Dishwasher Cycles

As important as which dishwasher you get is what product you put inside it and what cycle you run it on. Dishwashers often come with multiple cycles to choose, sometimes associated with certain maximum temperatures and sometimes independent from this. These cycles dictate not only the temperatures, but also the length of the programme and how much water and electricity is used. Which to choose depends not only on how dirty your plates are, but also how hard the water is in your area, how much you put in and what detergent you use.

Most new dishwashers come with a programme called the Eco Wash (although the exact name varies depending on manufacturer). This uses far less water and electricity, and thus will save you money. It's not designed for small loads, which is one of the common misconceptions about it, but instead for large loads that don't have much dirt on them. For those who eat mainly pre-prepared meals or give their pans and pots a quick rinse under the tap after use then this cycle is ideal for large loads, and will save not only the planet but your money.

An alternative to the eco wash if you're only got a small load is the quick programme which is ideal for washing plates and glasses with little dirt and is especially useful if you need to use them again in a short amount of time, for instance if they've been used in preparation of a meal and need to be used again for serving. If time isn't so much an issue but you don't want to use a full programme then there's the half load programme which can wash even quite dirty plates and pots but doesn't need as much water as it would if the dishwasher was full.

Of course sometimes we do a lot of heavy cooking with sticky or oily foods which don't easily come off, or perhaps we've mistimed something and its now burnt to the pan! No need to worry as a high temperature or power scrub programme can get rid of most baked on and hard dried foods, although you need to ensure you don't put anything delicate such as fine glass in this wash! Generally you'll want to use a stronger tablet and fill up the rinse aid for this cycle.

Afterwards you might need to put the delicates into their own cycle. Many dishwashers come with a cycle specifically for these items which uses low temperatures and lower pressure. This of course isn't suitable for washing very dirty plates and pans at the same time, but it will clean your glassware just fine.

For everyday use of course the regular programme does just fine. If your dish washer is temperature based then this should be between 50 and 70 degree Celsius or 120 and 160 degrees Fahrenheit. If your dishes are regularly not coming out clean on this cycle then see our article on dishwasher troubleshooting. If after following this article things still don't come out clean then it's likely that a component of your dishwasher has stopped working and needs fixing or replacing.