Dan J. Reed says:

We got our Bosch SHE6AP06UC unit (almost the same as the SHE5AM units) in May of 2010.

Pros;

– Amazing Quiet – I’m talking the fishtank in the next room is louder.

– Very Good At Cleaning Dishes

– Rated High (as a past model) by a well known consumer magazine

– Very high end feel at a mid-range price

– “Stylish” Bosch makes quality functioning products, that also look nice too.

– Very low power and water consumption.

– Easy to access filter

Cons;

– Almost worthless child lock

– Poor LED/Indicator lights (hard to see)

– Goofy manual – almost as if it was a German to English translation

– If your use to a “US Domestic” type dishwasher the controls on this will take some getting used to.

– Filter must be cleaned out now and then

– Very particular about silverware placement (if you really want a super clean fork!)

We replaced a 5 year old Maytag unit. The Maytag was ok – a $399 back in 2005 – The handle had broken, it really never cleaned anything super well, and was very noisy. It had recently gotten noisier and was leaving “grit” on the insides of glasses. So we went looking. I tried boosting our water temp, but with a toddler in the house – I was only willing to go to 120 deg F on our water heater.

Consumers had rated Bosch as a low-problem unit when it came to reliability – in a lot of ways, I trust that rating the most – to me it says a lot about a company and the quality of engineering and materials used.

The last test they had given dishwashers was in 2008. A Bosch unit for around $500 was marked a “best buy”..

Installation was a snap. Only issue I had was this dishwasher really took up almost ALL the cabinet space we had. Mostly because of the age of our old kitchen counter tops and cabinet height. Typical water line hookup, drain, and 120V install were easy. The added insulation on the outside of the unit takes up space, as well as the height of the unit. The 3/4 stainless tub is wrapped in a carbon fiber like material around 3 sides, with the back of the unit exposed with a 1′ square of matting material.

A quick “knock test” of the new unit versus the old revealed that the stainless tub made NO NOISE versus the hollow rattle that came from the Maytag.

The washer racks are a bit smaller, but I think its because the smaller racks are better placed for water flow away from the edges of the tub. This means, while you think you can’t fit as much – you might be right – BUT your not putting dishes back due to lack of cleaning. The racks are Teflon coated and warranted for 5 years against damage.

One neat feature is that the silverware baskets can be placed in several different places inside the washer. One odd ball feature is the very.. ahem.. “German” way of putting flatware into the baskets. Bosch seems to be pretty anal about this. – each “piece” goes into a slot. I just did a random jumble – but I used the slots. While this takes a little time – it does result in the cleanest flatware I have ever seen come out of a dishwasher.

So far after several various loads everything – and I mean everything has come out spotless. When using the Jet Dry and Finish Quantum tablet packs (as per the free samples with the dishwasher) – stuff does come out super clean. So far We have use used the Eco Wash (saves water, and energy) and a “regular wash”. Both seem to do a fine job, however the Eco Wash does leave the dishes a bit damp – but after 10 min with the door open 95% of the water is gone.

The unit is very quiet. Very, Very, *very* quiet. I’m talking like walking by and stopping to hear if its running.. We can now watch TV or have a conversation in the next room without any bother.

Most washer cycles run for 1:30 hours to 2:30 hours. Shortest time is 9 min for a rinse cycle.

So.. its good at cleaning.. and its quiet.. what could be wrong?

The controls. Bosch seems to take a very different “idea” of how a dishwasher should be operated. There is an On/Off button. Why there is an On/Off button I’ll never know.. its a physical power switch – I guess it saves power.. but its silly.

Selecting a wash function is pretty easy, there is a nice feature for a “top rack” only wash which saves water and again time. Once you select a wash type, press start.

Our unit has an LED timer telling you how much time is left in each cycle. My only issue is its a RED LED display that cannot be seen in bright sunlight. Think a 1980’s hand held video game. They should have used brighter lighting. There is no “clean” light. Only when the counter reaches 0:00 do you know its done. It has a chime that can be turned on or off.

My biggest disappointment is the child lock. Child locks for kitchen items should mean “all controls are locked at all times”. This dishwasher – only locks the buttons – and NOT the power button – WHEN the unit is running. Which means my 2.5 year old can walk up and punch some keys, and make things happen much to his delight. You CANNOT make this unit “child locked” at all as far as I am concerned. The child lock button ONLY prevents the cycles from being changed, or canceled when the unit is washing dishes – YET at any time they can power the unit down.. and then force it to start over..

