@chris74
Generally am preferential to the Delicates cycle on this machine as it gets the job done quickly (60mins) and provides results as good as, if not better than the "Normal" cycle. This is thanks to the additional rinse the machine provides on both Delicate/Delicate Eco cycles, which add the extra sparkle to our dishes. Also reduces chemicals in the water. Final rinse is 100% clear before Rinse-Aid is dispensed.
I've also discovered with a Hot water connection, the Normal/Heavy cycles will often skip water heating in the final rinse if the temperature is within around 5ºC of the target. Whilst that may shave a good amount of time from the cycle (and save energy), if the manual says I "should" get a 60º Final Rinse, I want one!!! This also assists drying.
As an added "bonus" to using the Normal cycle, you only get 2 rinses, for Energy Conservation reasons (Its the "go to" cycle), so stuff always looks just a tad dingy to my eye. For really stubborn loads that are temperature sensitive (Not often), I might use the Normal cycle because its almost identical to the Heavy cycle, apart from temperature and the "lack" of the 3rd rinse (also featured on the heavy cycle) - this gives the dishes a "soak" at 50º for around 45 minutes in the Main-Wash.
My other "gripe" with using a heavy cycle on this load was for several reasons:
<ul>
<li>Main-Wash for either Heavy Cycle is at least 65º (One is 65º the other is 70º), the final rinse is either 60º or 65º. I've found this causes the plastic lid-locks to fade and break, and it also warps the lids used to seal them, so it isn't really good</li>
<li>The rinse-temperature dilemma</li>
<li>The load just wasn't greasy enough to justify the Heavy cycle for me, and after pulling the drawer open 8 minutes into the Main-Wash (naughty me, lol), my assumptions were right: Most of the soils had found there way into the water, admitting defeat to the rather powerful and plentiful water-movement in the DishDrawer</li>
</ul>
And that ladle, yes, an issue. It was only the top that got dirty, from the lack of Constant-Rinse arm on the machine (Really needs it for these loads!). It was cleaner than before though. Inside it was nice and clean like it should be, as it was receiving direct water bounce from the spray arm (I don't think you can see that in the photo). Had I used the Heavy cycle, it may have come clean from all the steam that builds-up during that cycle, but, I really don't know.
As for detergent and rinse-aid, I am a staunch believer in the use of regular powder and rinse-aids. I do have a nice stash of Fairy tablets that I run in the machine every so often (empty) to clean it or for really grotty loads. They work nicely in the Delicate cycle too, surprisingly. Those tablets smell very similar to the "Finish Dishwasher Cleaner" I used sometimes before, which were a foamy mess. These aren't, provided the load is dirty enough.
My regular detergent is Finish Advanced/Concentrate Powder, in 1.5Kg box. This is only available in Lemon scent for me, unfortunately, though the unscented version smells quite similar. Rinse aid is Finish too.
On the subject of Rinse-Aid, I did bump the setting to the maximum for this load (usually set to Number 2 out of 5) - as I was concerned about little gritty bits finding there way onto the cups. Some still did, which I towelled up before the photo (I unloaded right after, so I wanted to catch the stuff before it had a chance to dry on!).
Hope you are still awake after that, but also hope it has answered your question. Thanks for asking! Its always fun writing about this sort of stuff, maybe not from my computer's point of view though...
