The best end of any feast or holiday will be rest. However, most often it ends not quite pleasantly for the hostess. After all, after the departure of guests or just the end of a home dinner, you need to wash a lot of dishes. The choice of a dishwasher and its purchase will allow you to give yourself truly joyful moments. She will wash the dishes and dry them. The hostess will then only need to put everything in its place. Let’s consider how to choose a dishwasher for home.
What is a good dishwasher?
The whole idea of a dishwasher is that you only need to load dishes into it according to the instructions: cutlery in one compartment, cups and glasses in another, plates and pans should be distributed in a large compartment and detergent should be placed. After that, the necessary program is launched. With the help of heated water and treatment of dishes with multidirectional jets of water, the surface is cleaned of impurities.
If the dirt is abundant or already dried, any machine has a soaking mode, when before the main washing mode, everything is wetted with water with a small amount of detergent and simply soaked for a while, after which it is easier to clean it using normal modes.
If you are already starting to lighten your household duties, then you should not forget about the washing machine. Read about how to choose a washing machine in this article .
The main advantages of a dishwasher are the reduction of the required amount of water for washing dishes. For example, 12 sets of dishes can be washed by hand, consuming 60-80 liters of water, and the machine can handle the same volume, consuming only 17-25 liters. You can also connect only cold water to the dishwasher, because it will heat it up to the desired temperature. As a result, the question of how to choose a dishwasher not only saves your time, but also money for paying utility bills.
In the process of cleaning dishes, powerful agents may be used, which are not suitable for ordinary hand washing due to the aggressiveness of the substances included in them for humans. But the dishes will be perfectly clean.
It takes up little space, works quietly, but makes the life of the housewife much easier, so don’t delay, it’s time to figure out how to choose a dishwasher for the home.
What are the differences between dishwashers?
Size. The main difference between different machines is their dimensions. There are two main sizes of machines on sale. Some are narrow with a width of 45 cm, the others are full-size – with a width of 60 cm.
Installation . In addition to width, dishwashers differ in the type of installation. So there are options:
- separately located;
- partially built-in;
- built-in;
- desktop options (the most compact).
Separately located, they are a complete body with an aesthetic view from all sides and a control panel built into the body itself or into the door.
Partially built-in are those that are located in the kitchen wall together with other equipment. Such machines do not have side walls, and the upper part is also covered by elements of kitchen furniture. The control panel is most often built into the door.
Fully built-in, they hide behind the facade of the kitchen wall. The control is placed on the end of the door, which can be processed to match the overall design of the kitchen. This option is the most acceptable, as it is much easier to choose a built-in dishwasher when your kitchen is already decorated in a certain style. Installing new equipment will not change it, as it will simply not be visible.
Compact models have small dimensions and are designed to be installed anywhere in the kitchen at the tabletop level.
Capacity. One set means a set of dishes for one person, including plates for the first and second courses, cutlery, a salad bowl and a bread plate, a dessert saucer and a cup. So, you can understand the capacity of the machine as follows:
- compact desktops – only for 4-6 sets;
- narrow (45 cm) – 8-9 sets of dishes;
- wide (60 cm) – up to 12 sets.
Pay attention to these nuances, comparing them with the amount of dirty dishes in your house, since it is simply impossible to choose the right dishwasher without taking into account its capacity.
Indicators of economy and efficiency of washing and drying . These dishwasher characteristics are divided into three classes (A, B, C). The higher the class of the machine in each category, the better. Class A means that the energy consumption of the device is minimal, as is the use of water. Dishwashing is carried out very carefully without any residues on its surface, drying does not leave streaks and traces. A dishwasher can have, for example, class “A” in terms of energy consumption, but only class “B” in terms of washing and drying quality. When deciding which dishwasher to choose, it is best to pay attention to the device marked by all characteristics of the highest class, provided, of course, that you are not limited in funds.
Dishes are washed, things are put away, it’s time to relax on the sofa in a cool room. An air conditioner will help with this, the correct choice of which is described here .
Noise during operation. Each manufacturer tries to isolate the sound from the operation of the device as best as possible. However, there are models in which the noise level is minimal. If silence is important to you, then you should pay attention to the corresponding characteristics of the purchased equipment. For quiet machines, the noise level is 47-57 dB.
Basic functions
The main modes of operation in most dishwashers include the following items: soaking, intensive wash, economical wash, standard, fast wash, rinsing.
Almost all models have a timer that allows you to start the machine at a certain time.
Drying is carried out in two different ways: with the help of hot air or by condensation of excess water on the inner walls of the machine. The second option is better in terms of saving electricity and reducing the amount of heating dishes. However, small traces may remain later.
Additional functions
In addition to the main functions, the hostess may be interested in such possibilities as:
- steam or hot water treatment (sterilization);
- half load mode;
- automatic water softening system (regeneration);
- blocking from children;
- special modes for washing fragile glass and crystal products (glasses, glasses, salad bowls);
- availability of additional removable baskets.
It may be useful to connect the machine to the hot water supply. At the same time, it will not be necessary to spend additional electricity on its heating.
All these features should be selected as needed at the time of purchase. The presence of one or another function or all of them will naturally affect the cost of which dishwasher you decide to choose.
Restrictions on use
It is important to know that not all dishes can be washed and cleaned with a dishwasher. The following should not be loaded into it: heat-resistant plastic dishes, wood, pewter and copper products, aluminum dishes, devices with a coating that does not tolerate heat.
Main manufacturers and pricing policy
The production of dishwashers in our country has not been established, so the entire assortment presented in stores is imported. The most common models produced in Germany and Sweden (Siemens, Electrolux, etc.). In the list of their models, you can find any variation and layout of the dishwasher. Also quite common are the products of Italian manufacturers: ARDO, Ariston, Indesit, etc.
Prices can vary from 300 dollars for the simplest solutions with a minimum of capabilities to the most elite and high-quality ones at a price of 2300-2400 dollars, for example, from GAGGENAU. Compact machines are cheap, stand-alone machines of different sizes are a little more expensive, fully built-in machines are more expensive. Despite the high cost, the choice of a built-in dishwasher is the most optimal, as it is possible to freely vary the kitchen space and not think about how to allocate space for new appliances.