down from your detergent dispenser, this is a sure sign that you are using too much dishwasher detergent each time you run your dishwasher.

To avoid this problem in the future cut back on the amount of detergent used. You really don't need to fill the dispenser all the way to the top. Experiment with what works best for your dishwasher, but 1/2 to 3/4 full should be sufficient.

To get the detergent stain out now, if the vinegar does not work, try rubbing the area with a sponge sprinkled with the same automatic dishwasher detergent causing the stain, and it should come out.

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