15 years, how I still manage all

I'm still using the same old Dishwasher for 15 years, want to know, how?

Let me know if you would be interested, I'll post with pics.

Use of Municipal Water cuts down the recurring cost drastically

I'm revisiting this topic after 11 years due to the fact that we are using Municipal Water entirely for the past One year or so (earlier we use to get a mix of Bore and Municipal water based on Municipal water availability in our dry area room)

You would be aware recurring expenses for a dishwasher.

1. Dishwasher Salt
2. Dishwasher Detergent
3. Rinse Aid
4. Electricity Expense

Dishwasher Salt : Ever since we moved our Dishwasher to the Kitchen and connected it to Municipal Water tap, we have completely stopped filling Dishwasher Salt as the TDS are substantially very low and hence we didn't feel it is worth to use the inbuilt softener. More over too much softness would result in Soap residue in the vessels.  Due to non-use of Dishwasher Salt the cost works out to Rs 0 per wash.

Dishwasher Detergent : Now we use only 1 spoon of Dishwasher per wash due to use of Municipal Water. The reason being, anything more than 1 spoon leaves a while residue on the vessels, which is a clear indication of Soft Water and/or over use of Detergent. The cost of Dishwasher detergent has gone up to Rs 310 per Kg.  However due to use of Municipal Water the quantity of Detergent being used is reduced to 1/3rd hence 1 Kg of Dishwasher detergent comes for not less than 7 month assuming we run the Dishwasher one time per day.  The cost per wash works out to Rs 1.72 per wash.

Rinse Aid : We were using Vinegar as an alternative to Rinse Aid, however, after using Municipal Water the wash quality has improved drastically so much so we didn't feel like adding Vinegar.  Due to non-use of Rinse Aid the cost works out to Rs 0 per wash.

Electricity Expense : Takes 2 units per wash (Intensive Wash - that's the maximum level in IFB - Neptune). Going by the slab rates prevailing currently in the city I'm living - Hyderabad, Comes to Rs 6.60 per wash.

Going by the cost I've earlier mentioned , the total expenditure works out to Rs 8.32 per wash. We normally run the dishwasher once a day, hence our monthly expense works out to Rs 250.

Note: I've not added any AMC charges as IFB have stopped supporting the Model that I have, I still run the machine and confident enough about handling service issues (will share about that in a different post, some time later)

Vessels placed in the extreme ends are not getting cleaned properly

In spite of regular maintenance of spray arms, we observed some sort of uncleanliness in the vessels we placed in the extreme ends of the top basket.

On closer look, I found two issues

• The hole near the extreme end of the spray arm was blocked by some debris (picture taken after cleaning)
• One of the water seal had broken

 

After thoroughly cleaning the arm and freeing the debris, I used a nylon rubber band in place of the red plastic seal that had broken, refitted it and the issue got resolved.

11 years completed and going fine

When we entered October 2019, my memory went back to 2008 - when about this time, we decided to buy a Dishwasher after a year long research.

Looking back, I repeat, with proper care and regular self maintenance it can work well.

I thought of sharing few tips which I haven't covered in my posts so far, that would be beneficial for those who are constructing their house / planning to buy Dishwasher.

It is really comfortable to have the Dishwasher inside the Kitchen rather than anywhere else, however, you need to ensure that the surroundings of Dishwasher are dry or any chance of water spillage is completely avoided.

In 2018 we decided to bring the Dishwasher inside the Kitchen after removing a portion of the Kitchen slab adjacent to the Kitchen Sink and constructing a small wall in between so that the area remains separated.

We didn't want to place it under the Kitchen platform though we had provision for Water Inlet,  Water Outlet and Power Supply and decided to keep it Free Standing. 

The reason for choosing Free Standing is, we could keep the Dishwasher slightly above the Kitchen floor so that there is very less chance of moisture / water entering from the bottom of the Dishwasher.

Let's see some advantages

• Transferring uncleaned vessels from Kitchen Sink to Dishwasher becomes easier
• We could use the cleaned vessels directly from Dishwasher thereby it avoids the need for placing them in the shelf.
• Easy Access to Soft Water - Generally in India, builders provide a tap connection for Municipal Water in the Kitchen, which is generally in the softer side compared to Bore Water (very less usage of Dishwasher salt)
• From maintenance point of view a free standing Dishwasher is lot easier to inspect rather than the one under the Kitchen platform.

Precaution

• Please read all the safety instructions given in User Manual
• Please read all the safety tips that I've provided in this Blog
• Take Extra cautions based on prevailing situations.
• Ensure proper setup so that the area around Dishwasher is always dry

In 9th year, still doing good, some more learnings

No major issues - that would require a technician to attend. Usual challenge of changing the softener settings in accordance with the quality of water coming in the tap.

One another issue that we encountered was the 16A socket was showing signs of getting heated and had to be changed with a new Socket. I changed the Dishwasher's plug as well as I saw some kind of wear and tier and bought both socket and plug from the same company so that they match perfectly.

Apart from that, the other day I received an email (I get decent amount of email from people who want to own or own a dishwasher) and one such person happen to be in my own locality and we thought we would meet to see why his dishwasher wasn't cleaning the vessels properly.

The person conveyed that he had been using the alternatives that I've suggested in the blog, however, his machine was not given a clean output. Since he was not very far from where I live, I decided to visit his place one day (that gave me a chance to post this message - probably my quota for this year)

And this how it looked.

I have suggested him to buy a Can (yes - 5 litre) of Vinegar and asked him to find some time to manually rub it with a cloth dipped in Vinegar. Using a liquid detergent would have helped superficially, however, when you run the machine after cleaning, you would encounter lot of froth which is not good for the machine.

While manually rubbing off the scaling and cleaning would help the machine to recover, the scaling in internal parts would take very long time to be removed [not 100% though]. 

Bottom line is

1. Even if you have good supply of municipality [soft] water, please ensure that the inner walls of the dishwasher looks clean and new. If needed run empty run with Vinegar so that the inner walls are always spic and span.
2. Regular cleaning off filter and arms are must.
3. Maintain the Dishwasher it would give you a longer life.

Eight Years and Going Good

Eight Years and Going Good

• No break down in the past two years
• We follow the points mentioned here.

Article in Business Line refering this blog

I'm delighted to share with you that an Article about Dishwasher appeared in the Business Line yesterday by Sravanthi Challapalli (Thanks!) which sums up the prevailing market.

(Online Version)

I have received numerous emails asking what Dishwasher I'd recommend. Let me reiterate two points.

• All Dishwashers are similar in performance, 
• It is the service network in your area and the extent of Warranty Support should be the deciding factor when you choose the Dishwasher.