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Learning how to clean your dishwasher with vinegar and baking soda can help you keep this important appliance in good working order, and it’s easy to do! This process can also fix and prevent common issues affecting grimy dishwashers, including unpleasant odors, drainage problems, and poor performance.
What you’ll find in this post is a simple and highly effective method for cleaning a dishwasher. After walking you through it step by step, I’ll also share some tips to help you tackle stubborn buildup and odors and keep your dishwasher in good working order.
Ready to learn how to clean the inside of your dishwasher? Let’s get started!
Table of Contents
Jillee’s Take:
What’s The Best Way To Clean A Dishwasher?
The simple dishwasher cleaning method I’m sharing in this post uses two of my favorite inexpensive cleaning ingredients: distilled white vinegar and baking soda. Vinegar helps break down grime, dissolve mineral deposits and water spots, and kill bacteria while baking soda eliminates odors and scrubs away food residues and stains.
Author’s Note: If you accidentally put dish soap in your dishwasher, vinegar can help you clean up the mess!
Why do I recommend vinegar and baking soda for dishwasher cleaning? They’re cheap, easy to find, and effective! (Some folks recommend using Tang drink mix for its citric acid content, but vinegar is cheaper and carries no risk of bright orange stains!)
Vinegar and baking soda also play roles in my homemade dishwasher detergent, along with washing soda, borax, and salt. I also have a recipe for homemade dishwasher soap (not detergent) featuring vinegar, Dawn, and oxygen bleach that can help keep your dishwasher clean and makes a good substitute for your usual detergent in a pinch!
How To Clean Your Dishwasher In 3 Easy Steps
Start by feeling around the drain and removing any foreign material, then place a bowl of white vinegar on the top rack and run a wash cycle on the hottest setting. Next, sprinkle a cup of baking soda into the bottom of your dishwasher and run another hot wash cycle.
For (much) more detail, see the step-by-step guide below.
Step 1 – Check The Drain
Start by removing the bottom rack and inspecting the bottom of your dishwasher, especially the area around the drain. All sorts of things can collect down there, like bones, bits of plastic, broken glass, and other things that shouldn’t be in your dishwasher.
Step 2 – Vinegar Wash Cycle
Replace the bottom rack, place a shallow, dishwasher-safe bowl near the center of the top rack, and then pour 1 cup of white vinegar into the bowl. (You could use apple cider vinegar in a pinch, but there’s some risk of discoloration or staining the machine’s interior surfaces.)
Close the dishwasher door and start a wash cycle on your dishwasher’s hottest setting.
Step 3 – Baking Soda Wash Cycle
When the vinegar wash cycle is complete, remove the bowl and sprinkle 1 cup of baking soda into the bottom of your dishwasher. Start another hot wash cycle, and while that’s happening, wipe down the front of the dishwasher door with a damp microfiber cloth.
Most dishwashers will be clean and fresh after Step 3, but tough stains and grime may make a third wash cycle necessary (see Optional Step below).
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Optional Step – Bleach Wash Cycle
If your dishwasher isn’t quite as clean as you’d hoped after the baking soda wash cycle, performing a wash cycle with bleach can help. It’s particularly helpful when dealing with mold, mildew, and other tough messes.
To do it, pour 1 cup of chlorine bleach into the bottom of the dishwasher and run another hot wash cycle.
Warning: Skip this step if your dishwasher has a stainless steel interior — bleach may discolor or permanently damage stainless steel finishes.
More Tips For Deep Cleaning Your Dishwasher
If you followed all the steps above and your dishwasher still has an unpleasant odor or isn’t performing as well as you expect, try these deep cleaning tips.
Clean The Door Gasket
Persistent dishwasher odors can be caused by food particles or mildew lurking in the rubber gasket around the dishwasher door. Clean the gasket with a damp microfiber cloth, making sure to get into the folds where gunk often hides.
To prevent gasket odors in the future, leave your dishwasher door ajar after unloading clean dishes to let it dry out between uses.
Clean The Sprayer Arms
If your dishwasher is clean, odor-free, and draining correctly, but your dishes aren’t coming out sparkling clean, it may be a sign that the sprayer arms need cleaning. The holes in the sprayer arms can get clogged up by food residue and limescale, hindering your dishwasher’s performance.
To clean the sprayer arms, start by shutting off the water supply and power to your dishwasher. Remove the bottom rack from the dishwasher, then carefully remove the sprayer arms and scrub them thoroughly with warm, soapy water. (An old toothbrush or small scrub brush can help here.)
Pay special attention to the holes in the sprayer arms, and use an unfolded paper clip if needed to dislodge any blockages. When the arms are clean and dry, replace them in your dishwasher.
