In the past few months, I have had the dubious privilege of having both an Optima and KUDE60 in my kitchen. Perhaps my observations will help someone else who is evaluating the two.
In November, I purchased an Optima to replace an unbearably noisy older KA. From day one, the Optima failed to produce clean dishes. It removed food very well from soiled dishes and proceeded to redeposit it very well all over everything else in the DW. Two service visits failed to resolve the problem and instead the DW began to etch things so badly that it was unusable except for SS pans and flatware. Details of the whole debacle are in these two threads (and several others I can't find).
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/appl/msg12195705435.html
http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/appl/msg0215313327599.html?140
I replaced the Miele with a KUDE60, which I've now used 4 times. Both DW's were installed in the same place by the same installer.
My observations:
Cleaning:
Since the Optima didn't clean anything, period, the KA wins here, hands down. My dishes are clean with only scraping. No fiddling around trying to figure out optimum brands and amounts of detergent. No etching.
Drying: Slight advantage to the KA. Even though it has heated dry and the Miele doesn't, the KA doesn't dry as well as other DW's I've had in the past.
General design:
The KA has bigger racks and holds thick plates and bowls more easily. It also has little clips which are good for my pet dishes.
The Miele has a much, much better silverware rack, which holds maybe twice as much flatware. The KA silverware rack is poorly designed and requires creative loading to utilize fully.
The Miele racks glide much more smoothly. The KA racks use aluminum rails which don't look very sturdy.
The Miele door opens smoothly. The KA door requires brute force to open and close it, which is a huge disadvantage for me because I am disabled from a back injury. I hope the hinges loosen up a little with more use.
Neither has a food grinder; both have filters to empty.
Both have enough different cycles for an average household, IMHO.
Noise:
Measured with the same sound meter during washing, about 15-18'' from the DW.
Miele 53-55 dbA
KUDE60 54-56 dbA
Most of the Miele's noise was water sloshing, the KA makes more mechanical noises. I honestly do not understand how anyone says they can barely hear either of these models when standing in front of them, because I can clearly hear them from the other side of the great room 25-30' away. YMMV.
(For comparison my old KA was 65-76 dbA.)
Price:
Optima $1599
KUDE60 $1249 less $200 rebate = $1049
Service:
Miele is horrendous. Haven't used the KA service people yet, although I may need to ask them to adjust the door.
Overall, I liked the Miele better. That silverware tray is wonderful. The KA door is a real problem for me. However, a DW that doesn't clean dishes is pointless, and Miele's service is downright scary.
tarheel72
deeageaux
Related Discussions
Bosch vs Miele dishwasher
Q
vintage hobart KA or Miele dishwasher
Q
Miele vs Bosch and KA
Q
Induction Cooktops - Miele vs. Wolf vs. Bosch
Q
warmfridgeOriginal Author
sammiecanada
warmfridgeOriginal Author
sammiecanada
User
sammiecanada
Buehl
jakkom
sshrivastava
berryfarm
marc_ia