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Discussion Forum

Any dishwasher recommendations?

xxPaulCPxx | Posted in General Discussion on May 24, 2009 08:46am

I hear Bruce Lee was a pretty good dishwasher back in the day, but since he passed on, as has my Maytag 300, it looks like I need a replacement.

What seems to works well?

Tu stultus es
Rebuilding my home in Cypress, CA
Also a CRX fanatic!

Look, just send me to my drawer.  This whole talking-to-you thing is like double punishment.

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Replies

  1. User avater
    BarryE | May 24, 2009 08:52pm | #1

    FrenchMaid


    Barry E-Remodeler

     

  2. Howard_Burt | May 24, 2009 09:12pm | #2

    How much money are you planning on spending?

    1. User avater
      xxPaulCPxx | May 24, 2009 10:18pm | #5

      About $500.  Right now, with coupons and sales, Lowes has them for about 20% off, which HD will match.

      Tu stultus esRebuilding my home in Cypress, CAAlso a CRX fanatic!

      Look, just send me to my drawer.  This whole talking-to-you thing is like double punishment.

      1. Howard_Burt | May 25, 2009 03:11am | #23

        $500 will buy about 1/3 of the Miele I was going to recommend. Expensive but worth it IMO.

  3. MSA1 | May 24, 2009 09:52pm | #3

    If it were my house, Bosch or Kitchen Aid. The important thing though, is a stainless steel tank.

     

    Family.....They're always there when they need you.

    1. User avater
      xxPaulCPxx | May 24, 2009 10:19pm | #6

      We've got pretty hard water here, and the old one seemed to be a calcium factory with all the stuff that hardened to the plastic sides.

      How will SS fair?

      Tu stultus esRebuilding my home in Cypress, CAAlso a CRX fanatic!

      Look, just send me to my drawer.  This whole talking-to-you thing is like double punishment.

      1. MSA1 | May 25, 2009 01:03am | #15

        Sorry, cant answer that but I guess the SS is supposedly better then a plastic tank. 

        Family.....They're always there when they need you.

      2. gotcha | May 25, 2009 04:50am | #27

        Paul,
        Stainless holds heat better for drying.For mineral build up you need to always make sure you have enough rinse aid. Also, every month or so put 2 cups of vinegar in the machine and run the machine empty. There is a $5 product you can buy that is essentially doing the same as cheap vinegar.Pete

  4. junkhound | May 24, 2009 10:15pm | #4

    Different take than others.

    Get the cheapest GE or Hotpoint (same). Bought one of those 30 years ago, replaced in 2 years ago only because all the seals and rubber hoses and tray wheels were deteriorating.  For $150, it was just as easy to replace the whole thing. 

    Open the front and install some closed cell rubber foam, glue same to sides and back, now it is as quiet as the $1K status symbol dishwashers. 

  5. Karl | May 24, 2009 10:26pm | #7

    We started out with a mid to low range Maytag that has had several maintenance issues that would have been questionable value without an extended warrantee.

    We moved and this time splurged and bought a Miele for something ridiculous like 1200 dollars. The local appliance chain was discontinuing the Miele line and was heavily marking down the floor displays.

    The main thing I like about the Miele was it has a silverware drawer instead of a bin to stand them up in.

    Also the store manager had the model we bought in his house which seemed like a vote of confidence.

    The miele is super quiet looks great, cleans well and can hold a huge amount of dishes if you load it right.

    The downside includes:
    I personally think it is just as easy to handwash the dishes
    It was ridiculuosly expensive
    We can barely fit large dinner plates in without hitting the upper spray arm.

    Good luck as there were way too many choices for us to consider.

    I recall finding some good long term commentaries on ownership of several appliances at a "gardenweb" forum. It seemed like there were some regulars there that researched the heck out of their appliance options, bought their best choice and then somewhat obsessively post about the process from research to purchase to actual experience with the product.

    I would buy a miele again if the price was right or I would get a bosch.

    My grandma got a kenmore badged bosch from sears on sale that has worked great and I think we got if for her based on reviews from epinions or some site like that.

    Karl

    1. semar | May 25, 2009 01:50am | #16

      we just bought Miele; the old kitchenaid gave up
      Never had a better dishwasher. superquiet, SS, upper tray for silverware frees up a lot of space, movable racks allow various configurations, easy clean-out feature, leakproof (that alone can save you a bundle), paid 1100 C$, you get what you pay for. They are designed to last for 25 years
      2nd choice would have been Bosch or Blomberg

  6. Oak River Mike | May 24, 2009 10:36pm | #8

    If you are willing to spend around $900 you can get a Bosch.  I have owned two (one in Germany and one now) and will never buy another brand.  They clean like mad but best of all they are SUPER quiet.  WHich was important to the wife as I usually run a load through right when we are going to bed so they are clean when we wake up.  Our old one before used to keep her up or bother us if it ran while watching TV.

    The Bosch is so quiet we have sometimes opened the door while its running and got a bit of a spalsh surprise!

    But seriously, they cost more but if quiet operation is important to you, its worth it!

    Mike

    1. reinvent | May 24, 2009 11:49pm | #11

      There are some super quiet brands that have a LED that shines on the floor to let you know it's running.

      1. Oak River Mike | May 25, 2009 02:56am | #20

        Yeah, I wish they had those when we got ours 9 years ago.  Very cool!

    2. User avater
      xxPaulCPxx | May 25, 2009 04:38am | #24

      Well, I took everyones advice and got a Fridgidaire :)  I would have gotten the cheapest Bosch ($500), but I have to get this put in tomorrow if I can't revive my current one.  The Bosch only came in white if you were willing to wait for delivery.

      Tu stultus esRebuilding my home in Cypress, CAAlso a CRX fanatic!

      Look, just send me to my drawer.  This whole talking-to-you thing is like double punishment.

      1. User avater
        xxPaulCPxx | May 25, 2009 04:39am | #25

        It's amazing, looking at online reviews, how much people can really truely HATE their dishwashers.  Really, units keeling over in two years, people have such unrealistic expectations.

        Tu stultus esRebuilding my home in Cypress, CAAlso a CRX fanatic!

        Look, just send me to my drawer.  This whole talking-to-you thing is like double punishment.

      2. gotcha | May 25, 2009 04:54am | #28

        Paul,
        Ooopsss.
        Whose advised Frigidaire? Surely you jest!
        You maybe didn't check out Consumer Reports.
        You are correct when you say cheap.
        Should give you good service for a while anyway.Pete

        1. brownbagg | May 25, 2009 05:00am | #29

          I got a fridgdaid and it works ok but the platic parts keep breaking.

          1. gotcha | May 26, 2009 03:21pm | #40

            bb,
            Here at Sears, we avoid selling much Frigidaire stuff. Freezers seem to be ok as well as the small garage friges. Side by side and dishwashers we avoid... Ranges are also pretty good.Pete

          2. webted | May 26, 2009 05:35pm | #41

            We had a Bosch for about 7 years, and it was nice and quiet. Unfortunately, it had a screen you had to clean out that was much more of a PITA than you'd initially think. Also, as it got older you had to clean it with greater frequency, plus pull out some of the "post-filter" filters and clean them as well. Outside of that, it did a great job with dishes and was pretty quiet. We left it when we left the house.Our current house has no interior wall insulation, so sound rattles around easily. We wanted as quiet a washer as we could get, internal food grinder (e.g. no screens) adjustable racks, quiet as possible and <$2k. We went with a GE Profile, and it has worked quite well for 2.5 years now. Easy installation, very quiet. -t

          3. DanH | May 26, 2009 07:51pm | #42

            Our Bosch has a screen, but it never collects anything. We don't "pre-wash" dishes, but generally scrape them pretty good before they go in.
            As I stood before the gates I realized that I never want to be as certain about anything as were the people who built this place. --Rabbi Sheila Peltz, on her visit to Auschwitz

          4. User avater
            xxPaulCPxx | May 26, 2009 08:03pm | #43

            Avoidance of Frigidaire DW seems like a good idea:

            RE: Frigidaire Dishwasher Reviews

            By M (Guest Post)

            View ImageFIRE for us, too.Our Frigidaire Gallery dishwasher Model Number GLDB957AQ1 caught fire the other night. We woke up in the middle of the night to a house filling with smoke and an overwhelming smell of burning plastic. We came down to see our dishwasher break out in flames. Fortunately, we were prepared with smoke alarms and a fire extinguisher, and were able to put the flames out. The fire department came and confirmed that the dishwasher control panel caused the fire.As someone else said, thank God we were home, or we would have lost everything. Thank God all our children were safe!

            View Image

            Four other pictures of circuit boards burned through are on that same review site!  Apparently Frigidaire has a propensity for bursting into flames - even when not in use! 

            I took back the DW I had initially bought, I'll go Bosch if I have to replace.  I cleaned the gunk out of my existing DW and ran a citric acid cleaner through it twice, really made a difference.  Looks like new inside.

            Tu stultus esRebuilding my home in Cypress, CAAlso a CRX fanatic!

            Look, just send me to my drawer.  This whole talking-to-you thing is like double punishment.

    3. DanH | May 25, 2009 07:49am | #35

      Yeah, the Bosch is amazingly quiet -- hard to tell if it's running or not much of the time.
      As I stood before the gates I realized that I never want to be as certain about anything as were the people who built this place. --Rabbi Sheila Peltz, on her visit to Auschwitz

  7. MrBill | May 24, 2009 10:47pm | #9

    Paul,

     We have had two Kitchenaids in 30 years. The first one was top of the line when we built the house in 1978, it lasted till about 5 years ago and started leaking :(  The new one works fine and is very quiet compared to the old one but is a bit disappointing in the layout of the baskets and the spray arms. You cannot put what we consider a normal size dinner plate in most parts of the bottom basket without it hitting the spray arm. We have gotten used to it, but make sure to look at that part of the equation when you go shopping. Maybe even load your up like you normally do, take a picture and take it with you when you look at the new ones ?

    Bill Koustenis

    Advanced Automotive Machine

    Waldorf Md

    1. User avater
      xxPaulCPxx | May 24, 2009 11:01pm | #10

      Bringing along some dishes - good idea!

      Tu stultus esRebuilding my home in Cypress, CAAlso a CRX fanatic!

      Look, just send me to my drawer.  This whole talking-to-you thing is like double punishment.

    2. gotcha | May 25, 2009 04:47am | #26

      Bill,
      Most top end machines have adjustable top racks. You raise the rack to put trays in the lower area.....Can't believe Kitchen aid wouldn't have such.Pete

    3. Norman | May 27, 2009 12:26am | #44

      Re:

      You cannot put what we consider a normal size dinner plate in most parts of the bottom basket without it hitting the spray arm.

      Have you tried raising the upper shelf? I had to.

    4. Norman | May 27, 2009 12:29am | #45

      +1 for Kitchen Aid.

  8. plumbbill | May 25, 2009 12:27am | #12

    What seems to works well?

    Hobart

    Do a load under a minute & a half, how can ya beat that?

     

    1. User avater
      xxPaulCPxx | May 25, 2009 12:37am | #13

      Yeah, that $4500 price tag is a bit much though.

      Tu stultus esRebuilding my home in Cypress, CAAlso a CRX fanatic!

      Look, just send me to my drawer.  This whole talking-to-you thing is like double punishment.

      1. User avater
        shywoodlandcreature | May 25, 2009 12:53am | #14

        We bought a Miele when our 2-year-old KitchenAid punked out on us. It's been wonderful - quiet, efficient, and as someone else pointed out, the silverware tray is like icing on the cake. We have very soft water, so only use half a tablet of the detergent. Never any streaks, or crusting, or etching. And we do use it to wash fine crystal, sterling silver, and the good dinnerware. It's expensive, but worth every penny, IMNSHO.

        "And then, because of the transitive reactive Halstead-era seizing properties of the Aboriginal Double Humpback Turtle, I thought, what if I add one teaspoon of clarified monkey paste?" Anonymous blog comment on "America's Test Kitchen"

      2. plumbbill | May 25, 2009 02:46am | #19

        Here, they have two @ "make offer"

        http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/for/1162842037.html

         

    2. Pelipeth | May 25, 2009 02:44am | #18

      I agree, 90 seconds, DONE. Have only had one client go for it though. Somewhat surprised I don't see more of them. Lasts 10 yrs. $450 per year, under domestic use should last alot longer. I don't think many people know they exist for undercounter application.

