Is Your Dishwasher Not Drying Dishes?

It turns out getting your dishes dry could really be more difficult for your dishwasher than removing the dirt. Plates and glassware have multiple crevices that could collect dishwater making it more difficult for it to evaporate, thus as your appliance loses heat water condenses from the humid air.

Dishwashers also make use of a variety of different methods to get your plates dry. Some opt for a heating coil to heat up the inside of the dishwasher and help the water to evaporate, some warm the water further approaching the end of the cycle, others have a fan, and some make use of a combination of all of these. There are consequently a variety of explanations why your machine might not be drying plates fully and a variety of options to rectify the situation.

Plastic items are less likely to dry fully than other materials as it doesn’t retain heat in the same way which helps with the drying process, so it’s worth seeing whether the drying issue is related to the material rather than the machine.

If your dishwasher isn’t drying effectively you can enlist the help of a dishwasher repair service or first utilize this troubleshooting list to figure out what the problem is and with any luck fix it.

Top Explanations Your Dishwasher Isn’t Drying Crockery and Cutlery

There is nothing more frustrating than a home appliance that doesn’t work as it should, regardless of whether its a tv, washing machine 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 the issue.

Not all makes and models are built to the same spec and you will find that some appliances do a better job of drying your crockery and cutlery than others. However, if you notice a change in how well your machine is working one of these issues may be the problem.

Inspect How Your Machine Has Been Loaded

Sometimes there is nothing actually wrong with the appliance. Before assuming the dishwasher is not working you should first check that you haven’t overloaded it or accidentally stacked items one inside the other. Also be aware that plastic items don’t dry as well as metal, glass or ceramics.

Inspect The Rinse Aid Dispenser

Rinse aid plays a key role in drying your plates and so if you have run out of rinse aid or your rinse aid dispenser is not working this can mean wet dishes at the end of the cycle.

Visually inspect the dispenser for damage and ensure that it’s full.

Have a Look at The Heating Element

Heat is essential for drying your dishes so a faulty heating coil could be the explanation your machine is not working as it should. If your plates aren’t hot when they come out of the machine this can mean that the heating element is faulty.

To check the heating coil first disconnect the machine, then find the heating coil, you could need the owners manual for this, and use a multimeter to check it’s working.

Check the Thermostat

The thermostat stops your machine overheating, regulating the temperature of the water and the drying part of the cycle. Therefore, if it’s not working this can mean your machine doesn’t heat up at all.

If the heating coil appears to be working as it should but there’s still no heat, then the thermostat could be at fault. Again you can check this using a multimeter.

Check The Fan and Vent

Many machines will make use of a drying fan and vent to suck moist air from the dishwasher. If either of these elements are broken then the steam will form droplets on the dishes instead leaving them wet.

You can make use of your manual to ascertain if your appliance uses a fan and find its location. Again you need to ensure the appliance is disconnected before trying to access the fan.

You can look at the fan and vent to ascertain if there is anything lodged that would prevent it from working as it is supposed to. And again testing for continuity using a multimeter.

Ways to Increase Drying Ability

There are a variety of methods you can use to increase your machines drying ability and prevent you needing to dry them by hand as infrequently as possible.

Allow sufficient space between dishes. Overcrowding the dishwasher limits the circulation of both water and air making removing the dirt from and drying your crockery and cutlery more difficult. It could be tempting to stuff in as much as possible but your dishwasher will work better if you leave sufficient space so that water and air can circulate freely.
Utilize rinse aid. Some detergents include a rinse aid but even so, adding a separate rinse aid to the machine will do no harm. Rinse aid helps reduce spotting and gives your glassware in particular a streak-free finish but it also breaks the bond between water molecules and your dishes helping the water to run off them and therefore allowing them to dry faster.
Open the door at the end of the cycle. Some newer models have this as an automatic function, but many do not, thus, opening the door at the end of the program allows warm air to evaporate and stop water droplets forming as the appliance cools down.
Check if your appliance employs a heat feature and make sure it’s turned on. The higher the temperature the better the drying and you might be able to choose which points in the cycle you add more heat.
Unload the lower level first. This doesn’t affect how well your machine works, but it stop and water spilling that has collected in the concave bottoms of cups and glasses.

If you have checked all the above it may be time to phone the professionals or perhaps buy a new dishwasher.