The Right Way To Load Silverware In A Dishwasher, According To Experts
I think every household has that one silly argument that just never seems to end. For a long time my family could never agree on how to load the silverware into the dishwasher basket. Some of us just dropped things in randomly while others were incredibly particular about it. It feels like such a small detail but I finally decided to figure out if there is actually a correct way to do it. And apparently there is!
Handles Down Or Up?
It turns out that the experts actually do have a better method for loading most of your cutlery into the dishwasher. For standard forks and spoons, you generally want to load them with the handles pointing down. This means the part that actually touches your food is sticking up in the air. I used to think this was so unsanitary because you have to touch the clean eating surfaces to put them away later. But there is a reason for this.
Why Handles Down Gets Things Cleaner
The reason experts recommend this handles down method is all about the water flow. The spray arms in your dishwasher usually sit at the bottom of the machine. When your dirty forks and spoons are pointing upward, they get the full force of the hot soapy water directly on the dirtiest parts. If you bury the dirty part you eat with at the bottom of the basket they simply will not get as clean.
The Exception For Sharp Knives
Of course there is one very important exception to this rule. You should absolutely never load your sharp knives in the dishwasher with the blades pointing up. That is a terrible accident waiting to happen when you go to unload the machine later. All knives should be placed in the basket with the handles pointing safely up toward the sky. It protects your hands and it also stops the sharp tips from damaging the dishwasher over time.
Mixing It Up To Stop Nesting
Have you ever pulled a clump of spoons out of the wash and found peanut butter still stuck between them? That happens because spoons love to nest together when they face the same direction. The water cannot reach between them at all. To fix this you just need to mix up your silverware. Put a fork next to a spoon or flip one spoon upside down just to keep them physically separated during the wash.
Unloading With Clean Hands
The biggest complaint about the handles down method is that you have to grab the clean part you eat with when you empty the dishwasher. It feels like you are just putting germs right back onto your clean forks. The trick is to just make sure you wash your hands thoroughly right before you start unloading it. It takes a few extra seconds but it gives you total peace of mind that your family is eating from clean dishes.
A Third Rack
If you are lucky enough to have a newer dishwasher, you might actually have a shallow third rack right at the very top. This completely changes the washing game. You can lay all your silverware completely flat up there. It keeps everything separated perfectly and prevents any accidental pokes from sharp knives. If you have one of these racks you can completely skip the basket debate and just line everything up in neat little rows.
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At the end of the day, doing the dishes is just another chore we all have to get through. But, knowing the actual mechanics behind how the machine works takes the guessing out of the great silverware debate. You can finally tell your family that pointing those dirty forks upward is actually the best way to get them sparkling clean.
Bliss Donahue-Power
