Smelly dishes

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One Day

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I can't think of a better group to ask.....
The last couple weeks I have been experiencing smelly dishes from the dishwasher.........smells like a wet dog.
I can smell the dishes from several feet away..........while others in the house have no clue
Been using those Finish power ball things.......detergent and rinse agent in one.......been using them for almost a year.
I've checked the bottom for any food debris.......none and I can't pull anything apart from the inside to see if there is another small mesh filtering screen anywhere........
suggestions?
 
It certainly sounds like something is caught in a filter OR you have a leak underneath and it is stagnant, dirty water. If you don't have the manual, look online. There is usually another filter. If you have the manual and you really can't take anything else apart, can you pull the dishwasher out and check underneath?
We've found that all different dishwashers come apart differently and we've had the doors off, the bottom out, etc trying to find issues.
 
Dead mouse stuck under the sink?
I ask as that is how I notice smelly dishes and it is always a mouse stuck somewhere, eats through the expanda-foam around the pipes leading into the kitchen sink.
 
So it only smells when you open the door, is that right?
 
water under the dishwasher I would smell in the room.......just pulled out the owners manual
Manual only states if the odor is from the dishwasher.....not dishes.......the unit does not smell............only the dishes, silverware, etc......
what I am guessing now...........I should use 2 of those power ball cubes for a full load........was actualy thinking of doing a high temp load tonight
 
Dead mouse stuck under the sink?
I ask as that is how I notice smelly dishes and it is always a mouse stuck somewhere, eats through the expanda-foam around the pipes leading into the kitchen sink..
That would be my guess, too.
 
water under the dishwasher I would smell in the room.......just pulled out the owners manual
Manual only states if the odor is from the dishwasher.....not dishes.......the unit does not smell............only the dishes, silverware, etc......
what I am guessing now...........I should use 2 of those power ball cubes for a full load........was actualy thinking of doing a high temp load tonight.
OK, the machine doesn't smell, just the dishes? That doesn't sound right at all. Because if there's something in the water the machine would smell. If it's in the filter, the machine would smell.
They aren't new dishes are they? And they smell ok if washed by hand?
Do you 'dry' the dishes when they come out of the dishwasher? Like the bottoms of cups & such where the water pools? Could it be a smelly dish towel?
Edited to add that I once asked the vet why my dog smelled so bad (worse than wet dog) and it turned out it wasn't the dog, it was the dog's collar that reeked. So, it may be something totally outside the washer/dishes.
 
Dead mouse I would smell in the house......
And I just remembered......it doesn't seem to be every load..........this evening I cam home sat down.........I had to wash the dish, soup bowl and silverware in the sink before eating.
I could diagnose better if I were the only person handling this......
edit to add...
Just checked under the unit.......no standing water......no dead mouse under the unit or in the cabinet under the sink
 
Yeah Morticia.........it's weird..........only the contents......dishes, glasses, cups, silverware.
Like I said.....I am not the only person that turns the dishwasher on or empties it....I have elder parents, I think very elder parents.....I am guessing it is my dad who either forgets or could care less if he put detergent in the thing before turning it on.
I am going to instruct them to leave it to me......I am going to use 2 tabs and do a high temp wash tonight and then use 2 tabs for full loads for now on and see how it goes
Thanks Mort and Joey
 
Yeah Morticia.........it's weird..........only the contents......dishes, glasses, cups, silverware.
Like I said.....I am not the only person that turns the dishwasher on or empties it....I have elder parents, I think very elder parents.....I am guessing it is my dad who either forgets or could care less if he put detergent in the thing before turning it on.
I am going to instruct them to leave it to me......I am going to use 2 tabs and do a high temp wash tonight and then use 2 tabs for full loads for now on and see how it goes
Thanks Mort and Joey.
That's still not right. Dishes don't smell. They don't absorb odors. Plastic, yes. Not ceramic. So, this is something on the surface of the dishes sticking there. Definitely do a high temp wash to clean just the machine out. Then do a regular load of dishes. Even if the dishes sat for a week, they shouldn't smell after having water run on them, even without detergent.
Nothing else smells? So it's not your water source gone bad?
This isn't plastic stuff, right? It's glass & ceramic & metal?
 
Ummmmmm...........sure, we put the chinese take out soup containers in the machine......I use them myself for making pickles.....or tomato sauce with home grown tomatoes and for leftover stuff.....
It's not a plastic smell......I know what that smell like
And yeah......it's only the contents........ceramic dishes, glass, some heavy plastic drinking glasses, silverware..........the usual stuff............it's not every load
I am convinced now it is my dad........something he is doing or not doing......but........there are enough issues with the 2 of them......Had mom creating small fires in the house for a couple years.........dad just not caring about much about anything...........they try to be helpfull and they do well most times........I seriously don't think they understand the strain and demand that is on me......they mean well......but their ages and moms condition is worsening in short time.
 
Okay that sounded really bad...you know what I mean.
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Ummmmmm...........sure, we put the chinese take out soup containers in the machine......I use them myself for making pickles.....or tomato sauce with home grown tomatoes and for leftover stuff.....
It's not a plastic smell......I know what that smell like
And yeah......it's only the contents........ceramic dishes, glass, some heavy plastic drinking glasses, silverware..........the usual stuff............it's not every load
I am convinced now it is my dad........something he is doing or not doing......but........there are enough issues with the 2 of them......Had mom creating small fires in the house for a couple years.........dad just not caring about much about anything...........they try to be helpfull and they do well most times........I seriously don't think they understand the strain and demand that is on me......they mean well......but their ages and moms condition is worsening in short time..
Didn't mean it smelled like plastic, just that plastic will absorb smells.
Sorry the parental units are stressful. I just got 2 calls, 1 last night and 1 today that were along the lines of, 'If you call, we're not here, don't worry we just had to leave for the night.' (HAD to leave for the night? Why do you HAVE to leave your home for the night? WHERE did you leave for?)
Then today, 'Guess I'll call later. We're still not home, don't worry.'
What does a daughter do who is 200 miles away? She worries. And she calls her brother who knows nothing at all! Then she calls the parents and one cellphone goes right to voicemail and the other is not answered all day.
And when they do call? What was all the secrecy about? Why couldn't they just say, 'We've gone away for our anniversary, call you tomorrow!' Arrrrgh! You love them but they make you nuts. It's payback, you know...
 
Suggestion would be of course to run an empty load with some bleach. That is how I would trouble shoot it.
Speaking as a kid of parents whose Well just had that iron bacteria corrosion thing happen and smelly drains...I ask of course if they are on a Well. BTW they SHOCKED the well with chlorine and then emptied it, had to get some new bigger filter system on it. The issue was they were gone for months and a Well not being used is a bad one around here with so many heavy metals in the water.
 
Is the water getting hot in the dishwasher? Maybe that hot water is not working. I am thinking it was because they forgot to add the soap and just turned it on.
 
This morning the contents were fine after doing the high temp wash and 2 detergent tabs........will experiment for several days.
the drain under the sink "burping" sounds like a reasonable explanation as well.........being that not every load comes out with smelly dishes......gonna flush out the trap under the sink after I do some experimental washes.......I would like to try to duplicate the cause for the problem.
 
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