Smelly dishwasher

dbrookf

C_J said:

I’d be tempted to run a cycle with a couple of cut up lemons in the dishwasher, but I am no expert.

May try! Anyone tried bleach?

Madquilter59

My friend had the same problem but with her washing machine  and washing on verge of replacing it.I told her it could be the water pipe so she used drain unblocker. Also soda crystals and hot water down the sink  she also puts bleach down sink every night . After 2 weeks it has just about cleared .

jim1999

It is really frustrating - I've been looking into it for a long time because seemingly I can notice it when other people can't tell.

It does seem to be a hard water thing, and as far as I can gather there isn't a guaranteed way of solving it.  Given the hard water issues, making sure there's plenty of salt is important.

I normally do a cycle of cleaning all the filters, the seals and everything inside, then using a cleaning product on a normal cycle, and then finally doing an extremely hot machine care style before letting everything dry fully.  And in the interim I'll do portions of those.

Emmia

Have you checked the drain pipes are properly orientated to drain, and they're clean with no gunk?

If you don't want to use lemons, white vinegar also works (put it in a dishwasher safe bowl on the bottom rack and then run the dishwasher when it is otherwise empty)

I'd possibly also try a different brand of dishwasher tablets, in case they're leaving a residue.

Lorian

Often this happens because the waste pipe from the dishwasher joins to an under sink combination waste spigot without the dishwasher hose rising to touch the underside of the sink first.

If it doesn't rise high enough waste water from the sink can backflow into the sump of the dishwasher 

dbrookf

Thanks everyone for your helpful feedback! I’m going to try some of the suggestions and see what happens – fingers crossed for me!

Spikeygran

@dbrookf  Do you live in an area that uses the chloramination process of chlorinating the water?   Weve been getting this occasionally since our area changed to this process. We are very soft water here.

I do a hot wash and clean the filter daily, and pull the impeller hatch every so often, its never grubby.   I've  tried everything, cleaned everything, got husband to disconnect the waste (in case it was sucking back) cleaned all the pipes out and didn't stop it. I've tried 4 tesco , 2 finish, fairy, 2 lidl and aldi tablets and lidl, 2 tesco 2 finish (lemon and plain) rinse aids. 

Its not every day for us, we get several months clear then a couple of days when it smells, then nothing for weeks or months.  I've worked my way through and ruled out causes such as eggs, foil containers, stainless steel, plastic chopping boards, a silver fork that got put in by mistake.  On the days that it smells its not instant, when the machine stops its OK then it developes an hour or so after I leave the door ajar.

Last year  on one of the occasions when it happened,  I took some water from kitchen tap into a clean jar and took it outside away from the dishwasher.  I could detect the same smell  in the tap water, so got the local water board out to test.  Of course they dont come out that day, but gave the water a clean bill of health 2 days later - that just means it meets minimum standards.  I've noticed that on days when it smells, my skin gets noticeable dryer after a  shower (with no change to my routine).

I have thought about getting the tap water tested privately but its not cheap.  At the moment my best guess (at least for my home) is that some days they add slightly more treatment to the water (maybe if theres a leak or work somewhere), and thats enough to cause a reaction with something?? 

dbrookf

Spikeygran said:

@dbrookf  Do you live in an area that uses the chloramination process of chlorinating the water?   Weve been getting this occasionally since our area changed to this process. We are very soft water here.

I do a hot wash and clean the filter daily, and pull the impeller hatch every so often, its never grubby.   I've  tried everything, cleaned everything, got husband to disconnect the waste (in case it was sucking back) cleaned all the pipes out and didn't stop it. I've tried 4 tesco , 2 finish, fairy, 2 lidl and aldi tablets and lidl, 2 tesco 2 finish (lemon and plain) rinse aids. 

Its not every day for us, we get several months clear then a couple of days when it smells, then nothing for weeks or months.  I've worked my way through and ruled out causes such as eggs, foil containers, stainless steel, plastic chopping boards, a silver fork that got put in by mistake.  On the days that it smells its not instant, when the machine stops its OK then it developes an hour or so after I leave the door ajar.

Last year  on one of the occasions when it happened,  I took some water from kitchen tap into a clean jar and took it outside away from the dishwasher.  I could detect the same smell  in the tap water, so got the local water board out to test.  Of course they dont come out that day, but gave the water a clean bill of health 2 days later - that just means it meets minimum standards.  I've noticed that on days when it smells, my skin gets noticeable dryer after a  shower (with no change to my routine).

I have thought about getting the tap water tested privately but its not cheap.  At the moment my best guess (at least for my home) is that some days they add slightly more treatment to the water (maybe if theres a leak or work somewhere), and thats enough to cause a reaction with something?? 

Yes we do! But not sure they use it as much in Europe and I have frequently been in hotels where exactly the same smell is on the dishes! Certainly appreciate your feedback as food for thought!

PipneyJane

As recommended by @Spikeygran, I’d suggest checking your water supply and seeing if that smells.  

We’ve had a similar problem, which I’ve noticed when using our washing machine. It is sporadic and unpredictable, but possibly something to do with drought conditions, since I only remember it happening during the summer.  Fortunately, unless we’ve washed something with padding, e.g. shoulder pads, the smell disappeared after line drying the clothes.  (Anything with foam padding kept the smell and had to be rewashed.)

- Pip