Try using wooden or metal utensils for your high heat cooking rather than plastic.

Thanks for these updates.

I would be severely p*ssed if my DW--and a Miele, no less--produced chipped dishes. I would think they chipped because there was too much interior movement. Could it be a water pressure problem, the agitation function, or maybe the way it's loaded?

There is another thread on here about folks who have had the same complaint about new Miele DWs. The solution seems to be making a change to water hardness settings, the normal temperature and adding a 2nd rinse (?).

here's the thread.

Here is a link that might be useful: miele thread

Thanks, weedmeister. What I don't get is that the more $$$ you pay, the easier it should be to operate a DW. It seems to be the reverse in Miele's case. I have to buy Rinse Aid, ridiculously expensive Miele tabs, salt, and now 2nd rinse? My husband is very disappointed with Miele as well, so I am never buying this DW again.

German appliances can be a little bossy.

Miele DWers and Laundry are very water and energy efficient, very effective and last a very long time.

To achieve this may require calibration depending on local water conditions and products used. Most people only use half a Miele tab per load.

IMO reading the owners manual and a little extra work is worth the performance and longevity.

If you hate your Miele DW you can put it on Craigslist/"Ebay local pickup only" and get alot of your money back.

Deeageaux, I am not sure how Miele is more efficient. It takes double the time to clean dishes - it takes at least 2.5 hours. And using half a Miele tab works only if the dishes are not too dirty - I used half which does not clean grease and stains as much. I ended up using the full tab and yet I cannot rely on getting the pots cleaned up completely every single time. I will read the full manual - I think I need to do that to get more from the DW. But I don't think it is as efficient as touted.

Miele DWers use less electricity and water.

The motors are not running 100% of the time at %100 capacity.

I know it is counter intuitive but longer cycles mean more efficient.

The average dishwasher in America uses 15 gallons per load.
The current Miele uses between 1.3 to 6.5 per load depending on model and cycle chosen.

The water goes through filters and gets reused.

It heats water in the dw;it does not dump cold water and wait for hot water to be delivered.

I currently don't own a Miele DW but have used my sisters to see if I wanted one.

I have gotten the dishes clean with half a tab in all cases except when I have very dirty pots and pans.

Most people here have had the same experience that is why they are so heavily recommended.

Miele DWers have the highest resale value from what I have seen shopping for them on Los Angeles Craigslist and Ebay.

Much higher than KA or GE or some standard American DW.

That is not based on GW propaganda.

It is based on the collective judgement of the buying public

If you hate it dump it.

Speaking of more expensive being simpler, I remember reading a review in either Consumer Reports or Edmunds about a BMW 700 series. They were 'disappointed' with the single knob control thingy for the radio, nav, and AC. They said it was so complicated and distracting to use that their drivers nearly drove into oncoming traffic or off the road at time attempting to use it.

More expensive is not simpler.

For what it's worth, I've used Cascade + Lemishine, press the Power button, press a button to set the wash cycle (eg Normal), and press the On button, and my Miele washes dishes just fine. And yes, it takes forever, but that's what nighttime is for.

Maybe the problem is in buying the fancy Mieles, not buying a Miele per se. :-)

I don't see how a DW is chipping or breaking dishes - this is almost certainly operator error.

Rinse Aid is necessary in all Euro dishwashers and domestic ones that do not use a heating element to dry the contents. - You don't have to buy/use Miele tabs or Salt. Cascade works fine and any salt with a similar grain size no anti caking agent will work. Unless you have extremely hard water - you won't be using much per year anyway.

Our experience has been that dirty dishes in a Miele are usually (note I did not say ALWAYS) traced back to two things. 1. Improper loading. You cannot just throw things in willy nilly like people are used to with domestic washers of the last 3 decades, if a pot/pan is tightly nested on a tray or another bowl then it won't get clean in a euro washer- even a Miele. 2. The setting are not dialed in properly which os supposed to be taken care of by the "certified" installer. Too often the fella just has no clue or is just plain lazy - though Miele makes an effort to train and monitor the program. Once the water quality issues are dealt with and proper detergent are used almost any DW will clean dishes.

Re: should this be so complicated at this price? I'd say no also.............. BUT.............. the reality of today's technology driven world is that there is little correlation to price and ease of use.

A $50 stereo will play my $4 CD with the press of one button. My $72,000 concert hall stereo is simply a pile of metal and silicon without another $10-$15,000 of programming to allow me to just turn the silly thing on. If the guy had a bad day - when I choose to listen to a CD, I might get the local AM gospel station to listen to.

Same with computers: an iPad is pretty simple to operate - many 3 year olds can run it. Cost:$700. Think that same 3 year old is going to be able to do anything on a million dollar Cray Supercomputer ???

It's just like anything else. No product will meet the needs of everyone or make all buyers happy- there are disappointed Benz and Rolls owners out there too.