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Bosch SPI 50E35EU Dishwasher: Smelly Dishes & Unpleasant Air - Help with Persistent Issues

toman1toman 12558 17
Best answers

Why does a Bosch dishwasher leave dishes and the dishwasher air with a persistent rotten-egg-like smell, and how can I get rid of it?

First, isolate whether the smell comes from the dishwasher itself or from the drain/chemicals by running a cycle with no detergent, salt, or rinse aid; if the dishes are still smelly, the problem is likely drain-gas backflow or siphoning, but if the smell disappears, the culprit is probably the detergent/salt combination [#20764107] Check that the drain hose is connected correctly to the upper part of the sink siphon and that enough water remains in the hose/siphon, because a too-low hose connection or weak siphon can let sewer gases back into the machine [#17191804][#17605057][#20632389] Also inspect and thoroughly clean the door seals, since muck can collect inside them [#17609862] If the odor appears only with certain tablets or salt, try different products or detergent type; one user reported the smell disappeared after switching from tablets to gel, and another noted Bosch/Siemens machines have multiple salt-hardness settings [#18235603][#18235982] A service suggestion in the thread was to try a disinfecting wash such as potassium permanganate if bacteria buildup is suspected [#17191804]
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  • #1 17191484
    toman1toman
    Level 11  
    Posts: 10
    Help: 1
    Rate: 4
    I am asking for help with the problem I am struggling with, namely - the bad smell after washing in the Bosch SPI 50E35EU dishwasher. I have had this problem for two years and neither I nor the called service technician dealt with it. The dishes after washing, as well as the air inside the dishwasher after washing, have a smell, if I had to compare it - it is to the unwashed vessel standing for several hours left by the eaten rooster. As if it does not sound, unfortunately it is a very unpleasant smell for us, and eating from such odorous dishes causes gag reflexes. After washing, we usually have an additional rinse of dishes. Why usually, because once every 3-4 washes you do not feel anything after washing. It is a small dishwasher, in which the dishes do not stand without washing for more than 24 hours, they go there rinsed before being put in. I am a seller of computer electronics, so I know how important it is for users to follow the instructions in the included instructions and this was the case with my dishwasher assembly. In the fight against the problem, I used various types of washing products in bars, powders, fragrances and odors without any effect. I also use regular washing recommended by a service technician with special agents, but it doesn't help. The sprinkler blades are not blocked by the dishes during washing, the seals are pulled out and washed together with the surface of the dishwasher, and there is a stench under them. The filter is cleaned every 2 weeks (almost nothing is in it), the water next to the filter does not have unpleasant odors. I wonder where this smell comes from then. Is it possible that something inside the dishwasher reacts to the water during washing or to the air during drying, causing an undesirable effect? After washing, smelling each item separately, it smells no more of any than the air inside the dishwasher, to be able to tell that this is the problem. If anyone has any other suggestions that I could put into action to get rid of the stench, I will be grateful for the hints and I will report on the attempts made.
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  • #2 17191493
    sanfran
    Network and Internet specialist
    Posts: 9787
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    Do you use dishwasher salt?
    There are such symptoms without salt.
  • #3 17191650
    toman1toman
    Level 11  
    Posts: 10
    Help: 1
    Rate: 4
    I add salt.
  • #4 17191670
    yanes
    Level 33  
    Posts: 1589
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    Maybe you have water from a deep well with a lot of hydrogen sulfide and then we smell like rotten eggs.
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  • #5 17191769
    mojepetro
    Level 21  
    Posts: 319
    Help: 51
    Rate: 91
    I have a very similar dishwasher. From the news, I was disturbed by the smell after washing. It might not be the kind of smell you smell like yours, but it was quite nasty.
    I have tried and used constantly:
    - removing food residues from dishes (rinsing).
    - the use of anti-odor pendants (several permanently).
    - after the cycle is over, I open the dishwasher and slide out the shelves to dry / cool the dishes.
    - after washing in the evening, leave the dishwasher open overnight to dry / air out.

    Recently, I have noticed that for overnight drying, it is enough to open the flap by about 20 cm and support it with a special tilting bracket screwed from the bottom to the top (as in the photo).
    Bosch SPI 50E35EU Dishwasher: Smelly Dishes & Unpleasant Air - Help with Persistent Issues20180427_2..844.jpg (271.67 kB)You must be logged in to download this attachment.
  • #6 17191804
    Borutka
    Level 29  
    Posts: 1284
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    Maybe a problem with the siphon in the dishwasher? In general, unlikely, because there is probably water in the drain hose. However, it does not hurt to try and disconnect the hose from the sewage system. Another possibility is that a colony of bacteria has emerged. Maybe it will help to buy potassium permanganate at a pharmacy and add the solution during the washdown.
  • #7 17191896
    toman1toman
    Level 11  
    Posts: 10
    Help: 1
    Rate: 4
    yanes wrote:
    Maybe you have water from a deep well with a lot of hydrogen sulfide and then we smell like rotten eggs.
    I have no city water.
    mojepetro wrote:
    Recently I have noticed that for night drying it is enough to open the flap by about 20 cm and support it with a special tilting support
    I also open the dishwasher and play on time with the smell. Sometimes it helps, but sometimes the stench is so bad that it comes out of the dishes during meals. This, however, is only a struggle with the effect, but I care about eliminating the cause.
    Borutka wrote:
    Another possibility is that a colony of bacteria has emerged. Maybe it will help to buy potassium permanganate at a pharmacy and add the solution during the washdown.
    I haven't checked it yet and haven't tried it. Thanks for the hint. I will work in this direction. We will see. I will let you know what the final is around Wednesday, because tomorrow I will have 11 hours three days at work.
  • #8 17192024
    mieszaczwcz
    Level 31  
    Posts: 1225
    Help: 185
    Rate: 257
    I give + for Borutka with a drain there may be 2 special cases, the drain hose connected too low, which means that there is no sufficient amount of water to remain in the hose, creating a siphon "clogging" the clearance to the riser.
    The second option is the so-called gas backwater in the drainage pipe. If there are other installations in the apartments above the drain connection to the riser, the sewage poured in them with a large stream creates air pressure under it, which, at lower siphons with too little water creating resistance, slightly escapes to the device. If it is a kitchen riser, it stinks, but when such a weak siphon is connected to the toilet riser, a package flying from above in a ?100 pipe is wrapped with toilet paper and poured with water to slip (sometimes from the 12th floor) with cosmic speed I, it will seal the riser like tow in the cannon, the result is the column of gases is large enough that smelly farts are released through the shells on the lower floors, especially on the ground floor. The use of pneumothorax is against this.
    Phew ... I'm going to the site :D
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  • #9 17604726
    Andy_M
    Level 14  
    Posts: 90
    Help: 2
    Rate: 10
    Hello !
    Unfortunately, I have a similar smell problem with a small Bosch "built-in" dishwasher.
    It is connected in a house without such a sophisticated drainage system.
    The drain pipe is connected as instructed in the area of the kitchen sink drain siphon. Unfortunately, the stench is and has been from the very beginning and no one knows why.
    For the sake of simplicity, I will add that the previous old, well-worn Aristona dishwasher did not freeze the dishes and the apartment, and after washing, the removed dishes were clean and dry! I emphasize - dry !! Unfortunately, the new bosch cannot do that. If the door is not left open after washing, the dishes will be wet and with stains. Maybe it's just his beauty.
    best regards
    AM
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  • #10 17605057
    mieszaczwcz
    Level 31  
    Posts: 1225
    Help: 185
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    Dishes should be dry after the 70 ° C session, provided you have completely drained off water, which sometimes remains above the dishwasher floor. If this is the case, turn on the dishwasher for a moment, the residue will be pumped out and the hot dishes will dry. The dishwasher's drain hose should be installed in the upper (inlet) part of the siphon just below the sink drain.
  • #11 17609862
    misiek1111
    Level 37  
    Posts: 3969
    Help: 319
    Rate: 1047
    Remove the door gaskets and check that there is no muck inside the gaskets. I don't know what the gaskets of this model are, but the others have P-shaped gaskets. There is muck inside and must be thoroughly cleaned. It would be worth unscrewing the door, maybe something has started to live inside.
  • #12 18235603
    milax
    Level 9  
    Posts: 5
    Rate: 9
    I have a Siemens and a similar problem (of course, the reasons may be different, but if it is such an inorganic, "chemical" stench, the cause is probably the same). Odorek was once weaker, sometimes it was difficult to withstand the open dishwasher and the dishes had to be rinsed. Airing the dishes and the dishwasher did not help. The dishwasher is well-kept, works and cleans flawlessly, I put the dishes in rinsed, and I have had a problem for many years (although it seems to me not from the beginning, and the dishwasher is already 11 years old). Recently, I found the culprit. The guilty ones are the tablets (I use finish or Somatu, once I used foil wrapped ones, I have been buying them in paper for a long time), it is probably about something in their composition, which, despite the thorough pumping of water, remains somewhere deep inside the device. The case seemed to be a coincidence, I buy myself in a German chemistry store and over a month ago I found the Finish dishwasher gel there for the first time. I bought it and from the first use until now, the stench from the dishwasher has completely and indisputably disappeared! You will say - beautiful, we buy a gel and the problem is over. Unfortunately, the gel also has a serious disadvantage (maybe my old dishwasher is not fully adapted to work with the gel) - it does not wash well. Ie. It deals very well with fat, but it does not cope with intense deposits such as after strong tea or juices (the real ones, squeezed at home, e.g. beetroot, carrot or red cabbage), so unfortunately it is not a dream detergent. I tried adding baking soda to the bottom of the dishwasher, which I often use at home, also for washing and scrubbing in the kitchen, but it did not help. For now, I am washing these dishes by hand, which I know that I would take them out if they were not washed and I enjoy the lack of olfactory sensations, but I will not be able to do it for a long time :(
  • #13 18235982
    sanfran
    Network and Internet specialist
    Posts: 9787
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    Enter the menu and increase the salt content in the wash. In Siemens / Bosch there are seven degrees of "salinity" in water. The tablets contain salt that the gel does not have.
  • #14 20616906
    toman1toman
    Level 11  
    Posts: 10
    Help: 1
    Rate: 4

