Phosphate and chlorine laden detergent still exists.

Is your water on the hard side?

I'd get those chalky results on occasion when I used institutional cascade in hard water. Problem disappeared in soft water conditions.

Try doubling the dose in both cups and see if the problem lessens or disappears. 

It's not a temperature problem, I don't think you're using enough product.

I've had my water heater set at 160F for decades, no problems. Those temps are necessary for getting whites nice and clean using oxygen bleach in a washer without a heater. The energy used is almost negligible since less water is pulled from the heater under normal conditions.

Half a tablespoon in the main wash is definitely not enough detergent.  A tablespoon is 15 ml, so you're only using 7.5 ml when you should be using closer to 40 ml.  8-9 GPG is considered hard water, although not extremely hard.  I would recommend filling the dispenser completely.  The photo shows the dosing guide for a KitchenAid KUDS23.  You might be better off using a good detergent pac instead.

In the link you provided, it says that this detergent can also be used for hand washing dishes.  This is the first time I have ever seen a dishwasher detergent say this.  In fact, they normally say they are not suitable for washing dishes by hand.  And I wonder if it really does contain STPP -- they claim it's 20-30% phosphate.  Before the phosphate ban, Cascade contained about 30% phosphate which equates to about 8% phosphorus content.

You're welcome!  Thanks for adding the extra info.  It's interesting that they're saying it causes severe skin burns but can be used when washing dishes by hand 🤔

I have experimented with all kinds of different dishwasher detergents in different dishwashers, including ones with chlorine and phosphate.  I also sometimes add phosphate to modern detergents.  But I have always had a water softener (either whole-house or built into the dishwasher) so I don't have any experience of trying to alleviate the effects of hard water.

Another thought could be that the Cascade pacs contain a so-called "rinse aid action" which could help to avoid hard water build up, especially combined with the separate rinse aid you're using.  Whereas the dishwasher powder you're using will not have a rinse aid effect, so you might need to turn up the rinse aid setting on your dishwasher.  I would probably recommend filling the detergent dispenser completely full and also try increasing the rinse aid dosage when you're not using "all-in-one" pacs.

Good luck!

Mark

Just out of interest, what model of KA do you have?  And did you buy this detergent just to try it, or were you dissatisfied with the Cascade Complete pacs and looking to improve on a particular aspect?

We use Hytron dw detergent which is a lot like the old Electrasol formula. It is loaded with chlorine and STPP. It performs great for us, and our water heater temp is set at 130ºF. 

A man after my own heart.

I do believe, however, that temps north of 160F actually hinder performance in a dishwasher though.