Note: Durability Matters is reader-supported. When you buy through affiliate links on our website, we’ll make a small commission, without impacting your price. Thank you. Learn more.
Dishwashers are one of the best time-saving appliances. Once you load your plates and cutlery into the dishwasher and hit “start,” you can sit back, let it run, and come back to perfectly clean dishes. It is perfect if you do not feel like spending your evening elbow-deep in soapy water. After a wash cycle your dishes are sparkling clean with no effort from you.
If you want a high-end dishwasher that you can rely on to deliver a perfect clean, Bosch makes exceptional dishwashers. Still, a good dishwasher needs to be loaded properly to get the best results.
What are the best ways to load a dishwasher, and how do the unique features of a Bosch dishwasher streamline the loading process? Read on for a step-by-step guide to loading your dishes for the perfect clean.
In This Article
- Before Loading Your Bosch Dishwasher
- How To Load Your Bosh Diswasher – Rack by Rack
- Extra Tips for Using Your Bosch Dishwasher
Before Loading Your Bosch Dishwasher
Before you put even your first glass in the dishwasher, here is some advice for how to get your dishes and Bosch dishwasher ready for the cleaning cycle.
Stick To Dishwasher-Safe Dishware
Ensure you are only loading dishwasher-safe dishes. Handwashing dishes that cannot go in a dishwasher will prevent them from cracking or warping. Check the packaging the dishes arrived in or on the bottom of certain dishes to see if they are dishwasher-safe.
Safe For Dishwashers
- Ceramics
- Stainless Steel
- Glass
- Dishwasher-Safe Plastic
- Stoneware
- Aluminum
Inadvisable For Dishwashers
- Cast Iron – will cause rusting
- Wood – will cause warping and cracking
- Silver – will cause tarnishing and scratching
- Brass, Pewter, Bronze – will cause tarnishing
- Painted Ceramics and Glass – will damage the paint
Hand-Clean Large Pieces Of Food
When preparing dishes for loading, scrape off as much food as possible with a spoon or knife. Even a quick rinse under the tap can get rid of troublesome chunks of food.
Large pieces of food can build up in your dishwasher’s filter when they get washed off during a cleaning cycle. This can clog up the filter and prevent water from draining. A quick clean is an easy step which can help your dishwasher run that much smoother.
Your dishwasher will be more than capable of cleaning most messes, but if your dishes have baked-in stains or dried, hardened food caked on, you could soak them in soapy water for several minutes before loading them. This will loosen up the stains and dried food.
How To Load Your Bosh Diswasher – Rack by Rack
To load your dishes properly, make sure that water and detergent can reach all parts of the dish. Overfilling can prevent water from reaching every nook and cranny. If you have too many dishes on a rack, they might block water spray from the sprayer arms, leaving your dishes dirty. Here is how to arrange each individual rack for the best clean.
Bottom Rack
Place heavy dishes or those with a large, flat surface area on the bottom rack. This would include pots and pans, plastic cutting boards, or mixing bowls.
If your Bosch dishwasher is from the 300 series or up, the lower rack has FlexSpace™ tines. When loading an oversized item, the tines can fold down to make more room while still providing support. The tines help hold odd-shaped dishes like pots and pans upright to save space and let you load more dishes.
- Arrange dishes so the dirtiest areas face directly toward the spray arms.
- Avoid overlapping items. Leave space for the water to be sprayed.
- Place large, flat items like baking sheets or platters at the edge of the rack, so that they do not block the flow of water or detergent. Also be sure they are not blocking any vents.
Arrange the Silverware Basket
Your Bosch dishwasher includes a silverware basket that fits onto the bottom rack. The top rack is also a good place to load extra silverware or long utensils, like spatulas.
Load regular forks, spoons, and knives in the silverware basket on the bottom rack. The direction the spoons and forks are pointing does not matter. Point knives down to keep the sharp tips safely out of the way. Trying to mix all the silverware together, so that they get evenly distributed and do not overlap.
