THANK YOU for your deductive sleuthing! We, too, use sterling - it was my Great-grand mother's everyday set - and I run it through the dishwasher, despite reports that you really shouldn't. I, too, have children - we are almost out of the sippy cup stage with the youngest - and I really like being able to use something nice, that has family history, everyday. Once we had friends staying the weekend and I had laid out the silverware and cereals etc the night before so they wouldn't have to seach. I got up hearing - "this is nice but I really can't use this - it's too nice" I had the pleasure of saying that they would have to use their hands then, as those were the only utensils we had to eat with!

We have not used Cascade lately, but we did go through a period where the sterling came out tarnished, I bet that's what it was. I, too, have had to go back and forth between handwashing, and it is a pain. So thanks, again, for the info!

I have a cousin that uses her sterling daily. Her thought, why save it only for company? Who could be more important than family? She uses the DW too. My parents used the sterling on occasions and put it in the DW too. Enjoy your little pleasures.

Thanks for the info! I have a question for the sterling users. Any problems with the stainless blades on sterling knives? I read that you don't want to dishwasher wash sterling mixed with stainless, but the knives can't avoid that...

DW says you want to make sure it isn't touching anything stainless.

That's the problem, Chef! My sterling knives have stainless blades.

No no no, fori -- many of my (sterling) knives also have stainless handles, and they're fine in the dishwasher. It's that the sterling (or silverplate) shouldn't be in the basket with anything stainless -- no mixing sterling / plate spoons with stainless spoons, etc. So, if you put all your knives in handles down, and the knives just together (no forks, spoons with them), then you'll be fine.

Now I'm lazy, so I put all the salad forks together, all the dinner forks together, all the teaspoons, etc. All my knives are by themselves in the same basket, not able to touch the other flatware.

I hope that helps!

some of mine came out with black splotches... after using cascade and electrosol did the black marks come out? mine are still there.

Thanks!

No, kateskouros: the black marks only were removed by polishing. And, based on my "experiment," I believe the black marks were caused solely by the Cascade detergent. The Electrasol did not remove the black marks, but it also did not cause any black marks. When using Electrasol (am I sounding like a commercial?) the flatware looked just like it did when I put it in the dishwasher, except clean.

When I first noticed the black marks I polished those pieces, then back they went into the dishwasher. The next morning when emptying it (we run it nightly), the pieces were covered with black splotches again. Grr!

That's when I polished again but started handwashing the flatware. I think that happened once before I announced we had to get to the bottom of this! You know, I didn't try putting any splotchy pieces into the Electrasol wash -- everything had been polished and not allowed back into the Cascade wash.

When we figured out it must be the detergent and purchased some more Electrasol, we ran the dishwasher with flatware and the flatware came out looking great -- clean and without splotches. We used Electrasol for a week, just to see. Every day was the same thing: clean flatware without black splotches. So then we tried the Cascade one more time and what do you know? Black splotches on the flatware!

We're convinced it was the Cascade which was causing the splotches, and maybe there's some wacky chemistry with our water, flatware, saliva, who knows what! But man, living without a dishwasher for the five months of the kitchen remodel got boring after the first day, so if Electrasol is keeping me from handwashing then I'm using it!

I've washed my sterling in the DW for 45 years and it's just fine. I use Cascade and it hasn't harmed it at all. I know experts warn against the practice, but as other posters have said, this keeps my flatware accessible for frequent use. Nothing worse than having a dinner party and having to wash stuff by hand when you're dead tired. I DO wash some silver trays and bowls by hand either because they don't fit in the DW or they spot.

I throw everything in my ASKO + Electrasol - Wedgwood bone china, silver, knives, sponges, crystal vases, ceramics, wine glasses, etc. Only aluminium is washed by hand.

Everything comes out gleaming clean. i think handwashing is a thing of the past and somewhat obsolete with today's washers and detergents. plus handwashing uses far too much water :)

My father put my mother's silver in the dishwasher (my mother has passed away, she never would have allowed this) and it removed all the lovely patina. Maybe it depends on the pattern you have, but this has a deep, floral pattern and you can't appreciate it at all anymore.

Sue36,
A jeweler can treat your silver with acid to oxodize the deep recesses; I'm brain dead at the moment & can't remember the name of the acid but the common name is liver-of-sulphur. All of my silver are turn of the century florals that I've collected & I've had to do this more than a few times for pieces that have been 'stripped' by a dishwasher.

You'll probably have better luck by contacting a small jeweler who does handmade work.

Yes, I'm curious about what pattern everyone has...I just got my mom's sterling flatware; she and my dad passed away five days apart about two weeks ago. I did have my grandmother's French Renaissance (deep pattern) and never washed it in the dishwasher. I gave that one to one of my brothers as it was a set for 8; I have a huge family, so I am keeping mom's as it is for 12. Mom had Royal Danish, much more plain than French Renaissance. What do you think? She would never put her flatware in the dishwasher, either! This intrigues me, though...I'm all about the dishwasher!!...
thanks, Kathy

My pattern is Old Atlanta. It wasn't passed down to me, but picked out when I got married. Sadly, it's rarely used. This thread has me wanting to pull it out and start using it everyday. Thanks rmkitchen for the info and inspiration!

Mine are various patterns but most have deeply recessed areas where oxidation would be removed by DW detergent & the pattern would then look flat. I use my silver often & don't see what the big deal is about hand washing a few pieces.

I would NEVER put an antique knife in the DW under any circumstances - plated blades rust & the pitch in the hollow handles will expand & split the seams. I don't know what material is in modern handles so maybe this is no longer an issue but I think I would place the blades pointed downward so water couldn't possibly collect in any unseen cracks in the handles.

My mother also uses the DW for her silverware. She uses 7th generation detergent and runs it without any stainless and has had no problems. Mine was my great-grandmothers and I want to preserve it as much as possible so I hand wash with a mild detergent and store in a silver bag. I have never had to polish them with that treatment. I only use them on holidays or special occasions so handwashing isn't a big deal. If I had an everyday set, I would probably wash them in the DW too.