Years ago I used Spic & Span powder, no kidding. It got out milk stains, spit up, diaper stains, etc. I rinsed twice. But I don't know if it's recommended for today's newer machines.
So, maybe Oxyclean. Tho I do use Shout and scrub it in stains using an old toothbrush.
Since my babies are long since grown, I just don't know otherwise.

Following up to my comments in February and March:

- in Feb. I responded as a Cascade Platinum fan
- by March, reading this thread prompted me to try Finish Quantum
- am now a loyal Quantum consumer -- the stuff is great! And if their claims
of environmental friendliness are true, even better!

Barnhart Gallery, I'm with you on that one. It has been wonderful. The Quantum Finish is the greatest stuff I ever used. I always stay clear of Gels as they seem to gum up the sides of the dishwasher something awful after a few uses. I quit using them long long ago. I'm a Quantum Finish fan and will be till some problem arises with it's use. I also like the convenience of that small square size and only needing one for each load. Finish has one that's packed in a plastic that one has to tear and remove the square, I don't like fussing with the packaging, altho, it may work just as well as the Quantum.

Seventh Generation unscented dishwashing liquid. It's amazingly effective and environmentally friendly. What more can you ask for?

I haven't found any Seventh Generation products , other than their paper prods. effective for anything. When used in washing machines, you may as well wash your clothes in plain water. Leaves clothes grey, no spots removed and the smell is okay since they add lavender and such. Know they're good for the environment, but I guess so is plain water.

Didn't go through comments too thouroghly. I only use Finish powerballs. Do be careful using any with citrus. It has been known to affect some SS flatware, including 18/10.

Where there is softer water, probably any dishwasher detergent will do, but well water sometimes is very hard and Quantum Finish does the job, perfectly.

Probably why I'm such a fan Rose -- even with a whole house filter, our deep well water left cloudy mineral deposits until I tried Finish Quantum.

adivra, Glad to hear that. I dislike lemony and citrus smelling stuff, so no problem here. Never knew citrus could turn flatware a dull grey/black color. Wondered about how it happened to only a few spoons , but the rest of the flatware was great. Scratching my head here!!!!

When I have coffee or tea stains in my cups, etc. that doesn't come out, I fill that cup with hottest water possible and add a tablespoon of dry loose dishwasher powder and it takes the stains out almost immediately. Use that method in my thermos' that I use for coffee also. Works great. Can't put those thermos items in the dishwasher.

I thought that was my little secret Rose lol, I always did that too but just never thought to mention it to anyone. It seems to only work with the dry powder types, and not liquid dishwasher soap

Finish Powerball.

Seventh Generation Free and Clear Gel. Works great with my hard well water and there is no obnoxious scent.

Also, with regard to running hot water first ... the owner's manual for my two-year-old Frigidaire dishwasher says to do this. Why would the owner's manual include this if it's a myth?

Ox-Clean also works to remove coffee or tea stains from cups. Put about 1 tsp of Oxi-Clean powder in the cup, add enough hot water to make a paste. Let it sit for a few hours. Rinse very thoroughly.

For laundry detergent ... Tide HE Free & Gentle

Whatever detergent you use, add Lemi Shine. It keeps your interior of dishwasher looking like new, especialy s.s. interiors. Was just reading about Water Softner being a good additive for the washing machine to help make whites white. Anyone used it.

Tide products of any kind are the best washing machine detergents. My mom used to be allergic to using the powder type (she had a wringer washer when Tide first came out.) but I'm lucky and have no allergy to it and am happy about that. I never buy anything other than Tide detergents. They are the best. (once in a while I'll throw in one of those Gain original scent pods (dark clothes only). . The Tide VIVID (powder only) is wonderful for whites, along with a Vivid boost pod. The results are amazing.