    I've determined that the smell is not the dishwasher's fault. I don't know why, but there is some reaction between water and air when the window is open. The stinky smell of the dishes appears only when and no matter what dishwasher cleaners I use and how much salt. Same with washing floors. If the windows are closed everything is OK, no unpleasant odors. If only when washing or a moment after washing the floors I open the windows, the smell resembling a rotten egg immediately appears in the house. Fresh water for washing, mop washed before washing and regularly rinsed when washing floors. I also used different floor cleaners.
    If anyone has a clue about chemistry and knows what is responsible for the reaction causing this smell, please let me know.
  • #15 20632389
    mieszaczwcz
    Level 31  
    Posts: 1225
    Help: 185
    Rate: 257
    @toman1toman

    Probably a multi-story building, dishwasher connected to the drain, there is no slight difference in air pressure between the drain pipe and the sealed room, only opening the windows causes gas backflow. A siphon will help or raise the drain hose, in which some undrained water must remain.
  • #16 20632458
    palmus
    Level 34  
    Posts: 3931
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    Rate: 734

    The stench from the sewer is quite specific: from rotten eggs to ammonia. Sometimes it drips that the dishwasher is such a wet dog. The phenomenon, it turns out, also occurs in another, familiar household. So different pieces, different location, different city. Couldn't fight it.
  • #17 20633068
    Tomek.K.
    Level 33  
    Posts: 1538
    Help: 252
    Rate: 521
    You can put a cut lemon or zest in the dishwasher and replace it every few washes. In addition to the fact that it eliminates the unpleasant odor, it works as a rinse aid.
  • #18 20764107
    netfoxx
    Level 11  
    Posts: 12
    Rate: 8
    After all, this can be tested in a fairly simple way.
    Dishwasher old or new, do not use anything and let it go without any detergents (salt, rinse aid, tablets). If you put in clean dishes with no odor and after washing with water alone, such as the ECO program, they still have the smell on the dishes, then you are looking for a topic related to the backing up of, for example, impurities or sucking gases from the drain, etc.. However, if after washing they are odorless, then we start to turn on the means, but sequentially and test.

    I have an interesting experience precisely with dishwasher salt, when I used it (Somat or Finish), there was always after each wash slightly or more noticeable this doggy smell - rather disturbing on all dishes (glasses, cups, plates). After many years I used no salt and it is completely different, no smell on the dishes, whether wet or dry, using only tablets such as Finish. There are many possibilities, but sometimes only one causes it, e.g. water, detergent, salt, rinse aid, filters, drain, seals, impurities. Chemical reactions with running food e.g. bacteria as from milk or eggs, and more and more I am puzzled by the resin in the water treatment tank where salt is poured in. On a side note - I came across an article that says that in the process of treating ion exchange resin with salt or cathode resin, a fishy smell is produced.

Topic summary

✨ The Bosch SPI 50E35EU dishwasher is experiencing persistent odor issues, with users reporting a smell reminiscent of unwashed dishes after washing cycles. Common suggestions for addressing the problem include ensuring the use of dishwasher salt, checking for hydrogen sulfide in well water, and maintaining proper drainage to prevent gas backflow. Users recommend cleaning door gaskets, allowing the dishwasher to air out post-wash, and experimenting with different detergents, including gel versus tablets. Some users have noted that the smell may be exacerbated by external factors, such as air pressure changes when windows are opened. Testing the dishwasher without detergents to isolate the cause of the odor is also advised.
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FAQ

TL;DR: For Bosch SPI 50E35EU smells, note many Bosch/Siemens have 7 salt levels—"There are seven degrees of 'salinity' in water." Most odors stem from drain backflow, detergents, or poor drying; isolate by a no‑detergent test, adjust salt, and improve venting. [Elektroda, sanfran, post #18235982]

Why it matters: This FAQ helps Bosch/Siemens owners fix smelly dishes fast, without guesswork or unnecessary service visits.

Quick Facts

How do I quickly isolate whether the smell is from detergent, drain, or the machine?

