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I have a Jenn-aire dishwasher that is 5 years old that cannot clean dishes at all. They are more soiled at the end of the cycle than they were at the beginning. I have used every combination of dishwashing detergent, jet dry, vinegar, dishwasher cleaner, borax (to soften the water) - nothing works! I think because it only uses a small amount of water, the dishes cannot get clean. I had a Kenmore before that at least cleaned the dishes but replaced it when I updated my kitchen with stainless steel appliances. My concern is that the newer dishwashers use a very small amount of water so if I buy a new dishwasher it won't be any better. I do have hard water. This dishwasher worked ok for a couple of years and then the struggles began.
Any thoughts? Any recommendations?
Get a softner and it will also use about half has much detergent needed now.Its worth to save anyhting that uses water really.I had a place with hard water while I was use the soft water and it was had on everyhting.
I have had it repaired 3 or 4 times for various problems. I had a water softner that I removed from my house because I couldn't drink the water and I was sick of dealing with the bags of salt.
Any recommendations for a dishwasher brand? After I looked on Consumer Reports, they have Bosch as a top rated model. There is a Bosch with a built in water softner but of course, that was not the model they reviewed. I have lived in this house with the same water for 14 years. I replaced my Kenmore with this Jenn Aire to have matching appliances. The Kenmore racks were starting to break apart probably because of the hard water. My appliance repairman told me that the newer dishwashers (like mine) don't use as much water and to turn on the hot water next to the dishwasher so that it will have hot water. Otherwise by the time the water from the water heater gets to the appliance it is already using cold water.
A sponge and a few kids. Dishwaher machines do not work worth a darn with hard water. There is not all that much difference between decent dishwahsers. Unless you have a really cra**y one, changing brands will nto help.
I have had it repaired 3 or 4 times for various problems. I had a water softner that I removed from my house because I couldn't drink the water and I was sick of dealing with the bags of salt.
Any recommendations for a dishwasher brand? After I looked on Consumer Reports, they have Bosch as a top rated model. There is a Bosch with a built in water softner but of course, that was not the model they reviewed. I have lived in this house with the same water for 14 years. I replaced my Kenmore with this Jenn Aire to have matching appliances. The Kenmore racks were starting to break apart probably because of the hard water. My appliance repairman told me that the newer dishwashers (like mine) don't use as much water and to turn on the hot water next to the dishwasher so that it will have hot water. Otherwise by the time the water from the water heater gets to the appliance it is already using cold water.
That's the problem, you ditched the water softener, if you have really hard water you will have scale buildup problems in your water heater, your dishwasher won't work well, etc. Put the water softener back, and run a bypass line to your sink for drinking water.
You *might* get some relief by making sure you use the heated wash cycle on your dishwasher, try different detergents, use more detergent.
I am not sure where you live but in the state of Indiana, it is against code to have a water softner hooked up to sinks (where you would drink water). I personally cant stand the taste of hard water and bought a water cooler. Even with our softner there is still some build up in my machine so I run vinegar about once a month. I have a KitchenAid dishwasher. It came with the house. Its about 5 yrs old. I am not sure about how the life span as the motor went on ours but we had a home warranty that replaced it. The repair guy said it was a good machine and it is not common. Cheaper to replace the motor vs buying new since ours was top of the line. Does your machine have a stainless steel tub? Usually that is preferred in hard water areas.
I live in GA and there is no code enforcement with water softners. I think the problem is the dishwasher, all of my other appliances are fine. The dishwasher does have a stainless steel tub. I use the heated cycle, I have tried all brands and types of detergent without much luck. My previous dishwasher worked fine without the water softner, I think I just need a new dishwasher. That was my original post, trying to find a dishwasher that actually cleans the dishes.
A sponge and a few kids. Dishwaher machines do not work worth a darn with hard water. There is not all that much difference between decent dishwahsers. Unless you have a really cra**y one, changing brands will nto help.
I have a really cra**y one, the previous dishwasher worked fine with my hard water. I only changed it so that it would match my other appliances. (big mistake)
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Does your machine have a stainless steel tub? Usually that is preferred in hard water areas.
