Best Dishwasher Detergent? For KitchenAid Whirlpool Maytag Kenmore

[Ally]

We use Finish after finding that Cascade was clouding our glasses.

 

[ERObjd]

If I were to rate our dishwasher for cleaning ability I'd give it an 8 out of 10. There are times that a bowl or a glass will have small bits of food residue left in it. We clean the screen filter regularly and run water temp at 140 degrees.

We use Finish All-in-One Powerball soap tablets. For a long time we used Cascade Complete powdered soap, but switched to Finish tablets because we got better results.

I had to repair my 8 year old Whirlpool Gold dishwasher as the diverter motor was leaking water onto the floor. I chose to have a pro do it because I didn't want to hassle with it. I'm sure people will want to know so, $69.95 for service call, $93 for parts, $7 tax. The guy had to come back as the part he had on his truck was not exactly the same as the old part.

While he was here I peppered him with questions about dishwashers and dishwasher usage. He said the Finish tablets were very good, but if we are using rinse aid we should either stop using it or else pry off the red "pill" on top of the Finish tablets as that portion of the tablet is also rinse aid. He said it depends on how hard your water is, if it is soft water you don't need rinse aid. He said to use the Sensor cycle setting as that employs an optical sensor that measures the clarity of the water during the cycle and adjusts the cycle time and water usage as needed. Unbelievably, he said if you use the Sensor cycle you shouldn't pre-rinse your dishes because if you do you will "trick" the optical sensor into thinking the dishes are almost clean (which they are) but the dishwasher computer will shorten the cycle time to save water.

Anyway, I'd like to hear from the group as to which dishwashing detergent you think is the best, especially those with 15 year old or newer Whirlpool, Kitchenaid, Maytag, Kenmore models, since they are basically the same machine.[/QUOTE


Some dishwashers have a built in water heater booster that will boost the water temp .We have a whirlpool about 3 year old that does that. Our water heater is 120 and the dishwasher heats it up to 130 to 150. Hot water likely has more impact that the type of detergent

 

[ncbill]

I was a Cascade user for decades until the formulas were changed to omit phosphates. Now nothing seems to work really well. The Walmart Great Value does a decent job compared to Cascade or Finish and costs substantially less.

Trisodium phosphate (TSP):

https://mommyperfect.com/2015/08/why-your-dishwasher-wont-clean-anymore/

 

[cathy63]

Nope, I'm using Finish Powerball Deep Clean hard tabs, $12.14 for 94 ($.13 each) on Amazon. The Finish Powerball Quantum hard tabs are $21.57 for 82 ($.26 each.)



I think I'll give Cascade Platinum a shot ($.27 each at Amazon). I presume Cascade Complete (.21 each) is similar to the Finish Powerball tabs I'm using.

I am LOL at the price comparisons. I did this a couple of years ago when we got a new dishwasher and I saw that the samples of Cascade Platinum packs it came with had gotten the dishes really clean, while the stuff I already had on hand was not doing as good a job, even in the new dishwasher. At first I was annoyed that the Cascade cost twice as much -- I mean $.13 vs $.27 -- how can they be soaking the consumer like that for what's basically the same product? And even if Cascade is a little better, is it really worth twice as much?

Then I took a deep breath and realized it's only $.14, and if we run the dishwasher about 5x per week, that's $.70/week. I decided I was being silly and should just be happy that we are in the fortunate position of being able to afford an extra $.70/week to have cleaner dishes.

I did buy the Kirkland packs last summer when Costco was out of Cascade. That's one Kirkland product that wasn't worth it. We're back on the Cascade as of a week or so ago, and will stick with it from now on.

 

[skipro33]

I have a 14 year old GE Profile dishwasher that has worked perfectly since the day I installed it. Never cleaned any filter, never knew it has one. I use Cascade Platinum Plus Dishwasher Pods and never have any spots or food left behind.
I also have clear and spotless glasses and here's how;
I toss in a small amount of TSP with every load. TSP is Tri-Sodium-Phosphate. Phosphate is what USED to be is laundry and dishwashing soap to clean things. It was removed some time ago because it works sorta like a fertilizer in water, grows algae. I am on a septic system, so my waste water doesn't end up at a treatment plant where the phosphates may end up back in some stream or lake. They are perked back down to the earth and the local plants benefit from them. TSP is readily available at Home Depot as well as other stores. It is very cheap as well. A $5 box lasts me a couple years easy. My laundry is actually cleaner, my glassware is clear, no milky film. I'm happy with my pods and TSP in the dishwasher and I'm really happy my dishwasher has continued to run so well for so long.

 

[davebarnes]

Then I took a deep breath and realized it's only $.14, and if we run the dishwasher about 5x per week, that's $.70/week.

+1

 

[jollystomper]

Our 10 year old Sears Frigidaire dishwasher works fine with "Cascade Complete" pods. We buy them from Costco, the 90 pod box will last us 4-5 months and it is better priced there than at other stores.

 

[Qs Laptop]

I am LOL at the price comparisons. I did this a couple of years ago when we got a new dishwasher and I saw that the samples of Cascade Platinum packs it came with had gotten the dishes really clean, while the stuff I already had on hand was not doing as good a job, even in the new dishwasher. At first I was annoyed that the Cascade cost twice as much -- I mean $.13 vs $.27 -- how can they be soaking the consumer like that for what's basically the same product? And even if Cascade is a little better, is it really worth twice as much?

I hear you. It's just that I've got this problem buying stuff only to basically throw it away. I cringe when I have to use sidewalk ice melt, for example. Also, lawn fertilizer, weed killer, drain cleaner (literally money down the drain), grass seed, etc.

I'm going to blow that dough and get Cascade Platinum!

And I'm going to like it!

