Is Your Dishwasher Not Drying Dishes?

It may not be the primary function but drying your dishes may in actual fact be more arduous for your dishwasher than cleaning them. Plates and glassware have multiple nooks and crannies that could pool water preventing it from evaporating, plus as your dishwasher loses heat water droplets form out of the humid air.

Different machines also utilize a variety of means to dry your plates. Some opt for a heating element to warm the air in the dishwasher and assist with evaporation, some heat the water more approaching the final rinse, some use a fan, and others have a mix of all of these. There are consequently a variety of reasons why your dishwasher might not be drying crockery and cutlery optimally and a number of options to improve the situation.

Plastic is more difficult to dry than glass or ceramics as it cools down more quickly hindering the drying process, so it’s worth seeing whether the items that aren’t drying are predominantly plastic items.

If your dishwasher isn’t drying effectively you can enlist the help of a dishwasher repair service or first use this troubleshooting list to help you identify and rectify the issue.

Top Explanations Your Dishwasher Isn’t Drying Crockery and Cutlery

Few things are more annoying than a home appliance that doesn’t work as it should, whether that’s a smartphone that really isn’t being that smart, a washing machine that’s churning out dirty clothes, or a dishwasher that is either not cleaning or drying your dishes. If you open your dishwasher to discover wet plates there are a number of troubleshooting tips to help you figure out why.

Not all dishwashers are created equal and you will find that some dishwashers perform to a better standard compared to others. However, if if your dishwasher has always dried your plates in the past one of these faults might be the problem.

Have a Look at How Your Machine Has Been Loaded

Sometimes there is nothing actually wrong with the appliance. Before assuming the machine is broken you should look at how it has been stacked, ensuring it isn’t too full. Also be aware that plastic items don’t dry as well as metal, glass or ceramics.

Check 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 faulty this can result in wet plates at the end of the cycle.

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

Check The Heating Coil

Without enough heat your plates will not dry so a faulty heating coil may be the explanation your machine is not working as it should. If your crockery and cutlery don’t feel hot when they come out of the machine this can indicate that the heating element is broken.

To inspect the heating element you will need to disconnect the dishwasher, find the heating coil, you may need the owners manual to do this, then check for continuity using a multimeter.

Inspect the Thermostat

The thermostat ensures your dishwasher doesn’t overheat, adjusting the heat of the water and air during drying. However, if it’s faulty this can result in your machine not reaching a high enough temperature.

If the heating coil appears to be in working order but there’s still no heat, then the thermostat might be at fault. Again you can test this with the help of a multimeter.

Have a Look at The Fan and Vent

Many dishwashers will make use of a fan and vent to suck moist air from the machine. If the fan isn’t operating as is should or the vent is blocked then the water vapor will remain in the dishwasher preventing the dishes from drying.

You can utilize your instruction manual to ascertain if your dishwasher has a fan and locate it. Again you need to make sure the appliance is disconnected before trying to make repairs.

You can visually inspect the fan and vent to see if anything is blocking it that would prevent it from operating correctly. And again testing for continuity using a multimeter.

Ways to Increase Drying Capability

There are a number of things you can do to increase how well your machine dries your dishes and make sure you need to get the drying up cloth out as little as possible.

1. Don’t overcrowd the machine. Overloading the appliance limits the flow of both water and air making removing the dirt from and drying your plates more difficult. It could be tempting to cram everything in but you will get better results if you leave sufficient space so that dishes are not touching.
2. Utilize rinse aid. Some dishwasher tablets already have this but even so, adding a little extra to the machine won’t hurt. Rinse aid works by breaking the bond between water molecules and your dishes, helping water run off quickly, speeding up drying time and giving a spot and streak free finish.
3. Open the door at the end of the program. Some new dishwashers have this as an automatic function, but many do not, thus, opening the dishwasher at the end of the program can help allow the water to escape thus stopping water droplets forming as the dishwasher cools down.
4. Have a look to see if your machine uses a heat feature and make sure it’s turned on. Setting a higher temperature will result in better drying times and you could be able to add more heat at different points in the cycle.
5. Think about how you empty your dishwasher. This doesn’t affect how well your machine works, but it prevent and water spilling that has collected in the concave bottoms of cups and glasses.

If none of the above solves the problem it may be necessary to call in the professionals or perhaps replace your dishwasher.

More Dishwasher Problems:

• Dishwasher Being Loud
• Dishwasher Not Turning On
• Dishwasher Not Draining
• Dishwasher Leaking