Remove And Clean The Filter
If you’re removing your dishwasher’s sprayer arms to clean them, you should take the opportunity to clean the filter too. (In many dishwasher models, you can’t remove the filter without first removing the bottom sprayer arm.)
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Refer to your dishwasher’s user manual for specific instructions on how to remove the filter, then clean it in warm, soapy water before drying it and replacing it. Don’t forget to replace the sprayer arms and bottom rack and restore the water and power supply.
How Often Should You Clean Your Dishwasher?
| Frequency | Task |
|---|---|
| Weekly | Wipe down the door and gasket and make sure the drain is clear of debris |
| Monthly | Perform the 3-step dishwasher cleaning method with baking soda and vinegar |
| As needed | Clean the sprayer arms and filter |
7 More Dishwasher Tips And Tricks
- Run your garbage disposal before starting a load of dishes to ensure it can drain properly.
- Start with hot water by running your kitchen faucet until the water feels hot to the touch before starting your dishwasher to get the most out of your wash cycle.
- Set your water heater to 120°F (50°C) to ensure the water is hot enough for cleaning dishes without being dangerously hot.
- Don’t overfill your dishwasher. Waiting to start your dishwasher until you have a full load is a good way to save water and energy, but packing it full of dishes can hinder its ability to clean them.
- Lightly rinse dishes before putting them in your dishwasher. Dishwasher detergents work best when there’s a certain amount of food residue on your dishes.
- Put caps on rusty tines. If rusty tines are leaving stains on your dishes, a set of cheap dishwasher tine caps offers a quick fix.
- Put a dish of vinegar in the top rack to help combat the effects of hard water, like water spots, white films, and dusty mineral residue.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Often Should I Clean My Dishwasher?
It’s a good idea to clean your dishwasher around once a month to keep it running smoothly. Regular maintenance can help prevent odors and grime buildup.
What Do I Need To Clean My Dishwasher?
Apart from white vinegar and baking soda, you only need a small bowl and a microfiber cloth for the 3-step dishwasher cleaning method. For deep cleaning tasks, you may need bleach, dish soap, an old toothbrush, or a few other basic cleaning supplies.
Can I Use Regular Dish Soap To Clean My Dishwasher?
I don’t recommend it! Dish soap is too sudsy to use in a dishwasher, so stick to vinegar and baking soda for a no-mess clean. (There’s more to know about using dish soap in the dishwasher, but that’s not the purpose of this post or question!)
How Do I Clean The Filter In My Dishwasher?
Specifics will vary by model (see your dishwasher’s user manual for direction), but most dishwasher filters are fairly easy to clean. Remove it from the bottom of your dishwasher, wash it in warm, soapy water, then dry and replace it.
What’s The Best Way To Deep Clean My Dishwasher?
The 3-step cleaning method described in this post does a great job of deep cleaning most dishwashers. Depending on how dirty your dishwasher is, you may need to follow the additional tips (i.e. cleaning the door gasket and sprayer arms) to get it truly clean.
Can I Combine The Vinegar And Baking Soda Wash Cycles Into One Step?
I don’t recommend it. You’ll get better results by using vinegar and baking soda separately when cleaning your dishwasher. (This is almost always the case when using vinegar and baking soda for cleaning.)
Conclusion
Given its crucial role in kitchen cleanliness (not to mention that you can use your dishwasher for more than washing dishes), it’s in your best interest to keep your dishwasher clean and in good working order. The tips and methods in this post will help make the process quick and easy!
For those without a dishwasher or who often wash dishes by hand, don’t miss my dishwashing hacks for tips that will save you time and effort.
What’s your best tip for cleaning a dishwasher?
How To Clean A Dishwasher
Equipment
- Dishwasher-safe cup
- Measuring Cups
Ingredients
- 1 cup distilled white vinegar
- 1 cup baking soda
- 1 cup bleach optional
Instructions
Examine the Drain
- Pull the bottom rack out, examine the drain area, and remove the foreign material you find (if any).
Vinegar Wash
- Place a dishwasher-safe cup of white vinegar on the bottom rack of your dishwasher, then run your dishwasher on a hot water cycle.
Baking Soda Wash
- After the first wash cycle, sprinkle a cup of baking soda around the bottom of the dishwasher and run it through another hot water wash cycle.
Bleach Wash (Optional)
- To eliminate mold and mildew, add ½-1 cup bleach to the bottom of the dishwasher and run another full wash cycle. (Skip this step if your dishwasher has a stainless steel interior, as bleach can corrode stainless steel.)
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