09 Sept 2025
Dishwasher Tablet cleaning cheat sheet:
- Customer hack for tea-stained mugs & teapot
- Customer hack for greasy oven racks
- Customer hack for shower heads
- Customer hack for kettle limescale
- Skip the Dishwasher Tablet in the toilet. Try white vinegar instead.
- Taps, plugholes & sinks: skip the tablet and use something suitable for the surface
- Always wear gloves when handling Dishwasher Tablets directly and never mix cleaning products
Our customers are a creative bunch. Over the years, they’ve shared all sorts of unexpected things they clean with Dishwasher Tablets.
But it’s worth noting that smol Dishwasher Tablets are formulated and assessed for use in your dishwasher. We haven’t tested them for every clever cleaning hack doing the rounds online.
So, which ideas have customers shared with us? And which would our smol experts rather you skipped?
1. Tea-stained mugs and teapots.
One customer-shared hack is to use a diluted Dishwasher Tablet soak to lift stubborn staining.
- Dilute a Dishwasher Tablet in warm water
- Leave the mug or teapot to soak
- Rinse thoroughly afterwards
This one is pretty low risk and should be effective because our tablets are designed for use with dishwasher-safe items but always wear gloves when handling the tablet directly.
2. Greasy oven racks.
Another hack we’ve heard from customers involves giving grimy oven racks an overnight soak.
- Wrap the racks in aluminium foil
- Place them in a bath, large sink or suitable container and cover with warm water
- Wearing gloves, place a Dishwasher Tablet on top of each wrapped rack
- Leave overnight
- Rinse the racks and your bath and recycle the aluminium foil.
3. Shower heads and hoses.
If your shower is no longer giving a glorious downpour, but more a misty drizzle we have customers who swear by soaking the shower head in a water/Dishwasher Tablet solution to tackle build-up.
- Add a Dishwasher Tablet to a bucket of warm water
- Leave the shower head to soak
- Rinse thoroughly several times afterwards
4. Kettle limescale.
If hard water is also building inside your kettle another customer-shared trick is:
- Dilute a Dishwasher Tablet in a kettle of warm water
- Leave to soak overnight
- Empty it completely
- Rinse thoroughly several times before using it again
What about all the other Dishwasher Tablet cleaning hacks?
This is where we’d probably apply caution.
You’ll find people online using Dishwasher Tablets to clean toilets, oven doors, sinks, taps, plugholes and all sorts besides.
We don’t recommend those hacks.
Different surfaces need different care, and our Dishwasher Tablets haven’t been formulated or assessed as general-purpose cleaning products.
Cleaning a toilet?
If stubborn limescale is the problem, white vinegar is one simple household option.
- Lower the water level in the bowl
- Pour white vinegar over the limescale
- Leave it for a few hours, then scrub and flush.
Never mix vinegar with bleach or bleach-based cleaning products.
Taps, plugholes and sinks?
Check the cleaning guidance for the particular material or appliance and use a method or product intended for that surface.
So what should you clean with Dishwasher Tablets?
Surprise, surprise… dirty dishes.
smol Dishwasher Tablets are formulated and assessed to work inside your dishwasher, tackling food residue and grease on your dishes.
And while we love hearing the clever tricks our customers discover, there’s one useful rule for any cleaning hack you spot online:
Just because something cleans one thing brilliantly doesn’t automatically make it the right thing for everything else.
Dishwasher Tablet cleaning FAQs.
Catherine Green, Cleaning Expert
Catherine has been on a mission to revolutionise the way we tackle chores since the dawn of smol and is an advocate for making more sustainable living accessible to all, with a strong focus in cleaning that’s heavy on dirt, lighter on the planet and gentle on the skin. Catherine has tested hundreds of hacks to make tackling chores easier, safer, and better for the planet and our homes.
ABOUT OUR AUTHORS