Get a KA - they clean well, they're quiet and most of them have heated dry and grinders. But whatever you get, you should still scrape your dishes but you don't need to rinse them.

What she/he said! :)

I'm wondering, why do you think only the lower-end (or, cheaper) KA models have a food disposer?? Why would the more expensive/higher-end ones be made without one??

Who said only the lower end KAs have a food grinder? My KA was the top of the line 8 years ago and it has a food grinder and heated dry as did all the KAs at the time. These days, some KA models have eliminated the grinder and heated dry to be more energy efficient and to compete with the European brands. You need to look at a particular model to see which features it has.

I've had a Miele Dishwasher in the our last 3 homes. I cannot say enough wonderful things about them.

One of my good friends did a major kitchen remodel ($300,000...it is a WOW kitchen). She is a Viking-a-holic! 4 Viking Ovens, 2 Viking Refrigerators, 2 Viking Freezers, Viking Vent hoods, Viking Range, a Viking Cooktop, etc, etc. You get the idea.

BUT...she put in 2 Miele Dishwashers. They are, simply the best!!

Of their 14 dishwashers, only six have hard food disposers and they are among the seven least expensive. I am not advocating for simply buying the most expensive options, I am just wondering why the ones without them are the more expensive ones. The spec breakdowns don't make sense to me relative to their pricing... What am I missing??

Here is a link that might be useful: KA dishwashers

I didn't realize that things had changed that much with KA models but these days QUIET and ENERGY EFFICIENCY are the most important things to consumers so the top end models with the lowest decibel ratings have eliminated the grinder which adds to the noise. The 3 top models have also eliminated the heated dry as well.

To be honest, most people don't care about having a grinder. When the issue has come up on this forum before, people with Mieles and Bosches always say that their filters hardly have anything in them even after months of use. Obviously, these people scrape their dishes better than you do :-)

Frankly, if a grinder is important to you, and it obviously is, then there's nothing wrong with getting a lower end model - you'll mainly be sacrificing quiet and some cycles but frankly, most people rarely use more than 2 or 3 cycles.

In my case, heated dry is imporant to me but having a grinder isn't. And even though my DW has a grinder I find the noise level perfectly acceptable.

The KA's without the grinders are also the most expensive ones because the most expensive ones are the ones that are the quietest. KA would not be able to achieve the low noise levels (and charge more for a DW where they advertise its low noise levels) if the DW has a grinder. The grinder makes noise. Simple as that.

Actually, I don't think a grinder is necessary. I have a Miele DW (I think it was second-from-the-bottom of the line when I bought it). The Miele's don't have grinders, they instruct you to open a small chamber at the bottom of the DW every so often and clean it out . I do open it, but rarely have found anything to clean out of it. As Weissman said, I scrape my dishes, but don't rinse. (as an aside, definitely don't rinse; if you do, you give nothing for the DW detergent to work on, and you'll end up with etched dishes and glasses).

If you feel you or your family often put dishes in the DW that still have bones or other hard objects on them, then get a DW with a grinder, and save a little money while you're at it. If having a quiet DW is more important to you, then buy a DW without a grinder. The quieter ones will be more expensive.

If you saw what most manufacturers call a Grinder you would probably laugh.
I most cases it's just a small thin blade attached to the pump impeller. In some cases it's just a piece of spring wire on the end of the impeller.

In other words you just don't need one so don't get too hooked up on only looking at dishwashers with them.

Personally I feel it's better to filter the water instead of throwing food back on the dishes that you just washed it off of.

Hmm.... Thanks for your thoughts! It's helpful.

So, carriage, what did you choose?

I ordered a Miele Optima. I am still feeling a little bummed about not hearing from anyone about the Viking, though. The Viking description just makes it sound like a serious dream machine!!! Alas, it is an expensive machine to take a chance on. I scoured the forum and found two people who seemed to have them, but neither responded to emails inquiring about their experience with them after a year or so. So... I decided to go with a Kitchen Aid, as recommended compellingly here, until I read a lengthy thread in which many people who had both Mieles and KAs weighed in with a pretty resounding Yay! for the Mieles! So, I went for it.

I am pretty sure I will never again buy something that cost more than twenty bucks without first scouring the web for reviews. Kind of cool, kind of annoying...

I can't recall many posts about the Viking DW's on GW.
I recall one , where it was sent back, and replaced by something else as the user was not happy with it.

I think either the Miele or the KA would serve you well.
I have the Miele Optima (since 2006) and we are very happy with it, especially that top cutlery tray. Had KA had that in 2006 it might have been a "Horse race" between KA and Miele.

Should you be looking for another appliance , in the near future, go to the main appliance page, then type in the Search Box at the BOTTOM of the page,
Viking Fridge, or GE oven , or whatever???? This will pull up "Threads" related to whatever you typed in.

Good Luck with your DW!!

Gary

Thanks!