Friday 15 December 2017

Branded product mistakes

Frugal in Essex/Retireewannabe's post today on eschewing branded products especially household ones made me smile today.  I have had a torrid week having brought a well known brand which simple did nothing it was supposed to.
Regular readers will know a few weeks ago I got a dishwasher. After using up the free tablets, I purchased a branded set of products as indicated (think race and the word for the end of a race - to avoid libel).  Imagine the horror of opening the machine to find everything inside covered in a gritty, grey marks.



Checked everything, salt, settings, rinse.  Tried to rewash several times - cutlery, saucepans, mixing bowl, plates and cups).  Took it all out and tried to wash it by hand.  Everything cloudy, gritty, scoured.  Ran it empty. Scrubbed the drain and filter. Panic.

Husband double checked everything and suggested this and that. I checked the internet and product reviews and found others had the same problem but no solutions.

Tried the product website - the customer contact help form did not work but there was a link to Facebook. Tried that and sent a message. What do I do? Is the machine ruined?

Their reply was to wash everything with vinegar to remove the gritty residue. I did this for about an hour today (90% success) and then had to go out in the freezing rain for fresh air. It smelt like an explosion in Nellie Pledge's pickling factory (you have to be a certain age to remember Nearest and Dearest).  Hardly a Christmas smell.

I also purchased a cleaner and ran the machine on a hot wash as the baskets felt gritty. Purchased eco brand tablets and tried another wash - SUCCESS!  I think I wasted loads of water and electricity and washing up liquid, and half a bottle of vinegar, trying to resolve this.

The manufacturer is offering me coupons for their products - I am not sure I can accept those as I have had no explanation as to why the product did not work. I would I trust them anyway?  I have no reassurances the product had not caused long term damage. My nerves are shredded!! I am still emailing them to resolve my issues!!!

I shall be double checking reviews of products before trusting main brands again.

11 comments:

  1. Aldi’s 5 in 1 do a great job. I never tried any expensive brands. I do hope the problem is solved and you can enjoy your dishwasher.

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    1. Not sure if there is an Aldi here - but I am going to get someone to get me some when we visited the family soon!

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  2. I only ever use Ecover all in one tablets. They are great every time.

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  3. I descale my dishwasher with citric acid. Makes it sparkling clean. Just fill the little box where the tablets go with it and sprinkle some in the bottom of the machine and put on a cycle.

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    Replies
    1. Citric acid like in home brewing? Got some of that!

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  4. Oh my, what a thing to open your dishwasher to. Glad that you found something that would work on getting things cleaned up. Put your feet up and try and get a bit of a rest.

    God bless.

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  5. I don't like that brand - it always seemed to leave a residue. I'm not a fan of the tablets in general (premium or non premium) I *do* use a premium brand (always bought on offer and stocked up) of the one which has a baby on its label - squidgy capsules. I see that some supermarkets are now also doing own-brand squidgy capsules, so I will try those when stocks run low

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  6. Oh no Trish. I use cheap and cheerful ones from Home Bargains and they do the job. I use Morrisons Lemon rinse aid that I also use with my little Karcher window cleaner. I've gradually got rid of all the Premium brand cleaning things except two. Fabric conditioner that I use sparingly and a furniture polish.

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  7. I will stick to washing up in a bowl in the sink.. No room in my little kitchen for a dishwasher.

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