Have you of late, noticed your glassware coming out cloudy from your dishwasher? Perhaps you notice a white film around the inner edges of your glasses, cups or plates? This must be frustrating, as the norm would be crystal clear dishes at the end of a thorough rinse. You try all the dishwashing tips you know, including regulating the amount of dishwasher, but nothing works. Keep reading to learn the cause of the annoying haziness and how to restore your dishes gloss.
Why the haze?
The problem is not a malfunction in your dishwasher. No ma’am. The main culprit is hard water. Many of the water pipes leading to your home contain hard water. Dishwashing detergents contain phosphate; a chemical that plays a vital role of preventing hard water residue from accumulating inside the dishwasher.
About a decade ago, environmental organizations discovered that water from dishwashers that found its way to lakes, led to excessive growth of algae – among other environmental problems. They concluded that phosphate is the cause of excessive algae growth, a reason that led the government to ban the chemical in dishwashing detergents.
In a nutshell, the new dishwashing detergents without the phosphate slowly lead to hard water residue accumulating on the inner surface of the dishwasher, thus the haze on your glassware.
How to remove the haze
- Get rid of the hard water residue
So long as the hard water residue is in the inner surfaces of the dishwasher, your dishes will always come out cloudy. We recommend cleaning the entire dishwasher to get rid of the residue. Commercial products such as Finish Dishwasher Cleaner have been proven to do the trick. Important to note; excessive accumulation of hard water residue may lead to the dishwater malfunctioning.
If you find commercial products a bit expensive, white vinegar makes a great alternative . Adding about two cups of white vinegar to the water in a dishwasher, and then setting it to a rinse and dry cycle allows the acidic component in the vinegar to clean the residue down right to the nozzles spraying the arms of your dishwasher.
- Use better detergents
The government’s ban on phosphates in dishwashing detergents may have led to the problem in the first place, but there still exists good dishwashing detergents that do an excellent job in cleaning away any residue that may be stuck on your glassware. Such include Finish Gelpacs, Cascade Complete ActionPacs, Finish Powerball Tabs and Member’s Mark Ultimate Clean Dishwasher Pacs.
- Avoid hard-rinsing the dishes
Many people make the mistake of rinsing the dishes thoroughly before putting them inside the dishwasher. This causes more harm than good as most dishwashing detergents come with harsh alkaline salts. Food particles and oils from dirty dishes usually neutralize the alkaline salts. When you hard-rinse your dishes, alkaline salts in the detergent end ups underutilized, which exposes the dishes to the detergents harshness. As a result, the dishes get etched, and come out scratched and somewhat cloudy.
Occasional maintenance of your dishwasher is necessary to keep the haze from your dishes. For Winnipeg dishwasher repair, and maintenance contact Mike’s Quality Services.