Why does white plaque appear in the dishwasher and how to get rid of it

Washing dishes in the car is very convenient, but it cannot be said that such a technique is devoid of drawbacks. Processing quality may decline immediately after installation or after some time. The most unpleasant problem for housewives is a white coating in the dishwasher, which settles on the surface of the dishes. How to fix it?

You will learn all about the causes of the appearance of mineral sediment inside the dishwasher from the article we presented. We will talk about how to prevent education and how to clean it, if he managed to settle. We will show you what rules to observe during the operation of the equipment, ensuring the extension of its working life.

The reasons for the formation of plaque on the dishes

White flakes and stains in the dishwasher - this is a limescale coating. In a centralized water supply, water is hard and contains impurities of salts of substances such as calcium, magnesium, etc. The owners of an autonomous water supply system are not immune from such a problem, especially if water is taken from cracks in limestone rocks.

When heated, these substances are converted into a white precipitate, which is called scale. She is the most common cause of whitish spots on washed dishes.

A similar plaque is formed inside the kettle. To improve the situation, manufacturers have provided a special module in the design of dishwashers - the ion-exchange system.

This is a container filled with a resinous filler to which a regenerating salt is added. When the water entering the machine passes through an ion exchanger, chloride ions neutralize metal salts and soften the water.

The presence of impurities that affect the hardness parameters of tap water can be determined visually. If the water poured into a transparent vessel has a “rusty” hue, then it has passed poor-quality filtration. Consequently, the excess of calcium and magnesium from the water is also not removed.

The absence of salt or its insufficient amount leads to the appearance of plaque.But the reasons for the lack of this tool need to understand.

The appearance of plaque may indicate that the settings were lost, the salt simply ended, that this particular product is not suitable for local water, etc. But it also happens that a raid becomes a sign of serious damage.

If the hardness control is not set correctly, insufficient salt will flow into the machine. Often, manufacturers complete the device with test strips that allow you to correctly determine the level of stiffness in order to set the necessary settings.

The white coating that appears on the surface of the dishes after washing is a scum, a calcareous precipitate that falls when hard water is heated

In the absence of such strips, you can contact your local water utility for help, order a water analysis from the well, or simply buy a set of such strips. If the quality of washing dishes is unsatisfactory, you need to immediately rectify the situation. Otherwise, it will only get worse, you will have to call the master and pay for expensive repairs.

Methods of dealing with the “white” problem

So, the most common causes of whitish plaque:

• lack of regenerating salt;
• insufficient amount of this material;
• incorrect operation of the stiffness sensor;
• violation of the operating rules of the device;
• clogged filters;
• other breakdowns.

Problems with a raid are familiar to almost every housewife who has Dishwasher. If contaminants appeared soon after the start of using the device, most likely, the degree of rigidity is not correctly determined, which means that the machine settings need to be adjusted.

If the dishes and dishwasher chamber are covered with distinctive white spots, it is likely that the water coming in is too hard

Checking the settings

The setup procedure is usually detailed in the instructions. Regenerating salt it is necessary to fill in the container intended for it. Sometimes inexperienced owners simply forget about this important point.

But just the presence of salt does not always solve the problem. Water needs to be softened enough, but not excessively. Too soft water is not suitable for washing items made of thin glass.

To correctly set these settings, you need to accurately determine the hardness of the water that enters the dishwasher. If you do not have test strips designed for these purposes, you can try to look on the Internet. For example, the Mosvodokanal website has information on the characteristics of the water in the city water supply.

The following video will help to correctly determine the composition of the water coming from the central water supply system:

A problem with incorrect settings can occur not only at the beginning of operation, but also later. For example, if the water parameters have changed for some reason.

Therefore, when white plaque appears, you should again check how hard the water in the water supply is. The characteristics of autonomous systems are less susceptible to such changes.

To determine the stiffness, indicator strips are used that need to be immersed for 1-2 seconds in a tank of tap water. After a minute, the indicator bar will show the degree of salt content (+)

Unscheduled cleaning of PMM

If, in addition to stains on the dishes, plaque is found all over the dishwasher chamber, as well as a large amount of dirt and greasy deposits on the bottom, the appliance may not have been cleaned for too long. Cleaning is carried out using safe and effective means, which will be recommended by our recommended article.

Filters get clogged, impurities penetrate the drain devices As a result, limescale that has appeared on the surface of the heating element enters the dishwasher chamber and settles on the surface of the dishes.

In addition, particles of limescale may fall on the openings of the sprinklers. The gaps are narrowed, water enters the chamber with a low pressure and in insufficient quantity.All this affects the quality of cleaning dishes, and also contributes to the appearance of white plaque.

To fix the problem, it is necessary to clean the filters of the dishwasher, and also to carry out such cleaning regularly. If there is too much contamination or the filter is damaged, replace it with a new one.

In addition, you must perform the descaling procedure. This should be done approximately two to three times a year with the help of the product intended for this. In its absence, vinegar or citric acid can be used. Cleaning is carried out at maximum heating temperature.

