Is Your Dishwasher Not Drying Dishes?

It may not be the primary function but drying your plates could actually be more arduous for your machine than cleaning them. Crockery and cutlery and glassware have multiple nooks and crannies that could collect water preventing it from drying out, thus as your appliance cools down water droplets form from the steam.

Different machines also employ a variety of different methods to dry your dishes. Some will have a heating coil to warm the air in the machine and assist with evaporation, some heat the water further approaching the end of the cycle, others employ a fan, and others employ a mix of all of these. There are therefore a number of explanations why your machine may not be drying crockery and cutlery fully and a number of options to improve the situation.

Plastic is less likely to dry fully than glass or ceramics 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 dishes are coming out wet you can call a dishwasher repair service or first employ this troubleshooting list to figure out what the issue is and with any luck fix it.

Top Reasons Your Dishwasher Isn’t Drying Crockery and Cutlery

There is nothing more frustrating 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 removing the dirt from or drying your plates. If you open your dishwasher to discover wet plates here are a number of places you can look to help you figure out why.

Not all appliances are created equal and you will find that some dishwashers do a better job of drying your dishes than others. But if if your dishwasher has always dried your crockery and cutlery in the past one of these faults could be the cause.

Check How Your Machine Has Been Loaded

Sometimes there is nothing actually wrong with the dishwasher. Before assuming the machine is faulty you should first check that you haven’t overloaded it or accidentally stacked items one inside the other. It’s also worth noting that plastics are more difficult to dry than metal, glass or ceramics.

Have a Look at The Rinse Aid Dispenser

Your dishwasher needs rinse aid to properly dry your crockery and cutlery thus, if you have run out of rinse aid or the rinse aid dispenser is faulty this can stop your crockery and cutlery coming out properly dry.

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

Inspect The Heating Element

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

To inspect the heating element you will need to unplug the machine, locate the heating element, you might need the owners manual for this, then use a multimeter to check it’s working.

Have a Look at the Thermostat

The thermostat ensures your dishwasher doesn’t get too hot, regulating the temperature of the water and the drying part of the cycle. However, if it’s not working this can mean your appliance doesn’t heat up at all.

If you check the heating coil and do not uncover an issue but there’s still no heat, then the thermostat may be at fault. Again you can make sure using a multimeter.

Have a Look at The Drying Fan and Vent

Many dishwashers will utilize a drying fan and vent to remove the warm moist air from the appliance. If either of these elements are faulty then the hot air will remain in the machine preventing the dishes from drying.

You can use your user manual to check if your appliance uses a fan and find its location. Don’t forget to double check the dishwasher is disconnected before attempting to access the fan.

First visually inspect the fan and vent to check if there is anything lodged that could prevent it from operating correctly. If there is nothing obvious you can then test for continuity using a multimeter.

Tips to Boost Drying Ability

There are a number of methods you can use to improve your dishwashers effectiveness at drying and ensureyou have to hand dry as little as possible.

Allow ample space between crockery and cutlery. Overcrowding the appliance limits the flow of air and water making cleaning and drying your crockery and cutlery harder. It could be appealing to stuff in as much as possible but you will get better results if you leave sufficient space so that water and air can circulate freely.
Utilize rinse aid. Some detergents 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 helps reduce marks and gives your glassware in particular a streak-free shine but it also breaks the bond between water molecules and your plates helping the water to run off them and consequently speeding up drying times.
Open your machine as soon as the program has finished. Some newer machines do this automatically, but if yours doesn’t, opening the door when the cycle completes allows warm air to escape and stop water droplets forming as the appliance cools down.
Check if your dishwasher has a heat feature and utilize it. Setting a higher temperature will mean improved drying times and it could be possible to add more heat at different points in the cycle.
Think about how you unload your machine. This doesn’t affect how effective your machine is, but it stop 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 a good idea to call in the professionals or perhaps upgrade your dishwasher.