Not just a washing machine (see other post), but also a dishwasher!
Having not had one for twenty years, except the odd stay on holiday, I am completely out of touch with the best and most economical detergent and rinse aid. I don't even know whether it is better to use dispensed rinse aid or rely on the seemingly impossibly complicated combination tablets.
The dishwasher is an ordinary slimline one - so using tablets formulated and sized for a full size machine feels wasteful.
We're in a soft water area and use half a standard tablet (Tesco Value or similar) per load. Standard size dishwasher. No rinse aid, no salt. Works fine.
How would combination tablets work anyway? Surely after the wash part of the cycle, all the other parts of the tablet would be flushed out the drain.
Thanks mike.
I too have been deeply sceptical of them - but they do seem to do something, somehow.
Yes - it will be a low hardness area, thank goodness.
I use the Aldi 3 in 1 tablets which are cheap as chips and work a treat, ultra hard water area. AIUI the components dissolve faster or slower so they are used in the right order.
We have soft water. Takes about 3 days to have full load, each day I put on a rinse mode to keep the crap moist, when full I use eco cycle and that does fine using the cheapest tablets I can find.
I still fail to see how the 'salt' in tablets can regernerate the water softener in the machine.
I use:
- Finish salt (in bulk from Costco)
- Finish rinse aid (from Costco) or the equivalent from Aldi
- bulk dushwasher detergent (5kg or 10g tub from CPC)
it doesn't, you still need to fill the salt reservoir.
I looked at separate chems, but tablets work out cheaper. I've tried an array of brands from cheapo to finish and never found the slightest difference, so I use whatever's cheapest. I forget which it is currently, but look at tesco value, wilko and aldi.
NT
We live in a Very Hard Water area, East Anglia, and use the three-part things, made by a well-known name, for the dishwasher. The machine's 'Empty' lights for the salt and rinse-aid have been on for years, and we get as perfect results as you could wish for.
+1 but in Kent.
Sounds encouraging.
As above, that is encouraging - will start on cheap and change only if not happy.
I expect you'll want better, dishwashers aren't perfect, but as far as I've found so far there doesn't seem to be anything better, it's just marketing. Some tablets tout added stain removers, but I've never found stains an issue in dishwashing.
NT
Tablets are normally formulated for a large machine packed full of grease. I buy detergent as powder (Sainsbury's) and that works well, and I dose it according to contents. I buy tablets in bulk from Costco for other parts of the family that can't handle the concepts of using powder and topping up rinse aid and salt (or cleaning the filters or anything else like that).
Rinse aid is used so slowly it doesn't really matter what you buy, it works out as pretty much nothing per wash.
Salt is cheap anyway.
Also, dishwasher detergent (powder or liquid) is great for cleaning other things, such as stainless steel kitchen sink, anything that needs a deep degrease, etc.
I am using finish tabs at £6.99 for 110 tabs from farm foods. I can't read the polish writing though.
I also usually pay about 6p or 7p per wash for a tablet as I buy what is on offer. I have never found that the end result is any different whatever I use.
Load up the machine, put in the tablet, press start and leave it to do it's job. Stick in the electricity costs and then you have a full load of dish washing done for less than 20p.
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