A detailed analysis of the cleaning process of the dishwasher is demonstrated in the following video:

When using home household chemicals, the dishwasher must be paused in the middle of the cycle for about one hour. The cleaning agent is used in accordance with the instructions.

Proper use of cleaning products

If white streaks or plaque appeared in the sink immediately after a new portion of the regenerating salt was added to the container, most likely, the filling was inaccurate, some of the crystals fell into the washing chamber. This may cause plaque on the dishes.

There are other ways to get salt in the dishwasher:

• if the container lid is not closed tightly enough;
• the lid is cracked or its position is skewed;
• an error occurred while backfilling the salt; it ended up in a container designed for detergent or rinse aid.

Salt is best added just before the start of the wash cycle. Some manufacturers recommend even starting the machine idle if, after refueling the container with salt, it is not planned to use household appliances for their intended purpose.

The detergent loading containers must be tightly closed to ensure that the powder, rinse aid and salt are delivered in the correct dosage and at the right time.

After adding a new portion of salt, it is necessary to screw the lid very tight so that its granules do not get into the chamber. After that, you always need to check the condition of the camera, if the product woke up, you need to carefully remove it. If the lid is cracked, you cannot use the dishwasher, you need to buy and install a new lid.

Another common reason for whitish stains in a dishwasher is the use of poor quality household chemicals. For a good cleaning of the surface of the dishes, it is necessary to use three products: a composition for removing impurities, a rinse aid and regenerating salt.

When conditionally drying, it is very important to add a sufficient amount of rinse aid, otherwise stains may appear on the dishes even when the salt is all right.

Before loading the dishwasher, thoroughly clean the dishes from food debris to reduce the load on the filter system

The cost of quality tools for dishwashers is quite high, some housewives prefer to experiment with cheaper options, and these experiments are not always successful.

Especially a lot of problems arise due to “3 in 1” products, which contain a cleaner, a rinse aid, and salt. Even normal quality pills, proportions may not be suitable for a particular dishwasher or for the water used in it.

Salt needs to be poured into the container intended for it very carefully, if crystals get into the chamber, they must be removed immediately

If the brand of detergents has recently been changed, this may be the reason for the appearance of plaque.

Problems can arise even when using quality chemistry:

• if the powder or rinse aid comes in too little or too much;
• when the lid of the rinse aid container is not tightly closed or damaged, due to which the product enters the chamber during the washing cycle and mixes with the powder;
• if mistakenly mixed containers for powder and rinse aid;
• if these supplies are loaded in the same container.

With “3 in 1” tablets, sometimes problems arise in short cycles, although washing with a long program is performed quite qualitatively.

This is due to the fact that during the short time period the tablet simply does not have time to dissolve, and the quality of the wash suffers from this. It is enough to adjust the correct flow of funds into the dishwasher chamber to eliminate the problem.

It’s not always possible to purchase a suitable kit dishwasher detergents or determine their optimal dosage right away. Some housewives have to conduct several experiments to find the right combination. Of course, you need to take into account the manufacturer's recommendations in this regard, they are set out in the instructions.

In expensive dishwashers there is a stiffness sensor that automates the consumption of regenerating salt. If such a sensor breaks, you need to invite an experienced craftsman to repair

If all methods have been used and tested, and the raid does not disappear, perhaps you should look for a more serious breakdown. Such situations are rare, but still there.

Usually during breakdowns, the appearance of plaque is detected not only on the dishes, but also throughout the chamber, and is also accompanied by a large amount of grease contamination. You need to call the wizard and order a detailed diagnosis of the status of the device.

Often, the result is that a stiffness sensor is broken. Such an element is not available in every device, but only in some, usually expensive, models.

With this module, the required amount of salt is determined automatically. The sensor must be replaced by a good repair technician, usually this procedure is performed at a service center.

Tips from experienced owners

During the operation, customers have discovered various ways to improve the quality of washing and deal with stains. It is noted that it is more difficult to clean cheap dishes of low quality in a dishwasher. Sometimes you have to change some items to more expensive ones or completely change the brand.

If the dishes in the chamber are not placed correctly, the washing quality may noticeably deteriorate, which contributes to the appearance of a white coating at the end of the cycle

For certain objects and depending on the type of pollution, you need to choose the right washing cycle. Also, do not exceed the number of items allowed for loading at a time. The number of sets is indicated in the instructions. Problems can also occur when the dishes are not properly placed in the chamber.

On forums and review sites you can find a lot of useful tips for specific models of dishwashers. It makes sense to carefully study such recommendations in order to learn not from your own mistakes, but from strangers.

Understand the intricacies of the device dishwashers, get acquainted with the details of the unit and their maintainability will help next article, which we highly recommend reading.

Conclusions and useful video on the topic

A video about the causes of plaque in the dishwasher and the most effective way to eliminate them:

Plaque on dishes - an unpleasant phenomenon, but quite common. It is not difficult to get rid of it, it is necessary to soften the water, and also to clean the equipment in a timely manner. If the machine is used correctly, the likelihood of problems will become minimal.

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