Newer Kitchenaid dishwasher see-through in action, opinions requested

[whitetub]

HI,

Here is a link to a youtube video of the newer KitchenAid dishwasher in action.

Not bad, from what I can see. Not sure if we can still call it a 'Hurricane in a Box" !! Anyone here who owns this dishwasher, let us know what you think of the results. I am shopping for a new dishwasher, since my Fisher Paykel drawers are now working at 50% (one drawer stopped working). And I will not spend one more dollar on that piece of crap.

Let me know of your experience with the KitchenAid with the railroad crossing 4 way Hydro-weep.

Thanks,

 

[johnb300m]

Here’s another.
I made this some time ago in my KDTE304G

 

[mrsalvo]

My experience with KA is not good, reliability issues. I found that they eat control boards. Have had mine replaced 3 times since last Sept, it was still under warranty so I had Lowes contract repair out to 'fix it'. Was on first name basis with repair guys. My KA was 4 1/2 years old when it went out. Am extremely disappointed and soured on Whirlpool. Shopping for a new DW, taking my time.

Barry

 

[revvinkevin]

 

 

Wow, I guess KA's quality has gone down hill (like with everything these days?).  I only replaced my 19 year old KA DW on 12/30/18 is because the heating element stopped working a couple years ago.   Never had any other problems with it.

 

I replaced it with a new Bosch that I've been very happy with.  It's whisper quiet and cleans better than the KA ever did. (doesn't leave yibbles on things in the corners of the upper rack).

 

Thread about the new Bosch:

https://www.automaticwasher.org/cgi-bin/TD/TD-VIEWTHREAD.cgi?77966
 

Kevin

 

[mattl]

I'm coming up on 2 years with my KA and I have to say I love it!  In that time I've taken out 2 maybe 3 dishes that did not come clean - and I do not every rinse.

 

[easyspindry]

I've had my F&P . . .

. . . Drawers for 12 or 13 years and have been very pleased with them. No problems whatsoever. And one thing I like is that if there is a problem with the motor, it is very easily replaceable. Mine are quiet and to an excellent job of cleaning.

Good luck with your search.

Jerry Gay

 

[whitetub]

Thanks for your replies. Great video, johnb300m.
Great to know that they wash well, if the control board doesn’t fail.
I am used to Bosch dishwashers in the two previous houses.
I already spent 200$ last year on the F&P drawers.
After moving in this house that came with them. They are quiet and wash ok, not great. But the loading capacity is just too small, and the racking system is so badly designed.
They are already 7 years old. And one has a dented panel.
One drawer still works, so I can shop for a new machine slowly.

Thanks

 

[whitetub]

Consumer Reports buying guide July 2019.

 

[johnb300m]

Interesting ratings!
It seems you have a good chance of having a fairly reliable and good performing machine if you choose a Bosch or Whirlpool product.

Further interesting how spotty some of the WP products seem to be.
LOL no surprise Elux/Frigidaire are near the bottom.

I get it. A few people out there have issues with their KAs.
But they do have 5yr parts warranties on their racks and control boards.
That’s why I bought mine.
My “old” GE was 2.5yrs old when the racks started rusting and the motor started leaking!
1yr warranty only on GE.

 

[Unimatic1140]

My apologies but I had to delete that.

Hi Guys, as much as I love seeing ratings like, posting anything current like that is way against the law as it is copyright infringement. If it was 40 or more years old normally it wouldn't be an issue, but this could get the person who posted it in trouble and I certainly want to avoid that.

 

[murando531]

It's a very brief clip because I haven't gotten around to editing together a more detailed shot, but here's a close up of the X-arm in the KDFE104H model. I can't remember why I had the filter removed...I think I was trying to see where exactly those downward jets were aimed and actually hitting, but there's still too much water **gasp in an eco-nazi-pond-pump dishwasher? gasp** in the way to really see where it's hitting regardless of the filter in or out. But it keeps it clean either way, so...

 

[thomasortega]

Hurricane in a box?

For me it's more like a fart in a bathtub.

 

[tolivac]

The dishwasher shown is pathetic-would rather wash my dishes by hand than use that dishwasher!How long does the cycle run?

 

[mattl]

My cycles run about 2 hours.  Bothered me at first, now it's a non issue.  I've had a number of DWs over the decades from a late 60's KA to the Ge 2800, plus a few in between and this is the best performing unit I've had.  Nothing comes out with a speck of soil on it.  It's a perfect match for the new detergents.  I've got a WP "hurricane in a box" in my basement for odds and ends and it may blast stuff clean but modern detergents don't cut it in that machine.

 

[mark_wpduet]

Control boards

When I bought my dishwasher (Maytag) in 2014, I was skeptical as I had done research and noticed a lot of control board issues on ALL brands! I wondered to myself if people who have issues with the control board always use the dry cycle? For me, I open the door as soon as it's done to let everything flash dry, so I never use it. I could be wrong, but the dry cycle seems like it would create more heat and steam that could get into the board? It's just a guess. I don't know. I also heard that using the self-clean feature on your oven can harm control boards too.....I read that here somewhere I believe.

 

[tolivac]

At this point waiting 2hrs for a load to cycle in the dishwaser-will continue to wash by hand and not waste my money or time on slowpoke sprinkler dishwashers.

 

[jamiel]

Agree with Matt--new machine with new detergent works as well or better than anything I've ever used. I've had experience with 4 entirely satisfying d/w over time....a GE 1200 with the passive filter; a White-Westinghouse (!!) in an apartment which was far far better than any apartment d/w had a right to be and had the most intelligent racking system I've used, a Whirlpool Powerclean and the current Bosch. Jam the Bosch full--a tab of good detergent/2 tabs of house-brand and 2h 20 later everything clean, dry, hot, sanitized and done.

