Do you use a Rinse Aid?

[me]

I use cheap rinse aid in my Bosch, it's residual heat drying, so some items like plastic stuff that don't retain much heat, usually doesn't dry well without. It's got a built in softener unit being a UK model. The tap water hardness here is about 340mg/l (I think that's about about 19 grains hardness)

My previous one had proper hot air drying with an exposed element in the tub, and as I recall tended to leave a few spots and also not fully dry everything if it had ran out of rinse aid.

I used powder dishwasher detergent in my last dishwasher, rather than the modern "all-in-one" finish ultimate or Fairy Platinum capsules I use in my current one. I can't get dishwasher powder these days and budget tablets became totally useless when they phased out phosphates, some I tried even left grey deposits (Zeolite?) on stainless steel items, plus I don't think the built in softener works quite as well after 20 odd years use.

 

[bpetersxx]

yes but also forget it half the time

manual dispensing in the Maytag's

 

[ryner1988]

Wow, another ancient thread revived that I actually have something to contribute to. that makes two of those in two days.

I never used rinse aid when I had the Frigidaire dishwasher, but I started to soon after the GE was installed. We have extremely hard water here, around 12-20 grains, and I wonder if the lack of rinse aid had something to do with the machine's sub-par performance. Since we live in an apartment and can't install a water softener, I have to use other means to keep my appliances in good condition, and I told myself I'd take better care of this dishwasher. So, I use Finish Jet Dry in every cycle and I don't know about anything else but it sure does help with drying since this machine doesn't have heated dry.

I'll also be running a de-scaling agent through the DW every couple months, LemiShine or something similar. I don't ever want my DW to look so embarrassingly gross as my previous one did when it was taken away. The mineral build-up and the way the wash arms were just corroded to a point where it felt like they'd just fracture apart if they were touched too much, that was appalling. I imagine some of that was nothing but neglect on my part. There isn't a lot one can do about hard water in an apartment setting, but there really was just no excuse for that disgusting of an appliance to exist in my home. Grosses me out just thinking about it honestly.

 

[dermacie]

To reply #79 it may be that I don’t like change but I don’t like the Finish Jet dry as much as I liked the regular Jet Dry. I don’t like Finish as much as Electrasol, but it can be because of the way detergents have changed. The pods Finish and Cascade oversuds my machine.

 

[lakewebsterkid]

Rinse aid

I use rinse aid (Jet Dry Ultra from Costco) at the 2nd lowest setting. The KA does not have a low/fill rinse aid dispenser warning, and I can tell when this runs out. Slight increase in water spots. Drying is the same. However other machines I have used relied far heavier on rinse aid for drying. So I’m sure it depends on machine and many other factors as well. Though, I will say my silverware always looks good compared to other people’s. Not sure if the rinse aid has anything to do with that.

 

[daveamkrayoguy]

I have, as my needs to were needed...

 

I'm, however, not good at aiming the blue stuff in the dispenser without it making a mess, and somehow the shelf life of it under my sink renders it purposeless and gooey...

 

Routine cleaning of my filter, and the occasional use of dishwasher cleaner, I look to and implement to have for a long time, not seeing filmy dish-ware, and even making redoing a number of items a thing of the past...

 

 

 

-- Dave

 

[DADoES]

 
Recycle a ketchup, mustard, or other condiment squeeze bottle with a diaphragm-type cap for better control when filling the dispenser.  I tried Lemishine rinse aid a few years ago.  It has that type of cap, which I kept and reuse the bottle for WM rinse aid.

 

[labboy]

I’ve always used rinse aid in every machine I’ve had.

Currently have a Miele and when using rinse aid, things are pretty much bone dry when I unload the machine.

I’ve always purchased the big bottle of Finish at Costco. However, I’ve recently tried the Miele rinse aid and like it a lot. I didn’t think that it would make a difference but everything does come out better looking with the Miele product. I was also able to turn the dispense amount down to 2 mL (from 4 mL with Finish).

Bob

 

[mattl]

Filling rinse aid

My KA has  a little window indicator so I know when to refill. When I do I partially close the door, about 45 degrees, and open the spout on the bottle and gently squeeze to  fill the dispenser.Much easier and I get more product in the tank than with the door flat.

 

[gelaundry4ever]

to mattl

Maybe I should try doing that.