Are Baking Soda & Vinegar Strong Enough To Descale A Dishwasher?

Properly cleaning your dishwasher includes a few simple tasks: cleaning the filter, rinsing out the appliance, and, most importantly, descaling it regularly. While "descaling" sounds like something that requires heavy-duty cleaners, gloves, and possibly a hazard mask, it's actually a fairly simple cleaning process that removes grime, mold, and hard-water buildup. And, even better, it's something you can easily do at home, no face mask required.

One of the most popular and inexpensive ways to descale your dishwasher is running a hot cycle with distilled white vinegar (the best for cleaning) and then a cycle with baking soda sprinkled along the bottom of the appliance. But is this enough to descale your dishwasher? Absolutely. Vinegar's natural acidity gives it the ability to loosen down mineral deposits, grease, and residue, while also acting as a disinfectant. When followed up by baking soda's mild abrasiveness and the dishwasher's hot water cycle, buildup doesn't stand a chance.

Descaling your dishwasher with vinegar and baking soda is simple. Empty the dishwasher completely and check the inside to see if there's any food or other debris stuck in the filter. Clean the dishwasher filter out, if needed. Then pour about 1 cup of white vinegar into a dishwasher-safe cup or bowl, and place it on the top rack. Close the dishwasher and run a hot cycle. Before the drying cycle kicks in, open the door, remove the cup/bowl, and spread about ¼ cup of baking soda on the dishwasher floor. Run another hot cycle. Once it's done, open the door and wipe down any remaining residue off the walls.

We saw a few different opinions about how much vinegar and baking soda to use to descale, so don't be afraid to go up to 2 cups of vinegar and 1 cup of baking soda. Try different measurements to see what works on your appliance and water hardness. For the best effect, run the vinegar cycle separately from the baking soda one (even though it feels more efficient to run them together), and repeat once every 30 days to keep your dishwasher in top condition.