Most of the mentions of Kool Aid on Unplggd are references to cult-like behaviors along the lines of "drinking the Apple Kool Aid." But who knew the popular drink mix could help with kitchen appliance upkeep?
Yeah, we complain when our glasses come out of the dishwasher looking spotty or—gasp!—with gunk all over them. But how frequently do you clean your dishwasher?
Cleaning the dishwasher just got a whole lot easier with this tip: A 35¢ pack of Kool Aid Lemonade drink mix, poured into your dishwasher's detergent cup, can help to clean lime deposits and iron stains.
Just make sure the dishwasher is empty when you run your flavor-infused cleaner through. And don't get lazy and use the Purplesarus Rex packet sitting in your cupboard, Lemonade is the only flavor that works. It's the citric acid in the mix that does the trick.

Shaw's Original Fir...
My mom used to use Tang, the orange drink. Works like a charm.
Can you just use straight lemon juice or is there something about the koolaid?
Since I am the dishwasher I just wash my hands when I am done.
I have used orange- and lime-flavored Koolaid and they work as well as the lemonade--all three have citric acid in them. Because of extremely hard water where I live, I use two or three packages in one cycle when cleaning. Make sure it is the UNSWEETENED Koolaid packet....the article does not stress this and the printing on the package is too tiny to read in the picture.