Best Dishwasher in India (2019)
For most people, Bosch-SMS66GI01I is the best dishwasher. It is easy to use, energy efficient and gets your utensils clean in no time. But if you have a large family or want a few more options to choose from, then check out my top 5 picks of the best dishwashers in India. Keep reading to find out which dishwasher is perfect for you and points you should consider before buying one.
Contents
Bosch 12 place settings Dishwasher (Silver inox)
This dishwasher from Bosch is the best in its category. It is easy to set-up, operate and load utensils. The dishwasher gives a consistently good performance in cleaning and drying utensils.
With dimensions like 84.5cm x 60cm x 60cm, this one will fit anywhere in the kitchen or dry balcony. The capacity of 12 place settings is spacious enough to hold an entire day’s load of utensils.
You can then select among 6 wash programmes namely intensive kadhai 700C (for tough stains), Auto (for unleashing the dishwasher’s sensor power), Express sparkle (for wash under an hour), Eco (quieter cycle), Quick (shorter wash cycle) and Pre-rinse (to loosen hardened leftovers).
If you are a passionate cook, but not so passionate about the oily vessels that fill your sink later, this is an ideal dishwasher. With wash cycles like intensive and pre-rinse you can go catch a TV show while the utensils get clean.
Time is always short for working professionals and coming home late makes it impossible to have a steady housemaid.
But with the Express and Quick cycles, you can skip the maids without burdening yourself. Also, the Ecosilence cycle makes it possible to run the dishwasher late night without disturbing your own sleep or the neighbours.
This dishwasher comes with an LED display for rinse aid and salt refill indicator.
You can even set a time delay for up to 24 hours. This is especially useful if there are water cuts in your area.
Another advantage of this dishwasher is that its flexible. It has an adjustable upper rack, two foldable plate racks and convertible tines along with a cutlery basket.
This dishwasher will last you a long time owing to its stainless-steel racks, polinox tub and a comprehensive warranty of 2 years.
This dishwasher from Bosch is a colour variant of the one above but cheaper. The only difference between the two models is in their colour.
Being white in colour makes this model look classier and cooler, but also makes it more susceptible to staining. This one is a good option if you are looking for a little lighter price tag with all the same features as above except the colour.
This dishwasher is another one from Bosch’s series 6 line-up known for its more reliable, quieter and flexible models.
This one too comes with 6 wash cycles that consume water in the range of 4 to 16 Litres and electricity between 0.05 and 1.75 kWh. You can thus improve on your environmental footprint by regulating your usage of water while keeping the energy consumption to a minimum.
Depending on the type of cooking and utensils, you may end up using only 1 or 2 of the wash cycles.
For example, for bachelors and young couples, dirty utensils may mean more dishes, cutlery and bowls, than kadhais. In this case ‘Express’, ‘Eco’ and ‘Quick’ wash cycles may be most used.
For seasoned chefs and moms ‘intensive kadhai’, ‘pre-rinse’ and ‘Auto’ may be a favourite over other options. The convertible and flexible nature of upper and lower racks helps you find place even for the most oddly shaped vessels, pots and pans.
As it’s a front-loading machine, you can use the dishwasher surface as an additional kitchen counter when not in use. The dishwasher can also be used as an extra storage space, till you make space on the kitchen counter and in the drawers for putting back the clean utensils.
All dishwashers from Bosch come with a warranty of 2 years on the product. But if you follow the instructions properly, you won’t have to worry about your dishwasher giving up sooner than its time.
With dimensions— 84.5cm x 60cm x 60cm and decibel ratings—52dB, this one could be considered a variant of Bosch dishwashers. Both Bosch and Siemens make use of German engineering to bring the best dishwashers to our homes.
With six wash cycles and an easy to set time delay, your task gets simpler.
You can keep loading your dirty dishes till the machine is full, and it starts cleaning while you’re busy in office. By the time you return home, the utensils are ready to be used again!
If your residential area sees a lot of power cuts, don’t worry, the dishwasher will resume its work whenever the power comes on.
