Is It Safe to Put Crystal and Silver in the Dishwasher?

Q: I’ve always heard that you should never put silver, crystal, or china in an automatic dishwasher. Now I’m reading that newer dishwashers and modern detergents are safer for sterling silver, silverplate, crystal, and delicate china. Is it really okay to wash these things in a dishwasher? 

A: Modern dishwasher technologies and designs, and today’s detergent formulations, make it somewhat safer to wash delicate things in the dishwasher. Some modern crystal and china companies even design with dishwashers in mind. However, I still recommend washing these things by hand. So do many crystal, china, and silver manufacturers, not to mention collectors and curators of vintage and antique dinnerware. There are just so many variables that can cause permanent damage. For a variety of reasons I’ll share below, I’d rather be cautious than damage my fine dinnerware. Also, washing lead crystal glasses or vintage dishes with leaded glazes in a dishwasher can spread that lead to other dishes and contaminate the dishwasher’s interior. (You can learn how to test for lead content in this article.) So why risk it?

Let’s consider a variety of reasons why washing the good stuff by hand is still the best choice. We’ll start with sterling and silverplate; then we’ll discuss crystal, glass, and porcelain.

Preserving Sterling Silver’s Patina

Some detergents can remove the highly prized darker patina that develops in engraved or recessed areas on silverware. Without the patina, even sterling silver can look flat and dull, as if it were stamped out of a cheaper metal. That dark patina gives the silver its distinctive modeling; it makes details pop. Once gone, you can’t just put it back. It can take years for it to develop again. This is one reason why I don’t put my silver in the dishwasher.

When you clean silver with silver polish, put the greatest emphasis on polishing the parts of the design that stick out the furthest. Don’t scrub too hard into the darker recesses; you want to keep that elegant 3-D effect.

Silver is a soft metal. Tossing a lot of flatware in a basket and letting jets rub silverware pieces against each other repeatedly for an hour can create many small scratches. If you have a flatware drawer in your dishwasher, it’s safer to use that to wash any flatware. It avoids scratches and allows the water to reach the whole utensil better. But the formulation of the dishwashing detergent you use can still eat away at the patina, bleach the silver, give it a yellow cast, or even cause pitting to the surface.

Dishwashers Can Discolor or Permanently Mar Silver’s Surface

Most dishwasher detergents contain bleach, which can yellow silver. While the yellow cast can be polished away, dishwasher detergents can also make silver look too white, like tin. That change in color can be permanent. Also, make sure not to use dishwasher detergent that includes phosphates. Phosphates can turn sterling yellowish or even brown.

Many detergents contain citric acid from ingredients such as lemon juice. That acid can create pitting (darkened spots) in the silver, which can permanently mar its surface.

If you decide you want to wash your sterling in the dishwasher anyway, make sure not to wash stainless steel and sterling in the same load. A chemical reaction can cause the stainless to leave black marks or rust on the sterling. These stains can be hard to remove, even with polish.

Dishwasher Detergent Can Eat Away at Silverplate

Silverplate is a very thin covering of sterling silver electroplated over a base metal such as copper or brass. Over time, washing, polishing, or use can wear away that thin layer of silver. Then the reddish or yellow base metal starts to show through. Putting silverplate or sterling silver in the dishwasher exposes it to corroding detergents, heat, and friction from jets or other dishes. These can damage the silver’s surface permanently.

To avoid too much wear, it’s safest to polish silverplate with a silver polishing cloth. These cloths come impregnated with polish, so you don’t have to add silver polishing paste or lotion, which has abrasives. If your silverplate is too tarnished for a gentle polishing cloth, try a soft rag with a little polishing lotion. If that won’t budge it, you might have to move up to paste, which is a bit more abrasive. Don’t push too hard or polish too long—that can scratch sterling or wearing away silverplate. Wash often while polishing; use warm water and soap to see whether your piece needs more polishing or looks good enough. You don’t want to polish more than necessary. Finally, dry gently and completely with a soft towel. Never leave silver to soak overnight, or to air dry after washing. Soap and minerals left in the water droplets can discolor the silver, and moisture invites tarnish.

Sterling-Handled Knives Can’t Take High Heat

Another reason to avoid putting silver in the dishwasher is that many sterling knives and larger serving pieces have hollow handles. Silver is heavy and expensive, so silver knife handles were traditionally filled with inexpensive wax. This kept the weight and balance of the handle without using lots of hidden silver. Wax can withstand the warm water used in normal hand washing. However, the extended high heat of a dishwasher can melt the wax. As it cools, the wax may reharden unevenly. This can leave knife handles unbalanced and feeling odd in the hand. And without the stabilizing wax behind the silver, the knife’s exterior is more likely to bend or dent. Heat from automatic dishwashers can also weaken or destroy the adhesives used to hold knife handles onto blades. This can result in a rattling sound.

