JBR wrote:
Ah yes - the TLDR.
If your dishwasher has two cycles, it doesn't use the main detergent tray till the main wash. The pre wash would be greatly helped by having some detergent, and dishwasher tablets etc. mitigate against it.
So: if you have a prewash compartment, or dint on top of the detergent door (struggling for a better term - washing cupboard?), squirt a bit of detergent in there. Or break a bit of tablet off, if you have a crumbly tablet, I suppose.
Edit: So you can stick with tablets and do that, but the whole thing is made easier with a bottle of detergent to squirt into your different compartments.