 

[Walt34]

I was a Cascade user for decades until the formulas were changed to omit phosphates.

You can put the phosphates back:

https://www.homedepot.com/p/SAVOGRAN-4-5-lbs-Box-TSP-Heavy-Duty-Cleaner-10622/202935862

I used Home Depot as an example; Lowes and any other paint/hardware store worthy of the name will carry it. Amazon does too but it's pricey there.

It works great when added to washing if there's grease or oil on the clothes (don't ask how I know) and of course grease or fats on dishware.

Just don't mention using it to any environmentally sensitive/serious relatives or you'll get horrified looks and stern lectures on that topic.

 

[davebarnes]

Well, phosphates are very harmful when they appear in the wrong places.
One of the first places to ameliorate phosphates was [do some research] and you will understand why.

 

[target2019]

Easy and convenient to take the low road. Phosphates were removed from cleaners because of demonstrable damage to the environment.

Micro plastics are in the powder and pod forms of detergent. Some people are saying it makes stuff cleaner.

Yes, I'm guilty too.

 

[Mauser]

We had to replace an old rusted dishwasher about 6 or 8 years ago - bought a Bosch that seemed only mediocre at best - DW was especially complaining about how often some glasses came out with bits stuck inside them. The problem was not the detergent, or the unit; it was us.
There were two issues:

I was used to really old units that had a metal blade on the screen near the pump to chop up food bits and make sure they got flushed away. In contrast, the Bosch has a super-fine screen in the bottom of the tub that ensures that NOTHING gets flushed away! MUST rinse this screen on a regular basis. I do not like to do any pre-rinse of dishes, but now I make sure any large chunks (rice or bigger) are definitely removed from plates before loading them.

The second issue is to make sure nothing is blocking the arm rotation - seems obvious, but it was not. DW uses baking sheets a lot, and has always loaded them on the side of the bottom rack - always figured if it fit under the top rack and was against the wall, all would be good. I investigated her complaints and found that the upper arm was swinging so close to the sides that any baking sheet would block it - thus the bits stuck to the glasses; if the arm does not turn, it cannot wash. Had to teach her to always stick finger through the top rack and give the arm a spin to verify nothing was in the way - problems solved. For years now, that dishwasher has performed flawlessly.

We really like both the Sam's packets and the Finish tablets, but over time our glasses still get fogged. I just ordered some Cascade jell to try using less - our well water here is SUPER SUPER hard (over 1,000 ppm with lots of iron), so we have to use a water softener. My only worry is that DW will NOT use less - she loves to use twice as much as anything calls for, especially soap!

 

[target2019]

I would not put a baking sheet in the dishwasher. We wash those by hand.

 

[Out-to-Lunch]

I routinely wash baking sheets and roasting pans in my Bosch, along the side, as Mauser says.

As my Bosch is newer, it has the ability to raise or lower the second rack. This is useful to accommodate either tall things in the first rack (baking sheets) or the second rack (wine glasses). Obviously, not both at the same time!

 

[Sue J]

For those of you with cloudy glasses, I used to use this
https://summitbrands.com/glisten/dishwasher-detergent-booster-freshener/ added into the detergent compartment. This is not the same product as Glisten Dishwasher cleaner which is a cleaning treatment used without dishes. I used this until we remodeled our kitchen in 2019 and we got a new dishwasher.

The price listed is not what I used to pay. I would order this from Blain Farm and Fleet and it's also carried at Menards. Walmart and Giant Eagle used to carry it too.

The new dishwasher is a Whirlpool mid priced one. I use the Sensor cycle and I do not use the heated drying. For detergent I use any brand of the pods, usually Cascade, Great Value or Aldi and get excellent results. I do use the rinse aid since it was recommended and everything is dry except the bottom of the upside down mugs.

Love the new dishwasher! I'm even teaching DH to stop rinsing the dishes. We can go two days between runnings so sometimes he still feels the need to rinse first.

 

[Qs Laptop]

I'm going to blow that dough and get Cascade Platinum!

And I'm going to like it!

Well, not so fast...

I got some Cascade Platinum pods and I've had mixed results. When they pop out of the detergent/pod holder in the door of my dishwasher I get good results. The problem is that about 1 out of 5 times we wash dishes the Cascade pod gets stuck to the inside of the detergent holder. The spring door on the holder is deployed, it's wide open but the Cascade Platinum pod is partially "melted" and glued to the inside of the compartment. It's mostly intact, that is, not much of the detergent entered the wash cycle.

When I was using solid Finish Tabs I could actually hear the "thunk" when the tablet came out of the detergent compartment and rapped against the inside wall of my dishwasher. They always deployed into the wash cycle.

Now that our 23 year old is back to working out of state, we decided to get powered soap and use the one hour wash cycle as between just the two of us the dishes start to smell before the dishwasher is full, so more frequent washings of lighter loads is in order.

 

[jazz4cash]

Are these the tri-color pods? Do you put them in the same way each time? I only had an issue once when I put the bi-color side down so I always put the solid color down now. I hate paying extra for pre measured pods but somehow I got hooked on the convenience even though I think it generates micro plastics. BTD!!

 

[Qs Laptop]

Are these the tri-color pods?

Yep.

Do you put them in the same way each time?

Tried it both ways, didn't make a difference.

 

[EastWest Gal]

When we got our Bosch, Finish pods were recommended. We had previously used Cascade and had to get rid of a set of severely etched glasses. We rinse off particulate food only.

We've had no etching problems at all.

 

[Sunnymar]

After having poor results from other products I researched forums to see what other people liked, that took me to Finish Powerball Quantum, I like them and will stay with them. BTW I never use pods for clothes washing, only powder.

 

[Ncc1701]

Get the cheap ones from Costco made by Kirkland Signature. That is actually Cascade..