The drawers work for my family of 4, but you do start to lose the advantage of the drawers if you easily run one big load a day. They do hold a lot though, and staggering small loads might work better than doing less frequent big loads. It's much easier to get someone to unload a drawer than a full size DW. You'll get used to whatever you have I suspect. I don't know what the advantage of stainless over plastic is, really, aside from sparkle...that's the least of the differences between drawers and traditionals. I can say that F&P customer service is really nice and responsive and you talk to a real human quickly when you call them (my stupid installer threw away parts...).

Cpovey: RE: I have to disagree with this blanket statement. What is so impractical or dumb about DD's? Large-size items? I can fit my 20 quart stock pot into my DD and it comes out perfectly clean. It will not fit in any conventional DW that has a center column. It may fit in some conventional DW's, but not many. Economical to operate, with both power and water. Flexibility in loading: Had a dinner party? Load the good china in one and run it on a low power cycle. At the same time, load the other drawer with regular dishes, casseroles, pots, etc. and run in on a different cycle. Wake up in the morning, and all is clean. Capacity: You can load a complete meals worth of dishes for six into one drawer. Reliability: Yes, reliability. In 90% of cases, if one drawer breaks, the other drawer is still usable. Only one circuit board and two hoses are common in a two-drawer DD. I could go on, but I don't need to. Now, don't get me wrong, they are not perfect. But they are the first new thinking in DW design in what, 50 years? So, explain again how they are dumb. Ok, here I go: only the crapiest and cheapest DW's have a center column, they are phasing out that inferior "feature," you wont find one on any unit that is over $350. the OP is talking about double drawers, which are very high end prices. So your big items would fit in 95% of new DW's. most mid to high end DW's (new) have automatic sensors which sense the size and dirtiness of the load and will adjust the water temperature and time in order to wash the dishes the most efficiently and effectively as possible, thus being very efficient, more efficient than DD DW's that don't have the feature, which some don't. You can load China in a reg DW, we are talking higher end hear, thus her considering a DD DW. Most higher end DW's have a cycle just for China, or a light wash cycle that is delicate and precise for China, washing it well. You can use the delay start feature to delay it to clean while you are asleep and wake up with clean dishes. The China cycle and ligh wash cycles are shorter, thus you won't have to wait as long as a normal wash cycle. If the DW has a upper rack only and lower rack only, which some higher end models do, you can also wash China with caserolle dishes or other misc dishes at the same time if you seperate them between racks. Capacity is a tiny bit bigger in a DD DW, ok. LOL, @ you saying, "if one drawer breaks, the other is still usable, 90% of the time." So someone who spends over a grand on a dishwasher will not care and not want to pay to fix the half of their dishwasher that is broken..? arent I right? If you spend so much money on a dishwasher, you should protect it with a warranty, which usually you can get the guy out there to fix it fast. Though even if not, how hard is it to hand wash for a day or two? It is not a big issue in this debate, which I have won, and will continue to shoot your "dishwasher knowledge down" gladly if you continue to try and prove me wrong. It is cool though, that they made a new design. But right now, with the technology, reg DW's are better than DD DW's in almost every way. Since we are again talking about expensive DW's, most DD DW's have a plastic interior, which the stainless in the same price units of reg DW's are better: more durable, dry faster/better. reg DW's in the same price range are more efficient than DD DW's that don't have a sensor: smartwash, econosense, adaptive wash, etc. And the same efficiency if they do have the sensor. In most cases the reg DW is quieter than DD DW's. Reg DW wash better, with more features: cycles, options than DD DW: ie. more powerful spray arms, a high powered water pressure system in the back which eliminates hand washing in some DW's, a garbage disposal in some which means less pre rinsing, more durable in most cases, a little bit smaller capacity, more reliable in % of breakdowns and repairs: the DD DW is a relativiley new technology and still isn't as well perfected as a reg DW. The DD DW is beneficial if like I said before, you need to wash loads at slightly different times, like if you are entertaining for guests and have people over. But if you don't do that, or do but not somewhat often, then I always recommend a reg DW.

Yes, I will say that F & P did send out the repair guy a lot of times - for free. Since the trouble started before it was out of warranty, we finally got them to agree to pay for the calls that were past the 2 year mark (or whatever it was). We did pay for parts - after the 2 years, maybe $300 into it for parts, and one labor call before he started coming over for free. But the time off work, the time spent waiting, the sheer number of calls, and the two repairs that resulted in flood damage and a chipped granite countertop, after which both the repair guy and ourselves agreed he had no idea how to fix the thing...was too much. Obviously, this would vary from place to place. BTW, the Kenmore we bought last week arrived with water dripping out of it (about two liters), wet insulation and water all over the outside panel. According to Sears they "test" the pump before they send them out the door, and the pump should have pumped *all* the water out (this one obviously failed its test - the warranty literature, etc., was drenched). We decided to put the older Bosch into the butler's pantry and order an extra set of drawers to go where the dishwasher was in the main kitchen - we're giving up in a DW in the kitchen. The one flood (which ruined the brand new DH-installed floor - so much work) was enough, the parts on the Kenmore were so cheesy looking when we finally got it, it's a no-go (if we had linoleum in mind it would be different, but we're convinced we want wood in the kitchen, and we already have it purchased).

My comments on the F&P Dish Drawers are specific to my personal experience with them. When we remodeled our kitchen in 2005 we installed two dishwashers, an F&P Double Dish Drawer, and a Miele. I think the Miele cost about $200-$300 more. Even before we started using them, I was struck by how well-made the Miele is (s/s interior and washing arms, solid and heavy) vs. the F&P (plastic tub, flimsy plastic washing arm). With the F&P, you have to be careful about making sure nothing dips below the basket (e.g. a pot handle, or a cooking utensil), otherwise you'll have to re-run the dishwasher. Items on the fold-down shelves better be clean on the top side otherwise they may not get clean (the water may never get up there). With the Miele, I never have to think about making sure everything will get exposed to the one dishwashing arm at the bottom. I just load it up, and everything comes out squeaky clean. Plus, the F&P is much noisier than the Miele. So my comments are based my personal experience with the F&P and Miele, which may not be a fair comparison. But certainly from a performance, quality of construction, and reliability issue, the F&P doesn't come close.