Should You Use a Lemon to Clean Your Dishwasher?

Cleaning and disinfecting a kitchen is no one’s idea of fun. When it becomes unavoidable, some people chafe at the idea of using harsh cleansers, which is why viral hacks like adding lemon halves to your dishwasher provoke a lot of curiosity.

So, should you be visit the produce section to shop for cleaning supplies?

According to Consumer Reports, lemons (and oranges and vinegar) are often embraced as cleaning agents due to their acidity. Citric acid, in particular, can loosen stains and disrupt proteins found in germs. The association between lemon and cleanliness goes back centuries and probably made more sense when chemical products were unavailable.

But now there are, and they almost inevitably do a better job. One 1994 study published in the Journal of Environmental Health found that all-natural solutions like lemon and vinegar weren’t nearly as effective on laminate tile as commercial cleansers. Microbial counts were significantly reduced following chemical application, and the store-bought cleaners were also better at removing soil. (Of the natural cleaners, vinegar was found to be the most effective.)

Should you ever use lemons? They can be effective in some cases. Citric acids are chelating agents, that interfere with magnesium and calcium. That’s good for attacking limescale or the plaque-like build-up from hard water found on faucets, showers, and dishwashers. Citrus fruits and vinegar may be able to dissolve the limescale in a way a lot of conventional cleaners can’t—unless, of course, they use citric acid as an ingredient.

But a little bit of a lemon probably isn’t going to work on something the size of a dishwasher. (And unless you pluck the seeds, they might clog the drain.) Using commercial dishwasher cleaners—and changing the filter regularly—are the best ways to keep the appliance clean.

If you choose to use commercial cleaners, don’t make the mistake of wiping them off right away. Most cleaners have instructions to let them sit on the surface for a certain period (anywhere from 30 seconds to 10 minutes) to either sanitize (reducing bacteria) or disinfect (killing both bacteria and viruses). If you have a lot of soil build-up, like dirt or food crumbs, you should remove it before using a solution.

To summarize: Lemons and other citrus fruits have mild cleaning capabilities and are probably best suited for removing limescale as well as deodorizing (but not disinfecting) small surfaces like cutting boards. Do they work as well as chemical cleaners specifically formulated to kill germs? They do not. But the perception between citrus and cleanliness remains strong: It’s why so many expensive cleaners smell like lemon.

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