When I last left you, I was assembling an arsenal of dishwasher-nook-and-cranny scrub brushes. “What Is That Smell?”, had me on an adventure trying to figure out how to get the scum cleaned out of my dishwasher. I was madly working at getting it removed from every space and place it clung to.
It took a great deal of elbow grease and tenacity to stick to scrubbing best I could in the nooks and crannies of the dishwasher. The bottom of the door presented an interesting challenge. I was very afraid if I began to take out the screw and then remove the door, to get at the bottom where the clips were, I wouldn’t get it reassembled and that would make my husband nervous.
Take this handy baby bottle cleaner
Reaching for the skinny baby bottle cleaner I began running it and to the hole. As I pulled it back out, the bottle cleaner was full of a gelatinous rust color gunk. Gross! But, I kept at it. In and out of every hole till each hole stop producing gunk.
I then followed the same procedure with the floor drain filter. Scrubbed in and out of each little hole. Rinsing on and off with vinegar. Grabbing a circular scrubby I made another final attempt to clean it well. I had brought items to the bathroom for their soak and scrub in the tub and it felt like I got it all cleaned.
Reassembling everything back into the dishwasher I opted for the three-hour forty-five-minute super wash with sanitizing feature and heat drying. There. Good. And later, after the lengthy wash was completed, I opened it and gave it a sniff. SNIFF! Hmm. I think I can still smell it. Hmm. Well, maybe I smelled it so much while cleaning it just is stuck in my nose?
Nice try
I was proud of my exploration, cleaning workout, and reassembly. My complete narration of events to Brad seemed to bolster what I saw was a success… but not so fast. Two weeks later I began to smell sulfur again. AGAIN! Blast this dishwasher back to Maytag.
Hopping onto the computer I searched for articles, chat posts, and videos about this “problem”. I found a great article that talked about the rust color scum. As I kept reading they walked me through what a dishwasher does. I needed a reminder that a dishwasher RECIRCULATES the dirty water as it cleans, just like you do when you hand wash.
All that food gunk, grease, and particles get tossed around the dishwasher and find their way into nooks and crannies. Over time, if it’s not rinsed away or cleaned, it builds up and begins to rot. Hence the smell and colored mold appearance. GROSS! Here is a cool YouTube video on what goes on inside your dishwasher during a cleaning cycle. You can link to it here, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HI9dLMW4BWk.
And then there was light
The best help. The most comprehensive tutorial on taking apart your dishwasher to get at the real reason, the real cause of the smell, was this YouTube dishwasher video, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ERyNzfn0SE. Absolutely watch it, especially if you have a Maytag from 2017.
I watch this video two times. Once at my desk and then I loaded it up on my phone and I began to take my dishwasher apart. My husband was eating lunch as I began my crusade. My gagging and words caught his attention and I gasped as I pulled apart and lifted off part after part. The scum was everywhere.
But the grossest, vile and disgusting gunk lay below. I was working madly to get at the drain basket and the filter and as I turned over the drain filter there it was.
IS THAT NOT THE GROSSEST GOB OF GUNK EVER?! It was so thick, I could sink my fingers into it and scoop it out with a cupped hand. You can see the “fingers” of gelatinous goo just handing there. GROSS! I face-timed my sister to show her and she recoiled in disgust. “Where is that from?” and “What is that?”, was all she could manage to say. With a wrinkled-up nose and a look of horror she shook her head and said she had to go.
I carefully cleaned out the gunk into the garbage can and then washed the drain basket in hot soapy water, scrubbing each and every hole as well as the filter box. I also wash every part I had pulled out and pulled apart. And then lastly I looked and found an additional strainer/drain and that had hair and gross gelatinous scum clinging to the strainer.
Slowly but surely everything was cleaned and reassembled back in its proper place. Once again I set the dishwasher for the three-hour-plus cleaning program, loaded it with Cascade™, and awaited the clean results. A few hours later I opened up the dishwasher to find a sparkling clean, great smelling, and happy dishwasher. I guess in the future I will have to do a monthly inspection and pull out some of the drains and strainers and give them a good cleaning. You might want to do that too!
Till next time friends! Here is to good food, clean dishwashers and a very good life!
Michele Bruxvoort is sure to draw you in with her delightful sense of humor and love for living life. She enjoys reading, repurposing, as well as remodeling the family home with her husband. Drawing from her life experience as wife, mom, and follower of Jesus, Michele brings you a very honest and real perspective on life. When you don’t find her writing, you can find her mowing lawns, stocking shelves, taking care of her grandbaby and tackling her latest life adventure.
Wisconsin native and empty-nester, she now makes her home with her husband of 27 years in the South West Prairie plains of Minnesota.
