Bosch Surprise

[sudsmaster]

As many of you know, a modern Bosch dishwasher takes about 100 minutes - more than an hour and a half - to run a full cycle. Way too long if you're in a hurry to clean something up so you can use it.

My Bosch DW is about five years old... SHU43C... It works very well and it reasonably quiet as well. But the time! It's really a drag when all I really need are the parts for the Cuisinart Grind 'n Brew coffee maker to be clean and dry...

Sooooo... the other day I decided to try the "quick" cycle on the machine. It was lightly loaded with very lightly soiled dishes and flatware. I figured I could always run a full cycle if I needed to.

Purged the adjacent kitchen sink hot water tap, and let her rip. 30 minutes later, tada! nice clean coffee maker parts. And everything else was as clean as could be, as well. Naturally, given the quick cycle, while the dishes were dry enough to put away, the coffee maker parts and other complex shapes were a bit wetter than usual, but nothing that a little toweling couldn't fix.

I might be running the machine on the quick wash every night from now on. It probably saves on water and energy, and avoids leaving dirty dishes in the thing overnight (or even a few days) to get to a full load for a full wash.

Of course, I do have a couple of vintage KA-Hobart portable dishwashers that take only 45 minutes for a full load... but right now both are on the patio... and I'm a bit concerned one of the coffee maker plastic parts might fly down to the lower rack and be damaged by the heating element... When I move the '67 KDW5 to the main kitchen I might try that though.

Meanwhile, I have a solution to the grind 'n brew coffee maker cleaning blues...

 

[spankomatic]

I hear ya on the time.....

I have a Bosch dishwasher that came with the house. Mine takes about 2 hours to complete it's cycle. I do not have the "quick" wash feature. Just full wash and "rinse hold". This dishwasher is very quiet and gets the dishes very clean. It is not my favorite though... I do not care for the rack design. It is not very easy to load. The silverware basket in the middle is not my favorite. The filters are NOT self cleaning. I have to remove them and scrub them clean. It's really gross if you don't! (stinks). I always have to use a dish towel when removing the clean dishes. They are never dry.
I would take a Kitchenaid KDS-18 any day over the Bosch.

 

[spankomatic]

Upper rack

 

[spankomatic]

Lower rack

 

[spankomatic]

Cycles

 

[spankomatic]

Cycles and Indicators

 

[spankomatic]

Filer that is NOT self cleaning. There are two. The flat one that is in place and the round one that is pulled out.

 

[gadgetgary]

A friend of mine has a similar DW

Same complaint. Terrible racking.

Steve and I tried to get other racking(at Lowes) in the DW(KA, Whirlpool, Maytag) and nothing fits.

He has a higher end model and there is a way to boost the final rinse so that the dishes dry better.

BTW...What models are affected with the recall? I heard there have been some fires due to certain models of the Bosch DW.

 

[re563]

I have a Bosch dishwasher, SHX46a. I love how quiet it is, I don't have the problem with the filtes like sudsmaster does, every couple of months I take mine out and run under hot water and there usually isn't much on it, everything comes right off. (I don't rinse before loading). I do hate the racking. I can move my silverware basket anywhere, but it doesn't help that much. I kinda have to plan how your gonna load it. It is solid enough, built strong, but I would not buy another one again. Next one, i think, is going to be either a Kenmore or Kitchenaid. I know they are bascially the same machine, but that's where I am now.

 

[panthera]

Filters and American Detergents

The problem is probably the horrible formulation of detergent which folks are condemned to use in the US. The engineers who designed these filters had 38% phosphate, 160C water, enzymes galore and softened water in mind.

Instead, we have castrated detergent, low enzymes and harder water than that for which these machines were designed.

My Miele uses similar filters, only clean them every three months...and have never once found them to be blocked or dirty, just do it because the manual says to. I don't pre-rinse or scrape anything, including potatoes, cream-of-wheat, etc.

Here in the 'States, when we run a 34 year old KA with Somat (German version), things come out clean. Run a new TOL GE with the standard US detergent and you have a perfect starch spreader.

In an era when Typ 5 waste-water treatment plants are nothing new or special, we need to return to phosphates. They work. The replacement stuff is worthless.

 

[launderess]

Have No Problems

With Cascade "Pure Rinse" or "Complete".

Things come out o of my humble Frigidaire 18" (rebadged as Kenmore), quite clean, and with normally 1/2 filling of both cups for a two wash and one rise cycle.

Then again NYS does have soft water, so that may play a part.

