German Dishwashers and the Importance of SALT!

I've had this large box of Spezial Salz in my pantry for a while.  I've long known that I needed to use salt in the dishwasher because the water is so incredibly hard here in Germany, that the calcium build up happens very quickly.  You notice it everywhere.  On the shower heads, in the sink, and even on your face and in your hair.  I've had constant break outs on my face since we moved here.

Oh Spezial Salz... why can't I put you in my shower head!?  (Note:  You can purchase shower head filters on the internet and have them shipped over here. Make sure you know whether you need to purchase a wall mounted filtered shower head or a hand held one.  Trust me. I'm speaking from experience on this one.)

It's particularly important to make sure that your dishwasher has this special salt formula so that you don't get a terrible build up on your dishes and glasses, and you want to ensure that your dishwasher continues to run properly!  But WHERE do you put this stuff?  I wasn't sure if it went in with the dishwasher soap or some other spot.  It turns out it goes in that circular looking object on the left side of the above picture (the one that looks like it has small spikes around it).  You just untwist it, pour nearly an ENTIRE box of Spezial Salz in there, and recap it. When you pour it in, there will likely be a lot of water already in there, but that's ok.  Just keep pouring!  It should be done about every 6 months.  Now that I had that in, I needed to check the filter.  (That is located where the circle of water is in the middle of the photo above).

Ewwww.  That's nasty.

The filter was absolutely covered in calcium deposits.  In order to get rid of this, I washed off (and picked off) the larger chunks with my hand in the sink.  Also notice in the picture above you can even see a white film on my sink (near the drain).  Even the smallest amount of water leaves a residue over here.

Then I put it in a mixture of vinegar and water for several hours.  After a good soaking, I took a toothbrush to it.  It doesn't clean the whole thing up perfectly, but it's certainly better than it was before.  The moral of the story is... don't forget to periodically check your salt levels in your dishwasher and add salt as necessary to keep your dishwasher running smoothly and to keep those dishes and glasses looking clean!