Mother of Pearl Knife Handles Are Fragile

Knives with mother of pearl handles or serving pieces should never be washed in the dishwasher. The shell’s shimmering finish can be permanently dulled and ruined forever by a single dishwasher cycle.

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High Heat and Some Detergents Can Cause Hazy Glass, Chipping, and Cracks

Crystal is glass with added minerals that make it stronger and improve clarity. All glass reacts to extreme heat or quick temperature changes by expanding or contracting. If it does either too fast, the glass can develop microfissures—tiny cracks. These can look like actual cracks, but more often, the glass will simply look hazy. Glass with visible microfissures is called “sick glass” or “cloudy glass.” 

The heat of dishwashers can weaken thin glass or crystal, making it more prone to cracking. Placing crystal or fragile china in the dishwasher also means it gets rattled against dishes and racks by the movement of the hot water jets. That makes it more likely to chip or crack.

Some high-end dishwashers have built-in wine glass racks to keep glasses separated from each other, and this helps a lot. If you use your wine glasses every day, you may feel it’s worth it to put them in the dishwasher. I’ve seen thin, high-quality crystal glasses such as those by Riedel come out of a good-quality modern dishwasher looking spotless. But I’m wary, since the damage from microfissures can build over time. Personally, I would definitely not put cut crystal, expensive crystal, or crystal older than about ten years in a dishwasher.

What’s Waterford’s Opinion on Washing Crystal?

Waterford, the world-famous Irish company that has made desirable cut crystal glassware for centuries, has recently developed a lead-free crystal. They say it’s strong and durable, and hard enough to allow their artisans to make deeper, sharper cuts. They also say the newly formulated crystal can “safely withstand 150 cycles in a domestic dishwasher.” However, they still recommend hand-washing: “All fine crystal is fragile, and the surface will deteriorate over time when continually washed in a dishwasher. Although our new crystal is perfectly safe for your dishwasher, we recommend that you hand-wash your crystal items so that you can enjoy their brilliance for longer.”

Gilding, Designs & Decals on Glasses Fade or Chip

The glass on most collectible midcentury modern drinking glasses from the 1940s through the 1970s comes through the dishwasher fine. However, just one wash in a dishwasher can permanently fade or remove the paint or decals on older glasses. It also damages or removes gilded details. I avoid putting glassware of any age that has painted or gilded details or decals in the dishwasher. I find it’s not worth the risk, and most manufacturers of gilded dishware still recommend hand-washing.

Older pieces of porcelain or glassware often have hand-painted details added to them after glazing. Gilding, raised painted flowers, or leaf motifs were often added over the top in years past. These details are extra fragile and prone to fading or disappearing when washed in a dishwasher. Glazes on porcelain also often become rougher and less shiny after contact with modern dishwasher detergents. Paints on glasses (such as the Libbey Curio Carriage cocktail glass shown at right) fade and lose their glossy intensity.

Don’t Let Lead Spread

Dishes and glasses made before 1971 were often made with lead. Crystal glasses had lead added to them while the glass was molten to strengthen them. This made them easier to cut, or to blow till the sides were delicate and thin.

Dishes were often covered with leaded glazes or had highlights and gilding painted on with leaded paint. The older glazes are often fragile, and can crack under the high heat of a dishwasher.

When lead-glazed dishes crack, the lead can leach into the food or drink placed on or in them, or and into the dishwater used to wash them. Lead can then spread to other dishes washed in the dishwasher with them, or in the next cycle.

Gilt Edges and Hand-Painted Details

Gilded or silver edges or details on glasses, bowls, porcelain, ceramics, or other dishware are created with the thinnest possible layers of metal. A few minutes’ exposure to heat or detergent can make them go dull, change color, chip, peel, or disappear. Anything that can’t go in the microwave because it has metal on it shouldn’t go in the dishwasher, either. 

If you’re tempted to put your delicate china in your dishwasher, you might want to know what giant vintage china retailer Replacements thinks about the idea. (Spoiler: They don’t recommend it.)

Sure, hand-washing takes time. But is it worth it to put delicate dishware and silver in the dishwasher to save yourself a few minutes in exchange for permanently diminishing the beauty and quality of your treasures? Special pieces add a particular magic to a dinner party, birthday, or anniversary celebration. I think those extra minutes of washing a few times each year are worth it to make sure pieces stay looking wonderful for decades to come.

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Silverplate, sterling silver, and lead crystal can be washed in a dishwasher—but should they be? | Laura Grey