New Dishwasher Detergent Ratings

[frigilux]

Given the recent reformulations by a number of top brands, the testing organization we love to hate has updated info.

Surprises: Previously top-rated Member’s Mark (Sam’s Club) Ultimate Clean pacs plummeted. Not surprised. On strength of the previous iteration’s performance, bought two huge containers of them. Cleaning power is significantly diminished—especially on pots & pans—although they don’t produce suds in my 2017 Whirlpool full-size portable. Annoyance: The outer covering of the pacs is flimsy. Have experienced leaking pacs. The previous iteration, which was top-ranked, was powder only. After disappearing for the better part of two years at the outset of the pandemic, the reformulated version appeared, which is a liquid+powder combo. See photo below.

Tried a small bag of the new Finish Powerball Ultimate, having never tried anything from the Finish line before. Its relatively low score does not surprise me. Results were unimpressive, especially on pots & pans. Again, did not cause sudsing.

Picked up a small bag of reformulated and now top-ranked Cascade Platinum Action Pacs With Dawn. For cleaning pots & pans, it definitely takes the checkered flag. Unfortunately, as with the other Cascade pacs I’ve tried, the Whirlpool spends half the main wash period choking on suds. It sprays well for about three seconds, then three seconds of cavitation. Repeat. Can’t argue with results, though. Even though half the wash period is lost to suds-sucking, even pots & pans come out gleaming.

This is a partial list. Taking requests if you have a favorite not listed.

100 would be a perfect score. Here we go:

PACS/PODS
Cascade Platinum Action Pacs With Dawn 98
Kirkland Signature Platinum Performance Ultra Shine 96
Seventh Generation Power+ Pacs 95
Cascade Free & Clear Action Pacs 93
Amazon Basics Pacs 93
Cascade Complete Action Pacs With Dawn 89
Finish Powerball Quantum 85
Finish Max in 1 Powerball 81
Cascade Original Action Pacs With Dawn 80
Great Value (Walmart) Pacs 75
Cascade Platinum Action Pacs+Oxi 73
Finish Powerball Power 71
Member’s Mark (Sam’s Club) Ultimate Clean 71
Cascade Platinum Plus Action Pacs 70
Finish Powerball Ultimate 56
Finish Gelpacs 37

LIQUIDS
Great Value (Walmart) Dishwasher Gel 74
Cascade Gel With Dawn 68
Finish Gel 61
Cascade Complete Gel with Dawn 56
Cascade Free & Clear Gel 56
Cascade Complete Gel With The Power Of Clorox 47
[this post was last edited: 8/26/2024-15:23]

 

[tomturbomatic]

Costco sells Cascade Advanced Power with Dawn Grease Fighting Power 3X Cleaning Power*
*on starch & protein soils vs Original Gel
I can vouch for this stuff being better on starch soils than the stuff that had the bleach fragrance.

 

[tomturbomatic]

If you have trouble with sudsing, drop a Gas-Ex or plain generic simethicone in with the DW detergent and it will keep suds down.

 

[frigilux]

Thanks, Tom! I’ll have to give that a try. Have around 150 Member’s Mark pacs to work through. Will use them when there are no grungy pots/pans in the load. The sudsy but very effective Cascade Platinum Action Pacs With Dawn and a GasX tablet will be used for tougher loads.

 

[gelaundry4ever]

finish ultimate

If Finish Ultimate is so bad, then why does Bosch recommend them?

 

[DADoES]

 
Marketing arrangement.

 

[appnut]

My Bosh and finish dishwasher products. Yield far superior results. Then cascade and Kenmore Whirlpool products,

 

[frigilux]

Finish Ultimate

Directions on the package said to use the Normal/Eco cycle. I use only the 1-hr cycle on my 2017 Whirlpool portable. It is a near BOL machine with very little sound dampening that operates the lower and upper wash arms at the same time, so it’s quite loud. I used the Normal and Heavy cycles a couple of times but didn’t find that cleaning improved enough to put up with an extra 60-110 minutes of racket, as well as having the machine inconveniently parked in front of the sink for that long.

 

[gelaundry4ever]

marketing

Well despite marketing, I find that Finish and Bosch are the perfect combo. I have a Kenmore built by Bosch and works better with Finish than Cascade ever did.

 

[panasonicvac]

I love the Kirkland pods, they've been the best detergent that I've used by far. Cascade Complete pods have been great as well but not as good as Kirkland. Cascade Platinum (don't remember which one) I couldn't find much of a difference between the Complete pods. Finish Quantum was fine but didn't liked the scent, I'd say it works just as well as Cascade. The last jug I've used from Cascade Complete left water marks behind, Finish rinse aid helped but it shortly caused our dishwasher to leak so we stopped using that and started using Lemi Shine Booster which appears to do fine.

 

[gelaundry4ever]

cascade

While Cascade Platinum Plus did good, I didn't like how it made my Bosch/Kenmore bog down on suds. I've moved to all Finish products now. the ultimate formula makes my dishwasher smell fresh after a cycle, and I think it smells more pleasant than P&G's Cascade. P&G just can't leave well enough alone.

 

[jamiel]

silicone personal lubricant may also be used to tamp down suds in a dishwasher.

 

[DADoES]

 
Fabric softener kills suds ... and it'll make the dishware fluffy-soft!  

 

[gelaundry4ever]

what kills me about cascade

What kills me about Cascade products is why they ALWAYS have to produce suds. It's like duh, for those who don't really care are having a heaping helping of stupid. For them, as long as dishes get clean, it doesn't matter. Well, dishwasher detergent is NEVER supposed to suds up. Get it together Cascade! Stop making my pumps growl and starve for water due to choking on suds! This is why I switched to Finish products. And I find their rinse aid is better than Cascade will ever be, EVER!
Does Cascade think we're stupid? Haven't we learned that sudsing dishwashers could cause a problem? So why are they still doing it? I'm so GLAD I switched to Finish! If I buy anything else from P&G, I'll maybe buy their dishwashing liquid, body wash and deodorant spray. Most of their products are starting to turn me off. BLEH!

 

[petek]

I use Cascade pods and never have a suds problem

 

[frigilux]

Petek- Which variant of Cascade pod do you use? While reports of sudsing issues are the biggest criticism leveled at Cascade by consumers, some say there are fewer sudsing issues with certain variants. The Platinum series, which is what I’ve used, seems to be the primary culprit in user reviews.

 

[petek]

It's Cascade Platinum Oxi with Dawn. I've never had a sudsing issue with any Cascade, Kirkland, or Finish products.

 

[gelaundry4ever]

dishwasher

Could it be because of your dishwasher why your Cascade doesn't produce suds? I wonder.

 

[petek]

It's a Bosch dishwasher and my previous machines were Kitchenaids, no sudsing in any of them. Water is out of Lake Huron like tens of millions of other people living around the great lakes