Disclosure: This is not a compensated or sponsored post. I was provided the product for review purposes only. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Everyone wants the dishes that come out of their dishwasher to be sparkling clean and free of germs. That’s kind of the point of having a dishwasher. Clean the first time saves time, water, money, and effort. However, we’ve all had the experience of dishes that didn’t get clean their first time through the machine. Fortunately, Cascade has been working hard for decades to help us have clean dishes without a second wash. Between offering a superior product and developing education on how to get the best performance out of your dishwasher, you can count on Cascade to help you produce the cleanest of dishes.

In 1953, Cascade entered the automatic dishwashing market with claims of “spotless dishes” to the four percent of households with dishwashers. The fast-moving world of household innovations was just in its beginning stages, and Cascade stayed at the forefront for the next 50 years by developing a range of automatic dishwashing products perfect for a variety of families, needs, and lifestyles. Today, with decades of experience and dishwashers in more than 60-percent of households, Cascade continues to grow, striving for immaculate dishes every time with its brilliant automatic dishwashing powders, gels, pacs, and additives.

Our household has been using Cascade brand dishwashing detergent for a long time. We used to use the powder, but somewhere along the way we switched to a liquid. The liquid, especially, has worked exceptionally well to clean our dishes. Assuming we pack the dishwasher properly, and the dishwasher itself is clean, everything comes out looking good.

Dishwashers always have taken less of our time than doing handwashing, but with modern chemistry advances, washing dishes in the dishwasher is becoming a better and better choice. More dishes are becoming dishwasher safe, and detergents, especially Cascade Platinum, are doing a better job cleaning dishes.

How do dishes get clean? Some factors are local to your individual house and machine options, such as wash time, water temperature, and water hardness. Longer washes, higher temperatures, and lower water hardness all help dishes get clean. But your chosen detergent plays an even bigger part.

To clean dishes in a dishwasher, you need some combination of these factors: alkalinity, chealants, builders, polymers, enzymes, surfactants, and bleach. These can be combined in different ways, resulting in a more or less effective detergent. Each element plays an important role.

Chealant grabs calcium ions, getting them out of the way so the detergent can work properly. Calcium can act as a glue that holds food together, so removing it allows food to break up into tiny pieces. A good chealant also acts as a water softener. No one has a stronger chealant than Cascade.

Surfactant gathers dirt and grease together and helps wash them down the drain. It also flattens out water spots on dishes, helping it drain off more easily.

Enzymes help break down foods. Cascade has one enzyme that works on starches and another for breaking down proteins.

Polymers are great scoopers that sweep away what the chealants have broken down. Polymers also stick to calcium, so it’s important for the chealant to get rid of that.

Bleach works how you would expect. It helps remove stains left behind by coffee and tea, plus works hard on those pesky red stains on plastics. Cascade uses an oxygen bleach which creates a very slow reaction, which works with catalysts that help speed up the process.

The Cascade Platinum ActionPacs, specifically, provide three times more film-fighting power than a national bargain brand to clean stuck-on foods in the first wash, helping to eliminate the need for pre-washing or any second wash. Cascade Platinum ActionPacs also help prevent hard-water filming, which keeps your dishwasher looking fresh, not to mention cleaning off food, fighting grease, and providing clean rinsing with its built-in rinse aid.

This time of year, we’re spring cleaning, so remember your dishwasher. Make sure you’re taking care of your dishes and dishwasher. You can buy Cascade products, including Cascade Platinum, anywhere dishwashing detergent is sold, including your local grocery and big box stores, and Amazon.