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I Put a Ball of Aluminum Foil in My Dishwasher — What Happened Next Was Amazing

Shifrah Combiths
Shifrah Combiths
With five children, Shifrah is learning a thing or two about how to keep a fairly organized and pretty clean house with a grateful heart in a way that leaves plenty of time for the people who matter most. Shifrah grew up in San Francisco, but has come to appreciate smaller town life in Tallahassee, Florida, which she now calls home. She's been writing professionally for twenty years and she loves lifestyle photography, memory keeping, gardening, reading, and going to the beach with her husband and children.
published Mar 14, 2022
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Credit: Joe Lingeman/Kitchn

Say what you will about social media (and, trust me, I have just as much to say as anyone), but it’s surprising how many cleaning and organizing tips and tricks I’ve learned from TikTok and Instagram. Whether its a powdered Tide and hot water concoction for cleaning just about everything or organizing hacks for better storage, these platforms are full of inspiration. Just when you think you’ve learned it all, something new comes up in your feed.

Let’s take this recent TikTok video from @carolina.mccauley, for example! It features a super-quick tip for getting your flatware nice and shiny. I had never heard of it before, and as soon as I saw it, I knew I had to give it try. The trick: Wad up a piece of aluminum foil into a ball, and toss it straight into the flatware compartment of your dishwasher. 

Related: 13 Things You Should Never Do When Loading or Running the Dishwasher

I didn’t think I had any issue with my flatware before I saw the video, but that TikTok hack had me itching to see what kind of a difference a ball of aluminum foil would make. Surprisingly, upon closer inspection, I realized my utensils were actually looking a little dull. (It’s amazing how much you notice when you actually look.) So I did it. I put a wad of aluminum foil in the flatware compartment, loaded up the dishwasher as I usually do, added dishwasher detergent, and waited to see what my flatware would look like the next morning after the dishwasher ran. 

Credit: Shifrah Combiths
Simple — toss a ball of aluminum foil in your flatware caddy.

When I unloaded the dishwasher, I took out a handful of utensils to take a look. And I’m happy to report that my forks, knives, and spoons, did in fact look shinier! You can see the spiffy results for yourself.

Watch
Aluminum Foil in the Dishwasher: Does It Actually Work?

Related: 5 Things You Should Never Do with Aluminum Foil

Credit: Shifrah Combiths
See? Cloudy to shiny!

Tossing a ball of aluminum foil into the flatware caddy is such a no-fuss way to get your forks and knives gleaming. Why does it work? It’s all due to the science-y, oxidization interaction between the baking soda-like properties in dishwashing detergent and the aluminum foil. Together, the process lifts tarnish. The technique is also a super-smart way to get more mileage out of a not-too-dirty piece of foil before you toss it out. This trick worked so well that I’m definitely going to keep doing this hack from now on!

Related: We Tried 5 Methods for Cleaning Tarnished Flatware — And Found 2 Ridiculously Effective Winners

How do you get your flatware shiny? Tell us in the comments below.