water problem or dishwasher problem?

Clean soft H2O cleans better than hard H2O.

Have your H2O tested.
You need to know the Ph, total hardness and iron content.


Hold old is the H2O heater in this home?

..the water heater is six months old.

I know that soft water is better than hard water and we obviously have high mineral content. But is it possible that one brand dishwasher could handle the minerals better than another?

Nope. However, different brand DW's can clean better with clean soft H2O than others can.

It sounds like you need a softener for your H2O.

It is entirely possible that an older design dishwasher had less problems with harder water than a brand new "energy efficient" dishwasher will.

New refrigerators have smaller compressors and less efficient refrigerant to lower power consumption BUT they run longer and more often to keep the contents as cold as their older "power wasting" counterparts.

We will all be victims of "improved technology" sooner or later

If you're living on a private well you should be getting your water tesed on a regular basis as water conditions can and do change.

...thanks for your input. Was hoping to avoid getting a water softener.....but maybe its in our future.

thanks!

Living on a well it is your responsibility to make your water SAFE and NICE. You should at least be testing for bacteria.

Think of a water softener as an appliance that will save you money by lengthening the service life of your other appliances... a worthwhile investment over the long term.

...thanks again!

For many decades prior to the data in the 2000 census being complied, PA had the largest number of 'rural' population, meaning people using their own private well (water) and on site septic system. TX has the distinction now.

Over the last 21 years I have done thousands of water tests on wells in PA and have found that the water quality doesn't vary very often.

A few words from the EPA regarding private well contaminants, what to test for, and how often to test...

click here for EPA pdf file...

Note that a yearly test for bacteria is recommended. Better safe than sick...

Thanks for the information....I will have it tested.

Actually that is for the residents in State of Rhode Island by the the State Dept of Health; see the RIprivate.pdf in the link?

Also note this from the EPA part:
Water quality in wells is generally stable, and if a change is going to occur, it occurs slowly.

Well water can change over night - it is susceptible to prolonged drought,
heavy rains, earthquakes, blasting during mining and construction etc ...
Nothing on this planet is stable.

click here for EPA safewater/private wells/FAQ private (well) water info for the ENTIRE USA

That is quite different than what you attempted to get us to believe with the first link, and yet the first link agreed with my comment that well water does not change as you alluded to or described.

It suggests that people should use common sense rather than do testing each year as you suggested without saying what should be tested for. Here's what it says:
Consider testing your well for pesticides, organic chemicals, and heavy metals before you use it for the first time. Test private water supplies annually for nitrate and coliform bacteria to detect contamination problems early. Test them more frequently if you suspect a problem. Be aware of activities in your watershed that may affect the water quality of your well, especially if you live in an unsewered area.

You are welcome.

Here is someone with a dishwasher problem and you are scaring them into an undefined water analysis with this and other comments:

Here's another to defend your first comment:

So far you haven't said a thing to come up with the actual test s/he should have done.

S/he needs a simple water test for hardness, ph and iron which will give them a possible cause of the dish washer problem. Tests for TDS, chlorides and sulfates would be nice AND all well owners should have an annual Coliform bacteria and Nitrate test.

The water table.... the depth to water in the well and under the surface of the yard, changes up and down constantly, in many cases as you use water from the well, AND with previous precipitation levels. Only 8-11% of precipitation percolates to the water table (groundwater), the rest is surface runoff. The fluctuation of the water in the well/water table depth is not the/a problem and has nothing to do with the cause of the problem as the washer guy stated. "Minerals" are in the water regardless how high or low the water table is. AND that rarely changes the volume of minerals in the well water.

Get yourself an H2O softener if you have hard H2O!

Your dish washer and clothes washer will clean more efficiently while using less detergent and they should last longer.
Your H2O heater will heat H2O more efficiently and it should last longer.

If the "minerals" causing the problems are sulfates, chlorides or it is high TDS content, a softener is not going to reduce or remove any of those things so the problem will continue.