There’s something oddly satisfying about seeing your silverware come out shiny and sparkling once the dishwasher wraps up the cycle. But leave them unattended, and you’ll witness them turning into a dull, tarnished disaster in no time, thanks to silver’s natural tendency to react with oxygen. Believe it or not, toothpaste can be a total lifesaver in situations like this, and you can always polish your silver dishware with this common household product for easy, shiny results. But honestly, who even has time these days to rub toothpaste all over cutlery and wait for it to work?
Thankfully, there may be a simpler method that does the job: say hello to the aluminum foil dishwasher trick. You might already be familiar with all the aluminum foil hacks for hassle-free cooking, but we bet it never crossed your mind that putting some aluminum foil in the silverware basket of your dishwasher alongside your utensils can get rid of both scratches and tough silverware stains.
So, if learning about this little trick sparked your curiosity and you’re now willing to put it to the test, simply grab some aluminum foil from the kitchen drawer, rip off a nice big sheet, and crumple it into a ball. Once that’s done, make sure to wedge it right next to the silverware so it stays pressed against them until the end of the cycle. This is because, for the trick to work, the aluminum needs to touch the silverware the whole time. But what’s the reason for that?
The science behind the sparkle
When trying out this hack, the last thing you want is that foil ball coming loose and bouncing around mid-cycle. While it may sound slightly surprising, this is actually backed by science. It turns out that once the dishwasher gets going, the foil and the detergent interact, triggering a chemical process called ion exchange with your silverware, which is further intensified by the hot water. This, it appears, is more than enough to tackle silver sulfide, commonly known as tarnish. As a result, once the cycle is done, your silverware will come out gleaming, just like when you first unboxed it.
However, like most hacks, this one doesn’t come without drawbacks either. Hence, while it does a great job of polishing silverware, using it on aluminum cookware might leave it scratched or discolored. What’s more, overusing the trick could gradually wear down your silverware, and in worst-case scenarios, even damage your dishwasher. That’s because aluminum foil can sometimes break apart and leave behind small particles, which easily get trapped in the dishwasher’s filter. This could potentially affect the machine’s performance, impact water flow, and ultimately leave you with a repair bill worth hundreds of dollars.
On top of that, this trick won’t do all the heavy lifting on its own, so it might need some backup for removing heavier tarnish — baking soda, salt, and vinegar might come in handy. And if that doesn’t work either, there are plenty of other methods you can try, like using ketchup for spotless silverware.
