My dishwasher leaves white spots all over my dishes. Is this the dishwasher, water pressure, or detergent?

Question

I have pretty weak water pressure in my kitchen, and thought that maybe it was the water pressure. I"ve tried different detergents, and really hope it's not the dishwasher. I'd hate to buy a new one only to find the same problem. I even tried using additives for spot-free dishes. My dishes come out with detergent all over them, mainly on the top rack. It mostly sits on the outside of the bottoms of all my glasses and cups. And my bowls have it all over them. I have to rinse off my dishes before I use them. Has anyone ever had a similar problem due to water pressure? What causes this?

I use liquid detergent and powder, no difference.
I also use jet-dry, an additive for spotless dishes.
And I air dry my dishes to save energy.

I do have mild hard water.
And my water is city water.

Answer 1

Buy a name brand detergent and read the instructions. You need water temperature that is hot enough to dissolve the detergent. The back of the box will tell you the temperatures. Your may have to run your kitchen faucet before you start your dishwasher. You may also have a pump that is not functioning properly. If there is still detergent on them then it is a temperature problem. Also do not buy stale or detergent on sale. I was an appliance repairman for many years and retired as their service manager. If you think about another one get a Kitchen-Aide. Your water pressure will not affect the cleaning, there is a fill switch incorperated into the system that starts the cycle when the water reaches a certain level. I have worked on appliance for over 40 years and you can always find surprises.

Answer 2

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Good water flow, water pressure, fresh dishwasher detergent, and warm water are all needed for the dishes in your dishwasher to get clean. If the water is not hot enough, the dishwasher can not clean dishes as effectively as possible. To test the temperature, turn on the hot water on your sink to see if the water is getting warm quickly. The selector switch on your dishwasher may let you select a higher temperature setting. You can try that to see if it helps with cleaning. Be careful if you increase the water temperature of your household hot water tank. Your hot water tank should be set to deliver water at about 120F. This may help, but you don’t want to get scalded by it when taking a shower or washing your hands either. Most dishwashers use an internal heater to increase the water temperature to 140-150 degrees Fahrenheit before it will start cycling the dishwater through the spray arms. On some models you can use the Added Heat or Wash Heat Boost selection to increase the wash water temperature. Some dial timer models will let you select Hot Start or other extended washing cycles. To keep the water free of debris during recirculation, every dishwasher has some kind of filter. Excessive food debris may clog internal filters. Make sure you at least scrape the dishes into the trash first. On some models these filters are self-cleaning, and they don't need to be cleaned regularly. Other models have filters in the bottom of the tub that you do need to clean. You can easily remove these filters. If a filter is full of debris, the water can not circulate properly, and could be causing the dishes to remain dirty. Check to make sure the filter is not blocked or clogged with debris.

Answer 3

My guess is either the detergent is not being rinsed completely off, which would leave a powdery residue or you have hard water. If you have hard water only a water softener or similar device would alleviate that problem, as well as jet dry or something in the dishwasher. If you do have hard water it will build up in pipes, faucetts, etc and cause them to not work properly. It could be part of the water pressure problem also. This is a big problem with well water not so much with city water but it still can be an issue.

Answer 4

Dishwasher Spots

Answer 5

A note to all who have had this problem:
- you are using TOO MUCH detergent. The container where you put the detergent is designed by the manufacturer who also owns stake in the detergent company. You can go with about 1/3 to 1/2 detergent in the cup.

Answer 6

I had a similar problem when I used powder dishwasher detergent. It's not a problem since using a liquid. There is also a difference in name brands. Also, check to make sure your water temperature is hot enough.

good luck!

Answer 7

along with the other two responses (1 + 2) i had this problem and finally my d/w gave out....what i did for self help on this was empty the d/w and remove the bottom rack...look into the bottom ans see where the filter looking cover is? look to see if there is any detergent buildup there...if there is remove it and clean it...then run your d/w on longest, hottest temp load you can but before you do either a cup & 1/2 of bleach or vinegar down the center spout in the center bottom of the d/w...also monitor it so that when it is done the dry cycle does not dry out any residue that is left...you need to hand wipe this out to keep it from clogging and caking again

Answer 8

We had a similar problem. It wasn't water pressure, it was the filter that was clogged up and enough water wasn't getting through. The filter should be on the bottom in the back.

Answer 9

we had a similar problem with our dishwasher, but it wasnt the water pressure...we started using no-heat dry...it took care of the spots, anyway

Answer 10

Try putting some jet dry in the dishwasher, it goes in a spot where there is a cap that screws off on inside of the door, should be near where you put your soap.