Why Does My Dishwasher Smell? Ultimate Guide

Last Updated on September 3, 2022

It becomes a kind of riddle if you have to find out how to clean something which itself used to clean other things. It reveals that no matter how modern your life has become or how many automated appliances you have, you will have clean a lot of mess if something doesn’t work out the way you want it.

Several food particles in your dishwasher revolve; some are drained out of the hose, while others are stuck in different areas of the hose to create an unwanted smell.

Your dishwasher needs maintenance and care to give the best cleaning results without any bad odor. In this article, we have enlisted all the possible reasons and the ways to fix a smell-producing dishwasher.

If you are experiencing a foul smell out of your dishwasher, this could be due to the following reasons:

• Trapped food pieces
• Blocked draining pipe
• Dirty filtration system
• Fungal such as mold growth inside gasket seals
• Leakage

However, there are several possible reasons for a smelly dishwasher, and you must identify the exact cause of the problem to fix it appropriately. The problem could be with the draining system or filter if it smells like sewage. Sewage smell is usually produced due to poor drainage that must be checked. Below we have mentioned some other reasons for this problem and several ways to get rid of bad smells.

It’s the most frustrating experience when your dishwasher cycle completes, and you open it to pick your cleaned dishes out of it, but a foul smell emerges through the dishes and everything inside it.

You might wonder why this is happening and how you can get rid of it. We have described all the possible reasons below and some easiest ways to resolve the issues.

The purpose of a drain hose is to release the dirty water, small leftover food particles, and any waste material out of the dishwasher. If something lingers inside the hose or there are some problems with the hose, the result will be a foul smell.

To ensure this is the real issue, take your dishwasher farther from the wall and check if there are any bends or twists in the hose. Remove the kinks instantly to continue the consistent flow of water and residues.

If the drain hose is ruptured through different positions, you must look for its quick replacement.

If there are no bends or curls in your drain hose, the other reason could be a misplaced drainage system. In case the hose falls at the back of your dishwasher and reaches the floor prior to moving in upper positions towards the sink, it means the whole system is working against gravity.

If there is a hanging hose in your dishwasher, you must keep it in the right position so the draining will occur directly in a downward state, moving with gravity. It becomes difficult for food particles and wastes to move uphill, and then they remain in hose to create the smell.

The most common reason for foul-smelling dishwashers is trapped food for a long time. The first thing you must check before panicking about the smell is the food trap which should be opened to permit smooth drainage of wastes and water.

If the old food parts are present in the trap, they will block the dishwasher. So, check the dish rack placed beneath the dishwasher to find out trapped food particles.

If there is nothing on the rack, look for the gasket to see if there is something. You must be careful while doing this; if any broken glass piece ever goes into the food trap, it will damage your hand,

To resolve the issue, you need to open the clogged food trap by removing all the waste.

If the filtration system has some problem, then your dishwasher will definitely produce a foul smell. If the dishwasher has stagnant water for many days, it will also create a smell.

The bacterial growth will occur, and if the water and food aren’t drained, the whole filter system will malfunction, leading to an unpleasant odor.

Therefore, it is highly recommended to run the dishwasher frequently to keep the filtration system unclogged and operate the light cycle to conserve energy for washing minimum dishes.

Sometimes the main problem isn’t in the dishwasher, but some outside source causes the sewage smell. As you know, the hose is connected to the garbage dumping area; if some objects linger inside the garbage disposal, the water flow will restrict due to this blocking.

To treat the problem, check thoroughly if some hard material is flushed into the disposal or already trapped in the hose. Remove the object by proper cleaning or do it manually to crush the stuck material.

Run water through the dishwasher by a quick cycle to check if the smell is still coming out of it.

If your newly purchased dishwasher smell like sewage, the reason could be improper installation. If errors have been ignored during the installation of a dishwasher, they can lead to several problems, including a bad smell.

Check for all parts and fix them in the right way. You may also take the help of some professional to look into the real matter for you.

Though many issues and solutions have been discussed earlier, we’ll now guide you on how to clean your dishwasher using vinegar or cleaning agents.

You need to run cycles in the dishwasher, one for cleaning with vinegar and the other one with baking soda.

Put the white vinegar inside a bowl, place it on the dishwasher’s upper rack, and then initiate the first cycle. After this, add one cup of baking soda beneath the dishwasher to run the second cycle.

After a thorough cleaning, your dishwasher will be 100% smell free.