<p>I too was intrigued with the idea of the dual drawer dishwashers until I went to see them in person. That’s when I realized that some things I normally put in the dishwasher wouldn’t fit in the larger of the 2 drawers. A friend did go that route with her new house and she has come across a few items that won’t fit. For me it was large cutting boards and grill pans that sealed the deal against it. I’ve been very happy with my Bosch which does have a top rack only cycle if I only have small things to wash.</p>
<p>I was all set to go with a Bosch until the salesman told us that it doesn’t have a drying cycle. He said most people run the DW after dinner and then leave it open all night to let it air dry. However, the Rubbermaid/Tupperware plastic stuff won’t dry that way.</p>
<p>I couldn’t see spending that much money for that amount of inconvenience.</p>
<p>We got a Bosch. NOT having that drying cycle means the Tupperware can be put anywhere in the dishwasher and it does not melt. When the full cycle is complete, our dishes are dry (except for places where water puddles, but the drying cycle never got that water anyway). </p>
<p>We never used our drying cycle. We had it turned off.</p>
<p>I second what Thumper says. I never got the drying cycle idea. I turned it off on the Whirlpool DW in our old house. Both the old stupid Bosch and its replacement Miele DW dry the dishes just fine for my tastes without the need to keep the door open all night. I pretty much got rid of most cheap Chinese plastic containers anyway and replaced them with USA-made Pyrex dishes. Now I can re-heat leftovers in the container without the need to scrape the contents out into a glass bowl.</p>
<p>Well, I don’t have a working DW right now, since the water in the kitchen isn’t yet attached. That’s because we don’t have the countertops yet. And we don’t have the countertops yet because someone (:eek:) bought the wrong sized sink. </p>
<p>BUT, when I do have a working DW, I will evaluate the drying cycle. I’ve always used it in past DWs. Maybe something is different now.</p>
<p>And your Tupperware didn’t melt? Wow! </p>
<p>Back to the discussion…I have had wood floors in the kitchen most of my adult life. I really like them a LOT. Mine are due for their first refinishing since 1994 when we built this house. We have rugs in front of the sink and stove. And we wear slippers in the house. Our floors were finished with Street Shoe, which is used on bowling alleys. If I can find an authorized person to do this again, that’s what I’ll use!</p>
<p>No, the Tupperware didn’t melt. But I always put it on the top rack.</p>
<p>Hmmm. Street Shoe. Never heard of it, but it’s now on my list!</p>
<p>I have a Bosch and my dishes are completely dry as soon as cycle is over - except for bottoms of glasses which aren’t flat.</p>
<p>In the Bosch, the tupperware can go anywhere! But I think that is the case when the heat is turned off on any dishwasher.</p>
<p>If you find a Street Shoe vendor in this area…let me know!</p>
<p>I will be looking for d/w today, so thanks for all the advice. I will look at the Bosch. Big Q; off white or stainless?</p>
<p>Redoing the kitchen will be my final house project. I just redid pool deck and driveway, so feeling tired. Anyway, my floors are maple, 5" planks. Furniture all oak and maple.</p>
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<p>Our bathrooms upstairs both have wood floors, maple light finish. Still holding up well after 8 years. I am also redoing the kitchen and plan to put in tile floor with a heat mat. For us, the kitchen is where we come in from the yard bringing dirt. </p>
<p>Another vote for Bosch DW. I didn’t know they didn’t have a dry cycle. Older models had. We never use the dry cycle either. To save energy and also I didn’t like the white film it left when drying collected water at the bottom of the glass.</p>
<p>What is everyone’s budget for a smallish kitchen? I got two bids, both about the same and very high. Somewhat shocked with the cost. You could build a half a house with that.</p>
<p>It depends what you’re going to do in the kitchen. We wound up moving a bearing wall that had to be propped up with a steel beam. Not cheap. </p>
<p>If you’re only replacing what’s there but keeping the current layout, it shouldn’t be more than $50K, I would hope.</p>
<p>I am keeping the current layout mostly. No structural change and keeping the refreigerator, too. Both estimates are close to 6 figures. Not sure if I am talking to right people.</p>
<p>Iglooo, that sounds awfully high. I’m guesstimating, but based on what I just did, this is what I would expect for your kitchen:</p>
<p>Cabinets: $20K
Appliances: $8K
Plumbing fixtures, including sink: $3K
New tile floor with heat mat: $5K
Contractor labor: $10K</p>
<p>That’s a total of $46K so far. Add in 20% contingency, and you’re still well below six figures.</p>
<p>Maybe some extra for plumbing and electrical changes – are you moving pipes, adding electrical outlets or moving lights?</p>
<p>Iglooo,
Have you gotten a price for refacing, rather than replacing cabinets?</p>
<p>Igloo…are you replacing the counters too? If so, add $6000 or so to VH’s estimate. Six figures or close to that sounds very high to me!</p>
<p>Bookworm, I would consider aesthetics first - if all of your other appliances are white, a stainless steel d/w will look out of place, IMO. Plus you would not have too worry about fingerprints as much.</p>
<p>100k for a smallish kitchen? Igloo, I think you need to shop around and get more bids.</p>
<p>Are you really looking at “off white” appliances? </p>
<p>We stayed with all white appliances. I like the look and I don’t like the fingerprints on stainless appliances. Also, we have magnets on the fridge…they don’t stick to stainless.</p>
<p>I will say…the all stainless kitchens my friend have are really nice looking. </p>
<p>I would not mix and match appliance colors.</p>
<p>Our kitchen has a mix of stainless and black appliances. The fridge and built in oven/microwave (or is it a range??0 are stainless. The cooktop and dishwasher are black. When the dishwasher dies I’ll get stainless, but for now its fine and looks ok, IMO. We are remodeling our basement which includes a kitchenette. We are getting a fridge for down there that is a stainless look-aline. It will have a stainless look but wont have the problem with fingerprints, and should we want to use magnets (doubtful) they would stick.</p>