Dishwasher Buying Guide
You might find the energy to rustle up some dinner for the family after a long day's work, but scrubbing those dishes can really be a pain. This is where the dishwasher steps in. It really simplifies your life. Even for those with maids, a dishwasher delicately washes off all the grub from your delicate crockery as well, something you wouldn't trust your maid with. However, before you invest on this wonder machine, there are few things to be considered.
DISHWASHER CAPACITY
Firstly depending on the number of people in the household, you can pick the capacity you want, ie capacity in terms of the number of utensils. This also depends on your food habits. Those from the old school still eat in big thaalis and drink from the big lassi glasses, in which case, you will automatically require more space than the standard dinner plate size. Higher capacity machines are able to accommodate more utensils in one wash load. Dishwashers currently can wash a maximum of 116 utensils. When you're at the dealers, place the dishes in the dishwasher, so you definitely know what kind and how many dishes fit into the dishwasher you're aim to buy. The minimum capacity a dishwasher offers is 4-plate settings; high-end machines have 12 or 14 plate settings. Machines with 4-plate settings can accommodate up to 32 utensils. So you don't have to worry about the post-party scene at home.
DISHWASHER PRICE AND BUDGET
The price of a dishwasher is largely dependent on its capacity. In all probability, will have a rough budget in your head reserved for a dishwasher. Just in case you don't, a dishwasher can cost you anywhere between Rs 11,000 to Rs 45,000. The other determinant for price is the number of features included in the dishwasher.
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DISHWASHER FEATURES
Cycle time
This refers to the total time of any selected wash cycle, just as in washing machines. Naturally, this will differ depending on how greasy your utensils are, as also on the type of vessels in the dishwasher. For instance, if you've put heavily greased pans, then you will need a bigger cycle time. One advantage is that even in a wider or longer cycle, you can manually adjust the timing based on the wash load, thus saving electricity consumption.
Number of wash programmes
This is the number of preset programmes available in a dishwasher. More options are always good as it will facilitate easy and fast washing of utensils. However, more the number of programmes, more the cost, so in case you're pinching pennies, you can take a call on the programmes you need the most, and go for a dishwasher that offers those limited wash programmes. Usually, most entry-level dishwashers offer at least 3 preset wash programmes whereas high-end ones offer a maximum of seven.
Temperature range
This refers to the range of temperature of water that is available with the dishwasher. Since dishwashers have in-built heaters to heat the water, it is useful to have a wider temperature range. If you have a load of lightly soiled dishes, you can conserve electricity by setting a lower temperature.
Auto restart
In case of power failure, the dishwasher's electromechanical timer enables it to remember the point in the cycle when the machine stopped. When the power returns, the dishwasher resumes operation of the cycle from the point of stoppage. This is a very useful feature for areas where power cuts are a regular occurrence.
Door safety lock
A lock on the door of the dish washing machine prevents you from fiddling with it when it is in operation. This feature is a must if you have children at home.
End of cycle buzzer
This will signal the end of the cycle. A useful feature if you do multiple wash loads at one time. This will tell you when each cycle is complete as you cannot open the machine to check.
Salt refill indicator
Dishwashers use salt for softening the water that is used to clean the vessels. A salt dispenser pumps salt into the machine during the wash. This dissolves the lime (hardness) present in the water. The indicator informs you when more salt needs to be added to the dispenser.
Dry tap indicator
This is useful if you face frequent water cuts. This indicator will let you know with a beep if the water supply to the dishwasher suddenly stops. At this beep the dishwasher goes into sleep mode and automatically resumes when the water supply starts again.
Rat or rodent protection
It is a mesh on the drain hole that prevents rats and rodents from entering the system.
Protection from flooding
Flooding can occur if the drain pump fails and is unable to drain out the water before more water is pumped into the dishwasher. If the first switch fails to operate the drain pump, the second switch (i.e. the dual pressure switch) takes over and operates the drain pump thereby preventing the machine from flooding.
Hard water compatibility
A lot of places in India have hard water problem. Hard water causes scaling and reduces the action of the detergent, thus wasting soap and water. If your area has hard water supply, you must look for this feature. Machines with hard water compatibility have softening chambers, which check incoming water for hardness and treat it with resins to soften it before using it in the wash process.