Is Your Dishwasher Not Drying Dishes? | Fort Smith Appliance Repair

It may not be the primary function but getting your dishes dry could actually be harder for your machine than getting them clean. Plates and glassware have lots of nooks and crannies that may trap dishwater making it more difficult for it to evaporate, and as your appliance loses heat water droplets form out of the steam.

Different machines also utilize a variety of different methods to get your crockery and cutlery dry. Some will have a heating element to heat up the inside of the dishwasher and help the water to evaporate, some warm the water to a higher temperature near the end of the cycle, certain models have a fan, and others use a combination of all three. There are therefore a variety of explanations why your machine could not be drying plates optimally and a variety of things you can do to rectify the situation.

Plastic items are less likely to dry fully than other materials 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 dishes are coming out wet you can hire a dishwasher repair service or first use this troubleshooting list to figure out what the issue is and with any luck fix it.

Top Explanations Your Dishwasher Isn’t Drying Plates

There is nothing more frustrating than an appliance that isn’t working properly, 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 crockery and cutlery. If you open your dishwasher to discover wet plates here are a few troubleshooting tips to help you figure out why.

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

Have a Look at the Placement of Your Plates

It might be that there is no fault with the machine. Before assuming the dishwasher is faulty you should first check that you haven’t overloaded it or accidentally stacked items one inside the other. Also be aware that plastics don’t dry as well as metal, glass or ceramics.

Check The Rinse Aid Dispenser

Your machine needs rinse aid to properly dry your crockery and cutlery thus, if you’ve forgotten to top up or the rinse aid dispenser is faulty this can stop your crockery and cutlery coming out properly dry.

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

Inspect The Heating Element

Without enough heat your plates will not dry so a not working heating coil might be the reason your machine is not working as it should. If your plates don’t feel hot to touch when they come out of the machine this can mean that the heating coil is broken.

To inspect the heating element first unplug the dishwasher, then find the heating element, you might need the instruction manual for this, and check for continuity using a multimeter.

Inspect the Thermostat

The thermostat ensures your machine doesn’t overheat, regulating the heat of the water and air during drying. Therefore, if it’s not working this can mean your machine doesn’t heat up at all.

If the heating element appears to be in working order but there’s still no heat, then the thermostat may be at fault. Once again you can check this with the help of a multimeter.

Check The Drying Fan and Vent

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

You can employ your instruction manual to check if your appliance uses a fan and find its location. Don’t forget to ensure the appliance is disconnected before trying to make repairs.

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

Tips to Boost Drying Power

There are a number of things you can do to boost your machines effectiveness at drying and prevent you needing to dry them by hand as little as possible.

Don’t cram the machine. Overcrowding the dishwasher stops the circulation of air and water decreasing the effectiveness of your appliance when it comes to both cleaning and finishing your dishes. Although it’s tempting to try and stuff everything in, your appliance will work better if you leave enough space so that water and air can circulate freely.
Utilize rinse aid. Some dishwasher tablets already have this but even if the brand you use says it does, adding a little extra to the appliance won’t hurt. Rinse aid helps reduce spotting and gives your glassware in particular a streak-free shine but it also breaks the bond between water molecules and your dishes helping the water to run off them and therefore speeding up drying times.
Open the door at the end of the cycle. Some new models do this automatically, but if yours doesn’t, opening the dishwasher at the end of the program allows warm air to evaporate thus stopping water condensing on the plates as the machine cools down.
Have a look to see if your appliance employs a heat feature and make sure it’s turned on. The higher the heat the better the drying and it might be possible to choose which points in the cycle you increase the temperature.
Think about how you unload your dishwasher. This doesn’t affect how effective your dishwasher is, but it stop and water spilling that has collected in the concave bottoms of cups and glasses.

If you have checked all the above it could be a good idea to phone an engineer or perhaps buy a new dishwasher.