Experiment 1: Cascade Action Pacs - No need to prewash?
The Experiment
Cascade now has these Action Pacs 2-in-1 that claim that there is no prewashing necessary to clean dishes. we decided to test that theory using a pair of casserole dishes that were used recently.
Pictures of the product we will be using:
Figure 1: The Product in question
Figure 2: The claim, right on the package
Figure 3: A 2-sided packet of detergent (white powder) and Dawn detergent (red liquid.
Figure 4: The packet (liquid side up) is roughly the size of a quarter (about an inch cube).
Figure 5: The packet (powder side up).
The Setup
We will be using the following setup in order to as scientifically as possible determine if this product really doesn't need prewashing per the package claim. We will be using a single pac per the package's usage instructions and will be using a pair of dirty casserole dishes that have been baked at 450 degrees for various lengths of time. We cooked lasagna in one and lasagna rolls in the other. Both dishes were soaked for 2 hours, then drained to ensure that any extra leftovers were adequately removed.
Fig 6: The Clear casserole dish (Lasagna Rolls)
Fig 7: The White casserole dish (Lasagna)
It was determined that in order to give the action pacs a fair shot, we would load the dishwasher with a normal load of dishes in addition to our two experimental subjects. Additionally, we would place the dirtier of the two dishes (the white dish) on the bottom rack, where it would get more of the spray nozzle action from the sweeper bar at the bottom of the dishwasher.
Figure 8: The Clear casserole dish loaded in the top of the dishwasher rack. Dirty side is facing down.
Figure 9: The White casserole dish loaded, in the bottom of the dishwasher rack, Dirty side facing down.
Let the Experiment Begin!
The dishwasher was loaded, one pack was placed in the dispenser cup of the dishwasher, (the one that has a little door on it) per instructions and the dishwasher set to "Pots and Pans" (our normal setting). This setting typically runs the pre-wash cycle longer than normal with the entire cycle running approximately an hour including dry time.
The Results
The results were really suprising regarding the cleanliness of the two test dishes. Both dishes were scrutinized and photographed as well as the rest of the load being checked for cleanliness as well. I had also inadvertantly thrown in a couple of bowls from this morning that had oatmeal stuck to them as well. Both bowls were spotless, and had no soak time before loading.
The White casserole dish on the lower rack had a total of 9 trouble spots. The 9th one being the largest. This was the dirtier of the two dishes. Most surprising about the results on this was that the corner of the dish that had the most residual dirt was the one that was facing down and would have caught the jets force the most, The other side was facing more at an angle and would have not caught the direct force of the water.
The Clear casserole dish on the upper rack had only 6 trougle spots and in comparison came out only marginally cleaner. The way this dish was set up in the dishwasher would have not resulted in any spray pattern difference. All of the surface area of the plate received the same amount of water.
As a final comparison, we will compare the two plates to each other, as well as each plate's before and after picture and surface area covered with baked on crud. The analysis of the clear dish shows that the clear dish started out with the less amount of baked on stuff, it ended up leaving the lesser amount of garbage. The white plate with it's greater amount of dirt ended up leaving more to be desired after the dishwasher had run its course. It is estimated that the white plate left about 1% of the dirt still on the plate, while the clear plate appeared to leave less than 1% on its plate.
The pictures for analysis:
The dirty parts have been highlighted.
The White casserole dish
The Clear casserole dish
Post Analysis
While neither plate came out 100% clean, the product did do an above average job cleaning off the baked on crud while also ensuring that the rest of the dishwasher load also was cleaned without issue. The result is that as long as you aren't cooking lasagna the product's statement of no pre-washing necessary is valid, however cleaning heavy duty items that have been broiled or baked in the oven or are exceptionally messy may prompt some manual cleaning post-dishwasher to ensure that the baked dishes are clean.
Questions? Comments? Concerns? Email me:
FIRESTORM_v1 (at) (gmail)(dot)(com)