Dishwasher problems
 

For the last week or so, my dishwasher has been leaving a dry, scummy, filmy deposit all over my dishes.

Has anyone else had this happen? I am not sure to blame the water softener or the water heater.

Any ideas or suggestions? Thanks!

Chances are that your drain filter is clogged. You have to take it apart to clean it, though. Mine is located under the arm that shoots water up from the bottom. I've found that adding some citric acid to my wash keeps it clean, but I don't know if that would work on buildup. You might give that or vinegar a try.

I quit using my dishwasher. It's just DH and I and we use a lot of Dixie. But got tired of having to clean it on a consistent basis. Been about 9 months since we used it but it's just 2 of us and I get dishes done in under 30 minutes for a lot and dishwasher takes about 1 1/2 hours. So much mineral deposit, I had to rewash flatware and some dishes. A little exercise doesn't hurt me anyway. But again it's just 2 of us.

A few additional things to check.. look closely at the wash spray arm nozzels check to make sure those small openings that spray the water are not clogged with debris or scale build up. These arms typically come off easily by unscrewing. It seems like I have to take mine off about once a month or I get exactly what you describe. Another thing to check is when its loaded and the racks are pushed in spin the washer arms to make sure they are moving freely.
When you do get the "film" , most noticeable on glassware.. soak the glasses in hot water and strong solution of vinegar to remove. Sometimes if you use a heat function to sanitize , and this film is happening it will permanently etch the glasses. The film is most likely from not enough water being circulated( blocked nozzle or filter) to rinse the soap properly. Worst case is your pump that circulates and forces the water up thru the wash jets water is starting to go.
One other thing to check is the water softener... if the water is too soft ... the amount of soap you would typically use is way to much. This is unlikely but after checking the other items .. this would be on my list to test. Testing the hardness of your water is an easy test and most hardware stores sell them.

I had a similar issue and added jet dry...glasses look so much better now.

Dishwashers use much LESS water than hand washing, BTW. I Cant stand handwashing.

Sandy

We started using vinegar in the jet dry space. So far seems to work fine for us.

I use Cascade Platinum tabs and all films and spots stopped. Also I check the drain and nozzles every so often. I use my dishwasher everyday sometimes twice. I don't care if I have only the top rack full. I won't do dishes by hand when I have a machine paid for to do them.

You probably have a clog somewhere as mentioned, but I just wanted to say that my glassware and stainless tableware look much better since I switched back to powdered detergent from liquid.