****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
This product has really helped, we have very hard water. I have a dishwasher with a water softener feature would totally recommend it. My dishes are coming out cleaner, better than ever. Even my pots and pans are spotless.If you have hard water and a high-end Bosch dishwasher with a water-softener you need this product.Finish formulates it to Bosch specifications. Some say you can use any kind of water softener salt. Over the short-haul, that's probably true. But this stuff is highly refined to take out the extra dirt found in most water-softener salt. Those of you who have regular water-softeners know what I'm talking about. If you do not, then try this experiment. Let your water softener run out of salt. Look at the water at the bottom of your salt container. See all that dirt and stuff at the bottom? That's the crud you do NOT want in the highly-efficient micro-sized water-softener contained in your brand new, super expensive Bosch dishwasher. Yes, this product over-priced (for salt). But it is worth roughly $15 a bag it to keep the little softener from plugging up?I submit that it is.Amazon sells the two-pack or a single. One 2.2 pound package will fill the salt container and leave you about a half-pound left over to for the next time you need it. I bought the two-pack. I like being prepared. Your dishwasher will signal you when it needs more salt. Front panel. Red light. It probably even gives you a tone.If you have a Bosch dishwasher and do not know if you have a water softener, pull out the bottom rack and look for a round cap that says "salt" (in about eight languages). Mine was to the center-left side. Your other option is to locate your model number (check the top panel and sides of your door) and call Bosch tech support: 800-944-2904.If you are filling the salt casket at the bottom of the dishwasher for the first time, fill it with water first. It helps emulsify the salt and create the brine-bath needed to condition the resin (which is what takes the minerals that cause hard-water spots and that irritating milky-sheen on your glassware). I used distilled water in this step, but the manual does not specify that it must be distilled. I just figured that any reduction of mineral content would help keep the salt container cleaner. Frankly, it may not matter. The water is mostly displaced when the salt is added in the next step.Then, using the Bosch supplied funnel (if you have it), fill it with salt. Try to avoid spilling salt all over the bottom of your dishwasher. Salt can cause corrosion and discoloration of your stainless steel. As mentioned, most of the water will be displaced by the in-coming salt. As mentioned, you only need to do this the first time you fill the salt casket. After the first time, the dishwasher will replenish the water needed all by itself. Run a load immediately after filling. That way, any spilled salt will be washed away.If you are doing this for the first time, test how hard your water is. Bosch provides a little test strip. Real simple. One second under the water and then watch the strip. No bars turn red and you can forget about using your washing machine's softener altogether. Just close it up and forget about it. One bar and you have slightly hard water. Two bars... a little harder. Three? Small rocks are coming through your tap. (You can buy test strips at a hardware store if you've lost what Bosch sent along.) Use the results to set the dishwasher's softener to regenerate at appropriate intervals. Instructions are in the manual.Call Bosch tech support (800-944-2904) you do not have a manual or are mystified by the whole process.Buyer beware that this item ships from the U.K.Nothing wrong with that, except you need to order well in advance of when you may need it. It's exactly the product advertised, but it's not readily clear that its shipping from Europe. There is zero shipment tracking.Not sure how these guys can offer the best price for volume on Finish brand considering that they're shipping dead weight from thousands of miles away. Having said that, its a great product, great price and you have Amazon's A to Z guarantee to protect you. Just have patience and eventually it will arrive at your doorstep.For these reasons, I gave this three stars, which has nothing to do with the product, which earns five.More on the product:We own a Bosch dishwasher and this is their recommendation for salt for the water softener. Shop carefully as Finish branded salt seems to exact a premium in price.We tried several other brands of salt before actually using this in the Bosch. All have worked just fine. What we have found is there are two types of dishwasher salt... granular and pelletized. Our experience is that the pelletized version seems to get consumed quicker than granular.Our owners manual didn't actually list the softener's salt capacity, but we've found that it holds 2 lbs, and many of these brands sell in a metric weight with the minimal simple conversion being 2.2 lbs for the smallest bag or box. You'll see heavier weights to order, but those are multiple packages of these base sized packages.Somalt brand is pelletized and it seems to be the most readily available and cost effective option. One box is 2.2lbs. So you'll have a little left over in the box after a complete fill. It goes quicker than granular so keep that in mind.We also liked Whirlpool's branded salt and it sells in exact 2 lbs. bags. Check prices as this option in most cases will be more cost effective than Finish, and you'll never know the difference between the results with any of these three options. Other brands just don't seem cost effective, while working equally well.Our strongest recommendation is purchase on price and weight for what you get, rather than brand. Shop through Amazon's many options. Remember also that what you may gain in lower price with Somalt may be offset with its more rapid consumption.It works and is easy to use. It arrived quickly.It ended up with two 3 kg boxes probably by Amazon’s mistake (I notified the seller) but it was easy to pour. This was the initial fill for a new dishwasher. We have great water here with only moderate hardness according to the water reports and experience, so the test strip that came with the dishwasher registered only 1 out of 5 levels. We never noticed any spots with our other machine, but I would say that everything shines a bit more.I wish I had read the reviews before purchasing, but I thought I knew what I was getting. The description is very misleading, I was under the impression I’d be getting 2- 8.8lb bags of dishwasher salt, but that was the total weight! I could have purchase 11+ lbs of salt for almost $5 less from another seller. SMH! Lesson learned, I won’t be purchasing from this seller again.Salt purchased for Bosch dishwasher water softener. The product is fine but pretty expensive in my opinion. The other thing that was confusing is that the Bosch dishwasher instructions don't say exactly how much salt to use and neither to the videos and resources online. Our dishwasher is cleaning very well with a low amount of soap (amounts listed in instructions). Our last dishwasher was caked with calcium and buildup and completely failed. We couldn't clean it up with vinegar, citric acid, scraping and a variety of other ways so we looked at getting a water softener dish washer in the hopes that it prevents future issues.Dose the jobExcellent quality and very fast delivery!Works well I guess, who really knows. You don’t go through much, but it’s expensive.does the job. took a while to get here, but I couldn't find it locallyVery convenient to have delivered
