Water Temperature
Control System
To get dishes clean and dry you need hot water. To help you get water of the proper temperature, your dishwasher has a water heating
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 be at least
120°F. To prevent dish damage, inlet water should not exceed 150°E
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°E, 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,
Help prevent spotting with a rinse agent,
A rinse agent makes water flow off dishes quicker than usual. This lessens water spotting. Makes drying faster, too.
For best dishwashing performance, use of a rinse agent is recommended,
Rinse agents come in either liquid or solid form. Your dishwasher's dispenser uses the liquid form.
Here's how to fill the rinse agent dispenser. Unscrew the cap. Add the liquid rinse agent until it just reaches the bottom of the lip inside
the dispenser opening. Replace the cap. The dispenser automatically
releases the rinse agent into the final rinse water,
If you accidentally spill: Wipe up the rinse agent with a damp cloth. Don't leave the spill in the dishwasher. It can keep your
detergent from working.
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Your dishwasher's rinse agent dispenser holds 4 V, ounces. This
should last about 3 months. Fill as needed. Do not overfill.
How to choose and use the right detergent.
First, use only powder or liquid detergents specifically made for use in dishwashers. Other types
will cause oversudsing.
Second, check the phosphate
content. Phosphate helps prevent
your water is hard (7 grains or more), your detergent has to work
harder. Detergents with a higher phosphate level will probably work better. If the phosphate content is low (8.7% or less), you'll have to use extra detergent with hard water.
Your water department can tell you how hard your water is. So
can your Extension Agent. Or your area's water softener company. Just call and ask them how many "grains of hardness" there are 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 is not 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 loses its
power. Lumpy 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.
