My husband and I found that one of the highest priorities upon moving into our 1922 home was updating the ancient dishwasher. Our new home likely had one of the first models of dishwashers ever to appear on the market. While it was a gem in its day, the tarnish had crept in long before we came along.
We have been quite spoiled with our shiny dishwasher for a good year now and I’m not afraid to admit that. We don’t give its operation a second thought but we appreciate it and we use it…a lot. That’s why I was so alarmed – actually panicked – that the dishwasher was behaving badly.
I emptied the top rack of the washer one day only to find that the glasses had gone in to the machine cleaner than they were coming out. Baffling.
We tried to take the thing apart but we didn’t do so well. Terry unscrewed something in the bottom of the washer, but ended up putting it back – we had come up with a different plan. We purchased a rinse agent that is supposed to “fight spots and residues for a diamond shine” and picked up some top-of-the-line detergent. Yes, it was a much easier plan and we believed this would show that dishwasher who’s the boss.
We ran a load of dishes through and wouldn’t you know it, those pieces came out as shiny as ever! The glasses on the top rack still had a bit of trouble and had to be hand washed, but we thought that was just the washer working things out.
We loaded that bugger again and settled in for an evening of television while the wind whipped around outside. All of a sudden we heard a BANG, followed by the sounds of the wheels falling right off that dishwasher – you know, if it had wheels.
Our eyes grew wide as we looked at each other and Terry looked oddly guilty.
“I don’t think I put it back together the right way,” he confessed. We opened the washer up and he worked his magic again. We thought we would let the thing rest over night. I must say I was taking comfort in knowing that he was the culprit who furthered the breakage of the little dishwasher. I had no hand in that part. Whew.
Night turned back to day and I thought I would try this little guy one more time before I called in professional backup. Terry was at work and thank goodness because when I opened the dishwasher and pulled out that top rack I saw something the escaped my vision so many other times – I saw my missing plastic straw, lodged in the back of the top rack and pinning the mechanism that was supposed to spin around and clean the top rack.
My first thought was, “I have been looking for that straw for weeks!” My second thought was, “Ooops.”
When Terry returned home from work I tried to spin my discovery of the straw as a triumphant conclusion to The Dishwasher Caper, but he didn’t see that perspective as clearly as I did. I think he was just relieved that he didn’t break anything.
You might think we are ridiculous. And you would be correct.