Which natural dishwasher product is best and how do they compare?
There is almost nothing I love more in our kitchen than our amazing, labor saving automatic dishwasher! Dishwashing products are among our most requested bestsellers, but the truth is, there’s no one-size-fits-all product that works best for everyone. After tracking feedback over the last few years from both customers and other refill store owners in other cities, there’s no discernible pattern as to what works best for one machine vs. another.
It varies A LOT!
Assuming that you're reading this because you want to skip chemical-laden, plastic-wrapped products made by global conglomerates, we'll get right into the best options we've found, as well as our top tips for maximizing their effectiveness for your machine!
Our Top Tips:
- Try a little bit of each product to see which works best for your machine before committing to a large quantity of one product
- Use rinse aid to help with hard water and spots
- Explore the various functions/ settings of your machine that might give a more heavy-duty wash vs a light stemware only setting, etc.
- Set it to use hot water! When you hand-wash dishes in the sink you don't use cold water, right? So why expect a machine to get the same level of clean without hot water?
- Clean out the trap in the bottom. Many people I've talked to (including myself at one point) don't know that the entire filter part may come out in order to be cleaned. When it's clogged it may encourage food residue to linger or prevent full circulation of the water. Every machine is different, but I included a photo of ours below to show just how big the whole piece is that comes out.
- Don't accidentally block the top rack. I'll be the first to admit that on occasion I'm really lazy and will fill the bottom haphazardly with large pots and pans, only to realize later that they blocked the spray of water and prevented the entire top row from getting cleaned. Oops.
Product Comparison / Pros and Cons:
Below are the products we offer in bulk refill and a collection of thoughts based on our experience + customer feedback. Remember that you can always bring your own container to refill in-store!
|
Product |
Use |
Price per load |
Additional Info |
|
Gel Restore Natrl. |
1/8 cup |
.35 cents per oz |
Gel refills are hard to find! This is the only brand we know of to offer bulk refill. Lower price per load. Frankly, half the people absolutely love it and half the people hate it! Try a small bit to see how it works for you. |
|
Loose Powder Nellie’s |
Fill comprtmnt |
.54 cents per oz |
Some say it works better, dissolves easier than a pod. Most expensive option though. |
|
Cubes Nellie’s |
1 tablet or cube |
.48 cents per cube |
Least messy, pre-measured. No PVA outer wrapper, fewer ingredients than Dropps. Overall receives the most/ highest feedback of any option.. |
|
Pods Dropps |
1 pod |
.40 cents per pod |
Stronger than other options, pre-measured. May not dissolve in all dishwashers. Some machine manuals advise against use—though this seems uncommon. |
A picture of our drain/ trap/ filter thing in the bottom of our machine after pulling the bottom drawer out of the way:
