Is Your Dishwasher Not Drying Dishes? | QuickFix Appliance Repair

It turns out drying your plates might really be more arduous for your machine than removing the dirt. Crockery and cutlery and glassware have lots of crevices that may pool dishwater making it more difficult for it to evaporate, thus as your dishwasher cools water droplets form out of the steam.

Different machines also utilize a number of methods to get your plates dry. Certain models opt for a heating coil to heat up the inside of the machine and assist with evaporation, some heat up the water further near the end of the cycle, some employ a fan, and some use a mix of all of these. There are therefore a variety of reasons why your machine may not be drying dishes optimally and a number of things you can do to improve 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 taking note whether the drying issue is related to the material rather than the machine.

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

Top Reasons Your Dishwasher Isn’t Drying Plates

There is nothing more frustrating than an appliance that doesn’t work as it’s meant to, 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 dishes. If you open the dishwasher to wet plates there are a few troubleshooting tips to help you figure out why.

Not all makes and models are created equal and some dishwashers perform to a higher standard compared to others. But if you notice a change in how effectively your dishwasher is working one of these issues might be the problem.

Check How Your Machine Has Been Loaded

It might be that there is no fault with the machine. Before assuming the appliance is not working you should look at how it has been loaded, ensuring it isn’t too full. It’s also worth noting that plastics don’t dry as well as metal, glass or ceramics.

Inspect The Rinse Aid Dispenser

Your appliance needs rinse aid to properly dry your crockery and cutlery and so if you have run out of rinse aid or the rinse aid dispenser is faulty this can result in wet dishes at the end of the cycle.

Visually check the dispenser for damage and check that there is rinse aid inside.

Inspect The Heating Element

Without enough heat your plates will not dry so a not working heating coil might be the explanation your machine is not drying crockery and cutlery. If your crockery and cutlery aren’t hot to touch when they come out of the machine this can be a good indicator that the heating coil is broken.

To check the heating coil first unplug the dishwasher, then locate the heating coil, you may need the manual to do this, then check for continuity using a multimeter.

Have a Look at the Thermostat

The thermostat prevents your dishwasher overheating, determining the heat of the water and air during drying. Therefore, if it’s faulty this can mean your machine doesn’t heat up at all.

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

Check The Fan and Vent

Many machines will make use of a drying fan and vent to suck moist air from the dishwasher. If either of these elements are broken then the hot air will condense on the crockery and cutlery instead leaving them wet.

You can make use of your instruction manual to check if your appliance uses a fan and find its location. Again you need to make sure the dishwasher is unplugged before attempting to access the fan.

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

Ways to Boost Drying Power

There are a variety of things you can do to increase how well your appliance dries your dishes and prevent you needing to dry them by hand as infrequently as possible.

Don’t cram the dishwasher. Overfilling the machine inhibits the flow of air and water decreasing the effectiveness of your dishwasher when it comes to both washing and finishing your dishes. It may be tempting to stuff everything in but you will get better results if you leave enough space so that water and air can circulate freely.
Utilize rinse aid. Some detergents include a rinse aid but even so, adding a little extra to the dishwasher can only improve matters. Rinse aid helps reduce spotting and gives your glassware in particular 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 therefore speeding up drying times.
Open the door at the end of the cycle. Some new models do this automatically, but many do not, thus, opening the door at the end of the cycle can help allow the water to escape and stop water droplets forming as the dishwasher cools down.
Check if your appliance uses a heat feature and make sure it’s turned on. Setting a higher temperature will lead to better drying times and it may be possible to choose which points in the cycle you add more heat.
Think about how you empty your dishwasher. This doesn’t affect how well your machine works, 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 may be necessary to call in an engineer or even buy a new dishwasher.