Purity of Dishwasher Salt

[Trilobite]

Hi,

I’ve been wondering about this for some time:

Is the supermarkets’ own version of dishwasher salt as pure as the brand names (Finish, Glist, etc.)?

Has anyone experienced problems with cheaper salt?

[Kentish]

Re: Purity of Dishwasher Salt

None here.

[beetlebug]

Re: Purity of Dishwasher Salt

i use co-ops own and its been fine

[Martin]

Re: Purity of Dishwasher Salt

Trilobite wrote:Is the supermarkets’ own version of dishwasher salt as pure as the brand names (Finish, Glist, etc.)?

Pure as the brand names? I’m surprised at the question to be honest. 😕

All water softener salt (irrespective of whatever brand name is stamped on the packet) is simply iodine free crystalline sodium chloride. And whether it be in granualar or tablet form its purity will be at least 90{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d}.

The 10{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d} (or so) remaining are simply additives designed to encapsulate the product in a free flowing, non congealing barrier that dissolves instantly it comes into contact with water!

Unlike the highly topical subject of branded Dishwasher Tablets, salt is just that…salt. 😉

[Trilobite]

Re: Purity of Dishwasher Salt

Martin wrote:

Trilobite wrote:
Is the supermarkets’ own version of dishwasher salt as pure as the brand names (Finish, Glist, etc.)?

The 10{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d} (or so) remaining are simply additives designed to encapsulate the product in a free flowing, non congealing barrier that dissolves instantly it comes into contact with water!

And what exactly are these additives? Anti-caking agents? Surely salt should be just salt; ie NaCl…with nothing extra added?

[Martin]

Re: Purity of Dishwasher Salt

Trilobite wrote:And what exactly are these additives? Anti-caking agents?

A good enough term, I’ll go along with that. 😉

Trilobite wrote:Surely salt should be just salt; ie NaCl…with nothing extra added?

Then it wouldn’t be workable, free flowing or dilutable within a water softener unit. Even the ‘block salt’ contains the same agents to create the essential porosity required. 🙂

[clivejameson]

Re: Purity of Dishwasher Salt

Martin wrote:
Pure as the brand names? I’m surprised at the question to be honest. 😕

I’m not Martin, in my experience the dishwashers that have used the supermarket brand salt exclusively have a less efficient softener in later years resulting in limescale deposits and earlier pump seal failure than is the case with those that had have used Finish salt. QED?

[Martin]

Re: Purity of Dishwasher Salt

clivejameson wrote: QED?

Nice one Clive, but can you QED? Has there been some tests carried out by someone somewhere?

[Kentish]

Re: Purity of Dishwasher Salt

I would suggest that the main effector to resin chambers in the water softener will be a salt top up policy.
Even if “branded” salt is 5{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d} more pure (and that’s a big even) a poor salt maintenance policy will have a greater bearing.

[clivejameson]

Re: Purity of Dishwasher Salt

Martin wrote:

clivejameson wrote:
QED?

Nice one Clive, but can you QED? Has there been some tests carried out by someone somewhere?

Not that i’m aware of Martin, but i’d be interested to hear of any tests…my questioning the purity of the salt used arises from 25 odd years of observation, anecdotal i accept, but a very real observation nonetheless 😉

[Trilobite]

Re: Purity of Dishwasher Salt

Thank you for your replies.

I’ve often thought that supermarkets own brands were never up to scratch, for anything they sold.

And I’ve often thought that the anti-caking agents would impinge upon the softener’s efficiency.

[Penguin45]

Re: Purity of Dishwasher Salt

Usual problem, Trilobite. Just like the bottom end product in the whitegoods area, the own brand supermarket product is cost engineered for profit at the expense of performance and reliability. Given that softener failures won’t manifest themselves for several years, who’s going to think of salt?

Quite dishonest, in my opinion.

Penguin45.

[Trilobite]

Re: Purity of Dishwasher Salt

Thanks, all 🙂

[Author]

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