rusty cutlery

aliavavodka

help, not sure if this is in the right place, feel free to move if so.

i`ve got a dishwasher and my old cutlery started to rust, so i bought 2 new ones (smaller sets) and even thought they are dishwasher safe, they have also started to rust!! any solutions anyone?

thanks
Ali

elona

Could you try that silver cleaner on them - cannot remember what it is called.

lipidicman

Dishwashers seem to do that. Might be the salt. Wash and dry any cutlery you care about!

gkf

If you massage some cream cleanser such as cif, it usually gets it off. I am having the same problem at the moment, it is a nuisance.

dooj

me too my cuttlery comes out of dishwasher rusty looking, i dont think it is actually rusty i think its just dirt off other things in the dishwasher. Apparently Glist tablets keep stainless steel all shiny, i have just put a glist tablet in my dishwasher this morning so will let you know if it solves the rust problem (glist tablets were free sample). Other than that hand washing and drying straight away seems to be the answer.

Nile

We also used to have this problem but have found the following helps to prevent staining/rusting marks on cutlery:

Before you place your used cutlery in the dishwasher, wipe each item with a dry cloth or piece of kitchen roll......not a thorough clean, just a wipe to clear any food bits off.;)

If that fails to work, it might be that your cutlery is not effective at corrosion resistance.........and you might want to buy a higher quality cutlery set next time.

To remove the stains, I use duraglit polish.......then wipe the polish off and put the cutlery in the dishwasher for a thorough (hot) wash.

The boring technical bit:

Did you know that stainless steel cutlery is made from varying grades of stainless steel? If you see a sign or label like '18/8', the numbers refer to the levels of Chromium (18%) and Nickel (8%) present in the stainless steel alloy.

Chromium and Nickel are added to steel to increase resistance to oxidation and corrosion.

grumbler

Dishwasher Causing Rust thread ...

John_Jackson_2

This problem can occur when two items touch each other that are made of different grades of steel. There's an electroplating effect caused by the conditions in the machine.

So it's best to only wash items from the same cutlery set as they're made of the same steel.

I doubt that's a cure-all solution, but it does occur.

innovate

It could be the salt level in your dishwasher, or may be even your rinsing aid.

I have a water softener (which means I don't need dishwasher salt) and forgot to recharge it with salt the other day - my stainless steel cutlery and pans had 'rusty' stains all over, and glasses looked a bit milky. I could rub off the 'rusty' bits (wasn't really rust, I think) with a microfibre cloth, and since I keep my water softener topped up with salt, I haven't had any rusty or other stains on anything in the dishwasher.

That is - as long as I keep the rinsing aid topped up as well. When it gets low, I have also noticed dark (not rusty, though) bits on cutlery and pans. When regularly topped up, there's no such problem.

Also check that your sieves in the dishwasher are squeaky clean, so that all the wastewater does get sucked out fully in every wash cycle.

I used to use Finish 3-in-1 dishwasher tablets, but have changed to the much cheaper Waitrose own-brand ones. For rinsing aid, I still use Finish.