White Film on Dishes

A dishwasher is considered to be one of the most useful kitchen appliances, as there are many who detest cleaning dishes on their own. Even though, these machines are useful and good at helping you with this task, sometimes, you may notice a thin white coating on dishes after washing. You have to wash them once again manually, so as to get rid of this white powdery film on dishes. After all you have bought the machine to lessen your work and save time and not to burden you.

Why is the Dishwasher Leaving White Film on Dishes

This is one of the common dishwashing problems that can be solved to some extent, if you know the reasons and the remedies. One of the culprits for this phenomenon is hard water that can leave behind some minerals that form a chalky coating on the dishes. It is also said that nowadays, there are no phosphates in dishwashing detergent, as a result of the new regulations. Phosphates are meant for removing minerals present in hard water. So, using such dishwashing liquids may not be useful in preventing white film on dishes.

Another probable cause is the use of excessive detergents, which may also result in a white residue on dishes. If the white film on glass dishes can be removed with rinsing, then, the above mentioned causes may be responsible. If no, there could be permanent etching of the glass dishes due to the high temperature setting or excess use of detergent. So, eliminating these causes may help you in getting rid of this dishwasher problem.

Remedies for White Film on Dishes

So, now you know why your dishes develop white film in the dishwater. You may eliminate the causes to some extent. It is possible to reduce the amount of detergent used, every time, you use the dishwasher. If there is no difference, you may also try changing the detergent. If the problem is due to hard water, then try vinegar, which is one of the best remedies for white film on dishes. All you have to do is to add a cup of white vinegar during the final rinse. This prevents build up of minerals on the dishes. Instead of adding vinegar, you may also keep it (in a small dish) inside the dish washer, on the bottom rack or the door. Some people use a combination of bleach and vinegar for this purpose. In such case, use half a cup of bleach, during the wash cycle and half a cup of vinegar, during the rinse cycle. Make sure to remove silver and other metallic items from the dishwasher, before using these remedies.

However, these solutions will not work, if the white film is permanent etching of glass and not any residue deposit that can be removed. You can prevent such etching by avoiding the use of large amounts of detergent and adjusting the power settings. You should not use water that is hotter than 140 °F, for dishwashing. Avoid rinsing the dishes, before placing them inside the dishwasher. Above all, make sure to clean this kitchen appliance on a regular basis. This is much more applicable for those households that use hard water, that may deposit minerals on the machine parts and these deposits can form the white film.

In short, white film on dishes is a problem that can be remedied with some simple solutions. If you are confronting this problem, try the above mentioned remedies and get rid of it at the earliest, so that your dishes come out sparkling clean.