Bosch Complaint - A terrible dishwasher - dishwasher

Posted by Venice09 on 2010-07-28:

Another machine that is designed to hold water but gets moldy. I'll never understand it. It's equivalent to an oven that melts when it gets hot.

It's apparent that there isn't a reliable brand on the market today, but I would expect a manufacturer like Bosch to step up to the plate considering their product is considerably more expensive. Your review just shows that this brand is on the same level as all the others but will just cost more to find out. It's hard to believe that they have been giving you the runaround for two years and now the warranty is expired. But I guess that was the plan. At least if you have these problems with a less expensive brand, you cut your loses when you have to replace it.

Thanks for the review. It's very helpful.

Posted by Helpful on 2010-07-28:

Was it just recently, Rockette, that you notified them of the problem(s)? The way your review reads is that, unfortunately, you did wait until after the warranty had elapsed before contacting the manufacturer. That being the case, one would normally assume the cost of service. The other option is contacting the retailer you purchased it through, inquiring if any extended service protection was purchased with the unit.

I like quite a few Bosch products, but they can have problems just like any other manufacturer on the market. One only needs to search this site to find any of the other brands being both complained about or complimented on.

You fail to mention the model of Bosch you have. The two most popular models are the SHE4/5 or the highly rated SHE43. The SHE43 has been out for years and has won about every award on the market; Consumer Reports, Better Homes and Gardens, etc. The SHE4, replaced with the SHE5 model was produced a couple of years ago. It was brought into the market to be a lower cost version of the higher end SHE43. I was never as big of a fan of this model, as the slight difference in price made it more advantageous to invest in the SHE43 model. Ironically, many people assume Bosch is an expensive series of dishwasher, but it is not. It competes in price with many others, starting out at only $499 in most markets. Now the key to a Bosch series dishwasher is the fact that it is a European design of dishwasher. As such, it gives the user both advantages and disadvantages to the more popular American line of dishwasher. First, it's important to understand how the water heater system works within this European design, as I think it holds a clue to what the problem of the unit may be. A European design heats water in-line, before the water ever enters the tub. That heat is then captured by the stainless steal tub and resonated during the dry cycle in order to dry the items within the tub. In addition to this, there is a bellows that opens, allowing the water to condensate on the stainless walls of the tub. The process works extremely well, as it uses less energy and does not cause a "hot spot" as its American counterpart does. In other words, you can place plastics anywhere within the tub, including the bottom rack, whereas on the American side, you'd have such items melt due to the less energy constrained cal-rod. The reason I don't recommend the SHE4/5 as readily is because the tub is not completely stainless steel. Rather, it is a polyurethane tub with a stainless inset. This design is less effective than that of the SHE43 series.

Now, with all of that said, I would guess the problem you're describing lies somewhere in the in-line water heater system. Once it is working properly, you shouldn't have any problems with any part of it, as drying will also happen properly and not allow for mold to build within the tub. I would make sure you understand, however, that even under perfect conditions, all European designed dishwashers take a longer time to dry. Hopefully that gives you a much better insight to what you are facing. Now, contact the dealer you purchased the unit through. Find out if you did have any type of extended service agreement with the unit. If not, please don't hesitate to post your model number back. Depending on what it is, I can give you an idea as to whether it may be worth paying for it to be serviced.

Best of luck.

Posted by BOCSHjunk on 2010-12-19:

Hello Venice09, it is very unfortunately for me that I am now reading your 3 cents, and learning that I have similar problems. Mine is humiliating and I am very dishearten of the damaged when the intake valve malfunction and unloaded TONS of water to my brand newly installed hard wood floors and the water flowed down to my bathroom downstairs wreck havoc to my bathroom ceilings, walls, roman shade , magazines, toiletries I can go on and on. The BOSHC adjuster came to my home to insult me, like it was our fault and that they know the “ALL” tricks of the trade. I did not invite the adjuster to my home for a visit, but to evaluate the damaged that their fine product left behind.
It’s funny that you mentioned mildew, I just realized yesterday that the bottom drain is full of scum, and yes and the smell sometimes is discussing, it smells of rotten food. The sales person told me not to rinse my dishes because the dishwasher internal sensor will not pick up that the dishes are dirty, but clean and will not do a good job cleaning. I will now have to rinse my dishes before putting them in the dishwasher.
I am reading your 3cents comments and it is dishearting that it appears that I have to use another chemical to not only clean my dishes, along with jet dry to help streamline the left over water on my panel to drip down to the drain that I will need to add more chemicals to our environment to clean my dishes. I never had that problem with a Kitchen Aid. I regret not buying a Kitchen Aid again after 25 years of great service the dishwasher has provided me. I went with a another brand that I "heard" was the best in the market for a reasonable price. (a salesman pitch) Kitchen Aid, I am soooo sorry that I did not select your band.
I waited 30 years for a new kitchen, and I don’t have the money to buy a new dishwasher right now, I guess after reading all the blogs here, I have to start saving my money to buy a new dishwasher a couple of years down the road and it won’t be a BOSCH, it will be a Kitchen Aid.

Posted by Venice09 on 2010-12-19:

BOCSHjunk, before you set your mind to KitchenAid, I would strongly suggest reading the reviews on this site and other places online. All the brands are not being made with the same quality as they were in the past. What I do now is research specific models and try to find one that received the most favorable reviews and still suits my needs. You might be better off doing that than putting your faith in KitchenAid or any other brand. As far as customer service, it all seems to be the same, and that is poor.

Posted by bluediamond98 on 2010-12-19:

I have a GE Dishwasher. It is black. It washes the dishes and it is completely silent when it runs. This is no exaggeration. I have to open to door to see if it is on because I cannot hear the water. That is really all that I ask from a dishwasher and I am quite pleased with it.

Posted by Venice09 on 2010-12-19:

How old is it, Lee? Did you buy it yourself? If so, how did you go about picking it out?.. brand, style, features, price? Research?

Posted by bluediamond98 on 2010-12-19:

***Name Change Alert*** I already had a GE Venice and it lasted over 10 years with heavy use. I was satisfied with that so of course, I looked at them first. I did not get the cheapest one, nor the most expensive. All of them wash dishes and that was all I was asking of mine. Sometimes I think we can get too caught up in features that sound great but do not have any real benefit (and may actually cause trouble). My old one had a dial and I thought the push buttons were a nice advantage. Other than that, I wouldn't let them sell me on all the bells and whistles. It is two years old now. I left it at the old house - good as new.

Posted by Venice09 on 2010-12-19:

Lee, I didn't know what you were talking about until I saw the 'other comments'. Is it okay to still call you Lee?

That's exactly the way I buy appliances. I just get what I need with no fancy features and the least electronics as possible. And I absolutely refuse to spend a lot of money. I have never owned a GE appliance, but I'm open to anything at this point based on research and word of mouth. Well, anything except Maytag.

Posted by BlogShag on 2011-05-08:

It sounds like there is something wrong with your water heater or the machine wasn't installed right. If your water heater does not heat the water up to at least 120 degrees, your dishwasher may not work properly. We have a Bosch dishwasher and it never runs that long, yet dishes are steaming hot when the machine is done.

Also, all Bosch dishwashers have a hidden cycle called extra heat dry, which is basically a sani rinse type of cycle. I suggest finding out how to program this cycle and use it.

Posted by BlogZilla on 2012-10-12:

Must have something to do with the environment you are in. We have never had mold problems with our 2010 Bosch dishwasher (SHE55M12UC)

My only complaint with our dishwasher is that it doesn't finish rinse the dishes well. A simple manual rinse at the end of the cycle fixes this. That's a small price to pay for such a great dishwasher that is so quiet (46 decibels) and makes my dishes look like diamonds

Posted by Firefly44 on 2013-01-30:

also not pleased with our Bosch dishwasher, installed in2008. Fungus and mold grow on floor of tub and around gasket, food is left on dishes unless the cycle runs for 130 minutes. 2 hours is just too long for a cycle....can using less water really offset the energy consumed for such a long run time?

Posted by Mary on 2013-04-21:

Mold is all over the place in my Bosch SHE43 dishwasher. I am presently re washing the mold off my dishes. I have had the machine repaired several times under warranty. Now it is no longer under warranty and the repair would be $140 just for a technician to even look at it. This dishwasher sucks!!! Tried to contact Bosch. They were absolutely no help at all. My mission min life is to make sure no one buys another Bosch dishwasher.mybfriend just purchased a house and put the Bosch dishwasher on the front lawn . . . Free to anyone who will take it away. He has installed many Bosch dishwashers and has had so many complaints, he will not tolerate having one in his house. Shame on Bosch for not providing a way to get these problems solved without it costing so muc!!