dishwasher question

soapmakermom · #1 01/25/07, 01:25 PM

I'm kind of embarassed to ask this question on a homesteading forum, but I've always received good advice from you all in the past and I really need that now. We have very unusual well water here, very heavy with total dissolved solids. It corrodes many things, including our built-in dishwasher. We have had to replace the racks twice, and now the whole thing needs replaced. (we've been here 10 years) I was wondering if anyone knows of a good dishwasher (besides myself!) that we can put in that would be more durable. What happens is that the metal in the racks and the inside fittings just corrodes. I wish I could just fix the water situation but that would require a RO system which is expensive and not always wise to do whole-house. I wish they made dishwashers totally stainless, I know they make the tubs stainless, but not the racks as far as I know. Thanks for any advice you can send. Mary

jerzeygurl · #2 01/25/07, 01:34 PM

there is stuff you can run in your washer on occasion to prevent the build up

they are also making racks that are all vinyl with no metal to corrode...

3 years ago i bought the top of the line top consumer rated dishwasher brand,caught on fire after a year and a half...took 3 months to get them to do us the favor(thier words) of fixing it...wouldnt let local people work on it had to be aproved by them, after 6 months the same part that he replaced just quit,

so we went to sears apliance out let and bought the best kenmore AND extended warranty for 4 years(extra 99 bucks, never have done that but thought we better) they will replace whole thing if it breaks down in first year, you should ask if it would cover baskets ect in that ammount of time

have to say sadly its not as well made mechanically as the original one, it was well made, just defective lol. but i do like the new ones options and basket set up

dishwashers do save alot on water compared to hand washing they use from 3 gallons to 8 gallons depending on cycles....i cant hand wash my milk bucket and use only three gallons of water to wash and rinse...

CatsPaw · #3 01/25/07, 03:27 PM

My wifey unit uses a product called Lemi-shine. It's basically a water softener added to the open trough. We have very hard water and it seems to really help.

soapmakermom · #4 01/25/07, 06:11 PM

It's not really a soft water problem, CatsPaw, if anything our water is too soft already. It just is full of dissolved solids (we had it tested by an independent lab) and they said the only thing to take it out was RO.
I guess we will just have to find a dishwasher with plastic racks and hope they don't get 'eaten' too. An extended warranty might be smart, too, jerzygirl, thanks for the advice. Mary

frazzlehead · #5 01/25/07, 11:12 PM

Have you costed out a water filter that would filter the water used in say, just your sink and dishwasher?

It might be cheaper than having to replace dishwashers, but I have no idea on cost.

Just a thought to consider ... a plumber from your area (i.e. familiar with local water and it's associated problems) probably would be able to give you an off-the-top-of-the-head price guesstimate.

soapmakermom · #6 01/26/07, 07:04 AM

That's a good idea, frazzlehead. I know there was an RO system connected to our sink only when we first moved in. We took it out cuz it was so corroded and yucky looking. Now I know why! Maybe we need to put a similar system in. I know it costs over $300, but it may be worth it in the long run. Mary

jerzeygurl · #7 01/26/07, 10:33 AM

have filter system just on your water that goes to dishwasher to save on filters OR maybe to the water that goes to water heater, that will save the water heater as well, but will use more filters, but dishwashers run on straight hot...

Ford8N · #8 01/26/07, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by soapmakermom

I'm kind of embarassed to ask this question on a homesteading forum, but I've always received good advice from you all in the past and I really need that now. We have very unusual well water here, very heavy with total dissolved solids. It corrodes many things, including our built-in dishwasher. We have had to replace the racks twice, and now the whole thing needs replaced. (we've been here 10 years) I was wondering if anyone knows of a good dishwasher (besides myself!) that we can put in that would be more durable. What happens is that the metal in the racks and the inside fittings just corrodes. I wish I could just fix the water situation but that would require a RO system which is expensive and not always wise to do whole-house. I wish they made dishwashers totally stainless, I know they make the tubs stainless, but not the racks as far as I know. Thanks for any advice you can send. Mary

I have had good luck with Fridgidaire DWs in my rentals. They are dirt cheap, around $250, and I consider them disposible: if one would break I would just toss it and reinstall it myself and save the repair cost. I have had them in one building for 9 years with no incidents. They have plastic tubs and are a bit loud, but good enough for tenants. At home I use a Bosch. (much quieter with stainless tub) The racks should be OK because they are coated in rubber.

Don't believe what the hippies say: diswashers are good for the environment and use less energy than hand washing. You can have one on your homestead with a clear conscience unless you are "off-grid". Also, they are healthier because the water gets hot enough to kill most bacteria. I even wash my old 10 gal crocks in mine after I make kraut.

ericjeeper · #9 01/26/07, 11:17 AM

thinking of trading in my 42 year old model for two 21 year old dishwashers..But she keeps saying something about she gets half of everything we own.. so I just keep her..
I have no input on what for you to do. I have a whole house water softener.Maybe a water filtrations system for you would be a good investment?

CatsPaw · #10 01/26/07, 12:49 PM

Around here, hard water is water with all the dissolved solids in it. Softeners precipitate out that stuff. Then get back-flushed regularly to get rid of the solids out of the softener. All that scale and those mineral deposits that get left behind when the H2O evaporates from hard water is what eats up my faucets and things.

You may need an RO to get what's in your water, but soft water doesn't have or leave behind the junk. That's what I was taught anyway.

rio002 · #11 01/26/07, 02:33 PM

Hi there, we have the same well water/hard water problems too, I put straight white vinegar into the the container for your spot free rinse stuff. It does pretty well at removing the buildup that's there plus it helps to keep the buildup off everytime you run it--and yep the dishes are spotless for less cost.

chicamarun · #12 01/26/07, 03:52 PM

We have a filter on our water for the whole house - it's actually gross what gets caught in there!! I can't believe the people before here didn't have a filter system. However - we have a Fridgidaire DW and it has an "economy" wash which is great and saves some money on the hot water etc. I love it - especially when company is here because it also has an "express wash" which gets a quick load done in less than 1 hour.

chickenmommy · #13 01/26/07, 09:42 PM

I have one of those Fischer/Paykel two drawer stainless models. Have hard water that goes through the whole house softener. Have no problem with buildup in the dishwasher unless we forget to add the salt to the softener. While shopping for my dishwasher I noticed that there were different brands that heat their own water. That would make it possible to connect to a RO under the sink.

Charleen · #14 01/27/07, 06:16 AM

In our area we have a lot of lime. There was a dishwasher (Kenmore) in this house when we moved in and it didn't last but a couple more years before we had to replace the motor. But we were regularly (probably every 2 months or so) taking off the arms inside and soaking them in CLR to get the lime deposits off. We've gotten a new dishwasher (Maytag) and we're doing the same thing but in addition to taking it apart and soaking the parts, we also use white vinegar with EVERY load and I run CLR through it (empty) just about every week. This has helped to cut down on the lime.

I've also found that the dishwasher soap makes a difference. Any powdered soaps just don't dissolve well in ours, so I have to stick with liquids. I usually buy Palmolive (NEVER Cascade) but I've just tried one from Seventh Generation and it seems to work well.

soapmakermom- this was a good question and you shouldn't be embarrased on here for something that you do.