On Fri, 3 Dec 2010 08:58:57 -0500, "James Silverton"
> wrote:

> Jean wrote on Fri, 03 Dec 2010 08:06:43 -0500:
>
>> Pete C. wrote:
>>> James Silverton wrote:
>>>> Hello All!
>>>>
>>>> Perhaps this is OT but I think I am going to give up using
>>>> jelled dishwasher soap. The reason is that at least two of
>>>> the best rated products contain some form of bleach. When
>>>> squeezing the bottle to get the last of the soap, it tends
>>>> to spray sideways and can bleach dark colors if not wiped
>>>> off quickly. A particularly susceptible dye is the standard blue of
>>>> jeans.
>>>
>>> Essentially all dishwasher detergents are quite high ph and
>>> will damage stuff if left in contact in concentrated form.
>>> Beyond that, why are you using a gel detergent anyway, the
>>> pellet/pack stuff like the Cascade action packs work better
>>> and are easier to handle with no spray issues.
>
>> Interestingly, I was just discussing detergents with a friend
>> yesterday. She said a very knowledgeable repair person told
>> her NEVER to use those packets because the exterior does not
>> totally dissolve, and it eventually will clog things up. He
>> also demonstrated that the powder dissolves better than the
>> gels. This is all news to me.
>
> I never tasted any residuals on dishes washed with gel detergents so I
>guess any undissolved material gets rinsed away and I would like to see
>a more authoritative study of possibly clogging with packets (not that
>I've ever used them.)

I've never had a problem with the gels dissolving, I've had problems
with the tablets however, they sometimes stick to the dispensor
compartment. I use Walmart brand gel (Equate), works exactly the same
as the CP product, even looks/pours exactly the same, only the package
is different as is the price, like 30% lower. I'll take an educated
guess that folks having problems with cleaning products dissolving
have hard water. A water softener allows one to cut their cleaning
products bill in half, that alone more than covers the stinkin' $4
worth of salt each month, not to mention plumbing bills.