The dishwasher has three extra selections, HygienePlus, VarioEco and Half Load. The HygienePlus mode is good for sanitizing baby bottles and other cookware.
VarioEco and Half load help you save water and energy while also letting you wash a half-full dishwasher. The dishwasher is set to take up any challenge be it delicate glassware, greasy stains, oddly shaped vessels and so on.
You also get a 2 years comprehensive warranty on the product. With a Siemens dishwasher you won’t ever have any complains.
With a 14-place settings dishwasher you get to load 14 sets of the following combination— one large dinner plate, one small plate, one cup and saucer, a bowl, a drinking glass, a knife, two teaspoons and 2 forks.
However, the dishwasher isn’t limited to the above utensils and can also hold large pots, pans, kadhais and pressure cooker.
Having dimensions of 85cm x 60cm x 60cm, you don’t have to give up a lot of space to accommodate this dishwasher. It will fit in any corner of the kitchen or a dry balcony, quietly doing the dishes thanks to a low decibel output of 45dB.
You can choose among 5 wash programmes— Auto, Gentle, Eco, Quick, Dual wash and also set a time delay from 1-19 hours.
This dishwasher comes with an inverter direct drive that saves energy and water, making it one of the most energy efficient models on the market. LG has also set up a Smart Diagnosis System through which you can self-detect problems, if any.
LG Smart Rack system lets you adjust, fold and convert the rack space elements to suit your needs. Hence whether it’s a designer bowl or an odd shaped plate, you can easily find a place for it in the dishwasher.
Along with a 2-year comprehensive product warranty, LG also gives a 10-year warranty on its motor.
Whirlpool brings a spacious 14 place settings dishwasher and at an affordable price! But the reason why I loved this dishwasher a lot is because of a third drawer for cutlery.
This gives more freedom of space in other two drawers as all the spoons, forks, knives will be out of the way. All the three racks are adjustable and can be folded according to your requirements.
Whirlpool offers one of the quietest dishwashers in the market. You also get a wide range of wash cycles like Daily 50, Daily 55, Eco, Eco 50, Glass, Intensive 650, Drain, Pre-wash.
This one has dimensions of 91 x 65 x 67.5cm height, depth and width. You thus get ample space within the dishwasher to keep large utensils like pressure cooker and pots.
Whirlpool’s PowerClean Pro technology uses high pressure spray nozzles in the back of the dishwasher to clean extremely tough stains. This dishwasher is also rated A++ in the energy efficiency category and will help save you water and electricity.
This one is also one the quietest models in the category with a decibel rating of 44dB. You even get a cutlery basket as an alternative to using the top drawer, when the utensil load is less.
All-in-all this one is perfect if you’re looking for a larger dishwasher that is reasonably priced.
The Buying Guide
Getting ready for a Dishwasher
1. Placement and Connections
Every kitchen appliance, once it enters your home, stays in its designated place for its lifetime.
Dishwashers, being new additions to Indian kitchens, will need a little visualization on your part before you get a real one home. That is because, you don’t want to end up walking all across your kitchen just to put a plate or spoon in the dishwasher.
If you’re renovating your kitchen, then this is a perfect time to map out the dishwasher’s place. But even if you aren’t, don’t worry, I can suggest a few good places for the dishwasher.
Your dishwasher will be similar to your washing machine. It will need water and electrical connections. Hence, any spot near the kitchen sink is ideal to fit a dishwasher in.
Dishwashers are shorter than washing machines but have more depth (about 60cm), so keep that in mind while finding the right spot.
Do ensure that there’s enough space for the inlet and outlet pipe. Also, it will help if the pipe can stay hidden, so as to maintain your kitchen’s décor.
If your home has a dry balcony, you can make space there too. It is also advisable to get a check done from your local plumber regarding your selected spot’s viability in setting up a dishwasher.
And remember, the installation team/person won’t be setting up the entire inlet-outlet connections for you. His job is limited to connecting the dishwasher to available connections in your kitchen.
