Need help cleaning a dishwasher.

[buckytom]

the water in our town is terrible, full of chlorine and minerals, so our diswasher has been leaving really bad white deposits on everything.

i was wondering what things people do to help clean their dishwasher so it stops leaving a residue.

i was thinking of running a cleaner like clr (calcium-lime-rust remover) through it a few cycles, or i've heard that vinegar might work.

what do you do to keep your dishwasher running well?

[taxlady]

Got this tip from the dishwasher repair guy: put a glass of white vinegar in the dishwasher, standing up with the vinegar in it, once a month while you run the dishwasher. In your case, maybe more often.

[DaveSoMD]

One word....Tang.

[mollyanne]

I wouldn't use chemicals like the CLR you mentioned since it may leave residue toxins indefinitely and therefore get on your plates and utensils. Vinegar is good or some type of organic or environmentally friendly cleaner. How about calling your town water supply company and ask them.

Oh oh, I've got it...well this is for after the initial cleaning. For maintenance purposes: There is a water filter system that you attach to one place in your house and it filters the water in the whole house. Read the fine print but it filters out the minerals that are doing this damage. It's maybe "Britta" or "Pur" or others maybe...but you get it at your local hardware store like Lowe's or Home Depot.

[Andy M.]

There is a product called Glisten that cleans DW interiors. My issue is brown stains on the inside if the DW. This stuff makes it sparkle (glisten).

[FrankZ]

Originally Posted by mollyanne

I wouldn't use chemicals like the CLR you mentioned since it may leave residue toxins indefinitely and therefore get on your plates and utensils. Vinegar is good or some type of organic or environmentally friendly cleaner. How about calling your town water supply company and ask them. .

Having a look at some MSDs for CLR it appears it is an organic mix (outside of the water).

[taxlady]

I just remembered that we use a rinse aid which, in our case, prevents water spots. There is a place to put it next to the dishwasher detergent. Only have to fill the little well about once a month.

[Andy M.]

Originally Posted by taxlady

I just remembered that we use a rinse aid which, in our case, prevents water spots. There is a place to put it next to the dishwasher detergent. Only have to fill the little well about once a month.

We use Jet Dry rinse aid. It makes a difference in the final results.

[Chef Munky]

Originally Posted by Andy M.

There is a product called Glisten that cleans DW interiors. My issue is brown stains on the inside if the DW. This stuff makes it sparkle (glisten).

We just had to have the heating element replaced last week on the dishwasher. It was recalled by the manufacturer. Potential fire hazard.
So fine the repair man came out and while he replaced the element he mentioned that we had serious hard water build up. He recommended the Glisten and another product Finish. $12.50 each. The Finish product is a 1 time use bottle. It wasn't what you see at the stores. You add it to the dishwasher on an empty load. The water has to be at least 112 degrees for it to work. The finish runs all through the dishwasher, not just the interior as he mentioned to me. I didn't buy either from him. When they say as he did " you can only obtain it through me" sends that flag up. We'll see about that.

Found that I could buy either one online or locally at a much cheaper price.

[Andy M.]

Glisten comes with two packets of powder in a box for around $3-$4 per box at my local market.

[sparrowgrass]

Oh, taxlady, I am so going to try that vinegar in a glass trick--I bet that works!! With my hard water, I might have to do it every load, but that would be fine. And cheap!

I do run a gallon of vinegar thru the machine when I think about it--I start the machine and let it begin filling, add the vinegar and let it run a few minutes to get the vinegar all thru the hoses and things. I let the DW sit a couple hours or overnight, then finish the cycle.

[Alix]

Vinegar is it. I haven't done the glass thing, but what I have done is pour about 4 cups of white vinegar into the dishwasher as its filling. Once its filled, just let it sit for about 2 hours and then finish running it. If your scale is really bad let it sit for a longer period of time. We have really hard water here too and the scale build up is GROSS. I won't even talk about my kettle.

[taxlady]

Robotic water cannon

(It reminds of a Dalek)

[babetoo]

i do the rinse ad thing. there is a product that will remove water spots on glassware. it is citrus something. not in my market, will check on line and let you know what it is. think i will do the vinegar things , dishwasher is running right now. so when i empty it, will run a vinegar load.

[Zhizara]

Personally, even though I don't have a dishwasher, I would run a cycle with white vinegar. It works great on coffee makers, and costs pennies.

If it doesn't clean as well as you like, you can always try something else, but I'd try the cheaper and proven cleaner first.

[babetoo]

Originally Posted by babetoo

i do the rinse ad thing. there is a product that will remove water spots on glassware. it is citrus something. not in my market, will check on line and let you know what it is. think i will do the vinegar things , dishwasher is running right now. so when i empty it, will run a vinegar load.

it is called citrusmagic.com. just ordered three products. the dishwasher additive, pet spot remover, and a carpet freshener. sprinkle on and vacuum up.

[buckytom]

thanks, everyone.

i think i'll try the vinegar in a glass thing first for a few loads. if that doesn't work, i'll look for glisten (thanks andy ).

btw, clr is supposed to be a safe product. they recommend cleaning your coffee maker with it, so i'm guessing it wouldn't leave a residue.

i use it to clean the shower/tub walls in our house and, while it doesn't smell great, it doesn't fry your lungs like some other tile cleaning products.

[JMediger]

Originally Posted by DaveSoMD

One word....Tang.

I've heard sugar-free lemonade.

I think I'd try the vinegar too though ...

[mollyanne]

Originally Posted by buckytom

btw, clr is supposed to be a safe product. they recommend cleaning your coffee maker with it, so i'm guessing it wouldn't leave a residue.

Thank you. I didn't realize that CLR was completely safe.

[suzyQ3]

The SS interior of our dishwasher was horrible. And so were our glasses and SS that we washed. We tried everything. Only Lemi Shine worked. We used it first just to clean the interior of the dishwasher but, as recommended, we use it as a detergent additive (half Lemi Shine, half regular detergent) all the time now. It makes everything shine.