DISHING IT OUT ON THE NEW DISHWASHSER

A while back, I asked Facebook friends for input on buying a new dishwasher. There were roughly 25 responses and there was no singular conclusion to be drawn from the data. The comments were all over the place.

It would seem that if you had the bucks, buying the most expensive brand would get you a great machine. But at least one real-time consumer in my Facebook poll said hers was a dud. Others favored a particular brand but mixed in with those reviews were negative comments on the same labels.

What’s a spoiled person tired of washing by hand to do? What a first-world problem.

The big-bucks model was out of the question (and not because of the friend’s review but because of the price) so we looked at what was on sale and settled on the next to cheapest model in the store that day. The thing we liked most about it was that it was American-made. Evidently that is such a rare commodity these days that the dishwasher is marketed with a permanent plate on its door stating its roots.

The other thing we liked about it is that it is stainless steel—but they all are. The last time we bought a stove or dishwasher, stainless was considerably more costly so we went with black to save money. Now, stainless is the standard with other colors available by special order. I figure that can only mean one thing: stainless is on the way out. There’s probably some new color or type of metal that is The Thing.  Like white, maybe.

The other way I know this is that I’m one kitchen appliance away from being all-stainless.
What I’ve learned in my snail’s-pace pursuit of a stainless kitchen is that, like chasing any materialistic “thing,” it’s over-rated. Stainless means lots of streaking, smudges and so many fingerprints, you’d think I’m working for the FBI. I don’t recall off-white (excuse me: biscuit) having a tricky surface to keep clean. And to tell you the truth, I think off-white (I mean biscuit) was probably my favorite color for kitchen appliances. Although I liked white too.

I’ve also learned while hand-washing the dishes, they get cleaner than running them through an appliance. But of course, maybe that’s because our dishwasher had been going out for a while and it was so gradual we didn’t give it a lot of thought.

Our installers were speedy and nice. Yes, they’re getting the top rating in the automated store interview that will come tomorrow.  And they said they would appreciate it. Our installers gave us a priceless tip and I’m happy to pass it on to you too: They said do not use the soap pods because the plastic doesn’t always dissolve and technicians have told them that can do in a dishwasher. Yet, the mixed message followed as a free sample of the pods was enclosed.

We’ve been using the pods in the washing machine. Now I’m wondering if that is an issue as well.
I guess the bottom line is this: If I want the dishes really clean, really cheap, do this: