~Hmmm~
I'm been laying low for the past two days even though I honestly planned to share a couple fun things with you! For a day and a half I've had a splitting headache and it's gotten the best of me I'm afraid. I don't get headaches very often and I have only had one migraine in my life... That said...I'm pretty WHIMPY WHIMPY WHIMPY when any kind of pain makes it's way into my brain!
Is there a cause, you ask? Yes! At least I THINK maybe there is!
~OKLAHOMA STATE FAIR~
Enough said!
Anyway...that really isn't what prompted me to pop in just for a second or two (Um...RIGHT! Like I can EVVAH be on my computer for less that 20 minutes at a time!).
It's this:
As many of you know this past Summer the Dishwasher Industry (think of products Cascade TM, Electra-sol TM, ALL TM, etc.) was required to go PHOSPHATE FREE. I've known for quite some time this was coming as Phosphates cause more problems to our environment than most consumers know. Excessive levels of this nutrient can fertilize our streams and this can lead to nuisance plant growth, unsightly and smelly lakes and ponds that are unable to support fish and other aquatic life...
So hear me...I'm fully supportive of removing Phosphates from all products because I LOVE LOVE LOVE our beautiful Planet Earth...(that means please don't write and yell at me, OK?)~
I just don't appreciate it when I'm lead to believe from every corner of the advertising arena that all is good, things are under control, and that we can believe a Company (and their Ad) when they say their product works.
Feels like I'm being lied to again by a big-wig, minuscule politician...
In my mind the companies out there who are manufacturing household products have known LIKE FOREVER for a measurable length of time the new "Phosphate Free" standards would become law in 2010. This means that SOMEBODY SOMEWHERE needed to begin working on creating a DECENT product many, many, many moons ago OR TELL US THE TRUTH that they are stymied! I'm actually OK with hearing that...but don't try to snow me in the process!
Well...I'm now on my 3rd box of Cascade Powdered Dishwasher Detergent and to me it's absolutely WORTHLESS CRUMMY PATHETIC HORRIBLE! Simply put to me it is the worse cleaning product of ANY KIND I have ever purchased during my years of marriage. It did NOT get my dishes clean and it did NOT make them sparkle and shine like it claims it will do on the outside of box. In disgust (and with that headache I told you about) I unloaded my dishwasher and washed every single glass, plate, cup and pan by hand before I could put them away.
Whatever P & G put in their bright green Cascade TM box it didn't even remove the lipstick on the edge of my teacup! GAAAAAHROSS!
So~after using almost three boxes of the stuff (I think I was hoping it was going to get better) I finally decided to sit myself down (head-throb and all) and pen a little on-line-lettah to the 'powers that be' at Proctor & Gamble.
Now...I was nice.
I'm almost always nice! :)
I just told the Company that I had given up trying to get their product (again, that would be CASCADE TM) to work and that I would be washing ALL my dishes by hand and scrub them clean until I could figure out something better to use that might work.
Well...this afternoon I gots me a litta-lettah back from P & G! Would you like to know what it said?
Basically the five line NOTE commented on the fact the entire industry was required to go Phosphate Free, NOT JUST CASCADE/TM! They are also sending me a coupon for "Action Pacs" (which is nice since I'm tossing OUT the remainder of my almost full box of Cascade TM)...
Looks to me like I'm going to be doing a bunch of hand dish-washing this year...
Thanks for allowing me to RANT! :) You can betcha I'll be looking REALLY CLOSE at both my drinking glass and eating untensils when dining away from home!
(Oh...I still have my headache, but at least now my dishes are now clean!)
Love to you~
20 comments:
Oh, I hope you're feeling better soon! Headaches are such a..... well, a headache!!
That's too bad about the dishwasher soap, it stinks when products you pay money for, don't work!! Personally, I'm a hand wash girl myself....it's not so bad, you'll get used to it. lol
Ciao Rebecca , un bacione ti aspetto sul mio blog !!! ^_^
Marica
Hmmm..hope your headache is gone soon..Have a good weekend!
Hugs,
Wanda
Dear Rebecca, Try a little old fashioned baking soda in the diswasher. Works for me. Hugs, carol
Is there room for me on that soapbox? I am with you on this and it's amazing the scripted responses you get back when you write to companies to complain. I am a letter writer and have complained to many companies about many things and it is maddening some of the replies I've gotten. I'll have to check my dishes closely.
Rebecca this is hilarious..I too wrote to Cascade this week!! Isn't that something? I never write to these companies, I just don't purchase their product again. But I decided to give Cascade an earful about their product, as it doesn't clean the dishes, AND about the price of the soap. $4.44 for dishwashing soap! I'm with ya sista!! Hugs Sharon
Hi, I know exactly what you mean, but I can't complain to much because my dishwasher doesn't work at the moment. That is one expense that does not fit the budget. Plus the warm water feels good on my hand that has arithis in it. I am known sometimes to just let the water run over it. Have a great weekend.
That's weird. I stayed home from work on Wed. with a bad headache also. I think it is all this darn wind in Okla blowing all the allergens around. My sinus gives me headaches.
I agree, you can't believe advertisements. I have had one dishwasher in my life and wasn't happy with how they cleaned. I hand wash all my dishes. Its not so bad for just the two of us. Not so much at the holidays. Enjoy the fair. Don't get to go this year.
Hugs
Ginger
I know what you mean about headaches, I get migraines quite often but not as many as when I was younger - something to be said about getting older I guess.
