Day 69: Doin’ Dishes

I finally changed my dishwashing detergent. I wasn’t sure how it was going to go, since I have been a Cascade fan since childhood. There were a lot of considerations to make in changing my dishwasher detergent. Remember, I make mountains out of molehills all the time!

First, I really wanted to go back to the individual packets of detergent where all you do is plop this tidy little plastic packet into the soap holder in the dishwasher door and you never have to wonder if you used too much or not enough. But, I had been told that the packets were not completely biodegradable, and the remaining plastic would clog up the dishwasher drain lines and cause mucho problemos. So, I stopped using the cute little packets when I got a brand new dishwasher. I didn’t want to gunk-up my pretty new machine quite so fast.

Second, I wanted to be sure that if I switched to another brand that it was actually going to get my dishes clean. I CANNOT STAND to see streaks and such on my dishes as I’m putting them back into the cabinet.

And, as a natural result of my research, in the last couple of months I’ve felt the need to use something friendlier. We run our dishwasher every-other-day at minimum, twice a day if we’re home for any length of time (like our lovely stay-cation in June). At that rate, if I’m using a product that is essentially poisoning the water supply or leaving any kind of soap behind on my dishes, then I consider that to be problematic. (This excessive use of the dishwasher is on the list of things to be addressed, by the way.)  And I may be only one household who is willing to change in favor of an earth-friendly option, but I am one household who is willing to change, nonetheless.

Once again, I turned to Mrs. Meyers Clean Day products for my solution, the largest selection of which is found at Sunshine Health Foods. And no, I don’t get paid for this unabashed promotion of the two, in case you were wondering. I just love the store and the products! Mrs. Meyer’s has BOTH the dishwasher packets and a dishwasher liquid in practically any of their wonderfully herby fragrances. I bought the basil scented packets for the dishwasher. And guess what…they work!!! They’re great! My dishes are squeaky-clean and I’m using a product that is safe and natural. And the basil scent in the products is very mild.

I scoped out the safety of their products on their website. They are very direct about their ingredients and their philosophy in manufacturing them. Aside from being completely biodegradable, “Mrs. Meyer’s Clean Day products are safe to use in the presence of children, pets, and expectant women.” What’s not to love?

To quote one of my favorite early ‘90s movies, “Dishes are DONE, man!”