I notice several different brands, Kenmore, Kitchenaid and of course Fisher and Paykel.
What's the overall F.A.Q on these things? Any brand preference based on experience? Do they hold up well? Any tips or things to know from those who have them?
Disclaimer:
Before some people are tempted to post the inevitable personal opinions of "why would you even want a dishwasher, they are a waste, blah blah blah", if I were of that mindset I wouldn't even be posting this so please spare me the speech. I'm only interested in the pro's and cons of actually having these. The boss wants one and if she ain't happy..........
F&P really originated the idea, and that's what you will find in many high-end coaches and boats.
The KitchenAid unit is actually made for them by F&P, and they are almost identical. I would not hesitate to get the KA if you could get a better deal on it than a branded F&P.
I don't know who makes the Kenmore, but it is not F&P, and they are quite different. I don't think they have nearly the installed base that F&P does, especially in the RV and Marine markets. I would stick with the F&P or the KA.
We researched these when we did our bus. We opted not to have a dishwasher because we mostly boondock and could not afford the water/waste budget for it, and it takes up a lot of room if you can only use it when on hookups.
We intend to have one when we move to a boat, and, unless the market changes significantly, I expect that to be an F&P drawer model.
FWIW.
-Sean
http://OurOdyssey.BlogSpot.com
Correction.
Upon checking, I just learned that KitchenAid has switched suppliers, and their new models are not made by F&P, but rather are the same platform as the Kenmore, which is made by Whirlpool/Maytag.
More info in this thread:
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/appl/msg0610394011940.html
Based on that news, I would suggest sticking with the F&P. It has the longest history, especially, as I said, in the RV and Marine markets.
Sorry for the confusion.
-Sean
http://OurOdyssey.BlogSpot.com
FWIW we have installed quite a number of the F&P drawers for customers in homes that we have built over the last 10 or so years, in fact one customer used six of them. They all seemed to like them and we have never gone back to change any of them to something else. I have not had one in any of my own houses but the wife tells me that we are using a F&P in the bus when we get to that point.
Paladin
My wife has an F & P in the house and I have one planned in our MH. She has used the one in the house flawlessly for the last 5 years. The only thing we had trouble with was the drain hose. The original manual we had did not say anything about running the hose up at least at one point above the top of the drawer before dumping into the drain. The drawer did not drain properly. I called the company, was told to do that by the engineer, did it and it has worked well since then. Don't ask me why, I don't know but it works. The drawer I bought for the MH has the information listed in black so it can't be missed.
Rob
91 LeMiarge XL
Missouri
As a loyal New Zealander, I can heartily recommend the F&P dishdrawers. (F&P is a NZ company, although they have factories all over). They have been making the dishdrawers for about 20 yrs. Their first ones had a few issues, but for the past 10yrs or so they have been very reliable.
Cheers
Peter