Tomato stains in dishwasher

[dlminehart]

Since getting a new dishwasher a couple years ago, I've been plagued by gradual accumulation of tomato stains. After washing dishes that held spaghetti or the like, the inside walls of the dishwasher get a light and persistent coating of redness. I find it odd, because the plates themselves get nicely cleaned.

One theory I have is that the plastic interior of the dishwasher somehow (chemically, electrically) attracts and holds the tomato stuff in a way that other materials don't. Another, less compelling, is that the sprays somehow miss the walls.

Anyone familiar with this problem or, more importantly, a solution short of continuing to scrub it down every few weeks and avoid putting anything in it with traces of tomato?

[smorris]

I've found that running a cup of white vinegar through the dishwasher every month or so cleans the sides. I also run about a half cup of bleach every couple months to deal with any living things in the drains, etc.

[dlminehart]

How do you "run a cup" through it? Just dump it in the bottom before turning it on with a regular cycle except no detergent? Extra heat? Pots and pans mode?

[just started]

Fill both soap cups with Tang powder and run on pot scrubber cycle with hottest water setting and it will look like new. You can put dishwasher safe storage containers that are stained in also and they come out new-looking. Do NOT have any glasses, dishes or any type of flatware in during cleaning as the surface will be damaged.

[smorris]

How do you "run a cup" through it? Just dump it in the bottom before turning it on with a regular cycle except no detergent? Extra heat? Pots and pans mode?

Yup, just dump it in before I start the cycle. I don't take any special precautions just put it in during a normal cycle. As a side benefit it removes any of the hard water deposits from the insides and heating element.

[footprintsinconc]

Fill both soap cups with Tang powder

Tang powder? as in Tang juice?

[Tom Slick]

My dishwasher's manual specifically says that tomato based products should be rinsed off before the plate is put in the machine, every other food can stay on the plate.

I'd try bleach first, then CLR.

[just started]

Tang powder? as in Tang juice?

Yep, that's the stuff.

[siliconbauhaus]

wow.....imagine what it does to your insides

[footprintsinconc]

wow.....imagine what it does to your insides

my exact thoughts! however, we know what coke does, but still drink those sodas..

[dlminehart]

I think Tang has ascorbic acid, a mild acid like vinegar.

[just started]

Well, ascorbic acid=vitamin 'C' so I'm sure it does have a little. Maybe a few 'C' pills crushed will work also, I have no idea. I had an ancient bottle of Tang mix and figured I might as well try this as I am never going to drink that vile stuff anyway.

[Tom Slick]

Tang probably has a ton of citric acid to give it that citrus "tanginess"

coke works "magic" because it contains phosphoric and carbonic acids. These things don't affect our insides because our gastro tract already contains acids.

[leehljp]

This is hijacking a thread of sorts, but the subject has already been broached - Acidic foods and drinks - As mentioned above, the stomach has a tremendous amount of acid already in it. Much less than that of a tomato, tang, coke - and of different kinds. Some of these and others can trigger a higher concentration of acid and then we blame the food or drink for what was already there.

The stomach contains enzymes that prevent the stomach lining from being eaten away by the acids that are necessary to process or digest food. But too much over too long a period can cause ulcers. However, stomach ulcers are often more of a product of our own chemical response to external stimuli (worry / stress) than it is to the food or drink that we intake.

At a person's death, because of the internal acid, the stomach and intestines are one of the first organs to totally deteriorate, at least that was my understanding from basic studies when I was in college.

If MilDoc (or others) can enlighten us more, that would be fine too.

[dlminehart]

I believe that it's now known that ulcers are caused by bacteria (or viruses?), for which stress simply lowers resistance.

And, to return to the thread: I tried vinegar (about a cup of apple cider vinegar) with no success. I then tried running a cup of bleach on short cycle: bingo! Clean as a whistle!