Off the dishes for a moment:

What do you all use to clean your glass shower doors? I have tried just about everything : < (

The only thing I know about cleaning shower doors is to spray them with Lime-Away (green bottle) most stores sell it. Spray. Let it sit for a while and then rinse down. Sometimes it takes a little elbow grease to wash the stuff off, but it takes all lime or hardwater deposits off. If all else fails, I have used a razor blade (single edge) to get the hard spots off. Best thing to keeping those terrible glass doors clean is to wipe them down every time someone uses the shower. I use my bath towel. I don't have glass shower doors. (I don't like them). They look beautiful but are a chore to clean. My daughter had them in her house in Va. and when they built another new house, NO GLASS doors in the showers...

@JudyG- I use cooktop glass cleaner to clean my shower doors;))

Margo, Good idea. Those glass doors look so beautiful and also make your bathroom look large, but with my daughters glass shower doors, it would have to be done way too often to keep them looking beautiful and clean. I do find that wiping the door down after each shower, helps, but then again, there's some elbow grease involved.

I have found that you can use just about any dish wash soap. Just use the Lemi Shine Rinse booster. Really good for hard water Your dishes are so smooth shine like the sun. Love this stuff.

Some dishwasher detergents don't work well in some waters. It takes mineral free water to do a perfect job. I still rely on Finnish Quantum. One little square does a crammed full dishwasher, beautifully. Gels I find , leave a gummy substance around the endges of the door. Switched when that happened and now everything's shiny and clean , in the interior of the dishwasher.

I have a whirlpool, pretty quiet for me... This is my first dishwasher, well when I first washed my dishes was getting LOTS of water stains... A friend told me I had to use rinse aid, that improved my results extremely!
I use cascade, ran the dishwasher last night, this morning had a few water stains...
Should I open the door after my dishwasher is done running to help air dry better for no water stains Or??

@joeblack....... you seem to have all the answers! I could use some help. I have a Bosch, and have had it about 4 years. I hate it! It doesn't clean at all. I have tried different types of detergents, (Finish, cascade, liquid, gel, power balls, the little bricks, everything!) All my dishes come out greasy filling, the water on top of the dishes is always dirty, there is grit everywhere. Although the inside of my dishwasher is spotless, I even check the filter on the bottom and clean it several times a month just in case! No grim to be seen expect on my dishes. I also hand wash all my dishes before they go in and I swear you would think I was washing my dishes is sand and bacon grease! I run my dishwasher everyday for sure but this is so frustrating. What an expensive item to not work. I am at a loss............ help

Hmm...any chance a rookie plumber might have routed your water supply via the disposal?

@michaelandsara: Try not washing your dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. Just wipe excess food off. I read somewhere that if the dishes are already pretty clean, the machine won't do a good job.

Ordinary baking soda on a damp cloth easily removes coffee tea stains from cups. Wonderfull cleaning agent as well as plain ole vinegar (disinfects). All environmentally friendly and cheap! Also try rinsing your hair in diluted vinegar. Feels great.

@barnhartgallery...... it is possible. We have found some shotty work in our house, which is pretty unfortunate for us. I will look into that for sure. Thanks for the tip.
@adivra..... I guess I don't wash them clean but I do run under water to get most of the food off and rinse everything pretty well. It seems the dishes would then come out clean and shiny and not greasy and gritty. Just frustrating. Thanks for the tips. We do have pretty decent water and a water softner in our home too. Would that then change our detergent use?

Oxyclean has a new dishwashing detergent out. It works really well.
Agree, the Lemi shine is also a very good rinse agent.

Michaelandsara. My brother has a BOSH and the only way he gets his dishes clean it to wash them beforehand. What's the use of having a dishwasher. Bosh is overpriced and not good at cleaning, for sure. Big plates don't fit into it, even when they are tilted. Think his top shelf is not adjustable. I have stuck with Finish Quantum. It has been great in my Kenmore washer. Once in a while I shoot in some Oxyclean booster. I stay away from gels, they seem to gum up around the door seal and corners. Now Bosh is coming out with a dishwasher that each piece of tablewear has to be put into a little slo on the top shelf.. If that doesn't take way too much time and energy, I don't know what does.

