Guides / Dishwasher Maintenance: Filters, Seals, and the Monthly Rinse

Dishwasher Maintenance: Filters, Seals, and the Monthly Rinse

Most 'broken' dishwashers aren't broken — they're clogged. The filter most owners have never removed explains the murky glasses, the smell, and half of all service calls.

1. Clean the filter monthly

Twist out the cylindrical filter at the tub floor, rinse under hot water, brush off the fine mesh. Monthly for daily-run machines; more with hard water.

2. Clear the spray arms

Toothpick the nozzle holes — mineral scale and seed debris redirect the spray pattern and leave the top rack dirty.

3. Wipe the door seal

The gasket collects a biofilm line that smells and eventually leaks. Warm soapy water monthly; check for nicks while you're there.

4. Run a hot maintenance cycle

Monthly, empty, hottest setting, with a dishwasher cleaner or a cup of white vinegar upright on the top rack — dissolves scale in the parts you can't reach.

Common questions

How long should a dishwasher last?About 10 years on average. The pump and control board are the expensive failures — when a repair quote passes half the price of a comparable new unit, replace.

Why do my glasses come out cloudy?Usually hard-water scale (vinegar cycle + rinse aid fixes it) or etching from too much detergent in soft water — which is permanent, so diagnose before it spreads to the whole cabinet.

Part of the complete home maintenance schedule.

Track this in HOGER — your home's verified service ledger