Dishwasher tips
 

We have a nice LG stainless steel built-in dishwasher in our 4-year old TV home. Phyllis mentioned a few times that it doesn't seem to clean the dishes very well. So I finally checked it out. Hot water supply is fine and we have a recirc pump which delivers hot water to the DW right away. Everything is working fine and the filters are clean. I googled our LG model and found it ranks quite low on satisfaction with cleaning effectiveness on Consumer Reports and other customer reviews...oh well.

We hope to live longer and for sure - be frogs in our current home. So I researched other DWs and saw that Home Depot has some good sales. Went there today with a list of the top 3. Talked with the Sales Assoc -Rick- and told him our issue. He asked us questions and informed us of the following:

1. DO NOT clean your dishes thoroughly in the sink first. Simply scrape off food etc, leave them soiled but a quick light rinse is OK. Newer DW detergents are designed to stick to the food bits and do their job during the DW cycle. If the dishes are somewhat clean it defeats the detergent. Phyllis ALWAYS "washed the dishes" before putting them in the DW.

2. DO NOT use pods - use gel DW detergent. The plastic edges on the pods disintegrate slow and can lodge in the DW filter. The gel works quick and much better.

3. Use Rinse-Aid. We always do.

4. If you have calcium buildup on the tub, cut a lemon in half and wipe the tub with that, then squeeze the juice in the DW for the next cycle. We have 0 buildup, so OK there.

He does not like Samsung or LG DWs - always recommends KitchenAide but GE is fine too for moderate priced units.

So - we will try #1 and #2 and hope for the best

For the dishes that aren't being cleaned very well, how do they look? Is there still food on them? Is glassware cloudy?

For example, a casserole dish that had only been rinsed in the sink first would have food hardened to the glass after going through the dishwasher. (That's one of the reasons for washing other dishes better in the sink.) Before using a rinse aid, glasses looked cloudy. Now that we use a rinse aid, glasses come out great.

and I always use a 1/4 -1/2 cup of bleach everytime I wash

I never put the casserole dish in the dishwasher without scrubbing off the hard bits. My 10 year old dishwasher does a great job after we cleaned the filter. Found a you tube video on it.

Really? That’s a new one. Wouldn’t that damage the seals?

I imagine you are referring to the clothes washer?

I wondered about the bleach, also.

If you do have hard water, note that every once in awhile check the holes in the sprayer arms for hard water deposits that could clog them. Using a toothpick helps unclog them.

i have done this for years in the dish washer

with our Whirlpool we use a pod, rinse aid, rinse heavy soil off, and use the sensor cycle. Always come out spotless.

Vinegar not bleach should be used in a dishwater periodically to clean out the calcium deposits from orifices.


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Our dishwasher wasn't washing thoroughly and it was leaving a detergent residue on the bottom of the dishwasher. The service rep said right away our motor wasn't strong enough and replaced it. Works great now. Also, put white vinegar in your dishwasher to cleanse your dishwasher! It works great!

Last November we purchased all new LG stainless steel appliances for the kitchen from Best Buy. They are the best to work with as far as price and delivery. They'll match Lowes veteran's discount, they also deliver from a main warehouse in central Florida, whereas Lowe's delivers from the store of purchase, which might be low in stock on a certain model. We found their prices were lower than Home Depot and they will bargain, when we bought the washer and dryer earlier last year, they threw in a $100 store card.

For the dishwasher we bought this model for $400, they knocked off $50 from the $449 sale price since we bought the group and they also gave us free delivery and knocked off the takeway fee, we had to bargain with the assist manager, but they're very friendly. This is the LDF5545ST model, the 24" Quadwash. It's so quiet, when I'm standing in the kitchen I have to look at the lights to know if it's running. Cleans the dishes excellently. The negative is the buttons are on the front, so if you lean against the unit it will sometimes turn on. Just put the power button and it's turns off.

https://pisces.bbystatic.com/image2/...0;maxWidth=550

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/lg-24-f...?skuId=4824601

Update by OP:

well, it was quite difficult for both of us to NOT 'clean' dinnerware and bowls et al BEFORE placing in the DW. We (well...she...) simply removed any food bits on plates etc but did not sponge off or such.

Had a 2/3 load last night and ran a normal cycle with Cascade gel DW detergent, no pods. Voila' - every piece was sparkling clean - except for a large clear bowl we had leftovers in, had slight haze around the inside rim due to days-dried stuff no doubt.

But, so far so good. The tip from the HD Rep seems to have saved us many hundreds$$$ and trouble. Our LG model does have poor cleaning reviews, but if it continues to perform as last night, it's a keeper.

We have hard water
 

Solution is to add BORAX to both your dishwasher and your laundry.

As to some of these suggestions Vinegar, bleach. First of all vinegar plus bleach will release chlorine gas a deadly poison.
Your dish washing detergent may well have chlorine in it.
Borax is an oxiginating bleach-not a chlorine bleach. It is also sold under the BRAND NAME OXICLEAN. It is far less expensive to buy the only brand I see 20 mule team borax
available lowes and Walmart at about 4.98 a box.