Dan J. Reed says:

We got our Bosch SHE6AP06UC unit (almost the same as the SHE5AM units) in May of 2010.

Pros;

– Amazing Quiet – I’m talking the fishtank in the next room is louder.

– Very Good At Cleaning Dishes

– Rated High (as a past model) by a well known consumer magazine

– Very high end feel at a mid-range price

– “Stylish” Bosch makes quality functioning products, that also look nice too.

– Very low power and water consumption.

– Easy to access filter

Cons;

– Almost worthless child lock

– Poor LED/Indicator lights (hard to see)

– Goofy manual – almost as if it was a German to English translation

– If your use to a “US Domestic” type dishwasher the controls on this will take some getting used to.

– Filter must be cleaned out now and then

– Very particular about silverware placement (if you really want a super clean fork!)

We replaced a 5 year old Maytag unit. The Maytag was ok – a $399 back in 2005 – The handle had broken, it really never cleaned anything super well, and was very noisy. It had recently gotten noisier and was leaving “grit” on the insides of glasses. So we went looking. I tried boosting our water temp, but with a toddler in the house – I was only willing to go to 120 deg F on our water heater.

Consumers had rated Bosch as a low-problem unit when it came to reliability – in a lot of ways, I trust that rating the most – to me it says a lot about a company and the quality of engineering and materials used.

The last test they had given dishwashers was in 2008. A Bosch unit for around $500 was marked a “best buy”..

Installation was a snap. Only issue I had was this dishwasher really took up almost ALL the cabinet space we had. Mostly because of the age of our old kitchen counter tops and cabinet height. Typical water line hookup, drain, and 120V install were easy. The added insulation on the outside of the unit takes up space, as well as the height of the unit. The 3/4 stainless tub is wrapped in a carbon fiber like material around 3 sides, with the back of the unit exposed with a 1′ square of matting material.

A quick “knock test” of the new unit versus the old revealed that the stainless tub made NO NOISE versus the hollow rattle that came from the Maytag.

The washer racks are a bit smaller, but I think its because the smaller racks are better placed for water flow away from the edges of the tub. This means, while you think you can’t fit as much – you might be right – BUT your not putting dishes back due to lack of cleaning. The racks are Teflon coated and warranted for 5 years against damage.

One neat feature is that the silverware baskets can be placed in several different places inside the washer. One odd ball feature is the very.. ahem.. “German” way of putting flatware into the baskets. Bosch seems to be pretty anal about this. – each “piece” goes into a slot. I just did a random jumble – but I used the slots. While this takes a little time – it does result in the cleanest flatware I have ever seen come out of a dishwasher.

So far after several various loads everything – and I mean everything has come out spotless. When using the Jet Dry and Finish Quantum tablet packs (as per the free samples with the dishwasher) – stuff does come out super clean. So far We have use used the Eco Wash (saves water, and energy) and a “regular wash”. Both seem to do a fine job, however the Eco Wash does leave the dishes a bit damp – but after 10 min with the door open 95% of the water is gone.

The unit is very quiet. Very, Very, *very* quiet. I’m talking like walking by and stopping to hear if its running.. We can now watch TV or have a conversation in the next room without any bother.

Most washer cycles run for 1:30 hours to 2:30 hours. Shortest time is 9 min for a rinse cycle.

So.. its good at cleaning.. and its quiet.. what could be wrong?

The controls. Bosch seems to take a very different “idea” of how a dishwasher should be operated. There is an On/Off button. Why there is an On/Off button I’ll never know.. its a physical power switch – I guess it saves power.. but its silly.

Selecting a wash function is pretty easy, there is a nice feature for a “top rack” only wash which saves water and again time. Once you select a wash type, press start.

Our unit has an LED timer telling you how much time is left in each cycle. My only issue is its a RED LED display that cannot be seen in bright sunlight. Think a 1980’s hand held video game. They should have used brighter lighting. There is no “clean” light. Only when the counter reaches 0:00 do you know its done. It has a chime that can be turned on or off.

My biggest disappointment is the child lock. Child locks for kitchen items should mean “all controls are locked at all times”. This dishwasher – only locks the buttons – and NOT the power button – WHEN the unit is running. Which means my 2.5 year old can walk up and punch some keys, and make things happen much to his delight. You CANNOT make this unit “child locked” at all as far as I am concerned. The child lock button ONLY prevents the cycles from being changed, or canceled when the unit is washing dishes – YET at any time they can power the unit down.. and then force it to start over..