I have a Bosch SHU series. I can't tell you how well the sprinkler works because I've never used it. In fact, it has never even been out of the zipper bag that holds my manual. When I do tall pots I just remove the upper rack.

gini2, thanks, that's a great help! :) I gather this mean that you don't really need the sprinkler to clean large items.

I can't imagine ever needing it since I've had my dishwasher over 5 years and haven't used it. There is an upper sprayer that cleans the pots just fine. Bosch does seem to gadget up its model line to grab attention.

Do you all actually was pots in your Bosch dishwasher? I just bought a set of All Clad & everyone tells me not to put them in the dishwasher!

luisa, The All Clad stainless are supposedly okay to go in the DW and I have put 'em in there. I've been told too, at WS where I bought them that it is okay but not ideal to put those in.

The OTHER All Clad varieties shouldn't go in - the copper, the Ltd etc. I did forget and put the Ltd (the ones with the anodized al coating on the outside) and the outside is a bit mottled looking :-(. The Stainless come out wonderfully clean from the DW - generally better than I'm able to clean 'em by hand unless I use BKF. The Ltd's stainless inside was brilliant but the dark outside surface no longer looks as ship-shape as it used to before it went in.

So, depending on which All Clad's you have, take the warning seriously.

I do put my generic steamer in the DW regularly and it comes out nice and clean.

uncauzi, it is said that if you wash without the upper basket, it is best to put that tall item sprinkler in there but frankly, I have nothing so tall that it requires me to remove the upper rack so I've never done a load without the upper rack in. However, I don't see why gini would wash without that sprinkler on but I imagine that the cleaning would only be better with the additional sprinkler than w/o - certainly can't be worse ;-). Sorry I can't help you re: tall items wash since I don't have any - I do have that sprinkler though! :-)

Is that tall item sprinkler by any chance that eound grey plastic piece -- maybe 3" across, with holes on one side that I found under my sink and had no idea what it was for? If so, I haven't used it either. :D

I take it from the discussion here that it's for items tall enough you remove the upper rack altogether. I have washed some large and fairly tall items in the DW (cookie sheets, 6 qt mixing bowl, 8 qt soup pot), but I've never removed the top rack -- I just lift it to the higher position for a few things and never thought to remove it. If the installation guys left my manual here, I still haven't found it.

You might also want to check out Sears Kenmore. They have one unit built by Bosch, and although I thought I was going to buy a Bosch badged Bosch, I got the Kenmore Elite made by Bosch. It looks different than the other Kenmores, very Boschy, so it is easy to spot. This model seemed to have a blend of the higher end Bosch features, and a lower price tag. It has the adjustable top rack, the "top rack only" wash feature. It takes slightly under two hours to do the load, and is, of course quiet as falling snow. We've been very pleased with its cleaning power and have cleaned pots on the regular cycle with great results. Love the 8 minute rinse feature. You can also remove the upper rack. All in all a great feature set for us. Only problem is it cleans so well, it seems to sometimes "eat" some of our older coffee mugs! Can take the logos off poorly printed mugs. (OK by me, I didn't like 'em much anyway!)

Good luck with your search. I'm certain you will be happy with your Bosch!

LenVt

Buy the one that has a drying cycle.

lenvt: Do you know which models of the Kenmore Elite are made by Bosch?
Thanks in advance.

Mindstorm, The "sprinkler" isn't another jet--It apparently operates as a diffuser. There is already an upper spray jet that washes from the top even with the upper rack removed (and works just fine on tall items). It may have some use but I haven't found one yet and it sure doesn't seem useful enough to be a deal breaker on another model (which was my point with the OP).

Kenmore Elite 17303-Stainless (on close-out this week 869.88
16302 White
16304 Bisque
16309 Black
16303 Stainless

gini, I don't if you've gotten the OP's question but she is asking about washing pots that require removing the upper rack entirely to wash really tall pots and pans.

If you did get that, I don't know what kind (model) of DW you have but the rotary arm in the upper rack is attached to the upper rack. Remove the rack (to do what the OP wants to do to wash really tall pots and pans) and you remove that upper spray. If you don't attach the tall item attachment/sprinkler and the water out the upper arm will plop into the DW, contribute nothing to the wash and probably create an unholy din to boot (based on another post or two here). The sprinkler is there to direct that upper outlet and to actually create a spray out of it - since, as I've mentioned, the upper rack and hence the upper spray arm is now AWOL.

Perhaps you did get that - I'm now confused - but the question the OP seems to be asking is about the performance of the sans-top-rack, avec-sprinkler configuration. It appears that we are all unable to answer that question for her.

I have the SHX55M - it doesn't have the extra tall sprinkler, but the top rack adjusts up and down. I have a pretty tall pot that i have no problems fitting in, and I have put a large skillet in sideways and it fits just fine. I am very happy with how the Bosch cleans. I am very unhappy with the silverware baskets (separators are too close together for my silverware to fit through them, and the baskets are too shallow for the silverware to stand up much without them) and the folding tines - they don't stay in place when they are up and knock down easily - sending your dishes crashing. Very annoying. It also seems to be designed to hold tons of plates and not much in the way of things like mixing bowls and saucepans. I'd suggest taking some silverware, a cereal bowl and some other things you wash in the dw frequently to see how they fit.