Mixer Care and Maintenance

Beaters and Bowls
Stand mixer glass and metal bowls can go into the dishwasher. Never use steel wool or wire brushes on stainless steel bowls. For best results, wash all beaters, hooks, and whisks by hand and let air-dry. If coated, beaters can be washed on the top shelf of the dishwasher. Wipe the outside of the mixer with a damp cloth and dry. Never use abrasives.

If beaters and hooks of your stand mixer knock against the bottom of the bowl or are not reaching bottom ingredients, look for an adjustment screw under the mixer head. Place a dime in the bowl, attach the flat beater, and turn the mixer on low. Adjust the screw until the beater just barely brushes the dime. Your manual should walk you through this process.

For Safety's Sake
Unplug the mixer before changing attachments and cleaning. Do not rinse beaters while still attached to the hand mixer. Only use attachments designed for your stand or hand mixer, and never use more than one attachment at a time. Repairs that require the mixer to be opened, wires and gears to be exposed, or cords to be replaced should be done by an authorized repair center.

Delonghi DSM5 5-Quart Stand Mixer

Often bread dough creeps up the hooks, to where the beaters connect, and eventually this food could work upward and clog the gears. Use a soft spiral brush and a cotton swab dipped in lemon juice to clean food from these areas as well as the crevices around control buttons. A damaged gear will stop the mixer from working.

Many stand mixers (and some hand mixers) have overload protection devices that shut the machine down when it cannot work any harder. You might hear the mixer's motor begin to groan as it slows itself down; there might be a smell of hot metal. Turn the mixer off and unplug it. Most likely it will recover and work fine once it cools down.