Sunday, September 16, 2007

Dishwasher Duel!

I'm pretty cheap.

When it comes to household & beauty products I usually start with the most inexpensive version of something and work my way up to find the (cheapest) one that works for me. Sometimes the cheapest version of the product suits my needs just fine, other times spending more money does yield a better product.

Ever since I've determined that the dishwasher is my friend, I have been trying experimenting with which detergent works the best . According to the manual, other than removing solids from the dishes, I don't need to rinse them before putting them in the dishwasher. I like this idea. It saves money (water) and time.

I've tried a bevy of different products. Electrosol tablets and gel, Wegman's brand powder and gel, Cascade (just to see what all the fuss was about) and the latest, Palmolive.

Electrosol gel smelled funny when in use. I was unimpressed with the Wegman's powder as it sometimes caked in the dispenser. I did love the Cascade. I noticed Palmolive does not actually get all of the stuff off of the dishes, which completely defeats the purpose of the dishwasher as I then need to re-wash stuff by hand.

I consulted consumer reports, and sure enough, Cascade Complete was at the top of the list. (Actually the top 5 were Cascade products) The Target Brand powder also got high marks.

So that leaves me with the most expensive dish washing detergent at the store. It also means I don't have to use extra water and time pre-rinsing my dishes. I bought some today. The next time I need some and am near Target I will try that one as it is cheaper, but not enough so that you would make an extra trip for it.

2 comments:

Table4Five said...

I found your site through a PR firm I work with who is doing a campaign about how well Cascade dishwashing detergent works! I try to buy store brands whenever I can, but sometimes the name brand really is the one that works the best.

Christine said...

I agree. Sometimes you DO get what you pay for!!