Alkaline dishwasher detergent

Claim 1

An automatic dishwashing composition providing optimum cleaning; spotting and filming; and physical characteristics consisting essentially of: (1) from about 20% to about 60% of a detergency builder selected from the group consisting of alkali metal tripolyphosphates, pyrophosphates, orthophosphates, carbonates and mixtures thereof; (2) from about 30% to about 38% alkali metal silicate providing from about 10% to about 15% of SiO 2 the silicate being a mixture of alkali metal silicates of which (a) from about 6% to about 15%, based on the total formula is present as hydrous silicate having an SiO 2 :M 2 O ratio of from about 2.0 r to about 3.2 r and a solids content of from about 75% to about 85%, and (b) the remainder of the silicate is a mixture of 2.0 r and 3.0 r to 3.6 r silicates with from about 15% to about 50% of the total silicate being provided by the 2.0 r silicate, and from about 10% to about 50% of the total SiO 2 being provided by the higher ratio silicate, and wherein M is selected from the group consisting of sodium and potassium; (3) available chlorine at a level of from about 0.5% to about 3%; and (4) from about 5.5% to about 9.5% of a low foaming nonionic surfactant said composition having a pH of from about 10.4 to 10.9 at 2,500 ppm and being substantially free of materials having a pH of 12 or more at a concentration of 1% in water and organic chelating builders.