Skip to main content
DEAL WATCH: Keurig K-Express | 22% off $69.99

Keurig has changed the face of coffee, and snagging one of these for less than $70 is a solid deal. Read Review

BUY NOW
Dishwashers

Don't Make This Common Dishwasher Mistake

It happens to the best of us.

Loading a dishwasher Credit: Flickr user "breatheindigital"

Recommendations are independently chosen by Reviewed's editors. Purchases made through the links below may earn us and our publishing partners a commission.

It's not unusual for us to use the Reviewed.com office dishwasher for our personal dishes, but the annual Halloween Party last week left us with dozens of dirty baking sheets, cupcake pans, and plastic containers. No problem, right? Just toss them in with the other dishes and run a cycle over the weekend! What could possibly go wrong?

{{amazon name="Affresh W10282479 Dishwasher Cleaner, 6 Tablets", asin="B002R0DXQE", align="right"}} Plenty, it seems. Come Monday, we were greeted with a putrid scent, a trail of detergent residue leaking from the dispenser, and—most importantly—piles of unwashed dishes. Had the reliable lab dishwasher finally given up the ghost after years of constant use? Was it time to cash in on the warranty?

Actually, it was just a rookie mistake. In rushing to get everything done in one go, we got a little creative with loading all those baking sheets and cupcake pans. The result? We learned that just because everything fits, it doesn't mean the dishwasher isn't overloaded.

Related content

  • A hand holds a glass that's mostly clean, but has green flecks of redeposit marring its sheen.

    how-to

    Your dishwasher is gross—here’s how to clean it
  • A set of knives hanging on a wall.

    how-to

    Stop ruining your knives: how to get a sharper blade

Overloading your machine is one of the worst mistakes you can make. At best, a few dishes won't get cleaned because they’re hiding behind others. At worst, the detergent dispenser door will get blocked and nothing will get cleaned, which was what happened to us.

{{ photo_gallery name="Dishwasher Mistake" fullscreen="true"} }}

So the next time your dishwasher fails spectacularly, before you call for repairs or go shopping for a new machine, make sure you haven't just blocked the detergent dispenser. It sounds dumb, but it’s a surprisingly common mistake.

Before you call for repairs, make sure you haven't just blocked the detergent dispenser.

It's so common, in fact, that some manufacturers have even designed detergent doors that slide to the side instead of flipping open in order to avoid this problem entirely. The truth is, it’s simply not something on people’s minds while they’re loading their dishwashers.

But now you’ll be thinking about it. Don’t make the same mistake we did.

{{brightcove '1880539884001'}}

Up next