Are Yeti Cups Dishwasher Safe? (Find Out Now!)
Yeti is one of the most trusted brands when it comes to reusable drinkware. With their quality and effectiveness, this shouldn’t come as surprise. But there’s one important question that is shared by many Yeti cup users: are Yeti Dishwasher safe?
According to Yeti’s official website, all Yeti products are dishwasher safe. However, the Yeti lid is not safe to put in the dishwasher. Although this is something that Yeti’s website failed to acknowledge, putting the lid in the dishwasher could damage the rubber gasket. Therefore, it’s best to handwash the lids instead.
Important Things to Know When Washing Your Yeti Cup in Dishwasher
In order to keep its good condition, it’s important to remember these things when washing your Yeti in the dishwasher:
- Yeti’s tumblers come in different sizes. So, depending on the size of your dishwasher, the bigger ones may take a lot of space in your dishwasher – or might not even fit.
- Washing your Yeti cups in your dishwasher doesn’t guarantee its cleanliness.
- The dishwasher’s hot water can usually leave stains, some residue, and/or unwanted remnants of taste behind – so, occasional deep handwashing would recommend.
So, Is Handwashing Your Yeti Cup Better Than Using A Dishwasher?
Some people would just choose to throw their Yeti cups in the dishwasher. This can save them time, so this doesn’t come as surprise. However, if your dishwasher suddenly broke or you’d just rather deep clean the cup you use to drink every day, then we always recommended handwashing it.
The main benefit of handwashing your Yeti cup lies behind the fact that you can assure its cleanliness.
Step-by-Step Ways to Handwashing Yeti Cup
Cleaning your reusable cup is very easy and requires minimal effort. Here is a simple guide to washing your Yeti cup.
Step 1: Rinse with running water
The first step is to make sure that the cup doesn’t have any content in it. This is especially if the last beverage you used it with was coffee, juice, soda, or tea. Getting rid of drink stains from stainless steel can be pretty challenging.
It’s best to use hot water to rinse it because it can dissolve residue that might be stuck in the cup better than cold water.
If there are hardened residue that hot water can’t remove, fill the cup with hot water and leave it for 15-30 minutes. This process will soften the residue, making it easier for you to clean.
Step 2: Lather and scrub
After rinsing your Yeti tumbler, it’s time for you to do the scrubbing. If your tumbler is shallow enough for your hand to reach its bottom, then you can use a soaped scrubbing sponge. Otherwise, you can use a dish cleaning wand for taller tumblers.
Using your soap detergent would be a good choice. However, if you want something more natural, then you can use baking soda with vinegar.
Step 3: Wipe dry
After cleaning it thoroughly, rinse it with water and wipe it dry with a clean towel.
Step-by-Step Ways to Cleaning the Yeti Lid
Cleaning a Yeti cup lid should be paid more attention to. This is because a lid can build up mold under its gasket, and many people don’t even know about it. So, to get rid of and prevent this build-up, here are ways to clean the lid correctly.
Step 1: Detach the rubber gasket
The first thing you need to do is to take off the rubber gasket from the lid. You can use a small knife or a fork to help you pry it off the lid. This process can be pretty challenging since it’s not really designed to be taken off. The rubber gasket is there to prevent the water from leaking.
Be careful in this process ad you don’t want to break the rubber off.
Step 2: Scrub off the dirt
If you don’t do this cleaning process regularly, then you might see some mold build-up from the lid. You might not see this build-up unless you remove the rubber gasket.
Scrub off all the mold and dirt using a lathered scrubbing sponge. And again, you can also use baking soda with vinegar.
Step 3: Clean the rubber gasket
If you haven’t cleaned the lid in a while, you might find it gunky, which is gross. This is where most of the mold will grow.
You can start cleaning the gasket by rubbing it from the inside using a wet cloth. After that, soak it in water and scrub it with scrubbing foam. Continue doing it until you get rid of all the sliminess.
Continue cleaning the outside, making sure you scrub each gap. This can be quite tricky since the crevices are too small for the scrub to reach. In this case, you can use a brush-type scrubber.
Step 4: Clean the lid cover
Clean the lid cover as you do with the tumbler. If you have a MagSlider, however, you might have to take it off to clean it thoroughly. Taking off the slider should be easy. You just have to pull off the slider using your fingernail or pry it with a bread knife.
Step 5: Dry everything off and put them back in place
Once you’re done cleaning the rubber gasket, the lid cover, and the slider, wipe them dry using a clean cloth. Put them back in their original places.
What Not to Do When Washing Your Yeti Cup
Washing your Yeti cup with hand might sound like a piece of cake. And while it’s true that it’s almost impossible for you to mess it up, there are some important things you need to know that others overlooked.
Don’t Use Bleach
One of the worst chemicals you can use in cleaning your Yeti cup is bleach. You have to know that bleach contains a powerful oxidizing agent, which could break down and compromise the chromium oxide in your Yeti cup. Chromium oxide is the component that makes steel stainless.
Over time, this may lead to a strong chemical reaction and oxidation that results in rust.
“Wait, so my Yeti cup can accumulate rust?!”
Yes! Your Yeti stainless products are rust-resistant; however, occasional rusting can happen due to improper cleaning or storage. So, don’t clean your cup with bleach and stick to good old detergent soap or go for something more natural and use vinegar and baking soda!
Don’t Use Steel Wool
Using metal scrub sponges and wire brushes is a no-no. Using these abrasive materials can scrape the surface of your cup.
These scratches can form small scratches that retain residue and stains from your non-water beverage. When the residue settles into the scratches, it is going to be difficult for you to remove it already. This could also taint the taste of drinks.
Do Yeti Cups Lose Effectiveness?
Yes, they can lose their effectiveness and vacuum seal.
When there is air inside the vacuum, the cup will no longer be a reliable insulator. When this happens, you will see that your ice melt faster or your hot drink will not stay hot for so long anymore.
Yeti cups work because of their double walling with a vacuum that separates the cup’s inner and outer wall. The heat requires particles in order to travel through, and since vacuum doesn’t have particles, the heat struggles to move from the outside to the inside of the cup (and vice versa). So, when the Yeti cup’s vacuum seal gets compromised and get filled up with air, it loses its effectiveness.
There are different reasons why this could happen. It could be because of a manufacturing defect, bad dropping of the cup, or what other people claim, washing the cup in the dishwasher.
They believe that the heat produced by the dishwasher can break the seal. Keep in mind that even the tiniest break can damage the vacuum and damages its insulating ability.
How Often Should You Clean Your Yeti Cup?
It’s recommended to wash your Yeti cup every day. Doing this will help in getting rid of harmful microbes that could accumulate throughout the day.
You don’t have to wash your cup every time you finish your entire drink. You can simply wash it by the end of the day and get it ready for the following morning.
Related Guide
We are a team of passionate homeowners, home improvement pros, and DIY enthusiasts who enjoy sharing home improvement, housekeeping, decorating, and more with other homeowners! Whether you're looking for a step-by-step guide on fixing an appliance or the cost of installing a fence, we've here to help.
More by Upgraded Home Team
![12 Washing Machine Brands to Avoid [with Recall Data]](https://cdn-fastly.upgradedhome.com/media/2023/07/31/9075781/12-washing-machine-brands-to-avoid-with-recall-data.jpg?size=350x220)
