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BEST 1980S DISHWASHER

Yes Pete you left out the best ones, the WP & KM Power Clean and Ultra Wash with the porcelain tanks. The KAs & ISEs would be my next favorites but the yucky filter and the poor air drying performance and the only one rinse after the KD-20s leaves them off the top of the list for me. The 3rd best would be the GEs but they suffer from a lower rack that is too cut up and poor cleaning in the four corners of the upper rack when the lower rack is heavily loaded. The MTs would be in fourth place for me, while they all cleaned very well the loading was just too weird and limiting. The MTs also had poor air-drying performance and left too many bits of food around and partly under the round separator plate in the bottom of the machine which was very hard to clean. Most also made a very loud noise that would wake the dead when the motor reversed and would start to drain , there were also too many reliability issues with MT DWs mainly with leaks around and in the door. To me the D&Ms and others are not even worth addressing because of poor build quality and reliability. Even though I can repair any major appliance the last thing I want to come home to is a broken one, In the over 23 years I have had my current kitchen I have had very few appliance problems.

 

It is amazing how long it took MT & GE to put a full wash arm under the top rack where it belongs and by the time they did this they had both mostly gone to the inferior tall tub machines None of which perform as well as pervious machines.
 
Best Dishwashers!

Thanks John for posting. I did only post some of my favorates. This was both 80s and 90s dishwashers. I did some whirlpool but I didnt get the porcelain tank models. I just put some examples of what I thought were good stuff. I hope people keep posting examples of their favorates.
What has happened to the appliance industry is a tragedy especially because of energy water savings as well as cheaply made materials being used. Such a shame that nothing is made of any quality anymore. But this has happened with all products not only appliances.
 
<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Pete,</span>

<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Love this dishwasher!!!</span>

<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Did this WP have a rapid advance mechanical timer?  If so,  did the timer run to achieve the delay start? 
</span>

<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Thanks for posting!</span>

<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Brent</span>
 
Sears Kenmore Ultra Wash II

Does anyone know if the Ultra Wash II had a Porcelain interior?

Brent

 

 

a440++3-1-2011-09-03-16.jpg
 
Ultrawash II rinses

Brent, that black Kenmore looks identical to one my parents had from early 1995 until last summer. If I recall correctly, it was an "Ultrawash III". I'm not sure what the differences were between II and III. It had a plastic tub. As for # of rinses, I emailed my dad to see if they by chance have the manual still filed away somewhere to confirm, but I believe on the Pots and Pans cycle it had 3 rinses. One between the two washes and then the two rinses. Normal wash(which was the one that was typically used) had two, with the final rinse a heated rinse. Load that machine with absolutely filthy dishes, use both detergent cups, and do a normal wash and in less than 2 hours you have clean and completely dry dishes.
 
I had that KitchenAid Deluxe portable dishwasher growing up. Talk about a workhorse! My fave vintage dishwasher would have to be the Maytag reverse rack dishwasher I had around 1984. Loved the way it washed and held a ton of dishes. Next up would be the Whirlpool BOL dishwasher in a house we rented in Maine. It had the filter system and did an incredible job washing. It had no rinse aid dispenser but it didnt need it since Portland's water is naturally soft...no spots! It didnt even have the silverware basket in the door...it was a small basket that fit in the front.
 
<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Thanks gr81nknox! </span>
<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Someone wants to give this dishwasher to me. They don't have a clue about it. </span>
<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">It was in a cabin rental that was not used very much. </span>
<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Sounds like an interesting dishwasher. </span>
<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Brent</span>
 
Brent, I don't think you could go wrong having that machine at all.  You would probably find it cleaned better than your Superbas for the real extreme nasty utensils and dishware generated in the kitchen.  Load it up with the worst stuff, hit pots/pans, and 2.5 to 3 hours later, have clean everything.  Hey, it heats the prewash water, main wash, and final rinse on that cycle.  And with your water as hot as you keep it, I owuldn't purge the line of a drop so it could really work on all that nasty stuff.
 
<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Bob,</span>

<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Thank you for your input.</span>

<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">I actually have a "animal dishes" dishwasher.  I feed my 3 cats on pottery type plates and bowls, and a neighbor's dog that comes over for treats.</span>

<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">I have a Kithcenaid Superba KUDS24 that is actually their dishwasher.  It bugs me because it only has the one rinse, and I don't find it is a very good dishwasher. </span>

<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Was thinking about replacing it with this one to avoid using some of my older Kitchenaids.</span>

<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Might think harder.  The owner is giving me till this Friday.</span>

<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Brent</span>

 
 
Brent, you're welcome.  If I"m not mistaken, the Pots/Pans or heaviest cycle on the KDS24 SHOULD have 2 rinses after the main wash or ifyou select high-temp wash on Normal cycle. 
 
KDS 24s

 Hi Brent I gave my mom this model and it works very  well but I was under the impression that it only ever gives one final rinse. I guess that you will have to check this out and let us know. And while say this machine works OK it is not as great as the earlier Power Cleans. By this time KA was trying to compete with the low water use of Askos and other European machines starting with the KD-21s and while the washing system was first rate the lack of good rinsing sometimes caused then to not work as well as thier cheaper WP cousins.
 
<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Hi John and Bob.</span>

 

<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">There is only one rinse.  I did not think this was a big deal since I would be using it for the animals dishes.  I find the one rinse not enough even for their dishes.  I always use the pots & pans with high temp wash and sani rinse.  Longest cycle.  With this you get pre-wash, rinse, wash, rinse.  </span>

 

<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Thanks guys for your input!</span>

 

<span style="font-family: georgia,palatino; font-size: medium;">Brent</span>
 

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