How to choose a dishwasher

October 23rd, 2014

Appliance Talk Dishwashers

So you’ve decided to stop washing dishes by hand and buy a dishwasher. Good for you!

But how will you narrow down the range of dishwashers available at Appliances Online to select the best one for your home?

Before jumping straight to the dishwasher with the lowest price, ask yourself a few questions first to make sure you’re not accidentally picking a dishwasher that’s utterly unsuitable for your kitchen:

How many people live in your household?

If you live alone or with a partner, you may not require a full-sized dishwasher to handle all of your washing up needs (unless there are children in your future, or you regularly entertain guests, that is).

For washing up a few plates and cups each evening, a modest DishDrawer should be just right for your needs.

If you’re a renter who may be moving house down the track, a benchtop dishwasher can be disconnected and relocated if required.

How much space is available in your home?

Not all kitchens are created equal.

Some are luxurious spaces with an immense amount of room available for storing food and cooking essentials, leaving plenty of real estate available for adding kitchen appliances or decorative knick-knacks.

If you don’t have one of these sumptuous spaces available, and instead make do with a more modestly compact kitchen reminiscent of a submarine’s galley, then a slimline dishwasher may be for you.

Nice and narrow, these compact dishwashers make efficient use of your kitchen’s available space, while offering sufficient capacity to clean a respectable number of dishes (usually somewhere between 8 and 10 place settings).

To built-in or not to built-in?

There are three ways to set up a dishwasher in your kitchen:

• Freestanding dishwashers are versatile, and can stand out in the open like a refrigerator, or be set up underneath your benches or inside a kitchen cavity.
• Semi integrated dishwashers are built into your kitchen cabinets, and can conceal their door behind a matching panel, leaving only their controls visible.
• Fully integrated dishwashers are also built into your cabinetry, but hide their controls inside their door, which can be completely concealed behind a custom panel to effectively camouflage the appliance from the casual eye.

All three configurations have their pluses and minuses.

Freestanding dishwashers are fairly easy to install, but can look a bit out of place in some kitchen designs.

And even though these dishwashers can find a home in most kitchen layouts, you should ALWAYS double-check their measurements and compare them to your kitchen’s available space – buying an expensive new dishwasher, only to find that it’s impossible to install in your home, is an INCREDIBLY frustrating experience.

Semi and Fully Integrated dishwashers look amazing, but if you want them to match with the rest of your kitchen’s décor, they’ll require a custom-made door panel – check with your cabinetmaker.

They also require VERY precise measurements to be properly fitted and installed beneath your benches.

What finish would you like?

Yay, the fun decision!

Here are the most common dishwasher finishes available:

• White – Classic and simple, if a bit plain
• Stainless Steel – Contemporary and easy to match with other appliances, but shows up fingermarks easily
• Cool black – Very chic, but looks best in a suitably moody kitchen décor
• Custom panel – Necessary if you want your semi or fully integrated dishwasher to blend in with the rest of your kitchen cabinetry
• Colour – Great if you’re going for the retro look, or matching with similarly-shaded appliances, but can sometimes clash with other colours

We’ll let you be the judge of which finish will look best in your home. We believe in you.

And all the rest

There are a few other things to consider when choosing a dishwasher – energy and water efficiency; the number of special wash cycles available (and how many you’ll actually use); how easy the controls are to operate; and of course, the price.

Most of this information can be found right here at Appliances Online.  If you have any questions, comments or problems, call our Engine Room on 1300 000 500 – our legendary team is avaialbe to help, 24/7!