@michaelandsara: what's the temperature of the water in the dishwasher after its been running 20 minutes or so? Are you using the auto wash setting that takes around 140 minutes? My Bosch dw had to have its heating cycle adjusted by a Bosch technician. If you call the free 1-800 Bosch service line, they can sometimes walk you through how to increase the temperature setting (various combinations of button pushing).

I have said before I have top line kitchen aid in my home. It is true about leaving the dishes dirty and putting them right in the dishwasher. The Kitchen aid does a great job. But I work at a ranch and they have a kenmore which is a nightmare. For the kenmore I have to use Lemi shine rinse booster. And my dishes come out great. No film just sparkling glasses and dishes.

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grandmajim, I'm 78 yrs old and remember when my mom used to rinse my hair with either lemon mixed with water, or vinegar (white) and then the first cream-rinse that came out was White Rain that was also diluted with water. Vinegar and water dilute, also eases tangles. Old remedies still work.

Just got Bosch dishwasher. It is my first stainless steel appliance. I started to put my regular dishwasher detergent in it, but noticed it had chlorine bleach and I've heard not to use bleach. Does the Finish Quantum that is recommended by Bosch have bleach. I just have the sample pack and it doesn't say.

i use cascade powder with Finish rinse in the separate dispensor provided, in my bosch. the pre-filled pods have way more ingredient in them than 90% of the loads need, just a little bit in the bottom of the detergent cup is all that is needed. the excess is just going down the drain.

I've kind of panicked because after I finally used the Finish Quantum as recommended by Bosch, I realized that it too, has bleach in it. With so many reviews saying never to use bleach with stainless steel dishwashers, I am so confused!!!! Help!!! Nothing seems logical!

The Finish Quantum that's labeled "Power&Free" is the one with Hydrogen Peroxide and no bleach.

Agree with Barnhart. Finish Quantum is one of the best dishwasher detergent that I've used.

The lemon one is also fantastic. But this was actually the first time that stainless dishwarsher should not comply with bleach. It works fine on my old Maytag and current Samsung dishwasher.

Can anyone give me any information why stainless dishwasher can't go with detergent with bleach?

Thanks.

I do know that boosters (powdered kind) for the dishwasher rusts any item metal that is not stainless steel. My dishwasher doesn't have a stainless steel interior., but never had trouble with Quantum and I will buy nothing but Finish Quantum. It's by far the best stuff I've ever used.

There's a new dishwashing detergent out by Oxyclean. Works really well. Walmart in my area had the best price and there was a coupon for $1 off. (may have expired now).

Thanks Rose and I agree with you.

Jessica_merowitz Glad to hear I'm not the only one that thinks it's the best.

for diyher. to clean travel mugs, I buy small powder dishwasher detergents and use the hottest water possible, dump a little dry dishwasher powder into the bottom of the mug. fill with hottest water and let sit for a while. Voile' coffee stain will be gone. I had a stainless steel travel mug and tried putting it in the dishwasher, and it filled with water between the outside and inside wall of the cup and leaked all over my counter when I took it out of the dishwasher. I didn't do that anymore., I also have thermos jugs that get stained on the bottom. Same soaking principle works on them....

What is the best dishwasher soap for plastic items...cups, utensils, tupperware?

I use only Finish Quantum. Since I first bought it, it's the only dishwasher detergent I'll buy. That is FINISH QUANTUM

i use cascade powder, in the box. the prefills use wayyy too much product for the vast majority of times when the dishwasher is 90% full.

same with laundry detergent.... the jug touts how little you need... and the prefills use way more.

Funny -- I just posted a comment on the Finish Website this weekend asking what they've done with the Hydrogen Peroxide based "Power & Free" version. Supposedly gentler on the environment, and now that I can't find it and have switched to the regular version, I'm realizing it also did a better job. Where are you, Power & Free? (I did find that I can order it online from other sources that still have it in stock, but will be disappointed if they've stopped making it.)