Time for a New Dishwasher

Last week, we decided we’d finally had enough of the nastiness that was our old dishwasher and concluded it was time to upgrade.  Our old dishwasher was a KitchenAid that really didn’t look all

The Old Dishwasher

The Old Dishwasher

that old or particularly abused and we’d had pretty good luck with a KitchenAid that we’d installed in our old house, so we were a little reluctant to give in to the fact that it just wasn’t working right.  After using it for a little more than a year, though, the dishes were still coming out with food particles stuck to them … glasses had always been a challenge, but it was even to the point where the plates weren’t getting clean any more.  So, we decided it was time to give up on the KitchenAid and try something different.

We started our research with the Consumer Reports Buying Guide, which recommended the Kenmore 1374x and the Bosch SHE33M0xUC as “CR Best Buys” under $1000.  Since we’d had problems with the old KitchenAid dishwasher and also because Consumer Reports listed them as a brand more likely to need repairs, we decided to not consider any models of that brand.  Between the Kenmore and Bosch models, we really liked the fact that the Bosch had a stainless steel interior at a much lower price than it was available in the Kenmore models.  It also seemed that the Bosch dishwashers consistently got good reviews and high marks for their ability to clean dishes efficiently and quietly, so we decided to go with a Bosch for our next dishwasher.

Although the SHE33M0xUC model (part of Bosch’s Evolution line) was the model reviewed and recommended by Consumer Reports, we had trouble finding one at Lowe’s or Sears and there weren’t any other local retailers that carried the Bosch brand.  After looking at the models in stores, though, we also decided that we liked the controls being hidden on the top of the dishwasher panel instead of the front, so even if we could have found the exact model reviewed by Consumer Reports, we probably would have purchased something a little different …

We had a little trouble identifying the differences between all of the models in the Bosch product line, but the best we could tell was that the higher priced models were a little quieter, came with more flexible rack configurations, and maybe added a cycle or two.  Otherwise, they all appeared to be about the same dishwasher.  We wound up buying the SHX43M0xUC dishwasher, which is part of the Integra line (with hidden controls) in black.  It’s rated at 54 decibels and is significantly quieter than our old dishwasher (which I didn’t think was loud).  The Bosch has also done a great job of cleaning the dishes so far.  It’s definitely an improvement overwhat we were working with before – I haven’t had to re-wash anything!  One negative I read in a lot of reviews of the dishwasher was with respect to the “Condensation Drying” feature, which others felt left the dishes too wet when the cycle completed.  For us, the drying of the Bosch dishwasher seems as good or better than the “Energy Saving Dry” feature of our KitchenAid and we’ve got no complaints.

The New Dishwasher

The New Dishwasher

The only couple of places where we see room for improvement are the fact that there’s no light on the front of the dishwasher to indicate whether or not the cycle is complete (which is hard to tell since it’s silent during the drying cycle) and that the silverware basket is positioned in the middle of the bottom rack and can’t be relocated, which makes loading the dishwasher a little more challenging.  Both of these gripes, however, are addressed in the upper models of the Bosch line if we’d been willing to pay a little more.

All-in-all, we’re really happy with the decision to purchase the Bosch so far.  It’s an amazing improvement over the old dishwasher, for sure!

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