The dishwasher began to wash dishes poorly - what should I do?
A dishwasher is a wonderful helper in the kitchen; it saves you from hours of labor at the sink, delighting you with the shine of your dishes. For some, the dishwasher works great for years and does not cause problems, while others, after some time, begin to complain that the machine has become worse at washing dishes. What happens to the equipment, why the quality of washing decreases, how to eliminate the malfunction if it occurs. Let's try to deal with these problems.
Causes of poor dishwashing
The quality of washing dishes depends on many factors, which some of us for some reason simply neglect, saying that the dishwasher already washes everything well. However, at first the washing machine will really show excellent results. But gradually, from time to time, you will notice food residues on the dishes, stains or a white coating. The reasons for this may be the following:
- user errors when operating the machine;
- untimely cleaning of the dishwasher and its parts;
- refusal to use special detergents or their incorrect dosage.
Let's take a closer look at these reasons, and also figure out what to do to make the washing machine wash better.
The dishwasher was not cleaned in time
A dishwasher, like any other kitchen appliance, requires constant care. And if this care is not carried out, then it will simply stop functioning. The dishwasher needs to be cleaned regularly:
- filter for food debris;
- coarse filling filter;
- rocker arms (water sprinklers) from blockages
- anti-scale heating element;
- plaque tank.
The filter located at the bottom of the dishwasher, which is a fine mesh, 
must be washed at least once a week. It’s very easy to do, just don’t forget. The coarse flow filter, located at the entrance to the dishwasher, to which the inlet hose is screwed, also needs to be cleaned, although not as often. There may be large particles of impurities in the water, especially after cleaning the pipes in the house. If water flows through the filter mesh, then over time the particles will clog it, and the water supply pressure to the machine will be weaker. This will lead to the machine being less able to wash dishes.
Not only the filter, but also the nozzles (holes) in the rocker arms can become clogged with food debris. If the machine is not thoroughly cleaned in a timely manner, limescale may form inside the openings. All this will lead to a decrease in water supply pressure, and dishes may not be washed well. To clean the rocker arms, you need to run a dry wash (without dishes) with special detergent. Such a wash will also rid the heating element of scale, and the tank of the machine from plaque, grease and other contaminants.
For your information! You should wash your dishwasher with detergent at least once every six months, no matter how often you use the machine.
After each wash, you need to check if the tank of the machine is dirty, if there are any food residues under the door, this happens in some models of Bosch dishwashers. And be sure to wipe everything with a dry cloth.
Errors during operation
If the dishwasher does not clean well, then the reasons for this may be typical user errors, these include:
- improper placement of dishes in baskets;
- there are too many dishes loaded;
- Wrong mode selected.
Placing dirty dishes in baskets is one of the instructions. Machine manufacturers such as Bosch, Siemens, Electrolux pay special attention to this issue.Therefore, before folding dishes, you need to read at least once how best to do it.
The most important rule is to place the dishes so that the water flows down and does not remain in the dish itself; there must be a gap between the items to ensure access to water.
Make sure that the dishes in the lower basket do not block the access of water to the items in the upper basket. Also, the dishes should not interfere with the free rotation of the spray arms and compartments with detergents. If the compartment with the tablet does not open during washing, the product will not get into the water, and the dishes will remain dirty. Loading dishes is directly related to their quantity. The more dishes, the more densely they are arranged, the more difficult it is for water to get into hard-to-reach areas of plates, cups and other items. Therefore, you should not be surprised that the dishes will have to be washed again.
Another common mistake made by users is that the selected mode does not match the degree of soiling of the dishes. Many people launch a quick wash in order to save time. However, in this mode, the water temperature, as a rule, does not exceed 45-500C. If you wash plates with dried food, pots and other items in this mode, then most likely they will not be washed. The instructions also describe very well what dishes to wash and in what mode.
Important! Don’t forget to clean the dishes from food residues, this will improve the quality of washing and the filter will become less clogged.
Not using dishwashing detergent
The next group of reasons why a Bosch, Hansa or any other dishwasher has become worse at washing dishes is related to detergents. The most common occurrence is changing dishwashing detergents, such as powder or tablets, or counterfeiting them. But this problem can be easily resolved if you wash the dishes again with the detergent you used before, or change it to some other option until you find something acceptable and effective.
But if the detergent has not been changed, and the dishes become harder to clean, then the cause may be an incorrect dosage. We list the possible problems:
- If streaks appear on the dishes, most likely there is not enough rinse aid, which in this case
do? It is necessary to change the product supply settings, or rather increase it, but not much, because an excess of product will lead to excessive shine of the dishes and poor rinsing. - The reason for the appearance of white streaks on the dishes may be salt that got into the dishwasher tank when poured into it; perhaps the lid of the salt compartment is not closed properly;
- if there are traces of tea, coffee or lipstick on the cups, then a possible reason may be the lack of bleach in the detergent;
- Plastic dishes may not be washed due to the low content of a special substance in the detergent;
- Poor laundering may be caused by the use of detergents not intended for dishwasher use. At first, such products may seem effective, but over time they clog the holes in the sprinkler, which means the quality of washing decreases.
If you refuse to use special salt, over time you may also notice that the dishwasher becomes worse at cleaning. Salt is necessary to restore the ability of the ion exchanger to soften hard water. If the machine is operated for a long time without salt, and the water in the region is hard, then the ion exchanger becomes clogged and may generally fail. Therefore, you should not neglect this remedy.
Important! If the water is very hard, 3-in-1 complex tablets will not replace salt; it will still need to be poured into the machine.
So, if your machine of the Bosch, Electrolux, Candy brand, no matter what, has begun to wash dishes poorly, then pay attention, first of all, to the conditions of its operation and the rules prescribed in the instructions. Still, most often rules are written in order to be followed. We hope our article helped you figure out what to do with this problem.
Interesting:
7 reader comments
During the first wash, I got a white coating on the dishes, and rust appeared on the forks and spoons.
Added salt, detergent and rinse aid.
Dishwasher Teka.
I have the same problem too.
You need to wash dishes by hand without special means, except sometimes with baking soda.
Yes, and also wash your face with clean water from springs and wash things in lye.
And also cook food over a fire! And harness the horses in the morning...
Walk barefoot and live in a cave.
It doesn't clean the inside of my pots. Complete crap!