Mod dishwashing stirts with H~ water.
To get dishes clean and dry you need hot water. To help you get water of the proper temperature, your Hotpoint dishwasher has a WATER TEMP BOOST feature that automatically senses the temperature of the water in the wash cycle and heats it, if necessary, to the proper temperature. This water heating feature may allow you to turn down your household water heater and save energy if you’re willing to let the dishwasher run a little longer while it heats water to the proper temperature. For good washing and drying, the entering water must beat least 120°F. To prevent dish damage, inlet water should not exceed 150°F.
How to test water temperature: Check your water temperature with a candy or meat thermometer. Turn on the hot water faucet nearest the dishwasher. Put the thermometer in a glass and let the water run continuously into the glass until the temperature stops rising. If the water temperature is below 120°F., adjust your water heater.
Helpful hints: If outside temperatures are unusually low, or if your water travels a long distance from heater to dishwasher, you may need to set your heater’s thermostat up. If you have not used hot water for some time, the water in the pipes will be cold. Turn on the hot water faucet at the sink and allow it to run until the water is hot. Then start the dishwasher. If you’ve recently done laundry or run hot water for showers, give your water heater time to recover before operating the dishwasher.
How to choose and use the right detergent.
First, use only powder or liquid detergent specifically made for use in dishwashers. Other types will cause oversudsing.
Second, check the phosphate content. Phosphate helps prevent
Your water department can tell you how hard your water is. So can your rural county agent. Or your area’s water softener company. Just call and ask them how many “grains” of hardness is in your water.
How much detergent should you use? That depends. Is your water “hard” or “soft”? With hard water, you need extra detergent to get dishes clean. With soft water, you need less detergent.
Too much detergent with soft water not only wastes money, it can be harmful. It can cause a permanent cloudiness of glassware, called “etching.” An outside layer of glass is etched away! But why take a chance when it’s easy to find out the hardness of your water.
Keep your detergent fresh and dry. Under the sink isn’t a good place to store detergent. Too much moisture. Don’t put powder detergent into the dispenser until you’re ready to wash dishes, either. (It won’t be fresh OR dry.)
If your powder detergent gets old or lumpy, throw it away. It won’t wash well. Old detergent often won’t dissolve.
If you use a liquid dishwasher detergent, these precautions are not necessary because liquid detergents don’t “lump” as they age or come in contact with water.
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