dishwasher problems

[Angela]

Wonder if anyone can offer any advise please. I bought my first dishwasher -- second hand -- about a month ago. I have now got small bits of rust like stuff on my cutlery. The cutlery is stainless steel, but it is very stained. Any ideas what could have caused this. is it due to the dishwasher? Should I be using salt? I have no idea how much to use, if at all. Don't even know where I should put it. I know this isn't really a DIY question, but hope someone could help. Many thanks

-- Angela [e-mail]

[dmc]

Assuming that there are no rusty bits on the baskets in the machine then it may well just be the cutlery going rusty!

There a good grades of stainless steel and there are cheap grades - if it is relatively cheap cutlery then this maybe the cause. A dishwasher tends to wash hotter and with more agressive chemical than your avarage hand wash.

We have some cheap cutlery that has the same problem. Mind you, we also have some that cost under a fiver from argos that seems fine!

If you are in a hard water area then yes. It usually goes into a container in the base of the machine. Access is usually (always?) via a screw on cap that is in the bottom of the machine. Pull the bottom basket out completely and you should be able to see it.

If that doesn't help then post what make/model it is. Someone else is bound to have something similar.

Dishwashers seem to be a common subject on here recently (partly my fault :-)

Darren

[BigWallop]

You definitely need salt if only to soften the water and aid in rinsing the dishes. Rust spots are normally caused by not allowing the dishes to stand in washer until the residue heat has dried them off, so don't open the door and let the heat out straight after the wash cycle has finished. Having no rinse aid solution in the machine can also be a culprit. You should see a fill cap beside where the powder goes, it more than likely twists off with a quarter turn, and this should be filled with rinse aid liquid until the little clear window beside it goes dark coloured.

What make ? And what model ? Do you have an instruction booklet ?

[Angela]

Many thanks for your replies. I have visited the web site, and managed to download the user handbook.

It appears that the salt rinse cap is missing, so I am ording 1, and I now know where to put the rinse aid.

Thanks again

-- Angela [e-mail]

[BillR]

Do you have to use abrasive to get the stains off? Is the cutlery really dishwasher proof? Theres stainless and "stainless" ....

Maybe the machine hadn't been used for some time before you got it and its just some crud from the machine.

[The Natural Philosopher]

Ah. I am not the only one who has noticed that it actually takes longer to load and unload teh thing, clear off surplus food, clear the bits of icky s**te from teh fletr, load teh powedr, teh rinse aid, teh ssaalt etc...than it does to stack the dishes in the sink, scrub em cleam and stack in the drying rack?

Not to mention that a dishwahser doesn't actually wash dishes - it sort of rinses them with a low grade pressure wash, none of which is capable of gettiong egg, burnt potaies, the crunchy bits from lasagne, or indded much esle of cooking utensikls, even if they fitted the washer, which mostly they don't...

Ok, its a boon when you have a dinner party. But in normal life for one or two people and the occasional visitors, IMFHO its a complete waste of time.

[Capitol]

[geoff]

In message , Capitol writes

I think someone top posted, but I can't be arsed to look

[IMM]

I couldn't live without one. One of the greatest inventions of all time. I want to have two of them.

[Capitol]

Look at the Fisher & Paykel dish drawer products. Regards Capitol

[dmc]

Saw one of these at John Lewis in Bluewater. Amazing thing. Pretty amazing price as well I seem to remember!

Darren

[Owain]

"IMM" wrote | > >My wife refuses to have one in the house | I couldn't live without one. One of the greatest inventions of all time. | I want to have two of them.

What, wives?

Owain

[geoff]

In message , Owain writes

My wife won't let me have another one of them either

[Andrew McKay]

You made the mistake of not being born in Saudi.

Andrew

Do you need a handyman service? Check out our web site at

[geoff]

No, I've tried the Islam argument, doesn't work