My dishwasher and I have a love/hate relationship.
I love the fact that I have one.
But I hate the fact that I need to pre-rinse everything before I load it up.
In fact, my plumber, during one of our many conversations about my dishwasher, told me that I should actually completely clean everything before I load it into the dishwasher.
Which is when I wondered what the whole point of having the dishwasher really was.
I mean, really.
Luckily, quite the opposite is true if you’re using Cascade Platinum pacs. In fact, they encourage you NOT to pre-rinse your items before you load. As the Cascade folks explained, the pacs actually work better when there is food left ON the dishes, because the special enzymes latch themselves onto the foods, break it down, and then wash it away. If there’s nothing there, it can’t work as hard for you.
And, well, you can imagine this was music to my ears.
And because I didn’t know such a magical thing existed (and that would prove my point to my plumber), Cascade encouraged me to throw a party to educate my friends as well.
As if I need an excuse to throw a party.
#takingonefortheteam
So I baked up some brownies and invited some friends over to show them how Cascade really does all the work for you. So much so that it even works on 24-hour-stuck-on-food.
When I say that this product is life-changing, I’m not exaggerating. The brownie dish, from my brownie baking the night before, came out sparkling clean, as did the dinner dishes that I had stacked up from the night before.
An ex-boyfriend used to chide me for overloading the dishwasher. And not pre-rinsing.
He must have been talking to my plumber.
But now?
Full dishwasher. Nothing rinsed.
NO PROBLEM.
When I invited friends over, I had told them that there would be dessert and wine and fun products from Cascade. As soon as I handed the detergent to one of my friends, she said “Oh I love this stuff. The guy who repaired our dishwasher told us to buy it and it’s the only thing we use.”
If that’s not a ringing endorsement, I don’t know what is.
5 Top Tips for Dishwasher Success
- You can stack ’em high or stack ’em low – just make sure bulky items don’t block the sprayer.
- Place tall dishes and pans in the back of the bottom rack so they don’t block the detergent chamber.
- Place glasses and other fragile items in the top rack. This keeps them away from the powerful sprayer under the bottom rack.
- Keep glasses looking great. Set them between the tines on the rack, not over them – wet contact points can cause spots. (I have totally been doing THIS wrong)
- Lock and load. Threading longer utensils through coffee mug handles can help keep them secure in the wash. (<really SMART idea!)
Everybody that tried the Cascade Platinum pacs loved them. You can see tons of reviews right here. If you’ve already tried the Cascade Platinum pacs, leave your own review along with the hash tag #Cascade ShiningReviews. One reviewer will win a Kitchen Aid Dishwasher!
Cascade has generously offered to give one reader a prize pack, which includes (pictured below):
- Cascade Platinum Fresh Scent Pacs
- Cascade Platinum Rinse Aid
- Whisk
- Spatula
- Cheese grater
- Oven mitts
One winner will be chosen from the comments below. You have from now until midnight EST on Friday, September 26. You may receive additional entries by following me on Instagram, following me on Twitter, and tweeting this giveaway. Good luck!
*I was compensated for my participation in this project, and my guests received Cascade Platinum Pacs. All opinions, as always, are my own. Thank you for supporting my collaborations.
Rad! I wanna win it! My dishwasher doesn’t do the greatest job, either. I think it’s mostly due to our hard water!
Laura @ Housewife Hellraiser recently posted..Candy Corn Martinis
I love Cascade, Thank you for hosting this giveaway!
cassandra mccann recently posted..The Ozeri Body Tape Measure and Body Fat Test Caliper Combo Pack Review
Omg. I can’t tell you how excited I got (and lame I felt) when I saw that this is a giveaway!! Lol! I too have a love /hate relationship with my dishwasher in that if I don’t buy crazy expensive detergent it doesn’t clean for crap!! So. I’m a coupon cutting crazy lady when it comes to dishwasher detergent. I’d love to give this one a whirl.
I’ve always cleaned my dishes (or at least mostly) before loading them in the dishwasher.
This would be a big time saver. Wonder where the food goes (I have no idea on the workings of a dishwasher).
<3 I don't have a dishwasher, so I don't need an entry… but I will take a brownie! ;)
Sherri Jo recently posted..Soft Pumpkin Spice Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting
I have been told my entire life to scrub dishes before putting in dishwasher. Will have to try this. Thank you!
I just tried these and thought they were pretty good too.
Erlene recently posted..Merry Monday Link Party #21
Ooh, yes — I love these! Count me in. Washing dishes is one of my least favorite chores in the world, so not needing to pre-rinse would be delightful.
Meg recently posted..Brown butter cinnamon apples with walnuts
I totally love these! Dishes never looked so good! Thank you Cascade!!!
I’ve never used the Cascade ones…but have been using Finish. With that said, growing up we never pre-rinsed, my Mom said that was the point of a dishwasher.
I already follow you on Instagram and Pinterest..will now be adding Twitter to the list.
I qui using my dishwasher completely many years ago because, even with rinsing beforehand, everything that came out of it just seemed dull and always had a powdery residue. Different detergents and thugs like Jet dry did very little to help. Could just be that our well water is that bad… But hand washing yields clean dishes. You’ve given me
Hope that trying the Cascade Platinum might make a difference. I’m excited to find out, and maybe gain some time and counter space by retiring the dish drying rack!
This is just the product I need for my dishwasher.
tara pittman recently posted..Monk Fruit In The Raw Is A Great Tasting Wholesome Zero Calorie Sweetener
I have not tried Cascade Platinum yet
I follow you on pinterest as sweetums82
I follow you on instagram as sweetums82
https://twitter.com/sweetums82/status/514135000837410817
I haven’t tried these yet but I really want to. I rinse my dishes before I put them in the dishwasher but don’t scrub them!
I just moved into a new place and for the first time in my adult life I have a dishwasher. At first I was very excited, but now I’m settling into the same love/hate relationship you described. Perhaps I’ll have to investigate these magical packets…
haven’t tried it yet
Hi Cate,
I found your giveaway on the Mom it Forward Facebook group. I’m Corina of Mario-Corina Trevino, nice to meet ya.
I love Cascade. I’ve been using it for a very long time. My favorite right now are the Platinum packs. :)
The hubs gets on my for not pre-rinsing but I just kick him out of my kitchen :).
Thanks for the giveaway. Good luck with it!
I have not tried the Cascade Platinum as of yet but would like to give it a shot.
I follow Cate O’Malley on Instagram as birdiebee52.
I follow CateOMalley on Twitter as birdiebee52.
I tweeted.
https://twitter.com/birdiebee52/status/514608612497309696
me and my boyfriend are buying a house together and it really needs updating so to win, it would be amazing!! especially since we will be tight on budget!
followed on twitter with salessun42
followed on instagram with hr0ll
btw, thats a zero in that, not a letter.
Cate, you are so right. I have recently started using Cascade Platinum in our dishwasher and what a huge difference. I was using the generic brand stuff because ….well I was being cheap, but this is totally worth the extra dollars. :) Happy dishwasher, happy mom
Lynda@fitnessmomwinecountry recently posted..Cross Country My Heart Is Happy