Dishwasher: A must-have gadget in times of Covid

It has emerged as the fallback option during the current crisis

For Delhi-based homemaker and educationist Bhawna Kumar, the dishwasher was an obvious choice. She believes technology scores over humans as it is “precise, dependable, consistent and productive”. While setting up her home in, she bought a modular kitchen from Schneider which then had a tie-up with Whirlpool for a built-in-dishwasher. Says Kumar: “My dishwasher is excellent for bone china plates, glasses, and spoons. It is especially handy after a party. Stainless steel plates and bowls that we use daily also come out sparkling clean. However, the cooker, the kadhai, and utensils used for deep frying need to be cleaned by hand.”

The dishwasher has proved a saviour for Kirti Kapoor, a homemaker in Delhi's Paschim Vihar, during the ongoing COVID-19 lockdown. She believes greater reliance on technology is the way to go even over the long term, with domestic help becoming less reliable in such times. A dishwasher, she believes, should also be preferred to achieve higher standards of hygiene, as the high temperature and water pressure completely remove sticky residue, bacteria and germs.

Key features: Dishwashers with a one-place setting are available. They can typically accommodate a dinner plate, dessert plate, single glass, soup bowl, teacup with saucer, knife, spoons and fork. Most typically come with a 12-place or a 14place setting.

The time period for one cycle ranges from 60-160 minutes. Generally, these devices come with six-eight programmes. ‘Intensive’ is for deep cleaning of pots and pans, ‘normal’ is for a regular wash, and ‘eco’ is to conserve water. ‘One-hour express’ is for a quick wash. There are also other options such as Rapid, Soak, Auto and Glass. The Glass programme is a 40degree Celsius, sixty-minute, gentle cycle that takes care of delicate glassware.

Environment friendly: Using a dishwasher is better for environmental reasons as well. “Globally, the allocation of water is 5,000 litres per day per person. In India, it is only 1,500 litres. A single sink load of utensils ends up using 130 litres of water. In comparison, the dishwasher does the same job using as little as 13 litres. And the best among them use only

eight litres of water per cycle,” says Hardesh Chojher, senior director-marketing and R&D, Franke Faber India.

Hard water can pose

problems: Food particles need to be removed manually or else they can interfere with the sensors. Second, many also argue that a dishwasher is more suitable for lighter, Westernstyle cooking and crockerycutlery than for our desi kadhais and cookers. A Whirlpool spokesperson says: “One way to deal with this issue is to go for a machine that offers a combination of powerful water jets and steam to clean and dry more effectively.”

A significant challenge while using a dishwasher is the quality of water available. “The maximum hardness a dishwasher can handle is 600 parts per million (ppm),” says Chojher. According to Vasant Kunj resident Mayank Trivedi, “My dishwasher became totally useless within a year. The company says the bore water I get is salty and asks me to use water from an RO water purifier.”

Dishwasher retailers say the Indian housewife wants more space suited for Indian vessels. She wants adjustable racks and flexible trays with side sliding, apart from a 14-place setting.

Use three basic criteria for selecting a dishwasher – the amount of energy and water they consume, and how many spray arms they have. Larger the number of spray arms, the better the wash. Typically, there are two, two-and-a-half, and in some cases, even three spray arms to maximise water spray in all corners of the dishwasher. They also save time. Voltas Beko dishwashers, for instance, come with corner-intense technology. The spray arm reaches the corners of the dishwasher, thereby ensuring greater cleaning efficiency

A buyer must check whether the dishwasher offers a cutlery basket, which not only provides extra space but also creates room for coffee mugs, egg beaters, and silverware.

Finally, as with any other technology, the dishwasher equips you with many choices: You can do targeted cleaning in the selected wash zone; the half-load feature means you consume less resources; and the delayed start option allows you to launch the dishwasher whenever it is convenient | for you.

It is better for environmental reasons as well: A dishwasher uses 13 litres of water vis a vis 130 litres for a single sink load of utensils

Need for customised options: