My Green Dishwasher Odyssey

In Search of an Energy Efficient Dishwasher I Can Afford

My antique dishwasher died last week, and I’ve been on the hunt for an eco-friendly dishwasher that won’t break the bank. I Googled “green dishwasher” and “eco-friendly dishwasher,” but aside from a few Treehugger.com articles about general dishwasher green-ness, I didn’t really find specific product recommendations. So I went straight to the source – Energy Star.

The Energy Star website is a great resource for green shoppers looking for energy efficient appliances. A joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Star lists more than 500 models of qualifying energy efficient dishwashers, individually rated for estimated energy and per cycle water use. By downloading their information as a spreadsheet and sorting the data by “Energy Factor,” I could make the cream rise to the top.

Bosch By a Mile

I was blown away by the results – hands down it was Bosch, Bosch and then Bosch. Sixteen of the top 22 and 38 of the top 77 energy efficient dishwasher models were Bosch. Only fringe brand Asko came close to matching that, and not only have I never heard of that brand, I can’t get them in my neck of the Southwest Virginia woods. Kenmore, Whirlpool, Maytag, GE and the rest of the standards we all know and love? Sadly, not even in the same eco zip code.

How does Bosch do it? With innovative technology like heat-free “condensation drying,” automatic soil-sensing heat and water adjustments, and efficient flow-through water heating, the top Bosch dishwashers achieve far and away the best energy efficiency (consuming 156% less energy than the federal standard), use the least water (80% less than many other Energy Star dishwashers) and absolutely destroy all competition in the Energy Factor ratings. If that’s not enough, they’re whisper quiet, with some models coming in at 40 dBA, closer to a hush-hush library than to a normal conversation. Yes, you can hear a pin drop.  Oh, and did I mention that your dishes come out spotless? Given.

So, in every category I care about, Bosch dishwashers are the clear champions, with everything else a distant second. Unfortunately, superior quality and greenovation don’t come cheaply. Bosch’s most energy efficient dishwashers, like my favorite Evolution 800 Plus, exceed minimum federal standards by a whopping 127% but are well upwards of a thousand bucks, far above my current budget. Even their mid-range units, with strong energy efficiency and water usage figures, are still in the $600 - $800 range.

If that level of dishwasher investment that fits your budget and your household, by all means do it! You’ll definitely make your money back in longevity, water use reduction and energy savings. But in these lean times, I (and I bet a lot of other folks) can’t quite go there. I had to find something cheaper and almost as good.

A More Affordable Energy Efficient Dishwasher?

Back to the Energy Star ratings I went, looking for the best water and energy use ratings I could find in a brand I could conceivably afford. And guess what I found? Frigidaire Gallery dishwashers boast a respectable 3.68 gallons per cycle and 283 KWh per year, with 8 models that achieve a strong 0.79 Energy Factor rating and exceed federal minimums by 72%. And at 53 dBA, it’s still quieter than a coffee klatch. Better yet, I found a couple of these models for under $500 at Sears and Lowe’s. And while you can certainly get a cheaper dishwasher, the water use and energy consumption shoot through the roof, negating your savings in a hurry.

Even Better than Energy Efficient?

I was ready to plunk down my cash immediately, but my wife decided to try one other option that’s much cheaper than the Frigidaire and possibly even greener than buying a top-of-the-line Bosch – buying used. Not only does buying used save money, I could rescue a working appliance from the landfill and eliminate from my carbon footprint the embodied energy required to manufacture and ship a new appliance.

So we went to Craigslist.com. And lo and behold, we found a lovely late model Maytag. It even had an Energy Star rating. So I’m off to check out this dishwasher – I’ll keep you posted on what I find.

My Favorite Energy Efficient Bosch Dishwasher Picks

• Bosch Evolution 800 Plus Series (SHE68E05UC)
• Bosch Evolution 500 Series (SHE65P05UC) and (SHE55M12UC)
• Bosch Evolution 300 Series (SHE43P02UC)

My Under $500 Energy Efficient Frigidaire Gallery Dishwasher Picks

• Frigidaire Gallery Model FGHD2433
• Frigidaire Gallery Model FDHD2461

Resources: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency/U.S. Department of Energy EnergyStar ratings: http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm.
Here’s a link to my Energy Star Dishwasher spreadsheet (.xls) with my favorites highlighted.

Know of other eco-friendly dishwasher options? Have issues with the dishwashers I recommend? Share the wealth! Add your comments to the conversation below.

Update 1

The used Maytag was a no-go. It was older than the dishwasher I was replacing, definitely pre-1994 minimum energy efficiency requirements. And to be honest, I’m not sure I could have figured out how to install it. So at the crack of dawn this morning I was off to Lowe’s (driving in heavy snow), bought the Frigidaire, threw it in the back of my trusty Outback and brought it home. Made a career out of installing it, but it’s in, it’s working, and man, is it ever quiet!

The bad news: The 3.68 gallons per cycle they brag about is only at the very lightest setting, which cannot be selected manually but only runs if the “Automatic Soil Detector” decides your dishes are very lightly soiled. When I ran the first test cycle to make sure everything was working/not leaking/draining properly, it didn’t select that cycle even though the dishwasher was COMPLETELY EMPTY. So they’ve got a low water setting, but it’ll never get used. Apparently.

Still, better than many others on the market. Would have been nice to get a Bosch, though. Anyone at Bosch want to sport me a dishwasher so I can brag about how great it is? Just askin’ … .