Is Your Dishwasher Not Drying Dishes? | Boston Appliance Repair

It turns out drying your dishes might actually be harder for your dishwasher than cleaning them. Crockery and cutlery and glassware have multiple crevices that can trap dishwater preventing it from drying out, thus as your dishwasher cools down water droplets form from the humid air.

Dishwashers also make use of a variety of approaches to get your crockery and cutlery dry. Some will use a heating element to heat up the air in the dishwasher and assist the water to evaporate, some heat the water more nearing the end of the cycle, others make use of a fan, and others have a combination of all three. There are thus a number of explanations why your machine might not be drying dishes fully and a variety of things you can do to rectify the situation.

Plastic items are less likely to dry fully than other materials as it cools down more quickly hindering the drying process, so it’s worth seeing whether the drying issue is related to the material rather than the machine.

If your dishwasher doesn’t seem to be drying effectively you can enlist the help of a dishwasher repair service or first make use of this troubleshooting guide to help you identify and rectify the problem.

Top Reasons Your Dishwasher Isn’t Drying Dishes

There is nothing more frustrating than an appliance that doesn’t work as it’s meant to, regardless of whether its a tv, air conditioner or dishwasher we expect them to do the job they were made for. If you open the dishwasher to wet plates here are a number of troubleshooting tips to help you figure out why.

Not all appliances are created equal and you will find that some appliances perform to a better standard compared to others. However, if you notice a change in how well your machine is working one of these faults could be the cause.

Inspect the Placement of Your Dishes

Sometimes there is nothing actually wrong with the machine. Before assuming the dishwasher is broken you should look at how it has been loaded, ensuring it isn’t too full. It’s also worth noting that plastics don’t dry as well as metal, glass or ceramics.

Have a Look at The Rinse Aid Dispenser

Your appliance needs rinse aid to properly dry your crockery and cutlery and so if you have run out of rinse aid or your rinse aid dispenser is faulty this can result in wet dishes at the end of the cycle.

The best thing to do is inspect the rinse aid dispenser for cracks and ensure that there is rinse aid inside.

Have a Look at The Heating Element

Heat is essential for drying your crockery and cutlery so a not working heating element may be the explanation your appliance is not working as it should. If your plates don’t feel hot at the end of the cycle this can be a good indicator that the heating element isn’t working as it should.

To check the heating element first unplug the dishwasher, then locate the heating element, you may need the owners manual to do this, and use a multimeter to check it’s working.

Inspect the Thermostat

The thermostat ensures your dishwasher doesn’t get too hot, adjusting the heat of the water and air during drying. Therefore, if it’s not working this can mean your machine doesn’t heat up at all.

If you check the heating element and do not uncover an fault but your appliance isn’t getting hot, then the thermostat might be the issue. Once again you can test this with the help of a multimeter.

Check The Fan and Vent

Many machines will employ a fan and vent to remove the warm moist air out of the dishwasher. If either of these elements are broken then the water vapor will form droplets on the crockery and cutlery instead leaving them wet.

You can make use of your manual to find out if your dishwasher uses a fan and locate it. Again you need to make sure the appliance is unplugged before trying to make repairs.

First visually inspect the fan and vent to see if anything is blocking it that would prevent it from working as it should. If there is nothing obvious you can then test for continuity using a multimeter.

Tips to Boost Drying Ability

There are a variety of methods you can use to increase how well your machine dries your dishes and ensure you need to get the drying up cloth out as infrequently as possible.

Don’t overfill the dishwasher. Overloading the appliance inhibits the circulation of air and water decreasing the effectiveness of your machine when it comes to both cleaning and drying your dishes. Although it’s tempting to try and stuff everything in, you will get better results if you leave enough space so that crockery and cutlery are not touching.
Employ rinse aid. Some dishwasher tablets include a rinse aid but even if the brand you use says it does, adding a little extra to the appliance won’t hurt. Rinse aid works by breaking the bond between water molecules and your crockery and cutlery, helping water run off quickly, speeding up drying time and giving a spot and streak free finish.
Open your appliance as soon as the cycle has finished. Some new machines have this as an automatic function, but if yours doesn’t, opening the dishwasher when the cycle finishes can help allow the water to escape thus preventing water droplets forming as the machine cools down.
Find out if your dishwasher employs a heat feature and make sure it’s turned on. Setting a higher heat will lead to better drying times and you might be able to add more heat at different points in the program.
Think about how you empty your dishwasher. This is simply because cups and glasses that are upside down on the top shelf often have a concave bottom where water can pool. Emptying the bottom rack first stops you spilling this water onto the dishes below.

If none of the above solves the problem it may be time to phone the professionals or even upgrade your machine.