Hands that do dishes, they can be soft as your face! (Fairy Tab Dishwasher Tablets)

Member Name: jo@145

Product:	Fairy Tab Dishwasher Tablets
Date:	06/06/05 (2059 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Clean dishes, Bright glassware

Disadvantages: Need a dishwasher!

Do you remember that advert? Fairy soap was used for washing clothes and Fairy Liquid was what my Mum used when she washed the dishes, although I do remember a time when the old bits of soap were put into a wire mesh container and swished about to make suds! But thankfully washing up liquid was invented. Now we have moved on and so many people have dishwashers which are an asset in busy homes although “doing the dishes” can be a great time to chat and often at family reunions a time to discuss all sorts of things!
With my first dishwasher (bought after double major surgery, when I couldn’t stand to do the dishes!) I had a sample of powder and continued to use this for years. The powder I mean not the sample! Eventually handy tablets were produced, which were individually wrapped, providing the exact amount required for each wash. Much safer with children around and easy to use.
Manufacturers are always try to find new ideas, and started adding a wee pearl to give a “3 in 1” product. Seemed a great idea, but by now I was onto my second dishwasher that was produced with flatter tablets in mind and my little pearl would not fit in the compartment easily. Drat. I had to force the lid closed and was worried it would break.
When shopping in Costco before Christmas I spotted Fairy Dishwasher tablets, although it said “3 times active system”, I couldn’t see evidence of pearls so decided to try Fairy.

Information

The box is large and contains 75 tablets, 19cm high x 9.5 depth and 18.5 wide. It is a nice bright green in colour with the Fairy name and logo in white and red, and a picture of some sparkly clean glasses. Nothing fancy here but I have always loved the Fairy baby! On the back are simple instructions in picture form, showing how to tear off the opening strip which then leaves an easy opening dispenser type box. There is a warning to keep out of the reach of children and that it is an irritant to eyes. In case of accident, rinse eyes with plenty of water and seek medical advice. If swallowed, drink water and seek advice immediately showing the label, do not induce vomiting. There is a big cross and warning that this is an IRRITANT. Also on the box is the ingredients, it contains enzymes and bleaching agents. Therefore you could reasonably suppose that your dishes will become lighter after constant washing, but then they always do, don’t they? Another warning is do not let silver touch stainless steel and do not machine wash antique/hand painted china or fine lead crystal. It states you can use in combination with Fairy Rinse Aid 2 in 1 with built in machine care for even shinier results.

3 times Active System

The tablets are 4 x 3 x 1 cm, with a clean almost clinical smell. A white compressed tablet with different coloured blue speckles and the top is indented rather like a brick and has a thin layer of deeper blue with darker grains,
Soak, Scrub and Shine. Soak - the built-in prewash tablet starts to clean immediately, even in cold water. Scrub – the biological stain scrubbers break down and lift off even the toughest residue. Shine – finally the rest of the Fairy tablet cleans away any remaining residues leaving the dishes sparkling clean.

This is copied from P&G’s web site. “The excellent cleaning performance comes from the enzyme, builder, oxygen bleach and surfactant ingredients adapted from P&G's laundry and household cleaning technologies, and with specialist technology developed specifically for use in Automatic Dishwashing products. Fairy is particularly effective for cleaning starch or protein based food remains from dishes, and tea and coffee stains from crockery.
The products are designed to deliver excellent shine (less spotting/filming) on dishes, cutlery and crockery. They also control deposits of calcium carbonate in the machine which means greater protection inside of the machine from limescale build-up.”

Results
So far I have not had any rejects! Even a tuna pasta bake casserole came out sparkling clean. The glasses are looking brighter, and the cutlery all shiny. No complaints in the results, so I agree with the above statement – it does have an excellent cleaning performance. We have soft water in Scotland so the limescale build-up is not a worry. I haven’t found it necessary to use the extra Rinse Aid.

Cost
£13.95 plus VAT for 4 boxes of 75, from Costco. This works out as a fraction over 5 pence each wash.

A Bit of History

The Procter & Gamble Company was founded in 1837 by an Englishman, William Procter and an Irishman, James Gamble. (What happened to the Scotsman?) It began as a small, family operated soap and candle company in Cincinnati, Ohio. By coincidence, also in 1837, Thomas Hedley & Co. was established in Newcastle upon Tyne, making soap and candles. The company bought the rights to the word ‘Fairy’ and launched the first all-purpose soap in 1898. Fairy remains one of the best-known household product names to this day. In 1930, P&G established its first overseas subsidiary with the acquisition of Thomas Hedley & Co. Ltd. More information like this is on the website and information of all their products ingredients in case of accident.

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