BOSCH - best dishwasher I've ever had / checklist
Written: Jul 25 '00 (Updated Jul 25 '00)
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Pros: lowest use of water & electricity, cage of stainless steel, highest temperature
Cons: not the cheapest (but it's the best)
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| ptiemann's Full Review: Bosch SHU43 Built-in Dishwasher |
A few weeks ago I was for the first time in the market for a dishwasher. My old Kenmore had died long ago. I went to the local SEARS and walked through this checklist (sorted by importance from very to not so important:
* Water / Electricity Efficiency
* Reliability
* Capacity
* Price
* Noise Level (this was hard to see in the store)
* Good Technology
* (Others)
The sales guy showed me some models for prices from $198 to over $700. I ended up deciding between the BOSCH SHU 4300 (on sale, $579) and a Kenmore ($440).
1) Water / Electricity Efficiency
The BOSCH was the only dishwasher that qualified for a certificate to be environmental-friendly. (Sorry, I forgot the name of the certificate and it's not mentioned in the manual.)
A "Power Scrub Plus" wash will take 99 minutes and 7 gallons of water.
The "Regular Wash" will take 94 minutes and 5 gallons.
The "Rinse & Hold Only" will take 9 minutes and 1.2 gallons.
I have not tried the "Rinse & Hold"; my dishes are usually thoroughly soiled :-) BOSCH's best model uses only 6 / 4 gallons.
Compare that to Kenmore's "Ultrawash" generation, that uses 13 gallons in regular wash and 9 gallons in low-energy mode; typical for energy-consuming-happy American brands.
Using - and thus heating - less water means saving on electricity too, although BOSCH washers heat the water up to 161F (other brands in the store reached a maximum of 110F - 125F). Because of the higher temperature they can use different energy-conserving way to dry the dishes (called "condensation drying"). The higher temperature is also responsible for getting clean results with less water.
2) Reliability
Besides the dramatic difference in use of resources the quality of the construction convinced me that the BOSCH model was hands-down the best model there.
* Inside it is stainless steel. Not plastic a la Kenmore.
* The door is stainless steel. It is very solid. Just go in the store, open a Bosch door and try to bend it. You won't bend it. Then go to any other manufacturer, the doors are like of rubber - they bend easily.
* Nylon top rack - I think it was called "nylon". Go with your finger-nail over the rack of any cheaper dishwasher and you can scrape the white coating off easily. I could see many people had done this test in the store already as there were lots of scratches on the rack; including the rack of the considered Kenmore. I was not able to scratch my name or anything else for that matter in the nylon rack. Supposed to be impossible.
3) Capacity
BOSCH is the only manufacturer that offers 10 inch clearance in the top rack, the sales guy proudly said. Ok. What I do like are those unique holders for wine/ champagne glasses in the top rack. See for yourself when you are in the store.
4) Price
The only draw-back. Quality is not cheap. The cheapest washers go for $200, the BOSCH was on sale for $579. Add a $100 for delivery / installation.
Add a $20 because BOSCH is somehow more difficult to install. Add sales tax.
I ended up with $750.
5) Noise Level
BOSCH advertises that their washers are the quietest available in North-America. I don't know what that "in North-America" means. Are Cuban washers quieter but banned? I personally don't care for the noise because I just turn it on and leave the kitchen. From my experience it seems to be quiet but I cannot quantify it.
(The manual says 50dB; the most expensive model produces a max. of 48dB)
6) Good Technology
BOSCH's sprays water on 4 levels versus 2 or 3 as cheaper models do. The cheaper models thus have to spray more water.
BOSCH's so called "Flow-Through-Heater" makes the water pass through a heating chamber while the competition has conventional inefficiently heating elements where water falls randomly onto a coil. This unique system allows the 161F which meets sanitizing requirements.
About "ease of use".. I should mention here that I like the fact that it does not have a dozen of buttons. If I want to see a dozen of buttons, I can look at my telephone (12) or keyboard (over 100)! I just want as much choice as I realistically need.
7) (Others)
Of course I expect from any dishwasher that it cleans the stuff. I've used it 3 times now and I'm absolutely satisfied. I've got shiny glasses! Not that I care much but it sure is not a bad thing. That so-called rinsing agent might have to do with it; with my old Kenmore I did not use that - I simply did not know of the existence of such a spy uhmm agent.
It's supposed to be self-cleaning; I'll have to find out what that means.
Conclusion
Besides the price I believe that the BOSCH model was hands-down the best dishwasher SEARS had.
It was the decision between a stupid, cheap washer against smart, pricey technology. While I bought a cheap and energy-wasting car, this time I went with the smart one.
Bosch doesn't have this trash-grinder that encourages to spill food left-overs in the water system. I don't approve this habit in the first place and am glad they left it out.
Hopefully it will last 20 years without problems as I was "promised". With the saved water and electricity over many years, then it may pay off.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 750 all included
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ptiemann
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Member: Peter Tiemann
Location: Capitola, CA
Reviews written: 260
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