Dishes leave food particles on the glasses - machine is only 2 years old. We use rinse agent - Cascade gel in the auto dispenser - we use jetdry dishwasher cleaning agen monthly - jet arms are not clogged.

Check that the holes in the spray arms haven't blocked up and the filters in the bottom are clean. The arms may not be rotating. To check this, when the machine is washing, open the door, turn all the spray arms to face the same direction, shut the door and leave running for about 30 seconds. Open the door again and look at the position of the spray arms. They should have moved.

Hello,

If your model has a JETDRY rinse agent dispenser be sure to use it..if it does not have that dispenser and just only the detergent dispenser use the JETDRY in the dry version that is in a little basket and hangs on the upper rack.

GENE

Instructions Things You'll Need:

• Vinegar or lemon juice
• Gel dishwasher detergent

1. dishwashers have a rinse aid dispenser. If your dishwasher has this dispenser, fill it up periodically and it will release the appropriate amount of rinse aid automatically at the right time during the wash cycle. This will help your dishes rinse more cleanly.
2. Rinse aid in solid form
   Some older dishwashers or basic models do not have an automatic rinse aid dispenser. In this case, you can buy rinse aid in solid form that attaches to your dishwasher rack. Solid rinse aid can be hard to find in stores because it is not commonly used, but it can be purchased online.
   
3. Vinegar or lemon juice
   Appliance repairmen will tell you that one of the common problems they see with dishwashers is the buildup of excess detergent. If there is too much detergent in your dishwasher, your dishes will not rinse cleanly, no matter how good the dishwasher is or how much rinse aid you use. To clean the excess detergent that has built up inside your dishwasher, put 3 tablespoons of vinegar or lemon juice (concentrate is fine) in the empty dishwasher and run the dishwasher through a complete cycle with no dishes. Do this twice, for two complete cycles of the empty dishwasher with only vinegar or lemon juice added. The acid in the vinegar or lemon juice will break up the detergent that has built up in your dishwasher's interior.
   
   After you have cleaned the detergent buildup from the inside of your dishwasher, follow the steps below to keep the buildup from happening again and to help your dishes rinse cleanly and prevent residue from accumulating on the dishes.
   
4. Gel dishwasher detergent
   Switch to a liquid or gel dishwasher detergent. Any brand will do.
   
5. Fill one compartment half full Dishwashers will effectively clean dishes with much less detergent than manufacturers often recommend. The bleach in the detergent, combined with the extremely hot water used in the dishwasher wash cycle, will clean and sanitize your dishes completely, even in small amounts, and using less detergent helps prevent buildup and residue from accumulating on your clean dishes.
   
   Fill only one detergent compartment(the one that snaps closed) half full with gel detergent. Snap the opening closed and run your dishwasher as you normally would. Your dishes will come out sparkling clean with no buildup or residue, plus you'll save money by using less detergent!
   

Heating element may fail. This will lead to the machine stopping part way through its cycle

Pumps. There are 2 pumps in most dishwashers. The drain pump,( which describes itself -it pumps the water out of the machine.)
The recirculating pump which forces the water at high pressure through the spray nozzles and arms. (This is how the cleaning action is performed)
These pump may either leak, or burn out. Either way, the only solution is replacement.

eggs, cheese, dough are not going to be removed from the dishes by the dishwasher especially if you are using gel type detergents. these need to be removed before they go into the dishwasher. Try a higher end detergent in powder or tablet form. Some of these detergents Cascade Complete have more agressive food disolving agents. They also cost 2 times as much as everything else. Save the money rinse your dishes.

If the glasses are spotty from hard water try a rinse aid like Jet Dry. If they are actually dirty, depending on the brand of DW you may need to rinse them better before putting them in the DW. Not all brands are cerated equally, some do work better then others

Switch to a name brand, powder detergent (e.g. Electrosol or Cascade) and never use ultra-cheap detergent or any gel or any tablets in any dishwasher. You will be amazed how much of a difference this will make.
Please report back what you find, because there are more drastic steps that can be taken. When you report back, please list the manufacturer and model number plus the approximate number of years old.
Good Luck!

they must have changed the way they treat the water in your area. those spots are caused by hard water. www.dishwasherfilter.com has a product out for this problem. it filters the water going into your dishwasher leaving them spot free and crystal clear with every load. you will love the way your dishes look.

Very common problem is soap build up in these machines. Try putting it into a wash cycle with no dishes, and no soap. Let it wash for about 5 minutes, and then open the door. If you see alot of soap suds, then soap build up is the problem. Try doing a couple loads with no soap, and no dishes, and throw a cup of vinegar into the machine halfway through the wash. Repeat as necessary. This should solve your problem.

Hi Dirty Dish gang.
After having 2 appliance repairmen here, I now have the latest scoop on our dishwasher problems, $200 later!
Los Angeles IS currently having hard water issues. Also, all the new cleaning gels etc. are actually a cause of our dishwasher problems.  
So, here is what we need to do:
1. Use Cascade POWDER detergent only.  Make sure is is just "plain" no "scented" or "complete"  or gel, etc. (I have tried a phosphate free powder and gel and this is a cause of our problem as well!) 2. Use Jet Dry in the dispenser (set it to a 2-3 opening) 3. Make sure water is at least 120 degrees 4. Only run dishwasher on "normal" setting.  All others just run it longer, hence causing more water stains. 5. Do not pre-wash dishes! You can knock of chunks with a "non" soapy brush, but don't rinse (the oils actually help to clean the dishes) 6.  Do not wash sponges in dishwasher.
Acid Wash: The repairman just gave my washer an Acid Wash today. It says it is an acid derived from lemon, I got mine from Carters appliance in Torrance, CA for about $19. I am to run a normal cycle with the above mentioned Cascade after this "acid cycle" is finished.
If you are still having problems:
Monthly maintenance: Glass Magic: Buy a box of Glass Magic (near the Cascade)  Use 1 Tbsb in main detergent compartment of dishwasher along with the Cascade, till washer starts working again. White Vinegar: You can run an empty dishwasher with white vinegar once a month.  Fill a bowl with 2 cups vinegar and place on bottom rack.  Then run as a normal cycle...this allows vinegar to disperse slowly.
So far it seems to be working.  Good luck.