lilsquibb's Full Review: Haier HDT18PA 17 in. Built-in Dishwasher
"What in the world is that?"
"That, oh, it's my dishwasher."
"Oh.....Really... I've never seen anything like it"
This is my usual conversation with any guests who come to our house and see a strange contraption sitting on the counter, next to the sink - my Haier Compact Dishwasher.
When we moved into our home five years ago there was no dishwasher. This is a problem since both myself and my husband procrastinate horribly when it comes to dishes. But here is the other problem... absolutely NO room to install a dishwasher, or even a free-standing dishwasher that could be wheeled around. On one of our trips to Menards, we came across the Haier Compact Dishwasher. There are other small dishwashers available but this particular one was inexpensive, small enough for our kitchen and it was the only one this size we had seen. We have a winner!
The Haier Company manufactures home appliances, home comfort items, electronics. Many Haier products I have seen are compact and/or portable appliances such as refrigerators, washers and dryers and portable air conditioners.
What Is It Exactly?
The Haier Compact Dishwasher is just that... a COMPACT dishwasher. Everything is pretty much like a regular dishwasher... just smaller. Measuring less than three feet cubed, this dishwasher claims to have enough space for four place settings. Open up the door, by pulling down, and you reveal a single dish-rack, with a folding, half-rack (as seen in the included picture above.) The rack is set up so the plates are on the right, cups and small plates on the left and bowls in the front. Between the plates and cups is a utensil holder, which I can cram pretty full. This can be removed if needed but it takes a struggle.
Coming Home With the Little Box
Installation is the first step. Upon reviewing the contents of the box, we realized we would need to purchase a special nozzle for our faucet to connect the water hose. This may have been included with the dishwasher, but since ours was previously opened it may have been taken out. Replace the current faucet head, attach the water hose to the machine, attach the drain hose to the machine, plug in the machine... viola... we're ready to wash.
Creative Dishwashing
I have found it takes some creativity to load this dishwasher. Why? First, I don't want to waste a single bit of space so I try to cram in as much as I can. Second my Noritake dishes measure big. For instance, the dinner plates are too tall if standing straight up - instead of the slight slate they get when loaded correctly. Also, my bowls do not fit in the front if dinner plates are also loaded. Then there are the odd pieces like the dishwasher basket and all the little stuff like toddler bowls (these end up on the fold-out rack most of the time.) The folding rack works well for holding cooking utensils and smaller bowls and cups. With some time and thought I quickly came up with a system of loading the dishes to maximize the space.
What doesn't fit? Don't expect to put pot and pans in this dishwasher. Pretty much any large pieces, such as pans and our large cutting board. Since I prefer to wash the pans by hand this isn't too big of a problem. I would love it if the highchair tray would fit... but alas no.
Ah.... Now to the Good Part... Washing
In order to get a good clean I only need to do a quick rinse, unless the food is sticky or dried on. There is a screen protecting the heating element located inside the machine, which means no food gets crusted on and no plastic lids melt on the element. I've had this happen in larger dishwashers, such a sad day when you loose a valuable piece of your Rubbermaid Collection.
Pour dishwasher soap (not dish soap as my husband found out) into the one-inch square hole, close the door and lock it - just like a regular dishwasher. After connecting the water hose to the tap, turn on the hot water. And oh yeah... always make sure the discharge hose is pointed into the sink drain. We store our hoses under the dish drying rack in one side of the sink.
Note: I have noticed no adverse affects on any items that state "safe for top rack only".
The Haier has three wash cycles - rinse hold (no idea what this does), regular and heavy - and two dry cycles - vent dry or no vent dry. I choose the heavy cycle due to the full nature of my dish loads. This makes the dishwasher run a little longer but I feel it assures my dishes are cleaner.
The dishwasher does make the dishwasher whooshing noise, as most do, but is not over-bearing. At the end of a cycle, which takes approximately 45 minutes, a beep alerts you that the dishwasher is done.
Overall:
We have had this dishwasher for five years now and it still keeps going strong. I love that it gives me the convenience of a dishwasher, without taking up critical space in my small kitchen. I would recommend it for anyone looking to add a dishwasher to a small space, such as an apartment or small house (with a poorly designed kitchen).
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