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I am remodeling my kitchen and will be replacing my reliable white 18 year old Whirlpool dishwasher with a stainless steel one. From my preliminary research, the majority of what I read are complaints with dishwashers of today not getting dishes clean, wash cycles taking too long, sensors not working properly and water saving features a pain. Do basic, no frills, quiet, decent cycle length dishwashers exist? It also seems like few have an open (without plastic flip-up doors) silverware rack that is mounted in the door. I have looked at Consumer Reports and know which models score high, but there's nothing like asking people about real world experiences with cleaning cycle length, cleaning ability, noise, drying etc.
I went to a big box home improvement store and the most appliances they had in the clearance section were dishwashers and front load washing machines. Most were customer returns because they are marked "used." Guess that's proof a lot of people are dissatisfied with new, improved appliances these days. Is it risky to buy in the appliance clearance section?
I wish I could paint my old, reliable Whirlpool from the 1990's stainless steel, but it certainly won't go in a new kitchen since cosmetically it has faded/yellowed from a bright white to an almond or bisque color, especially on the top near the handle and control panel. I know you can buy aftermarket stainless steel panels and stainless steel looking adhesive paper, but I'm still hesitant about that option. If I buy stainless steel, am I committed to buying the same brand as a new wall oven, refrigerator, microwave etc in order to have the stainless steel shade match?
We got a $250 dishwasher from Sears a few years ago. At the time we were planning on remodeling our kitchen in a couple years and wanted cheep as we didn't know what appliances we would end up with. We still haven't remodeled our kitchen but the dishwasher works very well. I don't know that it's quiet like some of the higher end ones. When my husband installed it he decided that it didn't need the insulation wrap . It's quieter then our 18 year old Whirlpool was though--but not silent like the newer ones. It doesn't dry very well but it cleans VERY well. We just air dry them---and it has saved us a fair amount on our electric bill.
We followed C.R. and bought a Bosch - the top rated CR dishwasher of the year. It is terrible. It breaks a lot and the only Bosch repariman is a log way away, so he charges a lot for a service call. Parts are very expensive and sometimes have to be ordered from Germany. When it works, it does a mediochre job washing and a terrible job drying. BUt hey, it is quiet and doe nto use much water.
I have a mix of brands in my kitchen, all are stainless steel. In our old house (we just moved in November) we also had a mix of brands. I didn't notice any difference in the "color" of the stainless.
However, there are stainless steel and "stainless look" appliances. I think mixing those two types wouldn't look right.
As far as a dishwasher, the Kitchenaid model (stainless inside and out) that I bought about 6 years ago for the old house served us very well. The only problem I had with it was the control panel (outside with the buttons - not the circuit board inside) went bad. I found out it was because my mother-in-law felt that the best way to clean was to spray the thing down top-to-bottom with cleaner and then wipe it down. Rule #1, spray the cloth - not the appliance. Once I put a stop to that, no further issues. I wish I had taken it out and installed a cheap one in its place. It was much nicer than what I have now, which is a low-end Frigidaire. I made the mistake of taking my wife shopping when I bought the Kitchenaid. It had a 3rd rack at the very top - for silverware, spatulas, etc. It cost $100 more than an otherwise identical model without he rack. But, she saw that 3rd rack and just had to have it. I'll admit it came in quite handy.
I am remodeling my kitchen and will be replacing my reliable white 18 year old Whirlpool dishwasher with a stainless steel one. From my preliminary research, the majority of what I read are complaints with dishwashers of today not getting dishes clean, wash cycles taking too long, sensors not working properly and water saving features a pain.
Quote:
Do basic, no frills, quiet, decent cycle length dishwashers exist? It also seems like few have an open (without plastic flip-up doors) silverware rack that is mounted in the door.
That rack is a Whirlpool thing. I've had both the Whirlpool stainless model (plastic tub) and the similar Kitchenaid (stainless tub, no door-mounted rack), and they both work fine.
Quote:
If I buy stainless steel, am I committed to buying the same brand as a new wall oven, refrigerator, microwave etc in order to have the stainless steel shade match?
Depends on how picky you are. I have a new Frigidaire stove and microwave, an old Frigidaire refrigerator, and a KitchenAid dishwasher. The handles are different, and the refrigerator stainless steel shade is slightly duller, but it all works.
Some brands have a more unique color of stainless which might be a problem; Samsung has a bluish tint on some of their SS appliances, for instance, and that would probably clash with "regular" stainless steel.
One way to get around the long cycle time is try using the "light wash" and see how it works for you.
I currently have a Whirlpool with the door-loaded silverware basket. I wasn't real crazy about it at first, just because it was different, but the silverware seems to get clean and it also gives you more space on the bottom rack for dishes.
We followed C.R. and bought a Bosch - the top rated CR dishwasher of the year. It is terrible. It breaks a lot and the only Bosch repariman is a log way away, so he charges a lot for a service call. Parts are very expensive and sometimes have to be ordered from Germany. When it works, it does a mediochre job washing and a terrible job drying. BUt hey, it is quiet and doe nto use much water.
And as a counterpoint, we have a Bosch Ecosense, 2 1/2 years old, it has not had a single problem, is extremely quiet and does a great job.
Do basic, no frills, quiet, decent cycle length dishwashers exist?
No, I do not believe they exist. The basic, cheap dishwashers are bought by builders, contractors and apartment owners, i.e. people who won't actually have to use them. I believe that anyone who is buying one for their own use will be happier with a mid-range model and up. If you want both quiet and a short cycle, you might have to pay more, but then you sacrifice the basic and no frills. Sorry, it's not as easy as you would think!! I bought a mid-range Kenmore with long cycles, and it's okay, but I think I would have been happier with a more expensive, quieter Bosch.
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. It's quieter then our 18 year old Whirlpool was though--but not silent like the newer ones. It doesn't dry very well but it cleans VERY well. We just air dry them---and it has saved us a fair amount on our electric bill.
