Rinse Agents

Rinse agents are cleansing agents that are used with dishwashers to help it rinse away residues, which cause spots and films on dishes and glasses. Rinse agents are available in the market for automatic dishwashers, which are designed to reduce the surface tension of water, thereby making it to sheet off the dishes during the final rinsing. The use of rinse agents prevents the formation of droplets of water, which may remain on the dish surface and are set by the drying cycle heat thereby leaving film and spots.

With the use of detergents alone, the residues of food and chemicals can redeposit on dish ware and leave spots and films. These deposits of spots and films occur as a result of the water containing detergent and mineral residue drying on the dishes. Rinse agents in these cases rinse away residues without leaving unsightly spots and as a result nothing left behind but sparkling clean glasses, dishes and cutlery.

The rinse agents now days, come in solid as well as liquid forms. The liquid rinse agents are designed for dishwashers with a rinse agent dispenser while the solid ones are designed for dishwashers that does not contain a dispenser for rinse agents. Some manufacturers also design rinse agents with a variety of scents and fragrances.

Rinse agents have also proved to be highly helpful in obtaining dry dish ware in the cases when dishwasher energy savings switches are activated or when the dishes are left to air dry.

How Does Rinse Agents Work
Dishwasher detergents perform cleansing in the wash cycle but actually the spots and films form in the rinse cycle of dishwasher when detergents are already down the drain. Rinse Agents work in the rinse cycle, reduce the surface tension of water and make it to sheet off the dishes during the final rinse. More the water that runs off, better will be the rinsing effect, as the evaporated water leaves lime scale and minerals on the surface of glasses, dishes, and flatware, producing spots and film.

Superior rinsing leads to less spots and films thereby leaving the dishes, glasses and cutlery items sparkling clean with every wash. Generally the rinse agents are recommended to use in addition with the detergent for quality results in every wash. And this is the reason that the dishwashers are designed with a separate rinse agent dispenser to help you fight spots and film.

How to use Rinse Agents
Generally the dishwashers come with a built-in liquid rinse dispenser, which is usually located near the detergent cup(s). You can use the rinse agent by simply filling the dispenser without overfilling it. Wipe and clean up any spilled products. The rinse agents are automatically released in the rinse cycle, every time the dishwasher runs to fight spot and films.

Note In the case, the dishwasher does not have a built-in dispenser for rinse agents, you can use solid rinse agents that can be clipped to the top rack of the dishwasher for sparkling clean results without any films or spots.

How to Buy a Rinse Agent
While buying a rinse agent for cleaning dishes in dishwashers, it is important to know what you should you look for and what really matters to you. If you have a dishwasher that has an in-built rinse agent dispenser then you should buy a liquid rinse agent, however if your dishwasher does not has an in-built, you should buy a solid rinse agent that can be clipped to the top rack of dishwasher.

Try to look for rinse agents that does not contain any toxic substances or ingredients as they may leave a hazardous film on the surface of your dishes. Rinse agents made of non-toxic substances and a special combination of nonionic surfactants, chelating agent, dye, and fragrances have found to be highly effective.