Christmas Dishwasher Loads

[scott55405]

Jeff, I absolutely love your mom's kitchen. The wallpaper, the curtains, the cabinets, the chrome mixer, everything is just perfect. It reminds me of kitchens when they were really kitchens, and the people in them really cooked!

Maytag is not the same company as it was when the 1982 dishwasher was new, by any stretch, not even to mention some rather drastic changes they made to their dishwashers some years after she purchased that one.

The last house I lived in in Minnesota had a non talltub Maytag. The top rack, my favorite part of it, was similar to your mom's new one. It did hold a lot and was easy to load. I despised the bottom rack because of the washtower and that big square silverware basket that takes up so much room right smack in the middle. They did away with both of those problems with these new talltub models.

None of them are the same as the 1982; they all use less water now and the cycles typically take much longer. I had replaced that Maytag with a Kenmore Elite, and have owned several other Kenmore dishwashers over the years, all but one made by Whirlpool. They've all been grand machines.

Our next door neighbor at the last place in Minnesota has the same one your mom has, bought it not long before I left. She is happy with it and it is *much* quieter than the Maytag we had.

I am looking forward to getting the vintage Hobart KA portable that will be my d/w in California! It is front loading but has rear controls. Very cool!

 

[hoover1060]

mom's kitchen

Scott,
That wallpaper goes back to at least 1970 or earlier, truly vintage. It even survived the remodel in 1978 when the cabinets were refaced and the counters replaced. All the appliances were replaced then too, and all that remains from those is the Roper Wall oven. The oven and the old '82 DW suvived everything else being replaced in 1996, cooktop is now Maytag and fridge is Kitchenaid. The oven was originally harvest gold, my dad found a door shell from an appliance parts store and it became almond. The sink and ISE are from 2001, and replaced a harvest gold cast iron sink and 1978 GE batch feed disposal.
I like that kitchen and its layout. Its the kitchen of my childhood, and over the years had turned out some wonderful family meals.
I bought mom the Chrome mixmaster in 1986 for Christmas, it replaced a 1955 Sunbeam that now sits atop my cabinets.

 

[frigilux]

Hi Venus-- I don't believe there are any significant advantages in a SS tub over plastic. Millions of DW'ers seem to do just fine with plastic interiors. I've had several and they've all washed/dried well.

The sole reason I wanted a SS interior was because I was sick and tired of plastic interiors turning pinkish-orange from tomato sauce staining. I'm Italian and hardly a meal goes by without tomato products of some kind being used. Consequently, the plastic-tub machines I've owned turned orange from the very first load. I know you can get special cleaners to de-orange plastic interiors, but I'd be doing that almost every day. Getting a SS interior solved the problem. Plus, SS just looks so great.

I will admit I'm not a pre-rinser. In fact, I'm not even a pre-scraper. I tend to give dishes a good shake over the garbage disposer and toss 'em in the DW. This drives my sister insane, as she is a diligent pre-rinser of every single item that goes into her machine. My sister: "Eugene, that's just disgusting! It isn't a garbage can, you know!" Me: "Why do you even HAVE a dishwasher, Maria? Your dishes are clean when you put them in!"

As far as durability goes, a plastic tub will probably outlast the machine, just as a SS one will. Happy New Year, girl!

 

[toggleswitch]

They say a cool dry prevents the setting of stains.

 

[rayjay]

SS Interior

Venus, I have a Kitchenaid with a stainless interior. I have noticed that the water does stay hotter in this type of interior as opposed to my old Maytag that had a plastic interior. And this was on the normal wash cycle, not a Hi Temp Wash.

Ray

 

[appnut]

Eugene, you're a man after my own heart. I pretty much do the same thing, but scrape with akknife a bit. Venuis just about had a stroke watching me load her Bosch. I wish Jason had included the video he took of me loading her dishwasher.

 

[frigilux]

Appnut-- I think when people have to live with lousy dishwashers, they get in the habit of pre-rinising all the time. Venus has mentioned they had a poor-performing BOL Hotpoint before getting their Bosch. My sister has had an equally crappy BOL Kenmore/GE hybrid for years; hence, she pre-rinses out of habit. Now that she has my 1-year old TOL Frigidaire, she won't have to worry about dishes not being washed clean.

The new Maytag doesn't clean regular dishes/glassware/cutlery any better than my Frigidaire did; however, when it comes to crusty pots/pans and casseroles, the Maytag takes the checkered flag.

 

[retromom]

To scrape or not to scrape.....

Oy....it was like scratching on a blackboard when Bob loaded those "dirty" dishes in the dishwasher! I still get nightmares over it! LOL

Frigilux....how well I remember the pink cast to the Hotpoint after spaghetti! YUK! It's like trying to clean tomato sauce out of a plastic container. You just about have to wash the dishwasher! Even if the stainless steel doesn't serve any purpose other than aesthetics, it's better than looking at my previous dinner's food stains.

Have mercy on me and the Marias of the world! We will probably always be closet rinsers! ;-)

 

[frigilux]

Oh, that's OK. It doesn't harm anyone. It's a complete and total waste of time, effort, water and energy, but that's OK, LOL! Venus, you're a gem.

