Brooklyn1 wrote:
>
> 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.

I have very soft water here, which may explain why the packs work very
well here.