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Bosch dishwasher - real-life opinions

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Jul 7, 2017
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Bosch dishwasher - real-life opinions

It seems Bosch dishwashers are overwhelmingly recommended on this site. I have a medium-term plan to replace the GE dishwasher but only when it becomes to expensive to fix (might be 14-16 years old and still chugging along).

Lately, I have read some reviews and complaints on other sites that some owners have mould growing on their dishes, in the dishwasher and on the dishes themselves after they come out of the dishwasher and placed in the cupboard or wherever they are stored. Black mould. Has anyone experienced this?

A common factor seems to be that these owners also happen to be low frequency users, going up to 3-5 days between washes. This is a bit representative of our usage as we almost always go at least 24 hrs, often up to 2-3 days between washes. No, we do not pre-rinse as it is not necessary and defeats the purpose of saving water. We do not leave any solid bits on the dishes either. Does anyone here with a Bosch go more than 24 hrs between washes? Any issue with mould if so?

Another factor is that Bosch dishwashers seem to be designed so that they remain closed. The tub is lit and the light reportedly stays on as long as the dishwasher is open. We do not really required a tub light. A closed dishwasher creates a nice and humid environment - We tend to leave our dishwashers open so this is not an issue for us. We've had experience with various Whirlpool family and GE DWs, some Korean ones too but not Bosch in our housesitting experiences. We've never encountered the mould or light issue.

Another usage factor is that we never use the heated drying function, preferring to let dishes air dry. We understand Bosch uses a condensation to dry instead of the coil.

I don't know where the reviewers/complainers are located as they may be in warm, humid locales and we're not.
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Dec 31, 2007
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thriftshopper wrote: It seems Bosch dishwashers are overwhelmingly recommended on this site. I have a medium-term plan to replace the GE dishwasher but only when it becomes to expensive to fix (might be 14-16 years old and still chugging along).

Lately, I have read some reviews and complaints on other sites that some owners have mould growing on their dishes, in the dishwasher and on the dishes themselves after they come out of the dishwasher and placed in the cupboard or wherever they are stored. Black mould. Has anyone experienced this?

A common factor seems to be that these owners also happen to be low frequency users, going up to 3-5 days between washes. This is a bit representative of our usage as we almost always go at least 24 hrs, often up to 2-3 days between washes. No, we do not pre-rinse as it is not necessary and defeats the purpose of saving water. We do not leave any solid bits on the dishes either. Does anyone here with a Bosch go more than 24 hrs between washes? Any issue with mould if so?

Another factor is that Bosch dishwashers seem to be designed so that they remain closed. The tub is lit and the light reportedly stays on as long as the dishwasher is open. We do not really required a tub light. A closed dishwasher creates a nice and humid environment - We tend to leave our dishwashers open so this is not an issue for us. We've had experience with various Whirlpool family and GE DWs, some Korean ones too but not Bosch in our housesitting experiences. We've never encountered the mould or light issue.

Another usage factor is that we never use the heated drying function, preferring to let dishes air dry. We understand Bosch uses a condensation to dry instead of the coil.

I don't know where the reviewers/complainers are located as they may be in warm, humid locales and we're not.
I have a bosch, 800 series, 5 years strong. We are a family of 4, use daily or at least once every other day. No mold issues. It doesn't have an internal light, so the door stays open and nothing is lit. We also let it air dry.

Have not had any issues whatsoever. No repairs (knock on wood).
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Mar 23, 2008
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We haven't had a mould issue (yet), using our Bosch infrequently. There's only 2 of us in the house, so we run dishes on a weekly cycle more than daily. No funky smells, no mould, nothing. But we've only had it about a year. We do leave it open a crack in between uses.

There was a recall on a number of their dishwashers, and I need to get that taken care of :(

C
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Sep 4, 2006
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I have a Bosch SHE33AR55UC which we installed ourselves, 5 yrs ago. We r a family of 4 and We use it everyday, no light inside our dishasher, we let our dishes airdry. I have been very happy with it. I dont use the sanitize or heat dry options all the time onlh use the normal wash which we put on timer to let it run after 9 or 10 pm. The first thinv i noticed was low noise from these washers and that was important for us with an open concept kitchen. No mold issues so far. Although i like to wipethe sides of the dishwasher once in a few months.
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Yeah, ours is dead quiet too. Love that about it. Have to check the indicator light that shines on the floor to see if it’s running.

C
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Jan 2, 2009
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I don't understand how mold can grow on clean dry dishes , that has to pure BS, those dishwashers use super hot water and heat the water as it washes , and it also heat dry's so it should kill all mold spores. We have a Bosch it runs every 5 days or so as there are only 2 of us , the door is always cracked and never had an issue.
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Don't snap the door shut. You'll never have a mold issue.

Bosch is a terrific dishwasher btw, we've had 2 in 2 different homes over the last 8 years, fantastic cleaning and dead silent.
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Dec 27, 2007
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thriftshopper wrote:
Another usage factor is that we never use the heated drying function, preferring to let dishes air dry. We understand Bosch uses a condensation to dryinstead of the coil.
How does this make any sense?

Either way, if you don't want to have a mold issue, leave the door open to air it out?
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May 10, 2005
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thriftshopper wrote: Pictures have been posted so I am taking their word at face value.

I'd like to know before I buy.

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/22912 ... asher#n=59
The picture posted was of one person that left a dirty dish in the dishwasher for days. The food left on the dish developed mold or rotted or whatever. As the other posters had mentioned, how could this be the dishwashers fault...it is a result of rotting food left on the plate.
Anyway, we have a Bosch dishwasher for over 5 years, used infrequently as there are only two of us and have not encountered any problems. Not even smell.
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The previous owners of our house purchased and installed a very high end Samsung dishwasher that we had to suffer using for 4 years until it finally died (thank god). We replaced it with a relatively entry level Bosch and what a difference. In all honesty, the Samsung was a bit more quiet, though the Bosch is by no means noisy. The Bosch is also a little smaller inside so we are now forced to run it daily whereas with the Samsung it was probably 5 times a week. Finally, the dishes don't dry quite as well in the Bosch.