 

[hoover1060]

I am confused

Someone please define "rinser" for me...
In my house the big stuff gets dropped in the sink and the dish goes right in the DW, so essentially from the table to the DW.
Pots and pans get run under water and maybe scrubbed a little.
I've run spaghetti plates thru the Kenmore with no staining at all.
Cascade Plastic Boost will clean/freshen todays DW's just fine.

 

[appnut]

Jeff, I don't even run the pots & pans under water and Lord help me if I even thought about scrubbing them. There are times the only time i run water when cleaning up the kitchen is to run the garbage disposal and bring hot water to the tap and clean the sink.

Eugene, yes I even was so bold to try to explain to Venus that I can have the kitchen cleaned up in more than 1/2 the time after dinner for 14 because I don't stop at the sink longer than to scrape/shake plates and other stuff. Load and go.

 

[foraloysius]

A long long time ago (I think it was still at the Yahoo club) there was a drawing posted with a woman and a text that said something like "There should be support groups for women that prerinse". Anyone still have that picture?

 

[vivalalavatrice]

What world without dishwasher!?

What would it be the world without dishwasher?!?
Specially during Christmas holidays! With all those things you have to handwash!!!
It was terrible when my DW brokedown... now I wouldn't do it without, during the holidays and sometimes when you have inespected visitors!

Good Bye everyone!

PS: Either in Italy we have 2in1, 3in1 and 4in1 tablets (never heard about 5in1, but even the longest cicle never takes more than 2 hours... perhaps automatic ciles. My pots&pans takes 97 min. (1h 37 min at 70°C), on my 1997 Whirlpool ADG 957 built-in DW, and they come all out shining! Daily cicle takes 72 min. (1h 12 min at 65°,no prewash, main wash, 4 rinses adn dry)

 

[frigilux]

Buon giorno, vivalalavatrice! Come sta?

I agree with you. A world without dishwashers would be terrible. I would serve only cold sandwiches on disposable plates to my guests.

Can you still purchase regular powdered dishwasher detergent in Italy or is it all sold in tablets? You mentioned you have a Whirlpool dishwasher; what kind of washing machine do you have?

Ciao!

 

[hoover1060]

ahhhh I see....

OK then I am a rinser...
I became a rinser living in my last apt where the DW was a 1970's Hotpoint model. Stuff was cleaner when it went in the DW than when it came out.

I have to disagree on the world without DW's though. Yes its nice to have one, but I remember more than a few parties/dinners that I threw in my college apartment in Nebraska where the conversation continued as the table was cleared and everyone pitched in to wash.
Not so bad...

 

[retromom]

I'll Try to Stop

Ok, my New Year's resolution is to stop pre-rinsing. I'll also have to work on the guilt thing about putting something dirty into the dishwasher.;-)

Venus

 

[maytagbear]

I hate pre-rinsing!!!

Pre-rinsing is the Devil's invention!

I have NEVER pre-rinsed, in 30 plus years of automatic dishwashing.

Scrape, yes. Soak the burned-on things (as opposed to the merely baked-on things.) Pre-rinse? No.

That's what the enzymes do. That's what the 130F water is for. That's why the developed "Heavy/Pots and Pans."

The most extravagant water use on my GE is 10.5 gallons. I would use more if I pre-rinsed. I generally use the 6.5 gallon cycle.

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[parunner58]

I have never pre-washed since we had gotten our first DW GE Potscrubber in 76.

On the other hand my one aunt pre washed everything before putting in her Kitchen Aid Custom DW she got in 75 and would only use about a teaspoon of Finish in the closed cup with the normal wash cycle.

The only thing I do is scrape off the big chunks and load it it up. Now it may take a day or two to fill it up but Cascade cleans them spotless with the "Normal" cycle in 94 minutes ready to put away, I am one to put them away as soon as the clean light comes on. And I rarely use "Rinse and Hold"

 

[frigilux]

hoover1060-- I used to be chef/kitchen manager for a catering business and I joined the servers/runners over the sinks many times when we were doing dishes for 500 at weddings, etc. I didn't seem to mind that; but at home, I refuse to wash anything by hand.

Funny you should mention college: I went out and bought a used portable DW and put it in the laundry room on our dorm floor. I wasn't on the meal plan, so I cooked (by microwave) in my room. Even then I didn't want to do dishes! That's what comes of growing up with one, I guess. My parents had a DW before they had me.

 

[appnut]

Venus Venus Venus!!! What am I gonna do with ya Mom. Just keep remembering the before & after pics of that meatloaf pan in my dishwasher pix as well as the bread dough encrusted food processor. Am I gonna have to start daily phone calls to the Wilder kitchen? Gee, I have oatmeal bowls that sit for over a week sometimes.

I began not pre-rinsing when I moved into my first college apartment in 1974--a mid-late 1960s Hotpoint. My two hotpoints and my one D&M Kenmore in 1980 have been the only ones that caused me to put back some items at times and rewash them. I refused to let those dreary machines beat me. I always showed them who was boss!!