10+ Surprising Things You Can Clean in a Dishwasher

Obviously, your dishwasher works pretty well for those grimy plates and cups, but did you know you can also clean other household objects with it as well?

These 10 items are perfectly dishwasher safe using the dishwasher to get them clean can save you a lot of scrubbing time.

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More reading:

• How to Clean Your Dishes When You Run Out of Dishwasher Tablets
• How to Clean Your Dishwasher
• How To Make Dishwashing Tablets in 5 Easy Ways

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1. Shower Heads & Tap Handles

After a few years, a showerhead can become clogged with dirt and chemicals from the water. You’ll know when this is happening when the water doesn’t come evenly out of the little holes. You can detach the shower heads and clean them on the pots and pans cycle to get that muck out of the way. This is also an excellent way to clean tap handles. If you’re worried about wasting water on just one or two items, it’s perfectly safe to clean your real pots and pans at the same time.

2. Plastic Toys and Lego

All those muddy action figures, dirty dummies, and other plastic toys can be a headache to clean. Put them in a dishwasher basket or a simple mesh bag and stick them in the dishwasher on the top shelf. You can run them through on a normal cycle.

Lego can be easily cleaned in the dishwasher too – just pop in a wash bag and put it in the top drawer.

3. Kitchen Appliance Parts

Keep these clean by washing them once a week on a normal cycle in your dishwasher. You can do this for sink plugs, grease filters, burner caps, drip pans, or dispenser grates for fridge water.

4. Clean and Sanitise Kitchen Sponges and Cloths

These can be washed along with the other dishes on a normal cycle. With sponges, you want to put them up on the top shelf so that you can stand them on end or stick them in between other dishes. Otherwise, you may have sponges flying all around the washer.

5. Pet Bowls and Pet Toys

For the most part, there’s nothing wrong with loading in plastic dog bowls with all your regular dishes. If you don’t wash them on a regular basis, bacteria can grow. However, if you have a baby without a fully developed immune system you should wash them separately. The same is true for plastic dog toys; rope and rawhide toys can’t be washed.

6. Glass Light Fixtures

You’d be surprised how dirty these can get after a few years without being washed. The glass in light fixtures is usually very fragile, so put them on the top shelf and don’t put anything else close enough to accidentally break them. Run them through on the lightest cycle possible.

7. Hair Brushes and Combs

Aside from hair, all your regular hair products will start to coat your brushes and combs. Gel, shampoo, chemical straightener eventually you can get a real buildup. Take off all the hair and put them in a dishwasher basket or mesh bag, using a normal cycle. You can also do this for plastic hair clips or barrettes, but don’t try it with wooden brushes.

8. Personal Care Accessories

All those plastic and ceramic things from the bathroom will do just fine in a dishwasher. This works for toothbrushes, soap dishes, makeup brushes, nail brushes, toothbrush holders even drain plugs from the bathroom. Keep the small items in a dishwasher basket and run on a normal cycle.

9. Miscellaneous Kitchen Utensils

Those things you use in the kitchen every day but don’t necessarily wash can benefit from a periodic run through the dishwasher. I’m talking about the salt and pepper shakers, sugar bowls, butter dishes, spoon rests, etc. Use the normal cycle.

10. Baseball Caps

Dishwashers can not only clean your hats but make sure they keep their shape as well. Put the hats on the top shelf with the head hole facing down. Don’t wash hats with regular dishes though because the detergent can damage the hat. Instead, use borax in the detergent cup, and don’t use the heated dry cycle after washing.

Weird huh!

11.  Microwave Turntables

Do you know how the glass microwave turntables accumulate gunk and goo over a period of time?  Well, they clean up a treat in the dishwasher.  Place upside-down in the top drawer and wash as normal – it comes out perfect every time.

12. Exhaust Fan Filters

Particularly the greasy kitchen exhaust vents get really grotty.  Just remove them, give them a quick brush to remove any fluff and wash them in the top drawer of the dishwasher.

13. Mouth Guards

Kids Mouth Guards are so gross after use.  Sure, you can scrub them with toothpaste to wash them or add a dental tablet to a bowl of water if you have one – but you can pop it in the top drawer of the dishwasher and not only are they clean but sanitised too!