Having said all of that, the dishwasher cleans unbelievably well. We no longer have to pre-rinse everything before loading the dishwasher. Once the cycle is done, the dishes are almost always spotless and when you rub it with your thumb you hear/feel how clean they are. The dishwasher itself inside is very clean with shiny stainless. Honestly, I don't think we'd ever even consider anything else in the price range.
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Have a Bosch dishwasher that, despite its problems, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend. It's an 800-series panel-ready model that we usually run on the 30-minute cycle every 3-4 days. We let the machine do its drying then we open the door and let the bottoms of the cups, etc. air dry from there. Never had a problem with noise or mould and only the occasional dirty dish post-wash.

The problems?

1) The smell after a day or so. As mentioned above, it's a panel-ready dishwasher - so we have it closed most of the time. After a wash it's not bad but a day or two after and it will make you cry. We have tried different dishwasher cleaners but nothing really seems to work and my wife won't let us leave it cracked, so we kind of have to live with it.

2) Both door springs have broken in the 5 years we have had the dishwasher. So if you open the door, you have to guide it down otherwise it will just drop on you. Everyone in the house is aware of the issue, so it's just a pain in the butt more than anything but it sucks that it happened. It broke while still under warranty but, again as it is a panel-ready dishwasher, it's installed and has a toe kick running in front of it so the repairman that came out couldn't remove the dishwasher to fix the springs. It sucks but I think it's just a random lemon and doesn't affect the actual cleaning of dishes, so I still would recommend a Bosch.
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Fanboy wrote: Have a Bosch dishwasher that, despite its problems, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend. It's an 800-series panel-ready model that we usually run on the 30-minute cycle every 3-4 days. We let the machine do its drying then we open the door and let the bottoms of the cups, etc. air dry from there. Never had a problem with noise or mould and only the occasional dirty dish post-wash.

The problems?

1) The smell after a day or so. As mentioned above, it's a panel-ready dishwasher - so we have it closed most of the time. After a wash it's not bad but a day or two after and it will make you cry. We have tried different dishwasher cleaners but nothing really seems to work and my wife won't let us leave it cracked, so we kind of have to live with it.

2) Both door springs have broken in the 5 years we have had the dishwasher. So if you open the door, you have to guide it down otherwise it will just drop on you. Everyone in the house is aware of the issue, so it's just a pain in the butt more than anything but it sucks that it happened. It broke while still under warranty but, again as it is a panel-ready dishwasher, it's installed and has a toe kick running in front of it so the repairman that came out couldn't remove the dishwasher to fix the springs. It sucks but I think it's just a random lemon and doesn't affect the actual cleaning of dishes, so I still would recommend a Bosch.
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C
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Pete_Coach wrote: The picture posted was of one person that left a dirty dish in the dishwasher for days. The food left on the dish developed mold or rotted or whatever.
That was mould remaining after the wash. That was has got me worried but maybe it isn't a problem in our climes.

At the very least, I will look for a model that doesn't have the tub light, or one that can be switched off.
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thriftshopper wrote: That was mould remaining after the wash. That was has got me worried but maybe it isn't a problem in our climes.

At the very least, I will look for a model that doesn't have the tub light, or one that can be switched off.
I certainly did not read that into the posting. It said "Up until today, our issue had only been with odor between loads but this morning (after being out of town for 4 days), we discovered 2 cereal bowls covered with mold. They had contained strawberry shortcake and were rinsed out and loaded into the empty dishwasher the night before we left. The only other things in the D/W (and loaded at the same time) were a clear glass bowl that had contained the cut-up strawberries and 2 coffee mugs - none of which had mold.".
Oh and, just like a fridge, the light goes off when the door is closed LOL.
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thriftshopper wrote: That was mould remaining after the wash. That was has got me worried but maybe it isn't a problem in our climes.

At the very least, I will look for a model that doesn't have the tub light, or one that can be switched off.
Why is the tub light a deal breaker?

C
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CNeufeld wrote: Why is the tub light a deal breaker?
We are one of these people who leave the DW open, or at least cracked open, almost all the time except when it's in use. No need for the illumination.
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Is it easy/cheap to find part and service? considering it's European.
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LongLiveRFD wrote: Is it easy/cheap to find part and service? considering it's European.
Supposedly not an issue because they are said to be reliable. I've had Whirlpool, Frigidaire, GE and Maytag DWs in my own home and rental suites and none of them ever gave problems, except for the Frigidaire as it has a design issue (18" width doesn't help with cleaning, and also detergent door design issue).

Hopefully Bosch sorts out all issues and quality doesn't take a turn for the worse while I'm waiting for the current GE DW in my house to go.
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Are you using rinse aid? That should dry the dishes a lot quicker?

My previous dishwasher was a Bosch and it was a decent. Quiet and efficient. We tend to run our dishwasher every 3 to 5 days.

I have since moved to a Miele and it blows me away. I thought the Bosch was quiet, the Miele is silent. I’ve opened the door while it was running, it’s so quiet, you can’t hear it.

The Bosch locks the door when it is running, the Miele doesn’t. But if you open it, it stops immediately and as long as you close it within a few seconds, it will continue.

The Miele costs three times what the Bosch costs.

I suggest you upgrade now, don’t wait for it to break. New units are more energy efficient and uses less water.
Last edited by Gee on May 18th, 2018 1:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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