Whirlpool, one of the largest appliance manufacturers in the world, announced Monday it will launch a new KitchenAid dishwasher in October. The company, based in Benton Harbor, says the AquaSense dishwasher was designed to use one-third less water than any of its previous models.
Believed to be an industry first, the new model will re-use water from the last rinse cycle for the next load. “The water is stored in a slim tank on the side of the unit and is reheated during its use in the next cycle,” says Jason Sibley, senior product manager for KitchenAid’s cleaning appliances.
The company says the new appliance uses the least amount of water — 1.95 gallons — in the industry. The next lowest water use for dishwashers is 2.22 gallons of water per load, according to the U.S. government’s Energy Star website (energystar.gov), which rates appliances based on their energy usage.
Priced at $1,699, the unit reaches the same decibel level as a quiet library, due in large part to the amount of insulation that surrounds the stainless steel tub.
This dishwasher even has a brain. Users can let the appliance choose the right cycle by automatically adjusting water and energy use based on details such as load size and soil amounts. Other cycle options range from rinse only to ProScrub, which promises to take care of even baked-on food with extra power jets.
Additional features include well-spaced storage racks, or tines, that provide more flexibility when loading larger pots, pans, and dishes. Available in stainless steel, the front display shows the cycle stage and progression when the dishwasher is running, while an “add a dish” indicator signals when a dish may be added and still come out clean.
