[crash]

Originally Posted by Dr Winston O Boogie jr

I was emptying my dishwasher this morning and noticed that several of the items had a soap film on them. One pot still had food residue in the bottom.

I use a recommended rinse aid. Is there something else I could be doing? Does it need to be cleaned?

Check the filter at the bottom it may be clogged and then the water doesn’t circulate through the sprayers.

[pgoodley]

Are you sure you put in dishwasher soap? I forgot one time and got the same results you're describing. As I unloaded the dishes I couldn't figure out why they looked so nasty, then I remembered. NO SOAP!

[Tomptomp]

In a past life I had an appliance repair business. You didn’t say if the items that didn’t rinse properly were on the top or bottom rack. The only thing I can suggest is that you spin the impeller,s with your hand. They should be able to make several revolutions freely and easily. If they “hop” or bounce then they will not disperse the water effectively.
There is a bushing in the center of the impeller that sometimes wares out causing the water to spray incorrectly or not at all.

[65Proff]

Try using the pod dishwasher detergent rather than liquid. Also make sure your dishwasher is set to normal not quick wash. Hope this helps.

[Nazdad]

Spray arm not turning caused by blocked holes in the spray arm or blocked by an item in dishwasher or not enough water

[New Englander]

Originally Posted by tfa4755

There is no filter to remove on Whirlpool

Yes there is.

[doecats]

put 2 to 3 ounces of white vinegar in the dishwasher before you start ,spot free and all residue removed plus it cleans dishwasher

[Marty94]

I bought a new dishwasher and was displeased after the first load. Dishes and glassware had a white film on them; silverware was badly spotted. I ran the same load through a second time with the same result. I didn’t understand why so I got out the manual and it stated for best results to use Cascade Platinum pods and rinse aid. I had been using Cascade Complete with my older machine and just figured it would be the same. It was not. I bought the pods and it solved the problem. My glassware comes out sparkling every time. The new machines have been engineered to conserve on water and I’m guessing P&G changed their pods to compliment this change. My older machine used more water and had a heating element that got the water super hot. The new machine doesn’t get the water quite as hot and uses very little water. Ergo, perhaps why they recommend this specific product.

[drrichard]

You need to CLEAN your dishwasher once a month with Dishwasher Magic (or similar product containing citric acid). We had similar problems ten years ago and our repairman said to clean it monthly and we have had NO problems since then.

[emb2458]

Had that problem. Was my garbage disposal. Water running thru it was backing up. Disposal was leaking and didn't know it. Replaced disposal. No more problems with dish washer

[stebooo]

Sure you didn't stop it to soon?

[Heyitsrick]

It sounds counterintuitive, but you really shouldn't be rinsing your dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. No, that doesn't mean leaving big chunks of food on them. But there's no reason to go about almost washing them before you put them in the dishwasher.

Why? Because dishwashers - and particularly dishwasher detergents - need dirty dishes to work correctly.

The makers of the dish detergent Cascade discourage customers from pre-washing or rinsing dishes because it actually inhibits the cleaner from working. "Enzymes in Cascade detergent are designed to attach themselves to food particles," the Wall Street Journal reports. "Without food, the enzymes have nothing to latch onto, says P&G."

See here: Why You Shouldn't Pre-Wash Dishes - Dishwasher Is Better Than Handwashing

[Fenster]

Maybe too obvious, but this happened to me twice in the villages. Everything was dirty. The cause was that the soap dispenser failed to pop open.

[eddie888]

I have been in the villages a long time. This is my third house and ever Dishwasher was terrible. I have been living in my house for four years and a dishwasher broke down. It’s a junk they put in. So I sucked it up and bought a new dishwasher which is amazing. Never a problem for one year. I will let you know in the next two or three years.

[87lwrdr]

Is your water heater in the front of the house and your dishwasher in the back? If so you’ll never get hot water at the start or during it’s cycle especially when it’s colder out. The only hot water you’ll have is what the dishwasher itself can heat up. That type of setup is a total waste of energy on both ends, heating water that doesn’t get there then the electricity to heat it again in the machine. A dishwasher needs 120* going into to perform properly. Plug the sink and run the hot water and see how much goes in the sink before you get to 120*.