Most homeowners in Michigan have dishwashers. They make our lives more convenient and allow us to spend less time scrubbing and more time enjoying our homes. However, a dishwasher can cause a lot of water damage to your home if they aren’t properly maintained. Let’s explore how you can not only prevent significant water damage from your dishwasher, but also expand its life.
There are many items that are marked “dishwasher safe”. These are items that should go in your dishwasher. However, there are many items that people routinely put in their dishwasher that they should not. Aside from ruining the item placed in the dishwasher, many of the items can also do damage to the appliance itself.
Homes & Gardens recently put together this list, with input from Aladdin’s president Tim Jankowski about the things you shouldn’t put in your dishwasher. Many of these items might seem like no-brainers, but many of them are items most don’t even think twice about washing in their dishwasher.
Damage from some of these items can clog the filter or drainage system, causing your dishwasher to overflow. It can also burst pipes in your home’s plumbing system. Be sure to never put the items on the list in your dishwasher.
Much like your car, a dishwasher needs maintenance to operate at an optimal level. There are several things you should be doing to ensure your dishwasher does not cause water damage to the rest of your home. These include:
Proper maintenance can go a long way to ensuring your dishwasher lasts longer and doesn’t break down causing you damage and costing you money.
Even with all of the right maintenance, a dishwasher can leak. A hose can break. These things happen. There are important things to do (and not do) in order to minimize the water damage caused by a leaking dishwasher.
Before you begin cleaning, look around. Be sure water hasn’t caused any damage to electrical appliances or is in an area where it could cause a hazard to you or your family. If you are unsure, shut off power to your kitchen or any affected areas.
Be sure to check under and around in nooks and crannies. You’ll want to make sure the damage isn’t impacting the subfloor, which could cause you to fall through to the floor below.
Even if you have mopped up all visible water, that doesn’t mean that water has not leaked through to your subfloor, basement, or through walls. You will want to completely inspect your home before you consider the job done. Damage to the subfloor can spread causing your entire kitchen floor to be damaged.
While homeowners insurance should cover the cost of damage to the floor and surrounding items, the dishwasher itself is most likely not going to be covered. Adjusters will come to help file your claim, and as long as it is determined that there was a mechanical failure of the dishwasher, you should be fine. But if you have been stuffing items in the dishwasher that don’t belong, you may have to cover the cost out of pocket.