  9. ted | May 25, 2009 02:40am | #17

    Bosch.

  10. User avater
    IMERC | May 25, 2009 02:56am | #21

    Bosch...

     

    Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming

    WOW!!! What a Ride!


    Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!

     

    "Some days it's just not worth chewing through the restraints"

    1. User avater
      FatRoman | May 25, 2009 03:10am | #22

      One of these days I'm going to see you recommending Ryobi. LOL'Man who say it cannot be done should not interrupt man doing it' ~ Chinese proverb

      View Image

      1. User avater
        IMERC | May 25, 2009 06:06am | #32

        in which life time is that???? 

        Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->

        WOW!!! What a Ride!

        Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!

         

        "Some days it's just not worth chewing through the restraints"

  11. sandalboy | May 25, 2009 05:00am | #30

    We love our Fisher Paykel. The drawer design makes it so easy. No bending over unless we use the lower unit which is rarely. The older that I get the more that I avoid unnecessary bending over. There were lots of reliability complaints with the ones older than ours. I think that they got the issues worked on them by now though. We are on the 5th year and only had one minor issue. The new part was redesigned (much sturdier) and was something around $20. My only gripe is that for the price, $1100, it should have had a stainless interior. It's very quiet, very efficient, easy to load and unload, and each of the 2 drawers holds about 2/3 the dishes of a regular dishwasher. I think that Kitchen Aid started making a drawer style washer a couple years ago, and that would be the only other unit that I would consider at this point.

  12. User avater
    cabanillas3 | May 25, 2009 05:06am | #31

    We got a GE Monogram SS interior on sale about 6 years or so ago as a model closeout off the GE website, and it is incredibly good at cleaning and very quiet. If you look at GE or any of their related brands, look for "quiet package" 2 or 3. Ours is a 3 and all you hear is water swishing - like a Bosch but cheaper.

    SS handles hard water better - we ahve had no problems in Lakewood with staining or buildup.

    One thing about Bosch - not all models have a macerator, and some of them have a cup which can get some icky things in it from time to time.

    jose c.
    --
    "Though I don't think" added Deep Thought "that you're going to like it."
    1. MissD | May 25, 2009 06:16am | #33

      I bought a Maytag dishwasher about 10 years ago.  The main factor is the lower tray is slanted so I can place tall baking pans without using up a lot of space.  I still have the same dishwasher.  I think it is loud, but I live in a small townhouse.  

  13. DanH | May 25, 2009 07:47am | #34

    We're pretty happy with our Bosch. Cleans quite a bit better than our old Maytag (which was quite a bit better than the KA it replaced 20 years ago).

    Only real complaint is that the silverware basket on the lower-end model we got isn't that well thought out. The fancier models appear to be better in this regard.

    As I stood before the gates I realized that I never want to be as certain about anything as were the people who built this place. --Rabbi Sheila Peltz, on her visit to Auschwitz
  14. danski0224 | May 25, 2009 06:14pm | #36

    Redhead

    1. User avater
      xxPaulCPxx | May 25, 2009 06:52pm | #37

      I've heard they were all pretty high maintenence.

      Tu stultus esRebuilding my home in Cypress, CAAlso a CRX fanatic!

      Look, just send me to my drawer.  This whole talking-to-you thing is like double punishment.

      1. DanH | May 25, 2009 06:58pm | #38

        They get really expensive when it's time to replace them.
        As I stood before the gates I realized that I never want to be as certain about anything as were the people who built this place. --Rabbi Sheila Peltz, on her visit to Auschwitz

    2. User avater
      IMERC | May 25, 2009 08:04pm | #39

      naw....

      they tend to throw dishes... 

      Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming<!----><!----><!---->

      WOW!!! What a Ride!

      Forget the primal scream, just ROAR!!!

       

      "Some days it's just not worth chewing through the restraints"

  15. Hackinatit | May 27, 2009 12:44am | #46

    KitchenAide quiet with cab front attachment

    View Image

     

    View Image

    A La Carte Government funding... the real democracy.

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