Run a simple A/B test. 1) Wash clean dishes on ECO with no salt, rinse aid, or tablets. 2) If odor is gone, add products one by one across washes. 3) If odor remains, suspect drain routing or gases. This method reveals the culprit fast. [Elektroda, netfoxx, post #20764107]

Why do odors appear when I open windows after a wash?

Opening windows can change room pressure. That can pull sewer gases through a weak trap or low drain hose. Raise the hose so water remains as a barrier, or add a proper siphon. This blocks gas backflow that smells like rotten eggs. [Elektroda, mieszaczwcz, post #20632389]

Can hydrogen sulfide in well water cause a rotten-egg dishwasher smell?

Yes. Hydrogen sulfide in deep-well water smells like rotten eggs. If other drains also smell after using water, test for H2S. Treating water is separate from the dishwasher. But the symptom strongly matches a sulfur odor. [Elektroda, yanes, post #17191670]

Do I need dishwasher salt, and how should I set Bosch/Siemens hardness?

Set the built‑in softener to match your water. "There are seven degrees of 'salinity' in water." Tablets include salt, while gels do not. If using gel, increase the salt setting. If using tablets, reduce it to avoid residue. [Elektroda, sanfran, post #18235982]

Do detergent tablets cause "chemical" odors? Is gel better?

Some users reported a persistent chemical smell with tablets (Finish, Somat). Switching to Finish gel eliminated odor, but cleaning of tea and juice stains worsened. Gel cuts grease well, yet may underperform on heavy tannin deposits. Trade odor for cleaning power if needed. [Elektroda, milax, post #18235603]

How can I improve drying so smells dont linger?

Use a 70 b0C program and ensure all water pumps out. If water pools above the floor, briefly run the pump. Mount the drain hose at the siphons upper inlet, just below the sink. Hot, dry dishes retain fewer odors. [Elektroda, mieszaczwcz, post #17605057]

My Bosch leaves dishes wet unless the door is ajaris that normal?

Some owners observe wet, spotty dishes unless the door remains open after washing. Opening the door aids drying and reduces smells. This is an edge case, but it occurs even on newer integrated units. [Elektroda, Andy_M, post #17604726]

How far should I open the door after a cycle?

Open the door about 20 cm and let the racks slide out slightly. Support the door with a small tilt bracket if needed. Overnight airing improves drying and odor dissipation without fully opening the appliance. [Elektroda, mojepetro, post #17191769]

Could dirty door gaskets be the source? How do I clean them?

Yes. Food residue can lodge inside P‑shaped door gaskets and smell. Clean them thoroughly. 1) Remove the door gaskets. 2) Wash inside and out with hot water and detergent. 3) Refit and inspect the door cavity for buildup. [Elektroda, misiek1111, post #17609862]

Can a misrouted drain or weak trap cause sewer odors?

Yes. A low or poorly trapped hose can allow gas backwater. Pressure pulses in shared risers can push smells into appliances. Raise the hose and ensure a proper siphon or vent to stop gas escape. [Elektroda, mieszaczwcz, post #17192024]

Is potassium permanganate a viable disinfecting wash?

Some suggest adding a diluted potassium permanganate solution during a cleaning cycle. The goal is to knock down bacterial colonies inside the machine. If you try this, use minimal amounts and rinse thoroughly afterward. [Elektroda, Borutka, post #17191804]

Why does the smell come and go every few washes?

Intermittent odor points to variable factors: drain backflow, door not aired, or product carryover. The pattern of every third or fourth wash fits inconsistent drying or gas ingress. Track door‑ajar behavior and drain routing between cycles. [Elektroda, toman1toman, post #17191484]

What simple diagnostic should I run before changing parts?

Run a detergent‑free wash on clean dishes. If odor persists, investigate the drain path and air pressure effects. If odor disappears, reintroduce salt, rinse aid, and detergent one at a time to identify the offender. [Elektroda, netfoxx, post #20764107]

Can I use lemon to cut odors and act as a rinse aid?

Yes. Place a cut lemon or fresh zest in the dishwasher and replace it every few washes. This helps reduce odors and adds mild rinse‑aid action. Its a quick, low‑cost supplement to other fixes. [Elektroda, Tomek.K., post #20633068]

Could the softener resin/salt tank contribute to fishy or wet dog smells?

One user linked odors to salt use and the softener resin. Running without salt removed the smell when using tablets. Consider resin and salt interactions during troubleshooting, especially if odors coincide with regeneration. [Elektroda, netfoxx, post #20764107]

Does odor type (rotten egg vs wet dog) point to source?

Rotten egg or ammonia tones indicate sewer gas or sulfur issues. A wet dog smell points to damp residues or product carryover. Use odor character alongside the no‑detergent test to aim repairs. [Elektroda, palmus, post #20632458]
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