What is a Slimline Dishwasher?

You might be wondering what these appliances are.  How do they differ from normal dishwashers?   The answer is that slimline dishwashers are narrower and smaller than full size models.  These smaller dishwashers are made for use in kitchens that don’t have a lot of space to fit in a large dishwasher.  The reality is that slimline dishwashers are more common in Europe than in the United States and Canada.  The reason for this is simple-More Europeans live in smaller apartments and just don’t have the room for such large appliances.

Slimline Dishwasher Dimensions

To be able to fit inside tighter areas in small kitchen layouts, slimline dishwashers are usually 18 inches wide.  In contrast, full size dishwashers are nearly always 6 inches wider, with a width of 24 inches.  As for the height and depth, most major appliances are usually pretty standardized to ensure compatibility with other kitchen components.

Slimline Dishwasher Styles

Like other types of dishwashers, they tend to be made in a few different colors. If you want a solid color, you have the choice of black, white, or stainless steel.  Many people these days are choosing to integrate their kitchens.  For this reason, you can get an integrated slimline dishwasher – what this means is that you affix a front panel of your choice onto the front of the unit.  This option will allow your dishwasher to be pretty much indistinguishable from the cabinets surrounding it.  For more information, read my integrated dishwasher post.

Slimline Dishwasher Brands

Due to their substantial popularity in the UK, some of the better manufacturers of these appliances are located in Europe.  The Bosch slimline dishwasher is named the Integra 800 series 18 inch dishwasher.  Bosch makes some very high quality appliances, and its dishwashers are no exception.  If you are looking for a high end unit, take a look at a Miele slimline dishwasher as well.  They are right up there with Bosch in terms of quality, style, and compatibility.

While Bosch appliances tend to offer high quality products with high price tags to match them, you have cheaper options as well.  A Hotpoint slimline dishwasher will usually cost less, with some units even costing less than $300.  They offer decent quality dishwashers, but I haven’t seen any available with a customizable front.  If you want to go the inexpensive route, you will probably have to settle for white, black, or stainless steel.  Of course, if your cabinets are made of stainless steel, a silver slimline dishwasher should blend in just fine!  Likewise is also true with a black slimline dishwasher and black cabinets.  Unfortunately, the majority of cabinets are made out of different types of wood, so appliance manufacturers can’t offer this style.

Tags: Appliances, Dishwashers by Jeffrey
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What is an Integrated Slimline Dishwasher?

An integrated slimline dishwasher is used when you want the kitchen to look uniform and without anything standing out.  A slimline dishwasher is narrower and not as deep as a normal one. An integrated dishwasher is specifically designed so that it doesn’t really look like a dishwasher from the outside at all.  When you put both of these features together, you get integrated slimline dishwashers.  You have two choices when it comes to these appliances:

Semi Integrated Slimline Dishwashers

A dishwasher that is semi integrated means that some effort is made to make it blend in with other kitchen components.  They come in black, white, or stainless steel, which are the most common colors of kitchen appliances.  A semi integrated slimline dishwasher will have the controls visible on the door of the unit.  While some people will insist on having the control panel hidden out of sight, the reality is that most people don’t really mind.  To me, it seems like it isn’t really worth spending a couple hundred dollars more to have hidden controls.  Having said that, fully integrated models usually offer some great extra features as well.  One of them is a nearly silent washing cycle, which is very important to many people.

Fully Integrated Slimline Dishwashers

Fully integrated models are designed to completely match your other appliances or your cabinets (or both).  They are usually completely customizable, which means that you put a panel on the front of the dishwasher that is the same color and material as your cabinets.  If you have wooden cabinets, you put a wooden panel that is exactly the same as your cabinets on the dishwasher.  If your cabinets and refrigerator are made of stainless steel, you can easily put a stainless steel panel on the front.  The controls of a fully integrated model are hidden out of sight as well.  They are located on the top of the door, which means that you can only see them when you open the door.

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What is a Slimline Dishwasher?

As its name suggests, a slimline dishwasher is slimmer, or narrower than a normal sized dishwasher.  Most dishwashers are 24 inches wide, and the width of a slimline is usually 18 inches.  In addition, they are also shallower, which means that the distance from back to front is not as much as a regular dishwasher.  People use slimline dishwashers because they need to fit them into their kitchen that does not have a lot of room.  Although slimline dishwashers can hold about the same amount of dishes as a portable dishwasher, they are a lot different.  A portable dishwasher is usually hooked up to the sink, and it definitely does not blend into the kitchen very well.  A slimline dishwasher, on the other hand, is made so that it is an integral part of the kitchen and blends in as much as possible.

One of the best features that these appliances have is their ability to blend in.  They are called an integrated slimline dishwasher because the front panel is customized to perfectly match your kitchen cabinets, refrigerator, and other items.  If your cabinets are wooden, you put a wooden panel made of the same type of wood and color as your cabinets onto the front of the dishwasher.  Many people make their entire kitchen stainless steel.  If the refrigerator, cabinets, and other items are stainless steel, you put a stainless panel on to make a stainless steel slimline dishwasher.

The Miele Slimline Dishwasher

The most common and arguably the highest quality brand you can buy are the Miele Slimline dishwashers.  Its 18 inch fully integrated slimline dishwasher has a capacity of 9 place settings.  It features 6 different wash settings, temperature controls, a double waterproof seal, and a built in water softener.  Another great feature it has is a 24 hour delay timer, which lets you set the machine to run at a time when you won’t be bothered by it.

You can also buy a Bosch slimline dishwasher, although they technically aren’t called slimlines.  That is a term used by Miele.  The Bosch Integra 800 series dishwashers are also 18 inches wide, making them the same size as the slimlines.  A number of other appliance manufacturers also offer 18 inch dishwashers, including the Avanti DW181SS and the GE Profile 18 inch stainless steel built in dishwasher.  The Avanti is also customizable, and it costs far less than a Miele model.  The GE Profile comes in stainless steel, and has its controls hidden out of sight.  This would be great if your kitchen is designed with lots of stainless steel features.  For more information on this type of dishwasher, read my post about integrated dishwashers.

Tags: Appliances, Dishwashers by Jeffrey
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