Why Your Glassware Goes Cloudy, and How to Stop It

A glass that has lost its sparkle is either filmed or etched. Filming is a deposit sitting on the surface, and it comes off. Etching is damage to the glass itself, and it does not. Telling them apart takes about thirty seconds and decides whether you are buying detergent or buying replacements.

The thirty-second test

Take a cloudy glass and dip it in a weak solution of white vinegar, or rub a little on with a cloth, then rinse and dry. If the cloudiness lifts, you have limescale or detergent film, and it is fixable. If it stays exactly as it was, the glass is etched, and no amount of polishing will bring it back.

Filming: limescale and detergent residue

Hard water leaves calcium and magnesium behind as the water evaporates. Add too much detergent, or too little rinse aid, and you get a second layer of film on top. Both are deposits, and both respond to treatment.

Fixing it is mostly about the machine, not the glasses:

• Descale the glass washer on a schedule, and keep it free of salt residue. This is the single biggest factor in sustained brilliance.
• Fit water treatment if you are in a hard water area. A reverse osmosis or deionising unit on the glass washer supply pays for itself in glassware you do not replace.
• Check your detergent dosing. More is not better, and overdosing is a common cause of film.
• Get the rinse aid right, and change it seasonally if your water hardness varies.

Etching: the damage you cannot undo

Etching is the glass surface itself being eaten away, and it is usually caused by a combination of soft or over-softened water, alkaline detergent and high temperature. Softened water is more aggressive to glass than hard water, which is why venues that install a softener sometimes find their glassware deteriorates faster, not slower.

Mechanical damage looks similar from a distance: the fine scratching that comes from glasses touching each other in the rack, or vibrating against each other during the cycle. That is why glasses should stand stable and separate, ideally in a proper glass rack.

Washing fine crystal properly

Handmade fine crystal deserves more care than a tumbler. Elia's guidance for professional use is straightforward:

• Wash soon after use, by hand in warm water or in a glass washer on the glassware setting, between 45 and 55 degrees.
• Keep the machine limescale and salt free.
• Place glasses into the rack standing and stable, not touching, to avoid indelible scratches and cracks from vibration.
• Open the machine as soon as the cycle ends to release the steam and let the crystal air dry.
• If you polish by hand, use a microfibre cloth and dry carefully.
• Let glassware cool thoroughly before storing.

A note on thermal shock

Fine crystal does not like sudden temperature change. Do not go straight from a hot cycle to a cold rack, and never pour hot liquid into a glass that has just come out of a chiller. Most breakages that look mysterious are thermal shock.

Full care instructions for every Elia product are on our product care of use page.

Browse the Elia glassware collection of lead-free crystal, or get in touch if you would like advice on specifying glassware for your water conditions.