The Big Spring Clean: How to clean your appliances
Knowing how to clean your domestic appliances can help to make light work of your big spring clean. In our useful guide, we have pulled together some of the handiest hints, tips and lesser known facts about cleaning dishwashers, washing machines and other appliances in your home.
Spring is on the horizon. We’re all looking forward to warmer days, lighter evenings and the return of colour in our gardens as the flowers bloom and the clocks go forward. Many of us plan to perform a big clean of our homes and appliances, ready to welcome spring back with open arms and the fresh start it signifies.
As well as the general decluttering, tidying and perhaps shifting of furniture you have planned, you may be looking to tackle those bigger jobs - cleaning up the appliances you use every day to get them back on form.
Not only does it enhance their cleanliness, but it also improves how they run, ensuring those eco-friendly models continue to save energy without having to work harder.
Here, we’ve focused on how to clean your dishwasher, to ensure it spruces up those dishes with no bad smells or leftover food. Be sure to also view our infographic, to find out how to clean your other important home appliances too.
How does my dishwasher work?
When learning how to use your dishwasher, it’s a good idea to refer to the manual to ensure you’re clear what buttons to press to select different programmes.
Whether you have a dishwasher that’s served you for a long time or a sparkly new one, there are different things to consider for each when it comes to maintaining and cleaning.
For example, our dishwashers featuring our innovative AutoDose technology detect how dirty your dishes are and then dispense the perfect amount of detergent and rinse aid.
This will affect how often you’ll need to fill up the rinse aid and save you money in the long run on cleaning supplies. You can even connect it to your home Wi-Fi and ask Alexa to turn it on!
How to clean your dishwasher
If you have a dishwasher, then you know it’s the life saver in kitchen, freeing up your time to spend with your family and friends, as you don’t need to stand at the sink scrubbing by hand.
Plus, when you take the time to properly maintain it, your get improved efficiency and its eco-friendly functionality isn’t impaired as it doesn’t need to work harder. With these points in mind, follow these steps to clean up your dishwasher and get it looking brand new again.
- Remove all cutlery and dishes and put the machine on a hot cycle.
- Pop any cutlery holders and spacers in hot soapy water to soak.
- Clean out the filter.
- Wipe down the door seals.
- Top up the salt and rinse aid.
Step 1: Put the machine on a hot cycle
Add some white vinegar to the bottom of the machine before turning it on, this will tackle any bad smells, stains or stuck on grime.
Step 2: Soak your cutlery holder and any other removable parts
Cutlery holders hold onto stuck on food, so give yours a good soak in hot soapy water and then scrub with a brush if anything is still there later.
Step 3: Clean out the filter
The filter can become a trap for leftover food, which can lead to a bad smelling dishwasher and a less effective one too. Pull the filter out, give it a rinse and ensure it’s clear of any leftovers before loading it up again.
Step 4: Wipe down the door seals
If dirt or grime is left on the rubber door seal, this can wear away at the rubber and result in the door not closing properly in the future. Ensure you wipe this down with a clean cloth and some soapy water then soak up anything leftover with a dry piece of kitchen roll or a towel.
Step 5: Add more salt or rinse aid
Check the levels and ensure these are topped up, as they improve the overall performance of your dishwasher. If you choose a Beko dishwasher featuring our AutoDose technology, you won’t need to worry about this step!
What are some tips for ensuring your dishwasher runs more efficiently?
- Choose an eco-friendly model, the Beko range with AutoDose technology not only saves you money and energy but it also saves on rinse aid and detergent as it only disperses the exact amount needed for the load.
- Follow the instructions above to ensure your machine is clean and free of leftover food or trapped dirt that could slow its mechanisms down.
- Only put the dishwasher on when it is full, washing on a normal cycle with barely any dishes in the machine is a waste of money and energy.
- Turn down the heat for everyday cleaning, this will reduce the energy required while still doing a great job cleaning those dishes.
How to stop glasses from turning cloudy in the dishwasher
Sometimes, while unloading the dishwasher, you might notice that glasses have started to cloud or have white marks on them. This is due to hard water,so look for a specialist hard water detergent to prevent this.
What are the benefits of having a dishwasher?
For many, once they have a dishwasher installed it's hard to ever go back to washing up by hand. These incredible machines are the backbone of the kitchen, doing all the hard work for you and saving you time and money. Here, we’ve rounded up some of the main benefits of installing one in your home.
It saves time - No more standing at the sink and missing out on time with friends and family after dinner.
They are eco-friendly - They use less energy and water than running the tap to fill up the wash bowl every time you need to clean up after dinner. Beko prides itself on providing dishwashers with an energy rating of A+ and above, creating energy efficient machines that do their bit for the environment and for the home.
They can save you money - Dishwashers are cheaper to run in the long haul, with research suggesting that there is an average saving of 50p on water and 28p on energy compared to those households who wash up by hand.
They keep your kitchen clean and tidy - As the saying goes ‘out of sight, out of mind’, dirty dishes are popped in the dishwasher and don’t make your kitchen look untidy while you wait for the machine to fill up.
It’s safer - There’s less chance of hurting yourself when dealing with a dishwasher, no broken glass or cuts if you drop something.
They come in a range of sizes - Many people worry they can’t fit a dishwasher in their kitchen but slimline dishwashers are available that fit in smaller spaces and do the same great job.
Tackle the dishwasher this spring clean and enjoy a machine that runs more efficiently and economically.