NO MORE DISHPAN HANDS

Excavation has not begun

The dishes have to be washed whether or not you have an “automatic” dishwasher, so with our dishwasher on the fritz, I had to take over and do the work. The up side was that the dishes were clean and in the cupboard ready to be used again as opposed to dirty in the dishwasher. That appealed to my old-fashioned heart. The down side was dishpan hands. You hardly hear about that any more, but housewives fought it back in the day. Mother resorted to wearing Playtex gloves.

Bob, the second repair guy, came Monday morning, performed diagnostics, and determined the wash motor had failed. He ordered a new motor and today he returned to install it. And then we discussed the best way to run the dishwasher.

Don’t use those “pacs,” he said. He went so far as to say – and so did the first guy – that soap pacs might have caused the motor to fail – too much suds or something. Soap manufacturers love the pacs, said Bob, but the machine is designed for soap (powder or liquid), and that’s what you should use. But don’t use Kirkland’s product. It comes out of China where the formula includes some kind of clay in place of phosphorous, and that’s also hard on your machine.

My crocus corner

Well – hmm. I still have pacs on hand, both for the dishwasher and the washing machine, so I searched the internet for some sort of confirmation that they cause machine failure. I came up with soap comparisons but not the effect on the machine itself. The first repair guy suggested I put the pac in the silverware holder. I'll do that and gradually use up the pacs while alternating with powder.

What about the soap pacs in the washing machine, I asked. No, Bob said. Don’t use them.

With regard to environmental issues, there’s no question in my mind but that powder packed in cardboard is the most environmentally friendly product. However, maybe it’s my imagination, but it doesn’t seem like powder is what soap manufacturers are promoting.

Which wash cycle should I use, I wanted to know. (The manual recommended the efficiency cycle, which runs for three hours.) If your dishes aren’t very dirty, the one-hour cycle is adequate, Bob said.

Bob implied that using JetDry is a matter of preference. There is not an agreement between the dishwasher manufacturer and JetDry, he said.

Daffodils yet to bloom

Bottom line: it cost $250+ to repair this dishwasher, including parts and labor. (The first guy said he couldn’t fix it and did not charge us for the visit.)

So, it's fixed -- sorta. The new motor leaks, and maybe the old motor leaked, too. It just slips into a sleeve, and there's no way to clamp it in place. Bob said to run it several times, keeping a fresh towel under it. If it doesn't stop leaking, he may apply silicone. 

“I feel kinda shot down,” I remarked to Mike as Bob pulled out of the driveway.

“I know what you mean,” Mike agreed. KW