Tried adding extra STPP, but found it scratched up my glassware.

L.

 

[logixx]

I think the US racking (esp. the upper rack) is horrible. And I see the lower spray arm is also different from the European one.

I really like the Quick cycle on our Siemens. Takes some 40 minutes, has a 140° final rinse and cleans surprisingly well. Plates, glasses and even lightly freshly soiled pots come out clean, hot and almost dry (unlike the Miele Quick cycle with it's warm final rinse).

I hope Bosch will bring their new line of dishwashers with heated-dry over to the U.S. - along with our more flexible rack design.

 

[whirlcool]

The Maytag dishwasher we got about a month ago has a feature called "Insta Wash" which is designed to be used on dishes that have already been pre rinsed. It will wash and dry dishes in about 40 minutes.

Personally, I think the success of any dishwasher is how hot the wash water is. The hotter the better. I just love it when I see the "Heating Water" light comes on on the dishwasher.

 

[bobbyderegis]

Thanks for the discussion, guys. I have a friend who wants a Bosch, but doesn't know what model to get. The racks are odd. They are very small, and the higher end model's upper adjustable rack looks cheaply made. If you were to adjust it down when full of dishes, it would drop hard. The plastic bottom model is out of the question. Everyone comments how quiet they are, with excellent cleaning. A quick cycle seems to be something to look for.
Bobby in Boston

 

[ptcruiser51]

For what it's worth...

My factory reps (GE, LG, Maypool) tell me that the auto- or short-wash cycles will get the job done almost all the time. Unfortunately, on my sister's 2007 Frigidaire this is not the case. Major crud left behind.

 

[toggleswitch2]

There is a lot to be said for a hot water booster under the kitchen sink; whether instatnteous or a small capacity (2-3 gallon/ [3.5L to 11L]) tank.

 

[sudsmaster]

I don't have the problem with the filtes like sudsmaste

Actually, I don't have a problem with the Bosch dw filters, either. I think you were looking at a post by Spankomatic from Sacramento, not me, Sudsmaster ;-). I remove the filters every three months or so, more often if I notice debris in them, and generally they are pretty clean.

Anywho, I'm pretty well satisfied that for most loads in the Bosch the quick 30 minute cycle cleans things well enough. I doubt that it will boost the final rinse temp to 160F like the full cycle will, though. I haven't checked yet but I suspect the "Sanitized" light will not be lit at the end of the quick cycle.

The model I have is a mid-line SHU43C. The racking is OK by me. It took some getting used to after the larger Frigidaire it replaced, but I've figured out how to get the most out of it. It seems to have a more adjustable upper rack than Spankomatic's Bosch. Some extra tines that can flip up and down. BTW, the Frigidaire filtration was really bad - so bad it would let debris through the pump and it would clog the spray arms. The Bosch has never done that - it's a far better designed and constructed machine than the Frigidaire (which also had a nasty habit of letting the upper rack off its track, usually with a full load of dishes in it).

 

[re563]

sorry sudsmaster, you were right

 

[parunner58]

Sudsmaster, I replaced my Frigidaire for the same reason. We almost lost all our good glassware when the top rack kept popping off the tracks. We have the Bosch SHX46 and love it. It is the quietest one we have had and washes cleaner than the Frigidaire and our KA Superba Energy Saver 5. The KA left stuff floating in the tops of all the glasses in the top rack. I agree the racking in the Bosch is hard to get use to. I cannot wash my pots in there becasue they are not DW safe but for everything else I have figured out how to get it in. I did purchase the knife rack to attach to the upper rack for long untensils and that helped. I have never had a problem with cleaning the filters, everytime I do they are clean and I don't prerinse at all. I don't mind the cycle times, just turn it on and go do other things. I have never had a problem with drying, even Tupperware comes out dry

 

[toggleswitch2]

At bLowe's the other day I tried every major DW manufacturer's lower rack in the Bosch. And I'll be damned if they weren't all the slighest bit too wide to fit in there! DAYUM!

Is it so difficult to add more rows of (left-right running) tines between the front and rear of the lower rack?

 

[rayjay]

Try a Miele bottom rack. You may have to go to an appliance store that has Miele and Bosch. Maybe PC Richards. If the Miele fits and you like it, I am sure you can order from Miele.

Ray

 

[toggleswitch2]

Great idea. Thanks!

 

[re563]

parunner58:

I like how you loaded your SHX46. Do you always have your silverware basket across the front like that? On the top, I always put my smallest glasses on the right so I can fold down the shelf and use it for utensels.

