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You’ve cooked, you’ve eaten, and now it’s time to clean up. It helps if you have a good dishwasher. There’s nothing quite like sitting back and letting an appliance do the work for you, especially when your dishes come out sparkling clean. But what happens if they don’t?

Before you blame your machine for leaving dishes dirty—or even damaging your kitchenware—try some of these Wirecutter-approved tricks to get the most out of your dishwasher.

This advice may sound blasphemous to the many folks (as much as 80% of dishwasher owners) who still pre-rinse their cookware and dishes before loading the dishwasher. But modern dishwashers have filters that catch food pieces, so you don’t need to clean every bit of gunk off your plates before loading the machine. “Scrape as much as you can into the garbage or compost, but you don’t need to run your dishes under water or use soap before they go into the dishwasher,” says supervising editor Winnie Yang. Plus, dishwasher detergents are now enzymatic, which means they break through tough stains and soiling. This process creates smaller particles that are easily washed away, so you don’t have to worry about your dishwashers getting clogged.

Turning your dishes the right way gets them cleaner. The best position for your plates is angled down and far apart. Dishes need space to get clean and can be damaged when placed too close together. Put your porcelain, glass, and china in the upper rack to optimize your dishwasher’s run time. And since the weakest cleaning action takes place on the upper rack, your dirtiest pots and pans should go on the bottom rack.

Even though your dishwasher regularly cleans your kitchenware, it still needs a little cleaning of its own. Check out our article on how to clean your dishwasher for step-by-step instructions for when your dishwasher starts to smell, develops buildup, or stops cleaning well. All you need is a soft cloth, rubber gloves, and dish detergent to get the job done. Just be sure to reference your dishwasher manual before you start the process.

If you thought your dishwasher was limited to dishes, think again. Our experts say that you can use it to wash many other types of items—including dish racks, microwave plates, and even sex toys.

This article was edited by Treye Green and Annemarie Conte.

by Christina Williams and Wirecutter Staff

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