Kitchen Aid KUDE60 or 70.
The best appliance decision I've ever made!
Do a search on this forum and you'll find MANY
happy owners :)
I didn't know stainless was out. What's the "in" color?
Monica

Thanks Monica for the reply.
Apparently White is the new "In" color. It took me a while but I much prefer stainless.

I'll check into the KitchenAid.
Thanks again.

Oooohhhh Noooooo, I'm passe too, and I only just finished my remodel a few years ago! But, like you, I like my stainless, so I don't care. lol

I put in a Miele Inspira (now discontinued). I love this machine. Everything gets clean *every time*, and even though it's a bottom of the line Miele, it's incredibly quiet. I like the loading racks, too--very configurable and I can get a lot of stuff in there, even though it's slightly smaller than my last dishwasher. (Maytag) I came across it for half price in a clearance area, which made this purchase a true no brainer. To give you an idea of how great it is, my DH told me that when it dies (hopefully many years hence) he would actually pay full price for a new one! I run it two to three times per day. It's nice when something just does what it's supposed to do, and does it well every time. I recommend it highly.

Happy shopping,
Cj

KitchenAid has gotten great reviews from many.
If you are interested in a great deal on one, I know a source. Email me and I'll send you the info.

miele, have had it for a year, best machine ever. everything clean every time, quiet.

had a maytag, beats it hands down.

was skeptical, but loving it, worth every penny.

i have the diamante plus series, that is discontinued, not sure what my level is called now. i think its 1 or 2 levels above the basic.

good luck w/ ur decision!

KitchenAid--even the more economical KUDC10FXSS is great-that's the one we have. Samsung 800 series was out backup--has many of the same features as the KA at a similar price point. And with the Samsung, the handle would match your fridge!

Another KA KUDE happy fan. I have the 60 and have been very pleased. Quiet, cleans beautifully.

I suggest that you set a budget and then look at what is available in your budget range. Several friends have one and I was pretty impressed, but the least expensive Miele was beyond my budget.

Something else to consider if you do not have to replace the unit right away: wait for holiday sales like the upcoming Columbus day. There can be substantial price reductions.

I also suggest you include Bosch in the models you consider. I had a bottom-of-the-line Bosch for 15 years of nearly daily use. I was very pleased with it until it died right before 4th of July. The controller board expired and replacements are no longer readily available. (Because it has an all stainless steel tub, I gave it to a friend who is going to turn it into a smoker).

Anyway, I did my research and went out to buy a KA KUDE60. The the sale price on the Bosch Evolution 500 (SHE55) was so much lower that I got it instead. The layout of the tines in the Bosch is different from what I am used to -- although the racks from the old unit will fit --- but I can get a lot of stuff in it. It is very quiet. It cleans very well. Some things may hold some water (concave bases on wine-glass stems, for example) This will irritate some people but does not bother me.

I also looked briefly at some other product lines from Whirlpool et al. They had extremely long cycle times, some of them running over 135 minutes. My old Bosch ran about 95 minutes. The new one has a water sensor and adjust the time depending on the turbity of the water. Typically takes about 103 minutes for a heavy load. (CR reported its cycle time at 125 minutes. Apparently their tests have dirt loads that produce very turbid water.) One thing the new Bosch does not have is a rinse-and-hold cycle. (My old one would run a 5 minute rinse so stuff does not harden on the plates or pots between breakfast time and dinner.)

All of the Bosch model lines are available with stainless exterior paneling, although that seems to run about $100 more than white or black. Also, each line has a model with "hidden" controls, if that matters to you. I believe I saw a Bosch Ascenta (300 series) with a top mounted (hidden) control panel on a stainless exterior panel. It was slightly less expensive than the 500 series that I bouth. THe thing I did not care for with the Ascenta series is that the stainless steel tub is stainless on the top and sides but the base is polypro.

When you identify your models, do some searches here because there are a lot of posts about specific models.

I too am looking for a new dishwasher. I looked at the spec for KA and it appears there's no built-in garbage disposal, only filtration. My sister has a new KA (don't know what model) and is not pleased. I am looking at the GE profile ones. they have a built-in disposal, heated dry, heated water etc but not the quietest. Quiet is not as high on my list of "must haves" as other features.

A "built in garbage disposer" is the least needed, most over rated item in a dishwasher.
If you have ever torn a dishwasher apart (I've done thousands) you will see that what is called a disposer is just a thin piece of steel connected to the end of the circulation pump blade. In some cases this is a simple wire. It's pupose is to cut up food small enough to not block the holes in the spray arms. This chopped up food is just recycled up to the dishes it was just washed off of.

In my opinion the best systems are the ones that filter the food out of the recirculating water, such as the Miele and the Bosch units. These filters are somewhat self flushing and send the food bits out the drain during the pump out cycle. Anything that is too big for the drain pump won't make it there and is trapped in the filter. about 99.9 percent is flushed out so most people only check their filters every 1 - 2 months.

" I looked at the spec for KA and it appears there's no built-in garbage disposal, only filtration."

No dishwasher has a garbage disposal. There is at least one KA model on the market (and their web site) that has the "food grinder". My Whirlpool-built Kenmore Elite has that -- it will munch up miniscule bits of food so one doesn't have to pre-wash the dishes..

Although I agree with jakvis, it seems to me that chopper versus filter is a matter of personal preference.

I will say that I have not been pre-washing dishes for the Bosch DWs that I've had over the last 15 years. I do brush the large stuff off the plates before they go in the DW, but it is nothing like a prewash. I ignore the miniscule stuff.

Back when I first got a filter DW, I checked the filter every few days because of worry about what might be collecting and moldering in the filter. Now, it is thirty seconds every couple of weeks. When I remember to do it. Also, if anybody breaks a glass, the filter keeps pieces from getting into the pump. At least, it seems to do that. Anyway, I've never had to dissassemble a pump on a Bosch the way I did with the old GE that I had before getting a filter-type DW.

Copied from Lowes website on the GE Profile 380VSS

Profile 24-in Built-In Dishwasher (Stainless Steel) ENERGY STAR
� 5-stage filtration with Piranha� hard food disposer - 5 self-cleaning filters ensure clean dishes
� Dedicated silverware jets - highly pressurized spray jets target the silverware area for improved cleaning
� DeepClean� cycle with Steam Prewash - removes tough, baked-on soils like egg, rice and oatmeal
� Fan assist dry with heated option and ActiveVent - a heating element heats the air inside while a hidden fan circulates the warm air to help dry dishes
� 51 dBA sound level - nearly silent 2-pump system cleans dirty dishes without disruption
� ENERGY STAR� qualified and CEE Tier II rated - meets or exceeds federal guidelines for energy efficiency for year-round energy and money savings
� Eclipse black full-extension racks with ball-tip tines - durable racks glide smoothly on ball-bearings for easy loading
� Lower rack fold-down tines - flexible loading options handle today's dishes and cookware of all shapes and sizes
� SmartDispense� technology - conveniently stores up to 47 oz. of liquid detergent and automatically dispenses multiple doses in each cycle

so that "food disposer" and 5 self cleaning filters has me very interested!

Per the parts diagram, the "food disposer" is a simple blade mounted on the pump recirculation impeller such that it's in the water stream. The diagrams and pictures of parts don't show all possible detail views but there doesn't appear to be a cutting plate/screen involved so the blade apparently simply spins freely in the flow of water passing through the pump.

Here is a link that might be useful: