Why is my glassware foggy

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Your Privacy Rights. To change or withdraw your consent choices for TheSpruce. At any time, you can update your settings through the "EU Privacy" link at the bottom of any page. Group three got a solution of vinegar and warm water. Then I let all of these glasses sit for 15 minutes. Finally, I loaded the fourth group into the top rack of my dishwasher and ran them through a speed cycle with nothing but a bowl of vinegar in the bottom rack.

After the minute soak, I cleaned each of my hand-washed groups with a soft, quick-drying microfiber towel. Group three, hand-washed with vinegar and warm water, won the challenge.

If, like me, your exacting standard of spotlessness demands heavier cleaning, increase the amount of vinegar, or let them soak longer, or spring for one of those expensive cleaners. Look no further than these guides to the best water glasses, wine glasses, and more glasses we love:. In some cases, your dishwasher might have permanently scratched the surface of the glass.

The only surefire way to prevent glasses from developing a hazy film is to keep them out of the dishwasher. Instead, wash them by hand with a mild soap, rinse thoroughly, and dry immediately. To figure out if your glasses have fogged up because of your water, soak a small dish towel or rag in a small amount of white vinegar and wipe the glass with the cloth. If the glass is no longer cloudy, then the cloudiness was caused by hard water build up.

If you wipe the glass with vinegar and it's still cloudy, then that is etching caused by soft water corrosion and it cannot be fixed. You can remove the buildup caused by calcium and magnesium ions in hard water by swabbing the glass with acetone nail polish remover , and then scrub gently with a mild detergent.

Soaking the glasses in plain white distilled vinegar for 15 minutes is another effective home remedy. If you have soft water and still want to use your dishwasher to clean your glasses, you can prevent ruining them by making sure that glasses are dishwasher-safe when you buy. When you run the machine, open the door to allow steam to escape once the cycle has finished, and let your glasses cool before removing them.

Alternatively, try dishwasher pods. To remove limescale buildup from glass, Bowen said you can soak your glassware in white vinegar or lemon juice. Ultimately, however, the only way to prevent future hard water buildup is to treat it at the source. Just be sure that if you go this route, the detergent you use is the right match for your water softness.

Otherwise, you risk etching. Look for mild, clear soaps without additives, dyes or perfumes. You can also cut the amount of soap you use by half. As tempting as it is to toss every item into the dishwasher, delicate glassware in particular should only be hand-washed.