Prepping your kitchen before the dishwasher’s delivery and installation will save you time and frustration.
2. Water-type
If the water you receive at home is hard (having high mineral content), then any appliance coming in contact with it will not last its expected lifetime.
But, if you aren’t sure about what type of water is supplied to your home, try these 3 ways to determine if you have hard water.
Although majority Indian urban households are supplied with treated soft water, its best to ensure that fact to avoid future problems with your new dishwasher.
If you’re being supplied with hard water, you will have to use an additional softening agent (mentioned in my guide below) with your dishwasher.
No matter what size of dishwasher you buy, the expected load of soiled utensils you generate will vary on a daily basis.
This is especially true, if you frequently entertain guests at your home. You may be a family of 2 but the utensil load generated may resemble that of a 5 or 6 membered household.
In both the above cases, you will either need to use the dishwasher multiple times a day or go for a larger dishwasher (more on this in my guide below).
Frequent use demands a more energy efficient dishwasher and also one that will quickly wash the utensils in an hour or two.
Hence, while selecting the dishwasher’s capacity, do keep your requirements in mind in terms of expected load of utensils and frequency of use.
How to select the best Dishwasher
Type of Dishwasher
There are 4 types of dishwashers in the global market— Counter-top, dishdrawer, built-in and free-standing. However only the last two are popular in the Indian market.
The load of utensils generated per mealtime or day is large, especially if yours is a joint family. This calls for a spacious dishwasher that can wash the entire load in a single wash cycle.
- Built-in/ Under the counter Dishwasher:
These dishwashers snugly fit into modular kitchens, under the kitchen counter. But you need to make prior arrangements in terms of space, product dimensions and connections.
If your modular kitchen has no such designated space, then you will have to go for the free-standing dishwasher (trending in Indian market).
- Portable/ Free-standing Dishwasher:
These are the most common type of dishwashers you will find in retail stores, both online and offline. These are easy to install and move around, thus making them the preferred choice of dishwashers. The capacity of free-standing dishwashers is also comparatively larger which makes them ideal for Indian homes.
Size/ Capacity (Place Settings)
The capacity or size of a dishwasher is specified in ‘place settings’ for example, ‘12 place settings’, ‘14 place settings’ etc. The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM), a U.S. based trade association of home appliance industry aptly defines one place setting.
According to AHAM, ‘one place setting’ holds a combination of the following— (a large dinner plate, a small snack plate, a cup and saucer, bowl, drinking glass, knife, 2 teaspoons and 2 forks).
Hence a dishwasher with 12 place settings will hold the above list of utensils times 12. A full load can thus hold about 115-130 utensils at a time.
The dishwasher manufacturers recommend dishwashers of up to 12 place setting for bachelors and families of 2-4. For larger families of 5+ members, 14 place settings and above is a better size option.
But Indian kitchens also generate soiled pressure cooker, kadhai, pots and pans among other large utensils. Where do these fit into the place settings factor?
Well, this brings us to the next important point to look for in a dishwasher— the racks.
Racks
Since the sizes of large utensils like pots, pans, kadhai, and pressure cooker is not uniform, it is difficult to specify them in place settings. But the dishwasher can definitely clean them equally well.
Dishwashers come with 2 to 3 racks, among which the lowest can be used to place these large utensils. The racks come with convertible tines (or spikes) which you can fold and adjust according to the size of the pot or pan you’re trying to place there.
You can even take note of the position of jet sprays below the 2nd and 3rd rack to place the dirtiest utensils facing them.
Material
Either stainless steel, plastic (polinox) or nylon-coated stainless-steel tubs and racks are used inside dishwashers. Stainless steel interiors offer better resistance against stains and odours. They also help dampen noise, speed up heat transfer and drying, while contributing to the dishwasher’s longer life.
Nylon-coated stainless-steel tubs are the next best option in case the product of your choice doesn’t come with stainless steel racks.
However, a lot depends on your use. Any material will last longer if the usage instructions are properly followed.
