Is Your Dishwasher Not Drying Dishes? | Dearborn Appliance Repair

It may not be the primary function but drying your dishes may really be harder for your dishwasher than removing the dirt. Dishes and glassware have multiple nooks and crannies that may collect dishwater stopping it from drying out, and as your machine cools water condenses from the steam.

Different machines also employ a number of means to dry your plates. Certain models will have a heating coil to warm the air in the dishwasher and help with evaporation, some warm the water to a higher temperature nearing the end of the cycle, some make use of a fan, and some make use of a combination of all three. There are thus a variety of reasons why your dishwasher might not be drying crockery and cutlery fully and a variety of things you can do to rectify the situation.

Plastic items are more difficult to dry 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 items that aren’t drying are predominantly plastic items.

If dishes are coming out wet you can hire a dishwasher repair service or first make use of this troubleshooting list to help you identify and rectify the issue.

Top Explanations Your Dishwasher Isn’t Drying Crockery and Cutlery

There is nothing more annoying than a home appliance that doesn’t work as it’s meant to, regardless of whether its a tv, tumble dryer 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 places you can look to help you figure out why.

Not all dishwashers are built to the same spec 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 effectively your dishwasher is working one of these issues might be the cause.

Have a Look at the Placement of Your Plates

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

Inspect The Rinse Aid Dispenser

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

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

Inspect The Heating Element

Heat is essential for drying your dishes so a broken heating coil may be the reason your appliance is not drying crockery and cutlery. If your dishes don’t feel hot when they come out of the machine this can mean that the heating coil is broken.

To inspect the heating coil first unplug the appliance, then locate the heating coil, you could need the manual to do this, then use a multimeter to check it’s working.

Check the Thermostat

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

If you check the heating coil and do not discover an issue but your dishwasher isn’t getting hot, then the thermostat could be the issue. Again you can make sure with the help of a multimeter.

Check The Fan and Vent

Many appliances will use a fan and vent to suck moist air from the machine. If either of these elements are faulty then the steam will form droplets on the plates instead leaving them wet.

You can use your instruction manual to ascertain if your machine has a fan and locate it. Don’t forget to make sure the appliance is disconnected before trying to access the fan.

You can visually inspect the fan and vent to ascertain if anything is blocking it that could stop it from functioning as it should. If there is nothing obvious you can then test for continuity using a multimeter.

Ways to Increase Drying Ability

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

Allow sufficient space between dishes. Overcrowding the machine inhibits the flow of air and water making cleaning and drying your plates more difficult. It may be tempting to cram in as much as possible but your machine will work better if you leave sufficient space so that water and air can circulate freely.
Utilize 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 will do no harm. Rinse aid helps reduce spotting and gives your glasses a streak-free finish but it also breaks the bond between water molecules and your crockery and cutlery helping the water to run off them and thus making them dry more quickly and evenly.
Open your dishwasher as soon as the program has completed. Some newer models do this automatically, but many do not, thus, opening the machine at the end of the cycle allows warm air to escape thus stopping water condensing on the contents as the appliance cools down.
Find out if your dishwasher uses a heat feature and make sure it’s turned on. Setting a higher temperature will lead to better drying times and it could be possible to choose which points in the program you add more heat.
Think about how you empty your machine. 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 could be necessary to call in the professionals or perhaps buy a new machine.