Most dishwashers work way better than we think. We're just not using them right.
People often lament that household appliances aren't built like they used to be, and, in some cases, that's totally true. Planned obsolescence is a real thing, and old fridges, washers, dryers, and other appliances definitely don't last as long as they once did. Some people also complain that modern appliances often don't work as well as older models did.
That may also be true in some cases, but Alec Watson, "the internet's weird appliance guy," has some key information about dishwashers that may leave you singing a different tune.
How often have you thought that your dishwasher kind of sucks? Like it just doesn't do a good job of getting the dishes clean, or it leaves a residue on the dishes, or you feel like you have to rinse every speck of food off your plates before loading it in order for it to work properly (thereby largely defeating the purpose of a dishwasher in the first place)?
It turns out, it's probably not your machine that's the issue. It's you.
Parenting Chores GIF by Scary MommyGiphy
Or rather, it's you not fully understanding how your dishwasher works and how to actually make it perform its functions the way it's supposed to. That's the premise behind Watson's Technology Connections video with 5 million views that people are calling "unironically life-changing."
The video is actually a synopsis of two viral videos Watson previously shared, which together take up the the length of a feature film. This video pares all of that down to a 25 minutes, during which he shares how dishwashers are designed to work, why you feel like yours doesn't work well, and four vital tips for making sure that those problems aren't a skill issue on your part. No judgment here—just some helpful information and advice that just might change your relationship with your dishwasher forever.
- YouTubewww.youtube.com
First, you shouldn't have to rinse your dishes before loading the dishwasher. Scraping off the large pieces of food is perfectly sufficient, or should be. Dishwashers are designed to actually wash dishes, not just sanitize them.
Watson's video contains the ins and outs of why these tips are important, but here's a rundown of what he suggests:
1. Remove and clean out the filter on the bottom of the dishwasher.
Many of us don't actually know there's a filter in dishwashers that catches the food chunks. Some dishwashers have a macerator in the pump instead, which breaks up the food particles and washes them away like a mini garbage disposal. But you should definitely know which kind of dishwasher you have and clean the filter regularly if you have one.
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2. Run the kitchen tap until the water gets hot just before starting the dishwasher.
Dishwashers in North America are connected to the hot water in the kitchen, and having the water that goes into the dishwasher already be hot rather than the dishwasher itself having to heat the water makes them run better. If you've washed dishes by hand, you know the difference hot water makes. Priming the pump, so to speak, buy bringing hot water into the kitchen first so that the dishwasher starts off as hot as possible helps a lot with getting the food washed off well. It also helps the detergent work better.
Watson says this may be the most important tip in the video—at least for North Americans—so don't skip this one (And if it doesn't seem to help, make sure that your dishwasher is actually hooked up to the hot water in your kitchen. See minute 7:50 in the video for how to check that).
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3. Use the detergent dispenser correctly.
Using and closing the dispenser door is super important, says Watson. Dishwashers generally have a pre-wash cycle that rinses dishes for about 10 minutes to get the bulk of food off, and if all of the detergent were to be used in that cycle, it would mean the dishes spent very little time with soap getting them clean. The dispenser door is designed to open after that rinse cycle, being incorporated into the next, much longer wash cycle.
4. Use cheap detergent and add a pre-wash dose
That's right. Watson says he uses the cheapest detergent he can buy. And, as he went into it at length in one of his previous videos, the fancy expensive pods might actually be limiting the ability of your dishwasher to do its job fully. The cheap stuff actually works better, according to Watson.
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There is a pre-wash dispenser on many dishwashers, however, which is meant to be filled with a small amount of detergent in order to make the pre-wash cycle work better. If your dishwasher doesn't have a pre-wash dispenser, you can toss about a tablespoon of detergent into the bottom of the dishwasher or onto the door.
Dishwasher pods make the pre-wash dispenser basically impossible to use, which is one reason why Watson recommends using the old-fashioned powdered or gel detergent. He also recommends those because you can adjust the amount of detergent you use. People who have soft water don't need to use as much detergent as those with hard water. Powder and gel detergents are generally more cost-effective as well.
You know you're using the right amount of detergent if your dishes come out clean and residue-free.
If your dishwasher is leaving a soap residue on your dishes, you're using too much detergent and can cut back. Watson says you likely don't need to fill the entire dispenser cup, though the detergent box isn't going to tell you that.
Lest you think that your dishwasher is surely the exception, Watson says he has tried these tips on a huge range of dishwashers, including "the gnarliest landlord special I've ever encountered—that thing didn't even have a sprayer for its top rack, and boy was it loud" and they've all been able to wash dishes well as a result.
Watson offers a lightning round of additional tips at the 20-minute mark on the video, such as removing scale and buildup that might be clogging sprayers, so if you try these four things and your dishwasher still seems to struggle, check those out.
Happy dishwashing, everyone!
Follow Technology Connections on YouTube for more interesting and helpful appliance information.
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