Energy Efficiency
When washing utensils, we or the housemaid often keep the water running out of habit. A large amount of water is wasted this way in the act of rinsing, scrubbing and cleaning.
A dishwasher, however, comes with different sensors for detecting soil (food particles floating in the water inside dishwasher). It then determines the optimum levels of water, temperature and detergent to use, depending on how many sensors your dishwasher has.
The soil content inside the dishwasher also sends signals on whether to extend or end the wash cycle.
This is why, never load your utensils fully rinsed. The lack of floating gunk will signal the dishwasher to end or shorten the wash cycle and you may end up with unclean or spotted utensils.
But, do remember to scrape off any solidified chunks of food.
The sensors make dishwashers highly efficient in their water use (not exceeding 9-10 L) while keeping their electricity usage to a minimum (about 1kW/cycle).
The only time a dishwasher consumes more energy than usual, is if you set the water at higher temperature or select a wash cycle like ‘pots and pans.’ Heated water gets your greasy utensils clean in no time making them worth the extra energy consumed.
Wash cycles
All dishwashers offer similar wash cycles or programmes, though the names may differ. For example:
- The normal/default cycle: This is the most basic one that cleans a full load of utensils with ordinary amount of soil.
- Gentle: For people who entertain often, there may be a load of delicate glassware which need to be handled with care. This mode lowers the water pressure, keeping your chinaware and other expensive glassware safe. This mode also comes under the tag of ‘China’
- Rinse only: This rinse only mode is most useful in case the plates have remained in the dishwasher for a long time thus increasing the chances of food hardening.
- Quick: May also be called Express or VarioSpeed. This one shortens the time taken for one wash cycle to as quick as 40 minutes to an hour.
- Auto: Here the dishwasher’s sensors are put to full use. The sensors detect and determine all aspects of the wash cycle including level of water, temperature, detergent and time.
- Half-load: With this wash cycle, you can start the dishwasher even with half its capacity of utensils loaded inside.
- Intensive: This option is best suited for heavily soiled utensils or larger cookware like kadhais, pots etc. It may also be labelled as ‘Heavy’ or ‘Pots and Pans’ or ‘Kadhai’
- Extra dry: Suited for difficult to dry items like plastic, this mode comes handy when you don’t want dripping plates and pans.
Filters
With all the cleaning a dishwasher does, it is given that a lot of waste would be generated in the form of dirty water and food particles. Filters are tasked with separation and disposal of this waste.
The filter also prevents the food particles from getting redeposited on the utensils.
Filters come in two types— self-cleaning and manual. As the name suggests, self-cleaning filters do not need your attention as they take care of the food gunk and themselves.
However, they may be noisier compared to manual filters (due to the presence of a particle grinder). The alternative to combat the noise issue involves the use of advanced self-cleaning filters which elevate the dishwasher’s price.
Manual filters, on the other hand, need occasional cleaning. A simple rinse under the tap water is enough to get them clean. Manual filters are thus easy-to-clean, quieter and cheaper than self-cleaning ones.
Noise
The dishwasher produces variable levels of noise during its entire wash cycle. The drying part of the cycle is the quietest while the decibels levels widely vary during other parts of the cycle.
You may have noticed, even the washing machine produces loud noise during a particular part of its wash cycle. The dishwasher too may reach 60-70 decibels of noise during its peak cycle.
It is thus necessary to pay attention to the decibel values in the product specification. Any value in the 40-50 decibel range is a good choice as it indicates an overall quiet dishwasher.
Safety
All dishwashers come with safety lock to prevent opening of door during a wash cycle.
The anti-flood devices add an additional measure of safety by ensuring the dishwasher does not take in too much water, avoiding a flood-like situation.
Drying technique
As the last of the water is sprayed on to the dishes inside, the dishwasher ensures that its temperature is high enough. This facilitates the process of drying, as the water runs off and the rest gets evaporated.
A fan fitted into the dishwasher supplies room temperature air that further aids the drying step.
