Is Your Dishwasher Not Drying Dishes?

It turns out drying your crockery and cutlery may in actual fact be more arduous for your dishwasher than getting them clean. Crockery and cutlery and glasses have multiple crevices that could pool dishwater preventing it from drying out, plus as your dishwasher cools down water droplets form from the steam.

Different machines also utilize a number of methods to dry your plates. Certain models will employ a heating coil to warm the air in the dishwasher and assist with evaporation, some heat up the water further near the final rinse, some employ a fan, and some make use of a combination of all three. There are therefore a number of reasons why your machine might not be drying dishes optimally and a number of things you can do to improve the situation.

Plastic is more difficult to dry than glass or ceramics as it doesn’t retain heat in the same way which helps with the drying process, so it’s worth noting whether the items that aren’t drying are predominantly plastic items.

If your dishwasher doesn’t seem to be drying properly you can call a dishwasher repair service or first use this troubleshooting guide to help you identify and rectify the issue.

Top Explanations Your Dishwasher Isn’t Drying Dishes

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 removing the dirt from or drying your plates. If you open the dishwasher to 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 do a better job of drying your crockery and cutlery than others. But if you notice a change in how well your machine is working one of these areas might be the cause.

Have a Look at How Your Machine Has Been Loaded

It might be that there is no fault with the dishwasher. Before assuming the appliance is not working you should first check that you haven’t overfilled it or accidentally stacked items one inside the other. It’s also worth noting that plastic items are more difficult to dry than metal, glass or ceramics.

Check The Rinse Aid Dispenser

Rinse aid plays a key role in drying your dishes and so if you’ve forgotten to top up or your rinse aid dispenser is broken this can mean wet plates at the end of the cycle.

The best thing to do is inspect the rinse aid dispenser for cracks and ensure that it’s full.

Have a Look at The Heating Element

Heat is essential for drying your plates so a broken heating element may be the explanation your machine is not drying dishes. If your dishes don’t feel hot to touch when they come out of the machine this can indicate that the heating element is faulty.

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

Inspect the Thermostat

The thermostat stops your machine overheating, determining the temperature of the water and the drying part of the cycle. However, if it’s faulty this can result in your dishwasher not heating up at all.

If the heating coil seems to be working as it should but there’s still no heat, then the thermostat could be the problem. Once again you can make sure with the help of a multimeter.

Inspect The Drying Fan and Vent

Many dishwashers will use a drying fan and vent to suck moist air from the appliance. If either of these elements are faulty then the hot air will remain in the machine preventing the crockery and cutlery from drying.

You can employ your instruction manual to find out if your appliance uses a fan and locate it. Don’t forget to ensure the dishwasher is disconnected before trying to access the fan.

First look at the fan and vent to check if there is anything lodged that could stop it from operating as it should. And again testing for continuity using a multimeter.

Ideas to Boost Drying Power

There are a variety of methods you can use to improve how well your machine dries your dishes and make sureyou have to hand dry as little as possible.

Allow sufficient space between crockery and cutlery. Overloading the dishwasher limits the flow of air and water decreasing the effectiveness of your dishwasher when it comes to both washing and drying your dishes. Although it’s tempting to try and stuff everything in, you will get better results if you leave sufficient space so that water and air can circulate freely.
Employ rinse aid. Some dishwasher tablets already have this but even if the brand you use says it does, adding a separate rinse aid to the appliance won’t hurt. Rinse aid works by breaking the bond between water molecules and your plates, helping water run off quickly, speeding up drying time and giving a spot and streak free finish.
Open the door at the end of the program. Some new models do this automatically, but many do not, thus, opening the door when the cycle finishes allows warm air to evaporate thus stopping water droplets forming as the appliance cools down.
Check if your machine employs a heat feature and utilize it. Setting a higher temperature will lead to improved drying times and it could be possible to choose which points in the program you increase the temperature.
Unload the lower level before the top. This doesn’t affect how effective your machine is, but it does stop water from cups and glasses falling on dishes below.

If this trouble shooting guide hasn’t worked it might be necessary to call in an engineer or even buy a new dishwasher.