Eco Dishwashing Liquid Works As Well as Cascade
by Kristin Underwood, Sacramento, CA 
on 11.14.08
Earth Friendly Product's 'New Wave High-Performance Auto Dishwasher Gel' held its own against Cascade in an independent study showing that these phosphate-free cleaners can perform just as well as conventional cleaners. Most cleaners give the impression that they add enough toxic chemicals to make them ultra strong and therefore able to obliterate any germ they come in contact with. Now its becoming more apparent that not only do we not need toxic chemicals near our family and in our homes, but they also don't necessarily provide any additional benefit.
The test looked at ph-levels, solubility and anti-suds formation. Both solutions performed equally well when it came to removing dirt and grime from dishes. Then dishes were inspected for spotting and filming and both received high scores. Cascade had a higher ph-level: 11 compared with a 7 for New Wave (their site states that the ph level is 4-5). Plates and bowls were covered with egg yolks, buttermilk, tomato juice, butter, powdered milk, and spaghetti sauce and then run through a dishwasher.
Conventional dishwashing detergents can contain phosphates, 1.4 dioxane, chlorine bleach, formaldehyde and caustics. Several states, including Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, Vermont and Washington all have legislation banning phosphates in products by 2010, and Massachusetts and Michigan (along with Canada) are also considering similar legislation.
The Wave High Performance Auto Dishwasher Gel dish detergent is formaldehyde/caustic/chlorine-free, and is plant-based and 100% biodegradable. Earth Friendly Products Co. has four manufacturing facilities strategically spread throughout the US to reduce the distance traveled from production to the customer. The company also has what it calls their "Freedom List" which is a list of all of the items that their products do not contain. The line has also won several awards, including Natural Home Magazine's "Readers Choice Award" for Best Eco-Friendly Cleaning Products and the 2007 PETA Proggy Award for Best Line of Cruelty-Free Household Products.
Don't take our word for it - you can always do a test of your own at home. Or, better yet, make your own dish soap. The wave dish detergent retails for $4.99 for a 40 ounce bottle online and in stores across the US. You can also find the detergent now in a powder tablet formula. :Wave High Performance Auto Dishwasher Gel vs. Cascade
More on Eco-Friendly Dish Detergents
How to Green Your Kitchen
Washington State Bans Phosphorous in Dishwashing Detergents
TH Forums: What are the Greenest Cleaning Supplies?
Dishwasher vs Handwashing: The Winner
Mrs. Meyer's Dishwashing Liquid
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I'm currently using phosphate free 'Eco ver' tablets and unfortunately they seem utterly useless. I honestly see no difference in my dishes before washing and after. I may have to give that Wave a try though, and definitely the gel since I'm a bit hesitant to continue using tablets.
@russ, I'm surprised at that, I've been using ecover dishwasher tablets for some time and they work perfectly for me. Washes done at 50c which is the lowest temp my diswasher will do short of a rinse cycle.
I have been using Ecover tablets for about 3 years now. I am absolutely pleased with them. They do a much better job than Cascade and much better for me and the earth.
I had the same problem with the Eco ver liquid/gel as Russ did with the tablets. It did not clean my dishes well at all. I'll look for the new product to try.
For those of you that the tablets worked, what did you do to prep your dishes for the dishwasher? just scrape, rinse a little, rinse a lot? I'm curious because the product performed so badly for me the several times I tried it.
FYI, phosphates are NOT bad for the environment if you live on a coast. Phosphorous is the rate limiting nutrient in fresh water ecosystems, thus for those whose waste water empties into lakes and streams, definitely do not use detergents with phosphates; they cause algal blooms.
However, for those of us on the coasts whose waste water goes into the ocean, avoiding phosphate detergents is misguided and pointless. In salt water environments, phosphorous is NOT the rate limiting nutrient, nitrogen is. Use all the phosphate you want on the coasts; it won't effect algal blooms at all.