- Space out spoons and forks to avoid them nesting into one another.
- Put knives in with the blade down to avoid accidents.
- Switch up the placement of spoons and forks for an even wash, with some handle-up and some handle-down.
Tip: If you are willing to risk cleaning silver in your dishwasher, be careful to separate it from stainless steel cutlery. Mixing the two can cause pits in the silver.
Middle Rack
One feature of your Bosch dishwasher’s middle rack is Rackmatic®. This allows you to switch the middle rack between nine different heights. When you need to wash several irregularly-sized dishes, this feature comes in handy. You could fit platters into the bottom rack and still have the space to load wineglasses into the middle rack.
- Place small dishes like coffee mugs or glasses on the middle rack.
- Tip glasses and mugs facing down and at an angle. This way the inside can get sprayed with water and excess water will not collect on the bottom.
- Slot dishes between the tines where possible, rather than on top of the tines.
- For dishwashers without a third rack, place long utensils on the middle rack. Lay them flat on the rack so that they will not fall through and hit the sprayer arms.
Top Rack
Most Bosch dishwashers include a third top rack, useful for increasing capacity to get more out of each wash cycle. The standard top rack is perfect for extra silverware or for large utensils that do not fit in the silverware basket.
Bosch also makes the Flexible top rack, which has adjustable tines and an adjustable base so that you can squeeze in bigger items, like measuring cups.
If you own one of the newest Bosch dishwashers, you probably have the MyWay™ top rack. This rack has the largest capacity of any top rack available on the market. It has enough space for small dishes like bowls or mugs, which can take the load off lower racks and free up space for bulky items.
Watch this video from Bosch Home Applicances for a quick overview on how to load your Bosch dishwasher.
Extra Tips for Using Your Bosch Dishwasher
Now that you know how to load each rack, here are a couple of extra tips to keep in mind when loading dishes. These tips help ensure the best possible clean and help your Bosch dishwasher run longer.
Leave Room For Sprayer Arms To Rotate
Your dishwasher distributes water through the sprayer arms, which rotate while shooting out water. Be careful to remove anything the sprayer arms might smack into while rotating, in order to get a thorough clean. Watch that narrow items like utensils cannot fall through the racks and hit the sprayer arm, and carefuly load dishes that could stick out from the rack, like pots with handles.
Load Dishes Facedown And Do Not Overlap
The sprayer arms shoot out water from the bottom of your dishwasher, aiming up. Load dishes so that their dirtiest side faces down to ensure they get a good helping of water during the wash cycle. Also avoid overlapping dishes because this can prevent the water from reaching all parts of the dishes.
Use Recommended Dishwasher Tablets or Detergent
Bosch recommends FINISH™ detergent or tablets for use in their dishwashers. Other detergents can lead to improper drainage and clogs. Also be restrained with the liquid soap, as using too much can leave a soapy residue on your dishes.
A crucial tip is to never use dishwashing liquid instead of dishwasher detergent. These are two different compounds that react differently, and dishwashing liquid will foam up and likely cause leaks.
Change The Setting Depending On Your Load
As tempting as it may be to use “Regular” for everything, picking the correct setting can avoid damaging your dishes and ensure a better clean.
- “Heavy” – perfect for built-up grime, like on pots and pans
- “Delicate” – perfect for fine china or glassware
- “Extra Dry” – perfect for dishes that often come out wet, like plastic or glasses
Bosch dishwashers include the Speed60 setting, which completes a full wash and dry cycle in sixty minutes, handy when time is at a premium.
Start With The Bottom When Unloading
Once the cycle has finished, wait another five minutes to let the dishes dry completely. Then start unloading from the bottom up, working front to back. You can also remove the whole silverware basket and unload it separately.
Working in this order prevents dishes on the lower racks from getting wet again as you remove dishes on the upper racks.