 

[parunner58]

No, I usually have it together and in the middle. but i like that you can place it anywhere. somtimes if there is not much silverware, I use just one half. Due to the spacing between the tines on the upper rack, our juice glasses get the row second from the right. We do not have any mugs or glasses that are short enough to fit under the fold down cup rack. I now have a knife rack that fits on the top of the left side of the upper rack and put the longer knives and untensils that go in the DW

 

[ronhic]

Loved our Bosch

We had one installed in the UK in 2002 when we renovated our kitchen. Cycle times are a tad longer than expected, but then it is cold water connect only. I prefer to be concerned about how clean things are and how much impact the machine has on the items in it (cloudiness, 'scratches' etc)

I think like all things, you do get used to how to get the most out of an appliance. Our current dishwasher, and the Bosch for that matter, is no good with powdered detergent. Tablets were the only way to go and I do dislike the detergent lid in the Bosch.

The same goes for loading. I never used the knife rack that came with the machine as we too didn't have mugs/glasses that would fit underneath it but I do like the left to right layout of the bottom basket mainly because Australian made dishwashers had the same set up.....familiarity does wonders for getting the most out of something....

Still, until the *%$#@ machine we have now dies, I am not prepared to spend the money to update....

 

[bleacho]

not happy with my bosch

im on my second bosch.. the first one i replaced with a kenmore elite because the bosch never cleaned my dishes as well as the whirlpool i used to have.. when the cycle is complete, and i open the door, there is a strong odor of dirty dish smell that comes out... little did i know that the elite that i bought was also a bosch!!! same issue..
waiting for a good deal on a whirlpool so i can reason to toss out this machine this maching currently that i have cost 900 dollars... a waste of money, but no other choice
i just dont understand what the problem is.. does anyone have any suggestions

 

[bleacho]

on the subject of bosch....

i forgot to mention that i also have a bosch oven... wow it is a terrific oven- the best i ever owned.

 

[passatdoc]

My 2001 model Bosch was one of their two BOL machines in the Integra (controls in door rim) line. When I made my purchase, the models had only been placed in the market one week earlier. As a result, I had to order them sight unseen from the appliance store. They had a book of the specs which turned out to be wrong, but for me it was a lucky mistake.

The two BOL machines in the Integra line differed in only one respect: both had Power Scrub Plus and Normal Wash cycles. But one had Rinse/Hold as the third cycle and one had Quick Wash as the third cycle. I thought I was buying the Rinse/Hold model (as per the specs book) but instead the machine turned out to have Quick Wash instead. I called the dealer and they said to try it, if I didn't like it they would let me exchange for a model with Rinse/Hold.

Turns out I was better off with Quick Wash. It can wash lightly soiled dishes in 30 minutes and they are pretty dry. Since the other two cycles wash so thoroughly, I never pre rinse, and week old dried on oatmeal or pasta sauce comes clean off the dishes.

As a result, there is no reason for Rinse/Hold as it was with my old GE dishwasher, where I had to run Rinse/Hold if I had less than a full load, wasteful of water as it was. If I didn't use Rinse/Hold, then I really had to prerinse the dishes very well. When you have a machine that cleans as well as a Bosch, you really don't need Rinse/Hold. If my machine broke beyond repair tomorrow, I would buy another model just like this one (or maybe save $150 by getting the one with same features but controls in the front....but I would avoid the one with the plastic bottom, who knows if it will leak?)

I have the same filter and never have problems with it. I rinse out the filter every three months or so if I remember. No odor or food or objects trapped there, ever.

 

[spankomatic]

strong odor of dirty dish smell ..

I too had a problem with the Bosch dishwasher that smells really bad. I think I figured out that it was the filter,that is not self cleaning. It was full of white sludge (really gross). Once I got that all cleaned up it seemed to be better.

Jim

 

[ronhic]

cycles...

Our current machine does allow a HUGE variation in cycles.

Firstly, we can choose upper or lower basket wash/rinse

...then we can choose to have the prewash on some cycles or switch it off.

...on cycles that dry, we can have either the dryer off or on 1 of 3 drying options...none of which work well....

...we have cycle temperatures from 40-70c....

Unfortunately, beyond playing with the dryer on/off and turning the prewash on/off (if on that cycle) or using the upper/lower basket option, that is as far as it goes....

Personally, we use programme 4....60c, no prewash, no drying 68min...excellent results

...but I still hate the machine for its 'E7' message which requires a service call.....