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It can be worrying to have a dishwasher that smells when running. Worse still, it can be embarrassing to run the dishwasher when you have guests over knowing well it will start giving off a foul smell.
If this resonates with you, worry not. In this guide, I will be telling you what could be causing your dishwasher to smell when it is running.
Additionally, I will give you the necessary steps you can take to get rid of the bad smell.
Dishwasher smells when running – what causes it and how to get rid of the smell
When handling a dishwasher that smells when running, there are several possible parts that you should inspect.
And, each of these parts has its own way of inspecting and cleaning.
With that being the case, we are going to look at these parts individually…
The drain filters might be dirty
If you do not regularly clean the drain filters, they might fill with food particles.
And when this occurs, bacteria might start feeding on these food particles which will result in your dishwasher smelling.
However, this smell will become more pronounced when the dishwasher is running.
This is made worse by the recirculating water as it accentuates the smell every time you run the dishwasher.
Possible solutions you should try – how to remove bad smell from dishwasher
First, you will need to confirm that the filter is indeed to blame.
And this is pretty simple – open your dishwasher and remove the filter to inspect it for food remains… You will find the filter at the bottom of the tub.
Quick tip: Some dishwasher brands such as GE have two filters. So, be sure to check all the filters in your dishwasher.
If the filter is dirty, you will need to wash it to get rid of the smelly food particles trapped in there.
To wash your dishwasher’s filter, use warm soapy water and a soft sponge to get rid of the trapped food particles.
Something else: Some filters (such as GE dishwasher ultra-fine filters) are delicate and should not be washed using brushes or scouring pads to avoid damaging them.
It could be that the drain hose is not properly installed
Did you know that when installing your dishwasher’s drain hose, it should either have a high-rise loop as shown:
Or it should have an air gap as below:
Now, here’s where it gets interesting… If you have not installed any of these parts, the waste water might flow back from the sink to the dishwasher. And, this will mostly be the case when the dishwasher starts to drain… In this case, every time you run it.
And of course, as this water flows back to the dishwasher, it might bring some waste (and smell) from the drainage system.
This will result in your dishwasher producing a sewer-like smell. At times, it might smell like there are rotten eggs in there.
I have installed a drain hose loop. Does that mean the drain hose is not the cause of my dishwasher to smell when running?
No. This is not always so.
After installing the drain hose loop, it’s good to make sure that it is at least 32” high. However, this height might vary slightly depending on your dishwasher’s model.
So, be sure to confirm from your dishwasher’s installation instructions what the minimum drain hose height for your model should be.
The garbage disposer might be to blame
A dirty garbage disposer is also another common reason for a dishwasher to smell when running.
Usually, what happens is that when you start running the dishwasher, it first drains the water sitting in the tub.
And, when this water goes into a dirty garbage disposer, it might dislodge food particles that might be sitting in the disposer.
And, this could be what is resulting in the bad smell coming from your dishwasher.
Fortunately, you can quickly determine if this is the problem by disconnecting the hose connecting the disposer to the dishwasher.
If you note that the foul smell is indeed coming from the disposer, all you need to do is wash the disposer to get rid of the smell.
Recommended solution – clean the garbage disposer
To clean the disposer, first put an Affresh™ tablet inside the disposer, turn on hot water (from the sink), and let it flow to the disposer for 15 seconds.
Turn off the hot water and let it sit in the disposer for around 30 minutes.
Once the 30 minutes are over, run the disposer to get rid of the water and flush it with hot water.
Quick tip: To avoid the re-occurrence of the problem, it’s advisable to first run the garbage disposer every time before starting the dishwasher.
Dishwasher smells when running – final thoughts
Though not fairly common, it could also be that your dishwasher is smelling due to clogs inside the drain hose.
You see, clogs might trap some waste water from the previous wash cycle. And of course, when this water sits in there, it will start smelling.
What happens when you run the dishwasher is that the new water dislodges this stagnant water which results in a foul smell.
With that in mind, to clear this smell, start by pouring two cups of white vinegar into a dishwasher-safe bowl.
Next, place the bowl at the bottom rack of the dishwasher.
Without adding any detergent or utensils, run the normal cycle without the heat dry option.
Once the dishwasher finishes the cycle, let it air dry.
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