EcoRenovator - View Single Post - What's the best WATER-SAVING dishwasher?

MN Renovator · 07-17-12, 02:32 PM

Cool, 3 gallons would be half of what my somewhat recent Whirlpool energy-star dishwasher(installed by previous owners) measures running its light cycle. Mine uses 6 gallons(my measurement) and seems to use the same amount with the standard wash cycle except it doesn't kick the heating element on for the high temp wash and cuts probably an hour out of the total time it washes the dishes. I usually raise the temperature of the water heater to be sure the dishwasher is getting 140 degree water, then use the light cycle to avoid the resistance heating of the water and even with the heated drying, the washer only uses 2-3kwh. It ran this morning and my meter shows 2kwh but it increments in full kwh's so it is somewhere between 2 and 3kwh. Energy use and water usage on modern energy-star dishwashers is extremely low.

I'm still trying to figure out how people think that washing dishes in the sink uses less energy and water. There was a guy at the Midwest Renewable Energy Expo who wrote an e-book and presented and gave tons of bad information and the turning point where I walked out was when he started talking about how much energy a dishwasher uses to heat the 'copious amounts of water' during its cycles. ...sure that 6 gallons and 2kwh is less than what you use to fill the sink with hot water every time you need to wash your dishes? I walked away a bit livid and noticed that throughout his presentation other people were leaving too. I stuck around for as long as I did because I wasn't interested in any of the other presentations that were going on for that specific block of time but should have known to walk away sooner. I ended up watching the presentation on straw-bale construction, not something I'm looking to do but it had good information that they were able to back up so I respect that. ..sorry got into a bit of a rant there.

How much electricity is yours rated to use for a cycle? I figure it will be very little.

Edit: Looked it up - SHX3AR7#UC - 1.298kwh NICE!
As of August 11, 2009, ENERGY STAR qualified dishwashers are required to use 5.8 gallons of water per cycle or less

The current ENERGY STAR criteria for dishwashers became effective January 20, 2012.
Standard(non-compact) sized models - ≤ 295 kWh/year (1.372kwh/cycle) and ≤ 4.25 gallons/cycle

07-17-12, 02:32 PM	#6
MN Renovator Less usage=Cheaper bills Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Minneapolis, MN Posts: 939 Thanks: 41 Thanked 116 Times in 90 Posts	Cool, 3 gallons would be half of what my somewhat recent Whirlpool energy-star dishwasher(installed by previous owners) measures running its light cycle. Mine uses 6 gallons(my measurement) and seems to use the same amount with the standard wash cycle except it doesn't kick the heating element on for the high temp wash and cuts probably an hour out of the total time it washes the dishes. I usually raise the temperature of the water heater to be sure the dishwasher is getting 140 degree water, then use the light cycle to avoid the resistance heating of the water and even with the heated drying, the washer only uses 2-3kwh. It ran this morning and my meter shows 2kwh but it increments in full kwh's so it is somewhere between 2 and 3kwh. Energy use and water usage on modern energy-star dishwashers is extremely low. I'm still trying to figure out how people think that washing dishes in the sink uses less energy and water. There was a guy at the Midwest Renewable Energy Expo who wrote an e-book and presented and gave tons of bad information and the turning point where I walked out was when he started talking about how much energy a dishwasher uses to heat the 'copious amounts of water' during its cycles. ...sure that 6 gallons and 2kwh is less than what you use to fill the sink with hot water every time you need to wash your dishes? I walked away a bit livid and noticed that throughout his presentation other people were leaving too. I stuck around for as long as I did because I wasn't interested in any of the other presentations that were going on for that specific block of time but should have known to walk away sooner. I ended up watching the presentation on straw-bale construction, not something I'm looking to do but it had good information that they were able to back up so I respect that. ..sorry got into a bit of a rant there. How much electricity is yours rated to use for a cycle? I figure it will be very little. Edit: Looked it up - SHX3AR7#UC - 1.298kwh NICE! As of August 11, 2009, ENERGY STAR qualified dishwashers are required to use 5.8 gallons of water per cycle or less The current ENERGY STAR criteria for dishwashers became effective January 20, 2012. Standard(non-compact) sized models - ≤ 295 kWh/year (1.372kwh/cycle) and ≤ 4.25 gallons/cycle Last edited by MN Renovator; 07-17-12 at 02:40 PM..