Thursday, June 21, 2007

One Thing I Learned Yesterday

Do not put liquid detergent into the dishwasher!

Cliff and Huddy are the absolute nicest people on the planet. So nice that they have allowed Ryan and I to live in their basement for the last week while they were away on a trip. Because they are so kind, I wanted to be kind to them in return, by cleaning the kitchen and all of the dishes and making the house look nice before they return this weekend. Which is why I feel bad for being a moron and breaking their house yesterday.

Well, not quite breaking, but just doing something stupid enough that it took about 4 hours of clean-up and a phone call to the neighbors before everything was pretty much back to normal.

I saw a bottle of detergent under the sink that had a picture of a sparkly little glass on it, which is exactly what I wanted...so I added the detergent, closed the door and started the dishwasher.

I then proceeded to go downstairs to take a shower. About 20 minutes later Ryan came home from his run and I heard him say, "Something's leaking over here!" I looked up at the ceiling tiles in the basement and indeed, he was correct. So I ran upstairs and swung open the door to the kitchen, which I found to be completely covered in huge foamy suds. Seriously folks, it was like a movie.

I panic sometimes...and this was one of those times. "GRAB THE TOWELS!! WHAT DO WE DO?? CAN WE STOP THIS THING MID CYCLE?? IF I OPEN THE DOOR WILL MORE WATER COME OUT?? HOW DOES A DISHWASHER WORK ANYWAY? COULD THIS BE BECAUSE OF THE SOAP I USED? NO WAY! THE SUDS DIDN'T MAKE IT TO THE CARPET YET, RIGHT? THIS IS NOT GOOD! DID HUDDY SAY SOMETHING ABOUT THIS BEING A NEW KITCHEN FLOOR? MORE TOWELS MORE TOWELS!! CALL OUR MOMS!! AHHHHH!

Ryan ran back downstairs to see if it was still leaking and to dry the places the water had dripped. I guess those ceiling tiles are pretty much like a sponge, because this one was so water logged that it cracked in half when we tried to remove it.

"I can replace the ceiling," I thought to myself, what should I fix first??
# 1 Huddy's New Floor
# 2 The Dishwasher
# 3 The Ceiling Tiles

Then I ran back upstairs to finish drying the kitchen floor. The floor was dry, then I mopped it to make sure there was no leftover soap residue and dried it again. The floor looked great, so I moved on to the next priority - the Dishwasher

I took a cup and scooped the excess foam and water out of the bottom of the dishwasher and into the sink. Then I closed the door and ran the rinse cycle again. I layed down on the nice clean floor by the dishwasher so that I could see the first single drip if it leaked. Within about one minute the suds were forming around the dishwasher door again, so I stopped the cycle and again scooped the water and suds out of the dishwasher and into the sink. I was lost for ideas, and was quite embarassed by my stupidity.

So then, of course, I turned to the Internet to figure out if anyone had a solution to this problem. WWBVD? (What would Bob Vila do?) Apparently, there are a number of solutions. Crisco Oil. Oil, Table Salt, and Ice Cubes. A bar of soap, liquid fabric softener, malt vinegar, milk, or a half-cup of vegetable oil. White vinegar. Baking soda.

According to wikipedia : Hand-washing dish detergent (washing up liquid) should not be used in a dishwasher, as it will create a large foam of bubbles which will leak from the dishwasher. If hand-washing detergent is accidentally used, the foam may be removed by spraying with salt, and the dishwasher should be forced into a drain cycle to remove the soap and water.

So that's what I tried, and it worked. The only problem left was the ceiling tiles.

I woke up this morning with a plan. I carefully took down one of the ceiling tiles and put it in the trunk of my car. Ace Hardware couldn't help me, so I went to Home Depot and walked in the front door with my ceiling under my arm. I found the tiles that were exactly right, but they were much brighter white than the one I had in my hand. "That's going to look funny," I thought to myself. I asked for assistance and discovered that you can't buy just one ceiling tile, you have to buy a whole case of 16 tiles. "How many cases would I need to replace Cliff and Huddy's entire ceiling?" I had to drive back to their house to make a count. I would need at least 3 cases, and would have to buy one of those special saws that cuts ceiling tiles to the right size.

Luckily, I called Cliff and found out that he has some extra tiles and that I shouldn't buy more.

Needless to say, lesson learned. I hope that this post will save someone from the hassle which I have been hasseling for the last two days.

And again I say, NO MATTER WHAT, never confuse liquid dish soap with dishwasher detergent!

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

This might be the funniest thing I've read in a REALLY long time. I am just bursting out laughing right now and had to call Noel to tell him about it. At least my grandparents are nice people! And at least you're so good at doing research on how to fix the dishwasher! I hope next week goes more smoothly for you. :)

Heidi

Leticia said...

I love you! I can just picture you running around hysterically and energetically trying to solve the problem! Now that it's all said and done and everything is okay... what a wonderful story to someday tell your kids (when they won't have a clue what you're talking about since they won't sell liquid dish soap anymore). We'd love to have you over when you're adjusted! Let us know when you have time to hang out!

Anonymous said...

that is one of the funniest things I've heard in forever!!! I'm glad it all worked out...but thanks for the laugh!

--jami ruth

Michelle said...

Oh my word!!! Your description is so amazing, I can picture this whole even perfectly in my mind. My favorite part is you taking the ceiling tile to Home Depot. Hilarious!!! This is pretty much the best story... at least since the last time you went to GR :) .

Flame Lilly said...

What a great story!! I'm laughing so hard right now...I loved' CALL OUR MOMS!!!! That was the best!!
And thanks for sharing with us, so we don't make the same mistake!!!!
S:)

Transplant said...

OK! I promise I will never use dishwasher detergent in my dishwasher, though I never would have guessed it would create such a mess. I'm so glad you learned this one for all of us. I probably would have been crying in there somewhere, way before I got to the internet part!!!

Mindy said...

I'm speechless! you guys are hilarious!

Anonymous said...

I knew I liked you....cause I did the SAME thing when I was younger. Bubbles were everywhere and they just wouldn't stop. Not only did my brother and I take turns filling buckets of bubbles and dumping them outside, but it ruined my parents wood floor around the dishwasher. Oops :).

So funny :)

Sarah said...

Oh, Amber! This made me laugh but also brought back some memories of my friend Alicia doing the exact same thing in high school. Many buckets of suds and a very mad mom were what remained. Nice work on the research! Love you and hang in there!

Anonymous said...

I understand and feel your pain. Once in college I did the same thing, and then left for the day. My roommate found pretty much what you describe when he beat me home.

Sorry for your trouble.

Transplant's Brother.

Anonymous said...

I thought everyone knew to not put liquid dish soap in the dishwasher. Now I think EVERYONE knows.