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A socialite who hated washing dishes invented the automated dishwasher

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Re: A socialite who hated washing dishes invented the automated dishwasher

#151
post #55

Does anyone have experience with big industrial dishwashers? We had one at a school I visited, based in an old military barracks. It was about the size of a large fridge, extremely loud (used high pressure) and cleaned dishes spotless in about 15 seconds. I've wanted one of those ever since, along with one of those giant laundromat washing machines with shock absorbers that run a spin cycle in complete silence.

> Does anyone have experience with big industrial dishwashers? Yes, they're a mainstay for high traffic kitchens. And while the allure of having your dishes pressure washed in 1-3 min cycles sounds cool its actually a much bigger PITA than you can imagine as the maintenance costs on those things is pretty high. In my experience most kitchens don't actually own them, they rent them with a maintenance and supply cost a…

>In my experience most kitchens don't actually own them, they rent them with a maintenance and supply cost attached to them, which get very costly.

Most kitchens can neither in-house maintenance nor wash dished by hand (because health code) if the machine goes down. If you can in-house the maintenance and can afford to wash dishes by hand for a week while a new widget ships from China then commercial machines are cheap enough to own (up front cost not withstanding).

Re: A socialite who hated washing dishes invented the automated dishwasher

#152
post #147

It amazes me that after widespread adoption of dishwashers, we still build very customised bathrooms into houses that require manual labour to clean each surface - tiles/grout, basins, benchtops, toilets, floors, etc. A bathroom that could be sealed and cleaned as though it was a dishwasher would be great. For everything but the toilet, lightly pressured spray of hot water would probably be sufficient. Throw the towe…

That's how I remodeled my bathroom. I opted against materials that require grout lines, among other things. It looks boring and utilitarian but its a hell of a lot easier to clean.

Re: A socialite who hated washing dishes invented the automated dishwasher

#153
post #147

It amazes me that after widespread adoption of dishwashers, we still build very customised bathrooms into houses that require manual labour to clean each surface - tiles/grout, basins, benchtops, toilets, floors, etc. A bathroom that could be sealed and cleaned as though it was a dishwasher would be great. For everything but the toilet, lightly pressured spray of hot water would probably be sufficient. Throw the towe…

Bathrooms need to look nice. Tile floors, walk-in showers, fancy sinks, these are all status symbols.

The maid cleans the bathroom anyhow.

Re: A socialite who hated washing dishes invented the automated dishwasher

#154
post #55

Does anyone have experience with big industrial dishwashers? We had one at a school I visited, based in an old military barracks. It was about the size of a large fridge, extremely loud (used high pressure) and cleaned dishes spotless in about 15 seconds. I've wanted one of those ever since, along with one of those giant laundromat washing machines with shock absorbers that run a spin cycle in complete silence.

I washed dishes, by hand and with the industrial machines, for a couple of different sorority houses in college long ago. The machines worked well, but required supervisory maintenance like would be expected for most industrial equipment. They also take a while to heat the water chamber to washing temperature.

A good friend of mine has an under counter version of the Hobart (https://www.hobartcorp.com/products/commercial-dishwashers/u...) machine in his kitchen, as well as a conventional consumer dishwasher. The commercial machines are electricity hogs, unless you use them constantly. He only uses the Hobart for dinner parties or entertaining. It is a nice setup.

Speed Queen will sell you a nice domestic version of their laundromat front-load washing machines for about a 20% premium over a high end unit at Home Depot or Lowe's. Our family is considering one. (https://speedqueen.com/products/home-products/front-load-was...)

Edited to provide product links for clarity

Re: A socialite who hated washing dishes invented the automated dishwasher

#156
post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How often do you clean the sump filter in your Bosch? If you don't do it often, do you get Error 24?

Not often enough and yes. And then error 9 after the heater shorts out when the top up salt warning stops working :/ Fortunately the pump with integrated heater strip is relatively easy to replace.

I hated those heaters. The most common failure point. Made a lot of money selling them, though :D

And replacing the pump/heater assembly on a Bosch/Siemens is harder than on Indesit/Beko/Whirlpool. Have to fiddle with a screwdriver and a flashlight from the side.

On that note, the drainage needs cleaning often (or the sensor whines about it), and I liked the water flow sensor (which they use instead of a pressure switch) on Bosch/Siemens.

Re: A socialite who hated washing dishes invented the automated dishwasher

#157
post #147

It amazes me that after widespread adoption of dishwashers, we still build very customised bathrooms into houses that require manual labour to clean each surface - tiles/grout, basins, benchtops, toilets, floors, etc. A bathroom that could be sealed and cleaned as though it was a dishwasher would be great. For everything but the toilet, lightly pressured spray of hot water would probably be sufficient. Throw the towe…

Frances Gabe built a self cleaning house https://youtu.be/h95O5dQkoD4

Re: A socialite who hated washing dishes invented the automated dishwasher

#158
post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Most Bosch washers have adjustable racks. It's great.

How often do you clean the sump filter in your Bosch? If you don't do it often, do you get Error 24?

You mean the filter at the bottom? Ideally you want to do it every time. Bosch/Siemens have an interesting way of measuring the amount of water:

Other manufacturers (and older BSH appliances) use a simple pressure switch. Bosch went all German engineering with a fully electronic system.

The intake has a propeller with magnetized blades and a reed switch that counts the rotations, so it knows exactly how much water goes in, which is pretty damn cool.

The turbidity sensor in the drain plays a vital role in this - it assures the mainboard that the dishwasher is, in fact, empty. Otherwise it would overfill.

And because of that, BSH dishwashers are very trigger happy with the drain errors. They could also be caused by pieces of food/glass in the drain pump, btw.

Surprisingly, this over-engineered solution is more reliable on a dishwasher because a traditional pressure switch gets clogged more often and is harder to fix.

Re: A socialite who hated washing dishes invented the automated dishwasher

#159
post #10

Tip for the pro when buying a dishwasher. Make sure the distance between so lower and upper drawer is big enought that the "washing wheels" can still spin if you have your plates inside. My new Whirlpool dishwasher is nearly useless.

Most dishwashers have either adjustment handles or two sets of wheels/rollers on the upper tray. You can adjust the height by taking it out completely and switching to the other set of wheels.

Though I have seen ones that can't be adjusted. You could try getting an adjustable upper tray from a similar make/model. Usually they are interchangeable.

Re: A socialite who hated washing dishes invented the automated dishwasher

#160
post #147

It amazes me that after widespread adoption of dishwashers, we still build very customised bathrooms into houses that require manual labour to clean each surface - tiles/grout, basins, benchtops, toilets, floors, etc. A bathroom that could be sealed and cleaned as though it was a dishwasher would be great. For everything but the toilet, lightly pressured spray of hot water would probably be sufficient. Throw the towe…

Bathrooms need to look nice. Tile floors, walk-in showers, fancy sinks, these are all status symbols. The maid cleans the bathroom anyhow.

I think it would be possible to combine both. Even having a hot pressurised nozzle discretely in the shower would probably take care of that area if it was quick enough to spray down every couple of days.

It's 2020 and whether it's you or a maid, humans are still scrubbing toilets.

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