A dishwasher question?

Question

My apartment has a dishwasher (it was new when I moved in), but I have never used it. Now I'm wondering, is it bad for the diswasher not to be used? I'm talking 2-3 years never being used. Is it better to never use it, always use it, use it once in a while? I know this may be a stupid question, but since it belongs to the apartment complex, not me, I would like to take good care of it. Thanks.

Answer 1

Use it at least occasionally, as the seals will dry out, and it will leak, if you don't.

Answer 2

Hello Conicat!

Wow - you must know my Mom & all her sisters, (Shes from a brood of 13 kids - and NONE of them use a diswasher, and they all love to hang the wash outside on "the line" instead of using the dryer, (Farm girls to the last!).

Anyway, to your question, - yes you should run the DW once a week, - especially if you run the AC in the summer, (which I suspect you do not, (Oh - It'll cool down tonight - just use the fan); and if the units do not have humidifiers running in the heating system in the winter. What can happen is that:

The seals can dry out and lose their seal and leak.
Hoses can dry out & crack and then leak
Mechanical articulated arms, spray heads, and other moving parts, -aluminum, pot-metal, white-metal, stainless steel - can all calcify and sieze-up. If you have't use the DW - then the operating instructions should be inside the unit, READ them.

In particular read the section regarding DW soap. Some DW manufactures recomend only LIQUID DW soap, while others recommend only DRY soap powder. While this may seem silly, - failure to comply can result in damage to the machine. I've seen one Seniors Condo complex in Boca Ratton where the inside of almost all of the DW's in two adjoining Condo Buildings turned bright orange inside of a week. Turned out that only powdered dry DW detergent was supposed to be used in the machines. The Inside drum of the Machines would not stand up to the added water reducing agents, and super plasticizers in the liquid detergents. They reacted and the result was the plastic turning orange (and quite brittle - infact the back wall of the tubs, in some cases would literally shatter like glass with a medium tap with a serving spoon.)

So check to see if there is a DW cleaner restriction. Good luck.

Answer 3

If it's mildewy or smells bad you should run it a few times while it's empty. As everyone else said, the seals can dry out too with lack of use. Run it and check for leaks. If it had been used a lot before, there could be hard water deposits on the inside parts that plug filters or don't allow the spray arms to move freely.

Answer 4

Why would you not use the dishwasher? I would kill to have one (not literaly). Anyway, I don't see how it would be a problem to use it now. If you are worried you could have someone from maintenance at your appartment complex come check it out first.

Answer 5

this is what you do,
take it out and toss it off the roof and tell the landlord you were drunk and dont remember how it happenend, that should take care of the dishwasher problem.

Answer 6

You should use it on occasion. That way you know it is working. It is better to keep things lubricated and exercise the parts to keep them from freezing up and getting stiff.

Answer 7

use it once a month it keeps the seals in good condition.

Answer 8

Life's too short to be worrying about this kind of thing, Dear! Leave it to the Maintenance Dept.!

Answer 9

if its never been used dont worry about

Answer 10

your doing fine