FP dish drawers= which detergent?

16 years ago

I can't find my manual. Which detergents are okay in the FP dishdrawer? Someone said something about Cascade Complete- I'm using regular. Is that wrong?

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Comments (10)

dadoes
16 years ago
No gels. No tablets. Any powder (preferably with enzymes) that does the job for you is fine.
chinchette
Original Author
16 years ago
Thanks. I didn't know about the enzymes before.
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I use 1 tsp detergent in the prewash cup, 3 tsp in the main wash cup. Perhaps 2 tsp for the prewash in very heavy-soil situations, and/or maybe 4 tsp for the main wash. Skip the prewash dose for very light-soil loads and perhaps on shorter cycles (Normal Eco or Delicate Eco) Always skip the prewash dose on Fast or Fast Eco cycles as they do not run a prewash at all. I do not have a household water softener. Some years ago a softener salesman came calling, his test came up 9 grains hardness. However, I'm currently using a supply of Institutional Cascade with chlorine bleach (and phosphates) that I bought online a couple years ago, and Cascade Complete with enzymes (and phosphates) that I found at back of the shelf at a local grocery. Phosphates makes a difference. The bleach formula works wonders on tea and tomato stains. Enzyme formula for heavy soiling if the bleach effect isn't needed for the load. Non-phosphate detergents may require a little higher dose to deal with water conditions, as the ingredients that were substituted for phosphates may not deal as effectively with mineral content in water. Prerinsing dishware can promote glass etching because the more caustic detergent ingredients end up at a higher concentration in the water without food soils present. Scrape off chunks and debris but do not rinse. I don't think increasing rinse agent dosage will necessarily help your situation but it's something to try. Adjust rinse aid (assuming 603 series) -- - With drawer power ON, press and HOLD the Eco button, then press Lock at the same time until another beep occurs. Release the buttons. - rA should appear on the LCD - The cycle selector lights indicate dosage level. Heavy cycle light is lowest dosage, toward ALL the lights for highest dosage. - Press Lock repeatedly to adjust the dosage. - Press Power when done. (There are other options that can be adjusted -- AP AutoPower, EC number of end-of-cycle beeps, Ld auto lid-lock, dS clean-dishes indicator. Start button switches through the options, Lock button changes the setting for the selected option.) This post was edited by dadoes on Sun, May 18, 14 at 16:12
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cpovey
16 years ago
Yep, no tabs or gels-powder enzyme detergents are essentially required.

Avoid any that contain Chlorine (the label may say chloride or chlorate) and go for ones with enzymes. High rated brands include most of the Cascade line, Costco (Kirkland), Wal-Mart, and Sam's Club house brands.

And oh, depending upon your water, you may not need very much. I only fill the cups 1/2 way and get fine results.
chinchette
Original Author
16 years ago
Thanks cpovey. We have the same Clearwater water as you, and a whole house water purifier/softener. I was having a pretty bad etching problem.. I hardly fill mine. Do you have a water softener? I was using Cascade regular.
beth4
16 years ago
Quantity is important. If I remember correctly, the F-P DD manual suggests using no more than 1 teaspoon of detergent in each compartment. I have soft water (water softener), and that small amount cleans all my loads.
remodelfla
16 years ago
How do all of you like your dishwasher drawers? I've been researching DW on this forum and have read mixed results about the Fisher and Paykel. I love the notion of the drawers but kept feeling like I should go for some other Euro brand like Bosch. Actually, anything would be an improvement over the old GE Potsrubber I have with the broken door and inability to clean!
pammo
16 years ago
I use Seventh Generation Automatic Dishwashing Detergent. As long as I don't use too much it does a great job.

Here is a link that might be useful: F&P DishDrawer Manuals to download
jerrod6
16 years ago
Why no Gels or Tabs in a Dish Drawer?
sdionnemoore
16 years ago
I had DWD by FP at my last house. Loved them! The only drawback, which I hopefully will correct at this house, was the stacked version does cause you to have to reach waaay down to unload the lower unit. Suffice it to say I didn't use that one much. OH! Another little problem was trying to put the dish powder into the receptacle. I ended up buying a plastic ketchup squeeze bottle, cutting off the sharp tip, and using that. I plan on doing a DD on either side of the sink in my new house, if the design allows for it.
cpovey
16 years ago
Why no Gels or Tabs in a Dish Drawer?

Unlike most DW's, the F&P runs water through the detergent compartment. A tab would not dissolve in time. Gels are less likely to contain enzymes than powders. The liquid in he gels tends to activate the enzyme when there is nothing around for it to work on.

Thanks cpovey. We have the same Clearwater water as you, and a whole house water purifier/softener. I was having a pretty bad etching problem.. I hardly fill mine. Do you have a water softener? I was using Cascade regular.

No water softener. I use Kirkland (Costco) powder, about 1/3 to 1/2 full.

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FP dish drawers= which detergent?

Comments (10)

dadoes

chinchette
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cpovey

chinchette
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beth4

remodelfla

pammo

jerrod6

sdionnemoore

cpovey

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FP dish drawers= which detergent?

Comments (10)

chinchetteOriginal Author

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chinchetteOriginal Author

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chinchette
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chinchette
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