A Casserole to Scare the Pre-Rinsers

[washer111]

Yes, that really is baked on Potato Bake (Image 1). It was reheated... Several times.
That went in, with some other stuff that wasn't really soiled much at all, on the Heavy cycle (70°C/158°F), which I jokingly dub "The Steam Cycle."

Plus the more mundane "daily" load in the other Drawer. (Image 2)
Run on the Heavy-Eco cycle, since since this is 65°C (150°F), and helps keep the filter clean.
Unfortunately, the poor low-light photography ability of an iPhone 3GS doesn't capture the truly 'soiled nature' of those dishes. You'll just have to take my word for it!

Despite the result, with a fleck of potato leftover (Image 3), I can't blame the machine. It cleaned the worst of it off no questions. A quick splash under the kitchen tap fixed it right up.

The result from the other drawer was of course good. (Image 4)

 

[appnut]

I'm impressed, but I didn't see it loaded in a drawer. 

 

[washer111]

Ask, and Ye Shall Receive

Here it is after the wash had finished.

Astute viewers will note some ick coated where the spray doesn't reach with the casserole in that position. A constant-rinse of some sort *would* be beneficial for loads such as this - Or adding Rinse-aid. There's none in there at present, so bits of fuzz aren't flushed off everything. Had it been present, the casserole might've been 100% clean.

 

[CMcDaniel1994]

Hello! This is actually extremely helpful because i've just purchased a set of dish drawers. Were re modeling the kitchen and, lucky me, I got to choose which appliances we get.

Anyway, what are some pros and cons of having a dish drawer? it looks like it did a fantastic job of cleaning so I'm not worried about that. But what about things like reliability? Noise Level? Any type of special maintenance?

Also, just kinda fooling around, I put in some plates and bowls. They seemed to fit alright and I assume as long as nothing is going over the edge and the drawer closes properly, the machine will work fine?

Anything you or anyone else knows would be greatly appreciated!
-Chance

 

[washer111]

This might be a long post, but here goes:

- This October marks 4 years having a dishdrawer. One of the drain filters did split in half (the plastic top, and mesh-screen are glued togehter), and F&P replaced this free of charge. Other than that, no reliability issues

- Noise? What noise? Its quiet enough for us. If you listen closely, or have a quiet kitchen, you'll hear the water moving right around. If something gets caught in the drain-impeller of the pump, you can expect to hear it. And it also makes crunching odd sounds if you put a load of rice in there. It does get through, even with that flimsy drain/kidney-shaped filter in place (more so when its top half is missing). There seems to be no harm in this occurring. Both pumps on both drawers still work, and are in good condition. I think these machines work well as soft-food disposers!

- U.S. machines still include Pre-Washes, IIRC. And the default cycles are generally hotter by default (about the same as the Heavy Eco cycle for Aussie machines). This basically removes the need to clean the filters regularly. Using cooler washes more frequently WILL mean you have to clean the machine.
The wash-arm features a sprayer jet on the underside to keep the filter plate clean.

- There is no feature to stop you loading items that protrude ever so slightly from the drawer. So be VERY careful when loading, or else you'll start getting water pooling in the machine, and eventually get the F1 (Flood) code. Ours hasn't done this, yet.

- Likewise, there is no sensor to warn you if the washarm is blocked during the wash. If your a "knives-down" loader, DO NOT JUST DROP THESE INTO THE CUTLERY BASKET. It will bounce, and fall partly out the side, blocking the washarm. You can listen to the machine, and tell if this happens, though.

- When loading items, try to imagine seeing the dishes from the spray-arm's perspective. If the water is blocked to an item, don't load it there. Likewise, don't load very tall, thin items in the corners of the upper racks. While they do catch water, it seems they catch more crud than they go in with. Generally mugs and larger cups work on the outer edges, tall, thin glasses in the center.

- You can fit a TON into these drawers. I've posted numerous examples in my time here, as has the member Dadoes, whose machines must be nearly 10 years old now.

I hope this gives you at least a reasonable idea on the abilities of the drawer. Please ask more questions if you have them.

 

[sketteroo]

So....rather than pre rinsing, you post rinsed.

 

[washer111]

You could say so.

I always let the machine tackle stuff before pre-rinsing. This sort of a load was a once-off challenge of sorts, too. Ordinarily, most of the stuff that goes in is nowhere near that dirty.

 

[DADoES]

 
<blockquote>... as has the member Dadoes, whose machines must be nearly 10 years old now.</blockquote> Be 12 years on 8/21 (scandalous!).

I occasionally run "baked" bakeware, although not on the curve of multiple reheats.  My older U.S.-market unit heats to 163°F for the final rinse on Heavy (150°F main wash).

Regards to yibbles/debris, there's typically enough down-shower from spray passing around items and reflecting off the drawer sides and lid to deal with that.  This is where overstuffing the load can have a detrimental effect.  Sufficient detergent dosing, including a prewash, also is key (I never use tabs or pacs).  The only time I don't run a prewash is when using the Fast cycle (wash, rinse, rinse) which is rare.  Normal Eco is either <s>rinse, wash, rinse, rinse</s> ... or wash, wash, rinse, rinse ... so there you have it.

 

[logixx]

 

[washer111]

Thanks for posting that, Logixx.

 

I've done exactly the same sort of thing in our DishDrawer (although I haven't bothered posting to YouTube), and found the wash action on that one to be somewhat better than the one demonstrated here. Noticed the spray jets are "dancing" mid-air. They should be shooting full-force onto the lid, as in the video Glenn posted several years back now. 

 

[DADoES]

 
He's running it without the filter plate and pump strainer.

 

[washer111]

I did notice that. I suppose there is every possibility running without is disrupting the water flow in some way, or another.

I have run without the drain filter before. Works well enough - but one must be sure to add rinse-aid AND turn it up to full to prevent re-deposition in glasses, plates, cutlery, etc.

 

[chris74]

After all...

...it is a hit or miss game. But I think the dish-drawers do a good job. Euro dishwashers do pre-rinse(s), too, by the way...

 

[washer111]

@chris74

A lot of dishwashers over here did (or still do) run Pre-washes, usually on the "heavier" cycles following the Energy-Certification cycles. I know the Asko's we were considering had them, as do the Dishlex machines.

The generation of DishDrawers prior to this seemed to have them on the Heavy cycles.

What I have done in the past, to replicate the traditional "Wash -> Rinse -> Rinse" of some machine's prewash is to run a Fast-Eco cycle, at about 30 minutes, before starting a heavy wash. That guarantees clean dishes!