The Proper Use of the Dishwasher

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Proper Use of the Dishwasher

Dishwashers are one of the most hardworking home appliances. On a daily basis, they do the heavy lifting in our kitchen and work overtime. Taking us through holidays and major family gatherings.

Everyone has their own method of loading the dishwasher, and everyone thinks theirs is the best way to do it. However, there are some key things that every sparkling clean load has in common. You can find the best way to load your dishwater and that is up to you based on the layout and size of the dishwasher.

But, some good tips to start you off correctly:

Secure all plastics. If you don't, blasts of water may cause these pieces to flip over and fill with water, or worse, fall onto an exposed heating element (if your model has one) and melt.
Never stack items. The water spray won't be able to reach (or clean) the dish that's on top. Our best rule of thumb: If the water can't reach it, it won't get clean.
Always separate your stainless steel and silver (or silver-plated) flatware. If the two types touch in the wash, a reaction may occur and the silver could pit.

You might have heard that it’s a no-no to move dirty plates directly from the table to the washer—that caked-on food won’t completely come off during the cycle, right? Dishwashers main purpose is to rinse and sanitize the dish ware, doing what you may not be able to do.

Dishwashers perform their best when the hot water is 120 degrees Fahrenheit, the optimal temperature to dissolve food stains. However, a sanitizing cycle, the water should reach temperatures between 140 degrees and 145 degrees Fahrenheit, and a sanitize wash must use an extended hot-water rinse and reach at least 150 degrees Fahrenheit to kill germs and eat away at bacteria found on your cookware. The hotter the water gets, the bigger and better sanitization quality you’ll get.

The main thing many people dread after cooking up a storm is the aftermath — washing the stack of pots and plates lying in the sink. Not only does hand-washing your dishes take up a lot of time and effort, you also have to worry about broken plates and being in constant contact with gross scraps of food. Use your dishwasher correctly and love it for doing what it is doing for you.