with
water.
To get dishes clean and dry you
need hot water. To help you get
water of the proper temperature,
your dishwasher automatically
heats the water in the wash cycle.
For good washing and drying, the
entering water must be at least
120°F. To prevent dish damage,
inlet water should not exceed
How to test water temperature:
Check the water temperature
inside your dishwasher with a
candy or meat thermometer.
Let the dishwasher run through
one fill and pump out cycle, then
let the dishwasher fill with water
the second time.
When you hear the water stop
filling, unlatch the door and slowly
open it.
Measure the temperature of the water
in the bottom of the tub this way:
Remove the silverware basket and
place a candy or meat thermometer
the water
the middle of
the tub. If the temperature is less
than 120°F, you will not get good
washing results. Higher water
temperature is needed to dissolve
grease and activate powder
detergents.
Helpful hints: If outside
temperatures are unusually low, or
if your water travels a long distance
from water heater to dishwasher,
you may need to set your water
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.
To improve washability if the water
is less than 120°F and you cannot
adjust your water heater: Select a
longer cycle and fill both detergent
cups at least half-fill with detergent.
How to use a rinse agent.
A rinse agent makes water flow
off dishes quicker than usual. This
lessens water spotting and makes
drying faster, too.
For best
performance,
use of a rinse agent such as JET-DRY
brand is recommended.
Rinse agents come in either liquid
or solid form. Your dishwasher’s
dispenser uses the
form.
How to
the rinse agent
dispenser. Unscrew the cap. Add
the liquid rinse agent until it just
reaches the bottom of the lip inside
the dispenser
the
cap. The
releases the rinse agent into the
final rinse water.
If you accidentally spill: Wipe
up the rinse agent with a damp
cloth. Don’t
the spill in the
dishwasher. It can keep your
detergent from working.
If you can’t find any rinse agent,
write:
CONSUMER
INC.
(“JET DRY”)
411 W. Putnam Ave.
Greenwich,
06830
I
/
Your dishwasher’s rinse agent
container holds 41A ounces. This
last about 3 months. Fill
as needed. Do not overfill.
6
How to choose and use
detergent.
First, use only powder or liquid
detergents specifically made for
use in dishwashers. Other types
cause
Second, check the phosphate
content. Phosphate helps prevent
hard-water materials from forming
spots or film on your dishes. If your
water is hard (7 grains or more),
your detergent has to work harder.
Detergents with a higher phosphate
will probably work better. If
the phosphate content is low (8.7%
or less),
have to use extra
detergent with hard water.
Your water department can tell
you how hard your water is. So
can your county 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! Of course, this takes
some time. 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
or lumpy, throw it away. 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.