Vintage--or not so vintage, dishwasher needed!

[tominla]

Have had a bad time with modern dishwashers. Decided to go back to early 90s or before, hoping to find one in good condition that still works well. I remember I had a porcelained Kitchen Aid I bought in 1993 that was very solid. I will no longer buy any new Kitchen Aid products! The one I bought just 5 years ago broke all the time--three circuit boards, relays, and two new door springs. Horrible.

Any ideas/leads for a nice machine from back when dishwashers worked well? I am in the Los Angeles area.

 

[pierreandreply4]

have you tryed looking for a ge potscrubber dishwasher or maybe tryed searching for a vintage kenmore dishwasher kind of like this one credit to paul turquoise dude for the picture its a very good dishwasher as well as the vintage kitchenaid dishwashers i will post a pic in my next post

 

[pierreandreply4]

Kitchenaid vintage dishwasher

here is a pic of a kitchenaid dishwasher that was very good lol credit to paul turquoisedude for the picture

 

[peteski50]

Kenmore Dishwasher!

That Kenmore dishwasher above a friend of mine had as a builtin and it was a powerhouse cleaned real well and great loading!

 

[pierreandreply4]

look on site like craig list or shops that sell use refurbis

If you look at sites like craiglist ebay or stores that sells refurbish use appliance you may find alot of dishwashers that you might love and check loacal news papers as well as you may find some listed in some estate sale lol

 

[rp2813]

I found two identical early 90's vintage dishwashers of KitchenAid design on craigslist earlier this year within a couple of weeks of each other and they each cost me $40 or less.  Both were in operating condition.  After fixing a simple leak that involved tightening a single screw, one of them is the current daily driver in my kitchen and the other is stored away for parts. 

 

If you can find on craigslist a KA machine of similar vintage to the one you had, you'll get reliability better than anything new, and for a small fraction of the cost.  They turn up often enough that it shouldn't take you too long to locate one, particularly in the greater Los Angeles area.

 

[whirlykenmore78]

Dishwasher

Unless you are willing to part with the money for a Miele or Asko I would look for an old KA or Whirlpool WP built Kenmores included. Ideally you would find a KA built by Hobart. (Being in the foodservice industry I can attest to Hobart's superiority.) Otherwise the Maytag machines (pre tall tub) do a phenominal job.

 

[rp2813]

KitchenAid by Hobart

Just FYI, Hobart produced KitchenAid dishwashers into the 20 series.  If you're interested in finding a Hobart machine, then you will be looking for a model number that reads something like:  KD (insert S,I or C here) 20, or KUD (S,I or C) 20.  I would suggest a KDS/KUDS model, which would be a top of the line Superba ("I"= Imperial, "C"= Custom).  A series 20 machine would be several years older than your 1993 machine, which I'm guessing was a series 22 or 23.  Steer clear of series 19, but if you find a series 18 in operating/serviceable condition, they are considered by many here to be the best KitchenAid dishwashers ever produced.  Also, with a Hobart machine, you can still readily obtain certain parts directly from Hobart, as they share some of their components with commercial machines still supported by Hobart.

 

Once Whirlpool took over, they began making changes and incorporating their technology into Hobart's design.  Still, you'd be safe with a series 21, or the quieter operating 22, or even a 23 series where Whirlpool's changes are more apparent inside and out.  After that, things get a little sketchy and a lot less Hobarty.

 

[peteski50]

KD19series!

I dont fully agree with Ralph about the 19 series. My family had the kds19 for over 25 years. People complained about the drying - but if you used the jetdry everything always came out dry. The washing performance was always superior. On a normal wash it took about 1 hr 40 min - in todays standards that is a short cycle. If we needed the dishes quicker after the last rinse we would flash dry and it worked out good. It is true these models could have been designed better. It was made way ahead of its time. These models should have had a ss tub. I did not like this stand still water heating especially at the start of the cycle. The plus side is you always got a sani rinse ensuring clean dishes. I always perfered the insink erator designs with the heated main wash that you can turn on / off. Simple and to the point. But to me the 19 series wasnt so bad. Good Luck in your search!
Peter

 

[yogitunes]

I am finding loads of them at Habitat Restore, mainly in the PennsaukenNJ location.........for around 40.00 each.....

many people are remodeling and going for the new shiny junk.....they don't know what they have until they lose it!

like Ralph, I want to grab 2 similar models, one for a dailydriver, and a spare for parts....

 

[pierreandreply4]

and the advantage you have with older dishwasher is if the model you like is a portable you can convert it to a built in and if there are things you do not understand alot of members here on the site can guide you in the process