Shea Simmons
A dishwasher seems like a simple enough appliance. However, there are tons of clever tricks when it comes to how to use one. The latest helps clean both the machine and your dishes.
Turns out, lemons are the key to getting your dishes sparkling and freshening the inside of your appliance.
This trick comes courtesy of content creator Chantel Mila who posted a video to Instagram all about the many ways you can use lemons, and inside your dishwasher was one of them. According to Mila, take a squeezed, used lemon that’s been cut in half and place it on the top rack of your dishwasher. Run your cycle as normal, and you’ll have a pristine washer and sparkling dishes thanks to the citric acid from the lemon. It helps clean away limescale build-up in your washer and get an extra thorough clean on dishes.
While this trick is especially clever when you’ve got a meal that requires lemon juice or you’re making a drink with lemon, it might not be the most economical choice to cut lemons and toss them in the dishwasher. Instead, you can actually purchase citric acid.
An ounce of lemon juice has roughly 1.5 grams of citric acid. Add the same amount of the powder to your detergent, and you’ll get the same results. Given that you can get a whopping two pounds of citric acid for just $15 on Amazon, it’s an affordable way to get your dishes extra clean.
That doesn’t mean you can stop cleaning your dishwasher, though. You should still be sure you’re getting the entire machine (not just the interior cabin) sanitized. Want tips on cleaning the appliance? We’ve got you covered.
