What Can I Wash in My Dishwasher?
The kitchen appliance is so-named because of it’s intended use: to wash dirty dishes. But it’s such a handy device that cleans and disinfects so well with very little effort on our part, surely it can wash other things to. A dishwasher can indeed wash much more than just dirty dishes, pop some of these dishwasher-safe items in your appliance for the next wash load and see how well they turn out.
Baseball Caps
These popular style of caps get bent out of shape when tossed in the washing machine, but will retain the shape when washed in a dishwasher. Don’t wash baseball caps when washing dishes (glasses only) as food debris could get lodged in the cap’s fabric.
Ceramic Cabinet Knobs
Cabinet knobs and drawer pulls in the kitchen get covered with greasy gunk and germs from the constant handling. To get them clean as new and kill all germs, remove them and place them in the silverware basket for a good washing.
Hair Brush Cleaner
Hair brushes and combs made of plastic will get sparkling clean and disinfected in the dishwasher. This is a good thing to know when sharing a home with children who frequently bring home germs and parasites from school.
Other children’s items like mouth guards, shin guards and knee pads used in sports can also take a ride in the dishwasher and come out clean and germ-free. Hard plastic toys (without electronic components) also clean up nicely in the dishwasher.
Light Covers and Switch Plates
Any modern light cover, switch plate, vent cover, fan grille or the like can be safely washed in the top rack of a dishwasher. Antiques, painted, plated or enamel items should be washed by hand.
Flip Flops and Rain Boots
Hooks flip flops to the tines in the top rack to prevent the lightweight shoes from flip-flopping all around during the wash cycle. Lay rain boots down on their sides and remove liner before washing.
Garden Tools
Hand held garden tools can be cleaned and disinfected in the dishwasher as long as they don’t have wooden handles. Other tools, like hammers and screw driver, can also be safely washed in the dishwasher. Do not wash dishes or other food containers in the same load since garden tools may have come in contact with pesticides.
Potatoes
Quick clean that mountain of raw potatoes by placing them in the top rack of the dishwasher and running it on a rinse-only cycle (no detergent). The hot water and steam also soften the potatoes, so peeling and boiling them for mashed potatoes goes much quicker.
