Dishwasher not drying dishes: causes and what to do

Likely causes

• no rinse aid or too little — Samsung: dishes will not dry without it; Bosch: the dose affects drying results;
• plastic items — they do not retain heat and dry poorly (Bosch, Samsung);
• poor loading: items packed too closely, water pooling in cups and bowls;
• the door stays closed after the cycle — droplets evaporate more slowly (Samsung);
• a programme without intensive drying was selected;
• the cycle was interrupted: by an error code, or because an item bumped the door and the machine took it as opened (Samsung);
• the machine is not heating the water or the drying function is not working — that is a fault.

Safe steps you can try

1. Fill the rinse aid and use it in every cycle. Bosch advises adding it even if your detergent contains it and dosing it as the rinse aid maker says. For larger loads, Samsung advises more rinse aid.
2. Load so that water can drip off: leave space between items, put large plates and pans in the bottom rack, and place cups and bowls at an angle or upside down.
3. If your machine has an intensive drying programme or option, select it — Bosch and Samsung recommend it especially for plastic.
4. Open the door a little after the cycle ends — Samsung advises about 1 inch (2.5 cm) within an hour. Some models open the door automatically.
5. Check that the cycle finished and there is no error code on the display. If the cycle stopped without an error, close the door and press Start — as Samsung advises.
6. Dry plastic items with a tea towel if needed: they dry worse, and that is normal.

When to call a technician

Call a technician if the dishes are not only wet but cold after the cycle, an error code appears, the rinse aid never goes down or leaks, or the automatic door opening does not work on models that have it. If the dishes are hot, there is no error code and droplets remain, rinse aid, loading and settings usually help: Samsung notes that service will not improve drying unless an error code is present.

A MasService technician will check the heater, the temperature sensor and the rinse aid dispenser and name the price before starting the repair.

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