Every household has different needs. When looking for a dishwasher, take into consideration what will work best for you and your family.

Some things to consider may include household size, cooking styles and consciousness about water and energy usage.

Dishwashers come in compact or standard capacity; however, for a larger family, a compact capacity may not be advisable. It may require you to operate the machine more frequently as it holds fewer dishes; this also will increase your water and energy consumption.

As well, dishwashers are not all designed to handle the varying sizes of dishes, so some thought should go into the placement of racks and washer arms. A deep basin with flip-down tines may better accommodate your pots and oversized platters. In addition, an adjustable upper rack with moveable flatware baskets can be more useful when your wash includes tall stemware.

CYCLES AND STYLES

Choose a machine that offers the wash cycles you require. The three basic cycles provided being light, normal, and heavy. Other cycles that you may find useful may include rinse/hold, sanitizing, and china washes. Partial load or pot scrubber washes are also available and may be something worth your consideration.

A built-in dishwasher fits under your counter top and is permanently attached to the water supply. These are best located away from the refrigerator as dishwashers produce heat while operating and may increase energy consumption if located too close to your refrigerator. Also available are portable models which roll to the sink and are then attached to the faucet and electricity. For those with much smaller needs, counter top dishwashers may be all you need.

The most important feature for you and your family may be quiet operation. So, before purchasing a dishwasher, give some consideration to what will best suit your household needs.