What exactly does "dishwasher safe" mean?

Question

Obviously it means that the item is safe to put in the dishwasher. But why would it not be safe to put it in the dishwasher

Update:

Do dishwashers have water heaters built in?

Answer 1

Favorite Answer

A dishwasher uses boiling hot water and steam to wash dishes, some things may be too fragile or their designs might come off.

Answer 2

It means that the combination of the 180 degree water and the strong detergent will not take off the design or the gold rim or etch the glass. It also means that when the heater comes on to dry the dishes at the end of the cycle the intense bottom heat will not melt the item out of shape. The third concern this covers is that the water squirting around will not knock the item so hard into another item that its fragile structure will break.

Sometimes they say "dishwasher safe on top shelf" to mean that the water part is OK but being too close to that bottom heater will melt it.

Answer 3

Some items are not safe for a few reasons. Some plastic ware will not resist the higher heat of the drying cycle, or even the water in a typical wash cycle. Other are too fragile and the high pressure of the water can cause them to break as they are pushed against the internal racks. And some ceramics will deglaze ina dishwasher, rendering them useless, and potnetially messing up all the other dishes in the load with them.

Answer 4

It just means that the item can tolerate the high heat and cleansers (cascade, etc.) that are normally used in the dishwasher.

Some things won't make this cut. For instance, if you have, say, a coffee mug, with a particular design on it...the high heat in the dishwasher may eventually wash it off the item.

Answer 5

Yes, dishwashers have both a water heater for the wash cycle and and they heat up for the drying cycle. Very simply some items can not take the heat of one or another and may melt or crack. You really have to watch out for the lids of tupper ware type products they tend to bend and get miss shaped.

Answer 6

It could melt due to the heat generated by the dishwasher. Also it could discolor/remove any decoration on the item. Item could break. Just isn't safe for the items or the machine.

Answer 7

Some things melt in the dishwasher

Answer 8

Well, what I recently learned that something I've been washing in the dishwasher for years is not "dishwasher safe"...I learned this from the manufacturing company itself (talenti gelato containers). And the print is still on them, they've not melted or warped, and are completely fine. So, my question is if there is another way it could be "dishwasher unsafe"...like if certain plastics can leak toxic chemicals at certain temps, or what?

Answer 9

Umm, to put it simply:

Not dishwasher safe = melted plastic all over the dishwasher and dishes around it; cracks in the porcelain; no more nice dishes

Dishwasher safe = cleaner when it comes out than when it went in.

Got it? =)

Answer 10

Safe Means

Source(s): https://shrinke.im/a97Nw