Your dishwasher works hard to clean up after family dinner, Sunday breakfast, and even the biggest holiday messes. But how do dishwashers work if we don’t keep the appliances themselves clean? Regular cleaning and maintenance of your dishwasher may not be something you think about until it’s too late, but keeping up with a regular schedule can keep your much-appreciated appliance running longer and cleaning better.

In this guide, we’ll review routine cleaning tasks and maintenance checklists and how often you should tackle these chores to avoid inconvenient breakdowns. (But don’t worry, if you’ve gone a while without knowing the proper steps, your dishwasher home warranty coverage may still be able to help cover a breakdown.)

The Basics: Dishwasher Cleaning

Food waste, grime, and debris are the last things you want left behind on your dishes, but you may not know where they can build up in your dishwasher. Regular and thorough dishwasher cleanings can keep this buildup (and its accompanying odors) from occurring. Let’s go over the best way to clean dishwashers — from its door and exterior to its interior and removable parts.

Step 1: Gather Cleaning Supplies

Dishwasher-safe bowl
White vinegar
Soft-bristle brush
Toothbrush (for cleaning only)
Microfiber clothes
Baking soda
Dish soap
Stainless steel cleaning product (for stainless dishwashers)

Step 2: Clean the Removable Parts

The removable parts of your dishwasher are often the easiest to clean, which makes them an excellent place to start. Remove items like utensil holders and removable racks, rinse them in the sink to remove any stuck-on food or residue, and wipe them down with a cloth to remove any stuck-on dirt or debris.

Stubborn stains or residue on those removable parts? Don’t worry.

To remove caked-on food or mineral buildup, fill your sink with warm water and add two cups of white vinegar. The vinegar acts as a DIY dishwasher cleaner and helps break down the residue, which should be wiped or rinsed off easily after soaking for 20 minutes or more.

The image shows a dishwasher with racks extended.

Step 3: Clean the Interior

Next, you’ll need to know how to clean inside of a dishwasher. The walls and tubs can collect food debris and mineral buildup from hard water over time. Eventually, this creates a layer of grime, resulting in cloudy dishes and unpleasant odors. Fortunately, cleaning a dishwasher interior is a pretty simple process that can be completed with items you likely already have around the house.

To complete a basic cleaning, you should follow these steps for how to clean a dishwasher with vinegar:

Remove any dishes from the dishwasher.
Fill a dishwasher-safe bowl with 1 cup of vinegar and place it upright on the top rack.
Run the hottest cycle available on your appliance (skip the drying cycle).
Once the cycle is complete, open the dishwasher and allow it to air-dry.

Need to know how to clean a smelly dishwasher? Learn how to clean dishwashers with baking soda:

Sprinkle 1 cup of baking soda on the bottom of the dishwasher.
Run a short cycle on the hottest setting (skip the drying cycle).
Open the dishwasher to let it air-dry.

Safety note: Never run a cycle with vinegar and baking soda at the same time. Combining these two ingredients can result in a chemical reaction and a foamy mess in your kitchen!

In some cases, you can also use bleach to deep-clean or sanitize dishwashers — but this should not be done with stainless steel appliances as bleach can severely damage the finish. Try cleaning a dishwasher with bleach by pouring 1 cup into a bleach- and dishwasher-safe bowl, placing it on the top rack right side up, and running a cycle without drying.

Step 4: Cleaning the Dishwasher Filter

Although it is a part of the dishwasher interior, the filter deserves its own step in the cleaning process. If you use your dishwasher daily, you should inspect and clean the filter or strainer at least once a week. You can find the filter by looking under the bottom dish rack near the drain on most models.

Remove any large pieces of food debris, paper labels, stickers, or other small items that could clog the filter. (If your filter is removable, it may be easier to do this step after taking it out.) You can then use a toothbrush designated for cleaning, or a soft-bristle brush dipped in vinegar or dish soap to scrub the filter and remove any stuck-on grime. Once you’re done, rinse it thoroughly and replace it.

Note: If your dishwasher filter is not removable, don’t clean it with dish soap, as this could result in a foamy mess the next time you run a cycle.

Image shows stainless steel dishwasher tub with food debris in the filter.

Step 5: Clean the Gaskets

Before you start this step, review your owner’s manual for instructions on how to clean dishwasher gaskets. Some manufacturers suggest using only warm water to avoid degrading their gaskets. If your manual does not specify how to clean them, you can use a toothbrush to apply a mixture of hot water and vinegar to the gaskets. Gently scrub with this solution to remove any grime or mineral buildup.

Gasket cleaner recipe:

3 cups hot water
½ cup white vinegar

Step 6: Clean the Exterior

The outside of your dishwasher is a breeze to clean after completing the steps to clean the inside. For most finishes, use a cleaning cloth and warm, soapy water to wipe down the door panel and dry it with a clean towel. Be sure to clean the control panel and any buttons or knobs as well. Use only household stainless-steel cleaners on the exterior for stainless steel to avoid damaging it.

Additional Cleaning Tips:

Thoroughly rinse dishes to avoid food buildup in the dishwasher and filter.
Don’t overload the dishwasher — load the dishes according to the owners’ manual.
Wipe down any spills or splatters as they happen to avoid harsh scrubbing later.
Not sure how to deep clean your dishwasher? Consult your owner’s manual or manufacturer’s website for more instructions and information.

Related Blog: Dishwasher Won’t Drain?

Beyond Cleaning: Other Dishwasher Maintenance Tips

Regularly cleaning your dishwasher is just one part of the puzzle if you want to keep it in tip-top shape for years to come. There are a few other basic dishwasher maintenance tasks you should do regularly to maintain your hard-working kitchen sidekick:

Clean arms and nozzles: Use a pipe cleaner to clear mineral buildup or consult your manual for further cleaning instructions.
Run an empty cycle every so often or use dishwasher cleaning tabs to help clear debris from the appliance and its hoses.
Press your dishwasher’s “cancel” or “drain” button after every cycle to clear water from the drain hose and help prevent bacteria growth.

Protect Your Dishwasher with a Home Warranty

Keep your appliances running and your budget in check with a dishwasher home warranty from First American. Even if you haven’t been keeping up on cleaning and dishwasher maintenance, your appliance is safe from covered breakdowns as long as it’s in working condition at the beginning of your home warranty contract. To learn more, get a free quote today.

The contents of this article are provided for general guidance only. First American Home Warranty does not assume any responsibility for losses or damages as a result of using this information.

Please be aware that if you disassemble a covered system or item, it can invalidate your home warranty or manufacturer's warranty.