Another method used by dishwashers to dry dishes uses the help of a heating element. This heats up the air inside the dishwasher which then dries off the utensils. Hence this method is also called heat-dry method or comes as a wash cycle called heated drying cycle.
Using the heat-dry mode will naturally consume more electricity as it involves the heating element. It is thus advisable to limit its usage to special occasions where the load consists of delicate glassware or if you’re short on time.
Additional costs
- Softening salts
Hard water leaves stains and deposits on utensils being washed. Softening salts or dishwasher salts help escape this problem by expelling the Calcium and Magnesium ions most associated with hard water.
However, dishwasher salts are different than the regular table salt we use.
They comprise of pure Sodium chloride crystals unlike the fortified table salts that contain minerals and iron. Even the size is larger like tiny stones, so as to avoid any interference with the dishwasher’s mechanical components.
The dishwasher salt thus softens the hard water giving you spot-free utensils. Do remember to put the dishwasher salt in its designated compartment only.
- Detergent
The job of a dishwasher detergent is to get your utensils clean in the shortest possible time. Dishwasher detergents are different from other detergents you know and are available in different forms like liquid, powder and tablets.
According to reviewed.com, tabs, gel packs and powders are good detergents for dishwashers. This is because they offer the best combination of bleach and enzymes, the two main components of a good dishwashing detergent.
Avoid liquid and gel detergents as most bleaches, in liquid form destroy enzymes, lowering the detergent’s effectiveness. Here are some dishwashing detergents popular among Indian consumers:
- Rinse aid
Once the detergent does its job, the dishwasher quickly starts to dry the dishes. Rinse aid helps to speed up this drying process by reducing the surface tension of water.
The water, instead of forming droplets, spreads like thin sheets and slides off the dishes. The utensils dry faster and you also don’t end up with any water spots.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Can dishwasher wash pressure cooker?
Yes, you can definitely wash your pressure cooker in the dishwasher.
2. Which utensils can go in the dishwasher?
Any utensils made of ceramic, glass, stainless steel, porcelain, microwave safe plastics, melamine, baby bottles and so on can be used in the dishwasher.
3.What should not go in dishwasher?
Utensils of the following materials should not be used in the dishwasher— wood, copper, bronze, brass, aluminium, silver, acrylic, cast iron, and insulated thermos and mugs.
4. What is place setting?
One place setting consists of the following utensils, one large plate, one small plate, one cup and saucer, a bowl, a drinking glass, a knife, two teaspoons and 2 forks.
A dishwasher having 12 place settings can hold 12 sets of the above list of utensils.
5. Which is the best dishwasher detergent in India?
Tablets and powdered detergents are more popular than liquid and gel ones. All brands offering tabs and powders have similar performance with no one brand outshining others. You can thus take a pick of your choice depending on the offers available at the time of purchase.
6. How long should a dishwasher last?
If used according to the instructions in the manual, dishwashers can easily last for more than 10 years.
7. What are the dishwasher pros and cons?
Dishwashers have a lot of pros, that is they help you save time, efforts, and water while consuming minimal amount of energy.
The total quantity of water used by dishwasher is lesser compared to washing by hand.
They also help relieve the stress of washing a sink-full of utensils, especially after a night of entertaining guests. Dishwashers also help sanitize milk bottles as well as other utensils.
As for the cons, dishwashers take up space in the kitchen which may make it more congested. They consume both water and electricity, and need regular maintenance.
But if seen overall, the pros outweigh the cons by a good measure, increasing the dishwasher’s attractiveness.
Common guidelines for using dishwashers
- Do not rinse the dishes and other utensils before loading them into the dishwasher. Even if the food has hardened go for the ‘Rinse only’ wash cycle to loosen it instead of pre-rinsing.
- Never let the utensils stick to one another inside the dishwasher. They may break or scratch the adjacent vessels, so leave some gap between them.
- Place sharp objects like knives facing down, to avoid any accidents.
- Place the dirtiest vessels facing the dishwasher’s jets.