[Bonanza]

Originally Posted by Yung Dum

Does a water softener make a big difference? I'm not happy with my dishwasher (it's brand new) and thought that may be the problem.

Originally Posted by CFrance

Yes, a water softener makes a difference. But so does the dishwasher. Don't get one with a stainless steel interior. We had an expensive LG model with that, and the combo of the new dw detergents, the ss interior and the stainless silverware corroded the silverware. And the interior of the dw never dried. And this with a water softener.

I love the Whirlpool that came with our spec home, combined with the water softener we put in, and the use of Finish Power Ball cubes. Very little flatware corrosion, the interior dries, and it really cleans the dishes.

Okay -- here goes . . . No, the following is not a blog. It's a combination of opinion and fact.

Years ago I worked for a Whirlpool distributor and still am a little prejudiced, but there are many quality dishwashers around. The interior of dishwashers are either a type of plastic or stainless. There is no question that stainless wins -- hands down. You'll never see a low end D/W with a stainless interior and the stainless ones will have more options. The first thing I have always loved about Whirlpool is the silverware loads in the door and gives you more interior space.

Having a water softener will not help to have cleaner or spot-free dishes, glasses and silverwear. Sorry, CFrance, but that isn't the answer. We don't have a softener in our house. I used to use Cascade powder and now use Finish Powerballs like CFrance uses. I also use the liquid Jet Dry in the provided dispenser in the door and believe the combination of the two is what gives you really clean, spot free dishes, silverware and glassware.

I only use the normal, short cycle and never use the heated dry cycle. Run your hot water in the sink before you turn on your D/W and also run your disposer so the D/W drains properly. I do rinse off really scurvy dishes because we don't run the D/W every day. When the D/W has finished, and I remember to do it, I partially open the door to let it air dry. My dishes come out looking brand new as does my stainless silverware and glasses.

Here are a couple of things to remember. Never use any of the liquid D/W detergents. They are extremely abrasive and can damage your silverware and china after extended use. When you load glasses, mugs, etc., never put them over the prongs. If you don't load your D/W properly, that could be another reason your dishes may not get cleaned properly.

If you use the right D/W detergent and Jet dry, and your dishes, silver and glasses are still not clean and/or spotted, it's one of a couple of things. You water may not be hot enough, you may not be using the correct cycle, it could be the detergent or you may have a lousy D/W!
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