I just don't feel we have to take it anymore - if a product doesn't do what they say I write a letter. I really don't expect them to change anything just because of me, but at least I get it off my chest and then I don't purchase it anymore. The best and worst type of advertisement is word of mouth - so those big companies better watch out!!
That being said I am going to have to ask my husband how the Cascade is working since he does the dishes (I imagine it works fine since he washes everything before he puts it in the dishwasher - must be a guy thing!)
Brenda
Ya know, chick, I had been thinking it was our dishwasher, since it's a "contractor's grade" DW put in when the house was built and is only 5 years old. But Love Bunny said we could buy a new one if I wanted. I said no and have been washing them by hand for about 2 or 3 months now. In Washington, our neighboring state for the north of Idaho they come across to Idaho and buy dishwashing liquid because WA hasn't allowed the "good" kind to be sold in WA! No one could get their dishes clean so I knew it was coming to Idaho sooner or later. I continue to wash by hand! That dishwasher just sits there taking up space because we'd have to wash them AFTER the DW did its "thing"! I wish the politicians would leave their noses out of our business.
xoxo,
Connie
OK ! THAT'S WHY my dishes have not been getting clean...I wondered why...had not heard about that law being passed.
I will have to try a different brand too...to see what we get as well.
Sorry about your nasty headache, I take the combo of LYRICA and Excedrin for my Fibromyalgia.
And ever since ( 3 years now ) I started on Lyrica...I have not had even ONE headache.
Rose
Hi Mis Reb... hoping your head is being kinder to you & the ache has finally gone. OK so about the dishes..... I think I have the BEST dishwasher in the world....... my dishes are always sparkling clean with an amazing shine, it is sadly a oneof.... ME. Haha I do dishes 3 times a day cause if I don't they simply sit on my bench looking all sad & forlone like they are screaming out to me to be washed & put away where they belong. More than once I have considered buying plastic throw away plates but being the recycler that I am I would probably end up washing THEM! A d/w is on the top of my list when I finally get my new kitchen cannot wait for that...
Have a great weekend Sweet...
Lyn xxx
So sorry you have a headache - I get migraines so I know how you feel. I've been using Palmolive eco+ for about a year and it's phosphate free and works wonderfully. It's a gel.
PS I do pretty well rinse off all of my dishes before I put them in the dishwasher but I've done that for years because our dishwasher is very old. So that's my caveat on using the eco+
OK I'm with everyone else here. I thought my one year old Bosh DW was just losing it's luster.
Now I have a headache! I hate handwashing the dishes.
hugs
Hi Rebecca,
AMEN to you and this post. I am on the band wagon with ya girl. I thought I needed a new DW till I realized that Cascade was the problem. I did have to end up getting a new one this summer due to it finally passing away.
I switched to electrosol in the liguid and really like it. The dishes sparkle and shine once again and the liquid seems to go further.
I am so sorry about your splitting headache. I can relate as yesterday I had a migraine that made me actually sick to my stomach. I think it is allergies and our still hot and muggy weather. FALL WHERE ARE YOU?!?
Hope you feel better sweetie.
Have a nice weekend.
Love to you, Celestina Marie
You have a headache? I guess the old boy is outta luck tonight!
Seriously, hope your headache is gone by the time you read this. I never (well, hardly ever) get headaches either but if I do...I am just off-kilter until it has passed.
I guess you don't want to know that I stockpiled several boxes of the OLD Cascade, do you? lol BTW though- I did try those little drop in things by Cascade and they worked in my dishwasher. Now, don't get all crazy on me here, are you sure your hot water is turned to High? Just askin....
Hope your tomorrow is brighter, sweet lady! Hugs- Diana
I hope your headache has gone and you are feeling better. Very interesting about the dishwasher soap. Just recently we have been having problems and I just thought it was because I had brought a slightly cheaper product. I am in the UK and just looking at this box it still has 30% phosphates listed in the ingredients, I wonder when that will change.
Good morning Rebecca!
HAH! Dishwashers! And DW Detergent!!! HAH! They can be a royal-pain-in-the-you-know-what!!
A few years ago I was having problems with dishes not coming clean. Bits of food were being left on and there were pools of yucky water left on top of the upsidedown mugs and cups. I switched soaps...nada...I took the bottom pump apparatus apart to see if something was stuck....and found a ton of gunk. I cleaned that up, but was still having problems. It was then that I noticed that the rubber hose that delivers water to the upper spinning arm was disintegrating! Being the thrifty girl I am, I found a hunk of hose (more rigid than rubber) cut it to fit and installed it and voila!!! No more dirty dishes!! (I later discovered that the replacement piece I used was for the ShopVac!!)LOL!!
I am presently using "Finish" Powerball (used to be Electrosol) I buy it at Walmart where I find it is the cheapest. And I only buy it when it is on sale and stock up. It states on the side of the box that there is "not more than 8.7% phosphate" in each tablet.
Because we live in an area where there is deep prevalent limestone our water is hard. I do not use a commercial rinse, I use two "glugs" of ordinary household vinegar (about 1/4 cup) in the rinse cycle. My dishes sparkle!
I hope you have recovered fully from your headache. I know they can be horribly puke-able!! Next time you have a headache drink an 8 oz glass of water every 15 minutes for one hour. (4- glasses) Often headaches are caused by dehydration!! No kidding!!!
Take care honey!!!
Love and warm hugs, Laura
Wow, is that what's been wrong with my dishes? I thought it was because of my water softener. I guess now I know why I still have...stuff on my dishes. Especially notice it on my silverware...YUK! Have washed alot of dishes over again, too! Thanks for the info!
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