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Super Contributor
Posts: 2,313
Registered: ‎08-23-2012

Re: Dishwasher & Cloudy Dishes

On 3/13/2014 Nightowlz said:
On 3/13/2014 house cat said:
On 3/13/2014 Nightowlz said:
On 3/13/2014 Scooby Doo said:

If your dishes are now cloudy, it probably is the filter that needs to be cleaned. Most all dishwashers have a filter that traps food particles and when that gets dirty you get film.

Once in a while I pour some Clorox in the bottom of the dishwasher, let it set for a few minutes, then run a hot wash. Helps to clean the inside. But I'm not sure about the effect of Clorox on stainless.

I doubt it's the filter since there should not be any food particles in it because the food is all rinsed off the dishes before I put them in the dishwasher since I only run it once per week.

Okay, this is a stretch, but I heard that putting clean dishes in the dishwasher is bad for the dishes. I think it was in my d/w manual. It said that if you clean them off too much before running the washer, the soap and water could damage the dishes.

Wow did not know that. I figured since I only run it once per week if I left the dishes that dirty in the dishwasher they would not get clean. I don't overfill it. All I put in it is plates, cups, bowls, silverware. I don't put any of my pots, pans or that type thing in the dishwasher.

Here's a reference to it from the NY Times. It was also mentioned several other places in my Google search, but I'm pretty sure I read it in my dishwasher owner's manual.

Frequent Contributor
Posts: 144
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

Re: Dishwasher & Cloudy Dishes

2 words- CASCADE PLATINUM You will be amazed
Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,026
Registered: ‎09-30-2012

Re: Dishwasher & Cloudy Dishes

Cascade Platinum ActionPacs Dishwasher Detergent, Lemon Burst

~A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words~
Honored Contributor
Posts: 25,929
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Dishwasher & Cloudy Dishes

I had that problem until I started using the premeasured tablets - it instantly went away. I think I was using too much of the dishwasher powder, plus I was buying the less expensive brand. I now use only the premeasured tablets.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 33,580
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: Dishwasher & Cloudy Dishes

I recently switched to Method dishwasher tablets and my dishes, glasses and silverware are much, much cleaner looking, not cloudy and not spotted.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 21,733
Registered: ‎03-09-2010

Re: Dishwasher & Cloudy Dishes

Yes, the company that manufactures Lemi-Shine does make a few different products. The one you want to keep your dishes clear (and it will keep your SS interior spotless) is the Lemi Shine Super Concentrated Dishwasher Detergent Additive 12 oz Original, as someone else has posted.

If you have a main cup and a pre-wash cup, the company says to put some Lemi-Shine in the main cup and powder detergent in the pre-wash cup. If your dishwasher has only one cup, fill it half with Lemi Shine and half with detergent or put the detergent in the bottom of the dishwasher:

Using Lemi Shine®
Original in every wash
1. Rinse and load dishes & glassware.
2. Fill main wash receptacle with Lemi
Shine® Original.
3. Fill pre-wash receptacle with your
favorite detergent.**
(If only one receptacle is present, ll half with
Lemi Shine® Original and half with detergent
or place detergent in bottom of dishwasher.)
4. Start dishwasher as normal.

~Who in the world am I? Ah, that's the great puzzle~ Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,495
Registered: ‎03-14-2010

Re: Dishwasher & Cloudy Dishes

On 3/13/2014 Nightowlz said:
On 3/13/2014 luvsbulldogs said:

I have never seen Lemi Shine on the shelves where I shop so I googled it and saw that there are different kinds. One is a detergent, another a finish and there is also an original....whatever that means. Which one do I buy for cloudy glasses and SS interior dishwasher. Also do I use a little with my regular detergent or just that? TIA

I found it at Walmart. They have it online. Lemi Shine Super Concentrated Dishwasher Detergent Additive, 12 oz Original. It's in a shaker bottle. Since my dishwasher has a place to pour jet dry I cannot use the Lemi-Shine in there since it's granular. My detergent dispensar has a place for powder or pacs. Now I pour some detergent in the bottom of the dishwasher & put some Lemi-Shine in the detergent dispensar. I did not think they had a detergent?

Hi Nightowlz....... thank you so much for your reply and how to use the Lemi Shine. Also thank you for letting me know that it is a powder. Unfortunately I will not be able to use it. We live in a very rural area and have a septic system and our repairman told us to never use a powder detergent in the dishwasher or the washing machine because it clogs up the machines and forms clumps in the septic tank. The septic company told us the same. They recommended that we use Cascade in the bottle for daily use. My china says that it is dishwasher safe but only if we use Cascade Liquid Lemon and so I have been using it for years on my China. My glasses every now and them come out cloudy so when that happens I will have to try the vinegar. Thanks for your quick reply.

Contributor
Posts: 25
Registered: ‎08-29-2010

Re: Dishwasher & Cloudy Dishes

Ok, I'll chime in with my opinion even though it will sound odd. I had the same problem with cloudy glassware. It wasn't terrible, but I want my dishes to come out of the dishwasher clean and bright. Anyway, I have a miele dishwasher which does a wonderful job of cleaning the dishes. The problem is the ingredient that was removed from dishwasher soap a few years back. I read on a "cleaning site" to use about 1/2 a packet of lemon koolaide with the appropriate amount of dishwasher soap. I tried it and it worked beautifully. I think that whatever is working in the koolaide is what works in the lemishine. Also, the dishwasher man recommended using the prepackaged soap with the little pink/red ball in it. He said the most common issue with dishwasher problems is using too much soap. I'm sure the vinegar does the trick as well - seems like vinegar takes care of so many cleaning issues! Good news is that all of these methods are inexpensive solutions! :-)

Super Contributor
Posts: 940
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

Re: Dishwasher & Cloudy Dishes

Lemi-Shine is great. I use it with those Dawn packets.

My dishwasher isn't very old, and it started spotting dishes almost immediately (well, actually the water did). Then someone mentioned Lemi-Shine on here and I have no trouble with cloud nor spots.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 14,930
Registered: ‎03-11-2010

Re: Dishwasher & Cloudy Dishes

On 3/14/2014 mrskennedy said:

Ok, I'll chime in with my opinion even though it will sound odd. I had the same problem with cloudy glassware. It wasn't terrible, but I want my dishes to come out of the dishwasher clean and bright. Anyway, I have a miele dishwasher which does a wonderful job of cleaning the dishes. The problem is the ingredient that was removed from dishwasher soap a few years back. I read on a "cleaning site" to use about 1/2 a packet of lemon koolaide with the appropriate amount of dishwasher soap. I tried it and it worked beautifully. I think that whatever is working in the koolaide is what works in the lemishine. Also, the dishwasher man recommended using the prepackaged soap with the little pink/red ball in it. He said the most common issue with dishwasher problems is using too much soap. I'm sure the vinegar does the trick as well - seems like vinegar takes care of so many cleaning issues! Good news is that all of these methods are inexpensive solutions! :-)

I have heard about using lemon kool-aid but never tried it. It must have to do with the citric acid in the different products that work. In post #6 Kachina posted about some citric acid from Amazon.