I rented a house for a couple of months that had one and I didn't like it. I just couldn't get the stuff to fit right and it was hard to put anything really big in it.
My mom (80 yrs) loves it. The best thing according to her is the fact that you can't bump your shin on the dish washer door. It's also great for small loads
We have one and really like it alot. It is nice to be able to run smaller loads or to have clean dishes that you don't feel like putting away, and still have a place to put dirty ones. The only complaint is that some larger skillets or trays will not fit. But, to me it is totally worth the slight inconvenience.
We had investigated a Fisher-Paykel and before we purchased it, we went to a dinner party and the owner had one. I asked how she liked it and she said that she hated it. She said that some items were very hard to fit and that the top drawer leaked into the bottom. After servicing it numerous times, she said she was pulling it out and getting a regular dishwasher. I now see that KitchenAid (?) makes a drawer washer too and I'm wondering how that one performs. With some of these high-line names like F-P, sometimes the price isn't worth the inconvenience.
I had one before - awesome Fisher-Paykel. I loved that i didnt have to wait for a full load. Never expereinced any problems, yet only had it for about 6 months (then i moved out).
Fridgidare makes a dishwasher where you can choose "top rack only" -- so it's just like having a "2-drawer" model. It's probably less expensive than a true 2-drawer and by the way it's silent when running and also does a good job on cleaning the dishes.
Gibbsgirl, I was just going to post that same thought! We have a Bosch that has a cycle for top rack only. Only the top sprayer activates on this cycle. When I have a small load, I just load up the top rack -- including plates and small pots.
Posted By: Tom ReingoldHmm, I wonder if these were invented for people who keep kosher and would otherwise have two dishwashers to keep their dishes separate.
Not invented for them, but the earlier marketing from Fisher-Paykel was heavily kosher-focused. I have friends with them and the experiences have been mixed. I hope the KItchen-Aid is better because (and cheaper!) because I'd love to get one when we go ahead and update the kitchen.
gibbs, We have that Frigidaire and we've never used that function, but in terms of keeping kosher, it's certainly a different concept.
The Kithenaid dish drawers are made by Fisher Paykel, with just a slightly different rack design.
That said, Whirlpool has just started making its own dishdrawers, just launched under Kenmore. My bet is the Kithenaid (by Fisher Paykel) will go away, and their own in house manufactured machines will be the new Kitchenaids, probably JennAirs, too.
To me the dishdrawers seem like a great idea, but I too have heard a lot of horror stories about the mechanical complexity and leaks and failures from the Fisher Paykels. Too, you can't put in cookie sheets and other larger items.
We have had a Fisher Paykel for years. I am a big fan. It has been dependable and convenient. Only had one problem in ~ 4years (which was quickly fixed at no cost). It is rare to have a problem with something that is too large for the drawer. The interior dish racks are all configuarable and removable. Mostly I love the ability to do smaller loads, and my wife likes the fact that she does not have to put away every load of dishes.
We also have the Fisher Paykel double and chose it over the regular Bosch (which we also loved). Have had zero problems with it. It's fabulous if you entertain as you can wash as you go without missing a beat and leaving a massive pile for later, and it's relatively quiet (though I thought the Bosch was the quietest, fwiw). We separate our better stuff from pots/pans when we're too lazy to handwash, and while I do agree it took a while to figure out the best way to configure washing dinner plates with everything else, we did and it's great.
kriss