 

[thomasortega]

Dishwashers in Brazil ALWAYS took 2-3 hours to complete a cycle (always 110v and always cold fill), so the cycle length doesn't bother me. what bothers me is the mediocre sprays, but again, everything comes out sparkling so, who cares?

 

[whitetub]

Bosch dishwashers seems to have much stronger sprays. Especially the upper rack. Maybe that’s why my pots seemed to come out cleaner in the top rack. They get washed by the bottom and top spray arms alternately at all times. See link below

 

[DADoES]

 
I'm not understanding the uproar over dishwasher operating time.  Start the machine running before bed, do other chores while it runs, read a book, watch a movie, play on AW.org, go visit a friend, etc. ... and be glad you're not having to manually wash the dishware, isn't that the point of having the machine?

Gentler spray reduces noise levels, which is all the rage nowadays.  The primary factor many dishwasher shoppers require per the discussions I see is QUIET.  Reduced spray pressure calls for more intense chemical cleaning via enzymes to compensate for the reduced mechanical/spray action ... which in turn leads to more time.

 

[murando531]

I agree with DADoES. I've never understood all the b*tching and moaning over how long a dishwasher or washer/dryer takes. Who is actually spending valuable emotional energy over how long a machine has to do a completely unaided, automated task from start to finish, when you only have to press a button or two and walk away, only to come back and the job be completely done? I don't understand this idea of waiting on the edge of your seat, or pacing back and forth in front of the dishwasher, waiting for that clean or done light so you can hurriedly take everything out. For what? There are 1001 things you can do while the machine is running, and aside from maybe propping the door open to let it air dry like I do, the dishes can sit there clean in the machine just as well as they sit clean in a cupboard.

My mother in law has this same hang up. She has a gorgeous Whirlpool 8500 washing machine that holds three times what her old washer did, meaning she's washing in one load what would have been at least two or three in the old machine, yet she'll beat that poor soil level button to death to shave off literally 4-5 minutes of time because apparently 54 minutes is just too long and she acts like she has to stop her life until both machines are completely done and all the laundry put away. I've explained until I'm blue in the face that she's washing more laundry in one load, and because her old machine took 40-45 minutes per wash from start to finish, it's really not that much more time. Even if you added up that time for three separate cycles, at a minimum that's 2 hours, so anything less for one machine doing that much laundry is still more than reasonable, especially when you consider that modern detergents are designed for and simply work much better with more time for the enzymes to do their job.

To me this whole argument is like someone mixing up a cake recipe, putting it in the oven, and then getting irritated because they took it out after 15 minutes and it was still soupy, when the recipe instructed that it would take 35 minutes. Like, things take time to get done, Mary Lou, stop getting your bloomers in a wad.

 

[maytagbear]

I may have mentioned............

The biggest energy cost of a diswasher is not the motor(s), pump(s), controls, but the energy required to bring mains temperature water up to 120F and whatever that is in C (45-50?).

Now that I am physically disabled I am exceptionally grateful I have a good cleaning dishwasher in my apartment, even if it is a Eluxidaire!

Lawrence/Maytagbear

 

[user 3941]

"Hurricane in a box" certainly does not pertain to these new machines but that shouldn't be reason to criticize them. I used my Hobart KA for 2.5 years and loved every minute of it. In fact I still have it but need to change the program switch. Do I miss it? Hell yeah, I loved listening to the hum of the motor. They were/are truly an iconic appliance. But the Kenmore Elite I purchased has proven to be a washer champion so far. It's a clone of the new KA machines...just has a different wash arm. Mine has the dynamic wash arm like the higher end KA's have. It's incredibly quiet and cleans the dickens out of anything I put in there. Cycle times don't bother me either because I run it at night and empty it in the morning. Having an open kitchen/living room, the lower noise levels are now much appreciated. I seriously can barely hear it. I have to turn the TV off to listen to the dishwasher now! hahaha.

 

[rinso]

Yes the sprays of newer machines do look more like a lawn sprinkler than the high-force ones of old. This must be why they have to run so long. On the plus side, IMHO, this makes them so much more quiet and keeps the glass etching to a minimum, which was a problem with the old firehose strength pressure design. 

 

 

[spiralator60]

Long Operating Times

It is certainly true that most modern dishwashers do a good job of cleaning with reduced water pressure and longer cycle times.

At the same time, there is a case to be made for shorter cycles. There are occasions when a two hour or longer cycle might not always be practical, or reasonable.

An example (a real-life one) is when hosting house guests, and there is a steady stream of used glasses, plates, utensils, etc., being generated. Here the machine might be run 2-3 times throughout the day, and washing items by hand is not really possible because of time or other constraints.

Our Kenmore dishwasher has a one hour cycle that uses more water and a higher water pressure than the other programs which cleans quite well, but there is the trade off of more resources that are used to complete the job.

This matter of long cycles is also true for clothes washers, particularly when a mountain of items such as towels is always present.

This point is not intended to take away from the benefits of a longer running program, which I agree with wholeheartedly, just to highlight another aspect of the discussion.

 

[lakewebsterkid]

Whirlpool

We are slowly stepping away from Whirlpool appliances because of the issues we have had, and some that I have observed from others as well. Our Bosch performs like no other. We have a few minor gripes, but it is still by far the best dishwasher I have ever used. I just wish there was a bit more cycle flexibility such as high temp wash.

 

[jamiel]

I'd like to do more experimentation with the 30 minute wash on my Bosch--I should look up in the book the parameters, obviously it doesn't dry but still would be good to know.

 

[whitetub]

The 30 minute wash on my Bosch, in my previous house, was pretty good.
It cleaned very well, but it left everything pretty wet. I think the last rinse was not a heated rinse, so the dishes didn't dry well. But it would blast off the dirt of every plates, and flatware.