P&G Fairy Dishwasher Tablets - way too foamy ?

[MrX]

I am having some problems with Fairy Dishwasher tablets in my Bosch dishwasher. I tried Fairy Platinum and the machine totally suds-locked. It was trying to pump pure foam instead of detergent solution.

Has anyone else got this problem?

No other tablets seem to cause any issue e.g. I have used Finish (all versions), Sun (all versions), Ecover and Tesco own brand 5-in-one none of these have ever foamed-up like this.

Also, Fairy is basically a UK version of Cascade. Has anyone in the US had issues with the Cascade tabs?

 

[MrX]

Here's how they look

They're these tablets:

 

[spoodles]

Never had a problem in my Bosch, even with our soft water. Fairy Platinum are the only tablets I will use these days, they're the best I've ever tried.

 

[neptuneguy27]

Cascase Complete Tabs

Are the North American version of the Fairy Tabs. I have had the same issue you're describing with those things. I wasn't aware at first that the dishwasher was over sudsing but when my glassware came out with a heavy, greasy film on them I knew something was up. I called the repairman out to look at the machine thinking there was something wrong with the dishwasher. As soon as he arrived at my house, he asked what detergent I was using. When I showed him, he said that those were likely the culprit ( He actually said all tab products were bad for dishwashers).

He went so far as to make the machine run in recirculation mode for a few minutes with no water added. He opened the door and sure enough, suds were oozing out of every jet in the lower and middle spray arm. So I have never touched those Cascade tabs again. I have sinced replaced that Kenmore with a Miele and continue using Finish All in One Powerball tabs with outstanding results. I'll even use the Quantum tabs every now and again, with no issue at all. And in case anyone is wondering, we have moderately hard water that varies between 7 to 8 grains per gallon.

Chris

 

[supersuds]

I have used those (in the phosphate version) in a couple of different dishwashers and had no problems. Go figure.

 

[dj-gabriele]

I bought 10 (yes, ten) boxes of Fairy capsules as they were super cheap, you bought a box and one was free. Indeed they do foam a lot but to counteract that I simply use in a cycle that doesn't have a prewash and lowered the rinse-aid to the minimum, problem solved!

Note that the problem was worse in my Indesit than in the SMEG that uses way less water. Strange!

 

[MrX]

We've very soft water here but the foaming was actually so extreme that foam actually overflowed out of the machine and onto the floor! I'm not entirely sure how it got out, but there was a small quantity of water in front of the machine and when I opened the door the foam was about 1/3 up the door!

I just let the machine sit for a few hours and then rinsed it through and it eventually was usable again.

I think I'm going to bring the pack back to the supermarket and demand a refund!

 

[dishwasherrules]

Same issue here

Hi mrx!

I have the very same problem with my Bosch dishwasher as well. Althoug the Fairy Platinum caps for the Italian market look different from those who are marketed across the USA (Cascade) and seemingly in Northern Europe, I must say that I experienced this issue with all the variants of Fairy available when I used the Normal-Eco wash (but when I used the Auto 55-70° programme my machine just ran fine). I eventually stopped using Fairy and went for other detergents such as Somat 1 or Finish Quantum which just do an excellent job with either the Auto or the Normal-Eco washes without my bothering about oversudsing.

Since we both own Bosch dishwashers, I start to think this could be a brand-related problem: my mom has a Miele and she has never had troubles when using Fairy.

Ivan

 

[aegokocarat]

ive used them in my dishwasher and it has never happened, prehaps it's a fault with your dishwasher's jets?
Tom

 

[nickuk]

Same here!

Bought a Bosch some 6 weeks ago when moved house. Delighted with all aspects of it but it is very susceptible to overfoaming. We got a pouch of Fairy tablets free with some `home mover's welcome pack' thingee, and the machine just choked. It aint too happy with Finish either, though, it has to be said.

I still find the cheaper tabs here in the UK (whether they're Tesco / LIDL / ALDI Magnum as endorsed by Which?) do as good a job without the froth.

I have also found branded Rinse Aids too frothy, and stick to Tesco. This Bosch is PANTS at drying with just all in 1 tabs, is far more efficient and cost effective to use cheaper tabs but with salt and rinse aid.

As an Aside, does anyone get along with the auto programme? Does my head in. Stick a few wine glasses in, it gives a prewash. Load it up with the worst, unrinsed, greasy load possibe and it doesn't, and bakes everything on to the dishes (scratches head).

One thing I do like about it is you can set it to always final rinse at 70 regardless of cycle which helps hygeine and drying. I have this set permanently. It even works on `Quick 29 mins' which then becomes `Quick 38 mins' on the timer lol - but I don't bother anyway because the 45 degree wash doesn't disolve the tablet.

In terms of cycles I use `Eco Express' (1hr 14 = 50 wash - purge - cold rinse - purge - 70 rinse - very short dry) for daily loads, and then either regular Eco or Intensive for loads which I want a guaranteed pre rinse.

Interesting thread, thanks!

 

[MrX]

Just tried them in an Electrolux dishwasher - same result! Foam up past the bottom rack!

 

[solsburian]

They used to foam up in our Tabletop Matsui, but it would die down at the end of the wash cycle.

 

[rolls_rapide]

I found that both Fairy tabs and Finish "Max-in-1" were terrible for overfoaming. You could tell something was wrong because the usual "swish-swish-swish" was replaced by very lethargic "s--w--i--s--h" sounds. And the circulation pump made a very weird whining sound.

Anyway, Finish Classic and Finish All-in-1 seem not too bad, but you still need to have a decent soil on the crockery, else some foam does appear.

The best low foamers seem to be the "Value" standard tablets from Lidl or Tesco. Usually around the £1.70 mark, although I spied Tesco's version reduced to 25 pence for a box of 30 tablets - so I bought several! They seem to clean acceptably, though perhaps not the very best for burnt on oven dishes.

Finish Quantum cleans okay and doesn't foam either, but can be dear to buy.

 

[domesticangel88]

Just use the powder and not the liquid foaming agent

Yes I had the same problem! I did an experiment and cut the under belly of the capsule to release the powder into the (main wash only) inside of my dishwasher. The results came out perfect without any over foaming. The colour liquid part of the capsule I then use in my sink for manual hand washing of larger pots and pans. My experiment proved the liquid part is the foaming agent, which is why some dishwashers can’t cope. The coloured liquid part is sealed separately, so when you gently slice the under belly of the capsule, you won’t puncture the liquid section. Hope that helps!