by Carmel Brulez

Created on: October 25, 2009

There are a lot of different ways you can rid your dishwasher of unpleasant odors that naturally build up over a period of time. Even if you rinse plates and other items before putting them into the dishwasher there is an accumulation of grease and food that needs to be dealt with on a regular basis. There are a lot of dishwasher cleaners on the market, but they are expensive, contain chemicals and are totally unnecessary. By removing the odors this way you also clean the machine so that your plates, cutlery, dishes and glasses come out totally clean from now on. It is advisable to clean through your dishwasher approximately once every 3 months if you use ot regularly and often. If you only use it now and then it can wait 6 months.

You do not need to buy any expensive cleaners or chemicals, there are a lot of things you can do which do not require a huge expense or harmful products. Cleaning your dishwasher to remove odors and get it sparkling clean are easy and do not take much time once you get the hang of it.

Firstly open the dishwasher and look where the sealer is. All dishwashers have a rubber sealent around the door to stop water leaking out. With a hard toothbrush and some desinfectant work all around it carefully scrubbing it up until it is as clean as possible. Make sure you remove any food particles as these cause odor and germs.

Secondly, lift up the filter at the bottom of the dishwasher, where the bits and pieces of food go when rinsed from the plates and other items, and clean out and rinse thoroughly. Then desinfect it with a strong pleasant smelling desinfectant and bleach before putting it back or closing it. A cupful of half and half will do it. If you do not wish to use bleach then just use some desinfectant.

Put some bicarbonate of soda into the dispenser when you next use the machine. If it still needs more of a thorough clean then.....

You can use any of the following products to give your dishwasher a thoroughly rinse. Insert either a cup of vinegar, a cup of bleach or a quarter of a cup of lemon juice into the dishwasher, then set it onto a cycle and completely run through it before opening the dishwasher again. Lemon juice is your best option as it does less damage to the machine and smells much nicer than bleach or desinfectant.

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