Our entire neighborhood has hard water. Unless I wash and dry my dishes by hand I don't get the results I desire. However I am too lazy to do that when I have a perfectly good dishwasher in my kitchen!

Because of our hard water problems, we purchased a water softener a few years ago, and it really helped a great deal. Cascade still worked the best for me however. Then this past winter we have had some problems with our septic backing up and decided to disconnect our water softener because it puts so much water into our leech field. Well, guess what? My dishes started coming out of my dishwasher looking pretty bad. My travel coffee mugs had large white streaks inside of them where the soap didn't get rinsed off completely. Now, I didn't have a rinse aid in my dishwasher because I was told if you have soft water this makes etching on your dishes. This may have had something to do with the dishes not rinsing well. I know it's not my machine because it is relatively new and very expensive.

Years ago I read a Consumer Reports article that compared major brands of dishwasher detergent, and Cascade was their number one pick. Since that time, I have been using Cascade powder, but even this was not doing a great job with our hard water. When we went to Colorado this past Christmas, my sister-in-law was using the Cascade 2-in-1 Action Pacs and just loved them. When we got home my husband wanted to give them a try, so we did.

Product Description

These packs are like mini plastic pacs, containing both Cascade detergent and Dawn gel. They are small squares, 1 1/2" in diameter, and fit nicely into the dispenser cup.

Even though they are sealed in a plastic pouch, I can smell the odor of the detergent. The pouch is water soluble and dissolves quickly when it gets wet.

They come in three scents: Original, Citrus Breeze, and Cinnamon Apple Spice. Package sizes vary from 12, 15, 20, 28, and 50 count varieties. 90 count "Club Tub" varieties are also available. I bought the 50 count size, and they came in a large heavy zip lock style bag. I paid $7.99 for a bag of 50.

Ingredients

Sodium carbonate, sodium silicate, and enzymes. The formula averages no more than 8% phosphates. (I have read that high phosphate detergents clean better but are bad for the environment).

Directions For Use

(1) Do not unwrap or puncture pouch.

(2) Handle with dry hands (they are water soluble).

(3) Place pouch in dispenser cup and close cover.

(4) Reseal bag after each use.

Product Claims

* Cascade with patented technology called Shine Shield helps prevent etching before it can start.

* Has great fighting power of Dawn detergent.

* Cleans so well there's no need to pre-wash.

* Safe for septic tanks.

Warnings

Do not get in eyes, on skin or clothing. Keep out of reach of children.

My Thoughts

I like these Action Pacs better than the Cascade powder that I have been using for several years. They definitely took care of the white streaking on my coffee mugs, I haven't had it happen once since I started using these in my dishwasher.

They are so easy to use, just take one out and pop it into the dispenser, no measuring required. I was a bit hesitant about the plastic pouch, but there was absolutely no residue of any kind left in my dispenser cup after the load was finished.

My glasses came out much cleaner, although I did have a few water spots - I believe this is because for the first few loads I didn't have a rinse aid in my dishwasher. As soon as I added Jet Dry to my machine that problem was solved.

My pots and pans came out clean, and I saw a noticeable improvement in my flatware. It was starting to look filmy, especially the bowl of the spoons, and that issue has been completely resolved as well.

The only thing I don't like about these is the fact that you can't measure out only a small amount for a small load. When our water softener gets hooked up (as soon as the ground thaws), we will have to be careful about how much detergent we use. Typically they tell you to use half of the desired soap when you have a water softener, so hopefully one pac won't be too much detergent when our softener is working.

On the other hand, I have always felt my husband used waaay too much soap when he loaded our dishwasher, and using these Action Pacs will solve that problem. I definitely recommend them to anyone with hard water in their home.



Recommended: Yes