Product review (5 stars): You Pay a Little More... You Get a Whole Lot More!
When our family consisted of four people, we had a 24" dishwasher.  That seemed more of a burden than a good tool. It took forever to fill up and I found myself constantly needing some spatula or serving implement that was sitting in the big dishwasher waiting to be cleaned. Now there are just two of us and we recently moved into a house that didn't have a dishwasher---but did have an 18" cabinet right next to the sink, with a wall cabinet over it, and a cabinet with a drawer on the other side of it:  a PERFECT location and situation for the Bosch 18" dishwasher!  Any dishwasher should be:

(1) adjacent to the sink
(2) have a wall cabinet above it for the dishes
(3) have a drawer for the tableware right beside it.

If you follow those three suggestions, loading AND unloading the dishwasher will be easy and efficient.

While I did not purchase this Bosch SPX68U55UC model through Amazon, I have been so entirely pleased with the machine I thought it would be a good deed to review it here.

Size matters. Contrary to arguments about size that have nothing to do with dishwashers... size really does matter when it comes to a machine that will take on the chore of washing dishes.  And let's face it washing dishes by hand is just as much a chore as washing clothes by hand ----and I've done both!!! (Unfortunately in the latter instance--at a time when there were diapers to launder.)  If I may be so bold:  unless you have a VERY large family or feed an army at every meal, a 24" dishwasher is simply TOO BIG.  An 18" dishwasher holds all the pots, tableware, food preparation pieces and a whole lot of dishes too. You can still throw a really big party and invite all your friends... and an 18" dishwasher will clean up the entire mess in one load!  For the life of me, I do not understand why 18" model dishwashers aren't  the "normal" size, and the 24" models considered the oversize models that have to be specially ordered!

Having just put in a two year stint of washing dishes by hand with just a little bit of dish washing liquid, I was more than a little reluctant to go for the Bosch dishwasher which not only called for the expected dishwasher detergent, but also called for a special rinse agent, and even some special salt. Being quite frugal, I was concerned that the supplies would be very expensive.  I'm the sort of person who does not mind spending a lot of money up front for a clearly superior product, but I hate the thought of constantly getting nickel and dimed for pricey supplies.  But it worked out far better than I could even dream.  Here's how it works:  there are special dispensers for the rinse agent and for the dishwasher salt.  You fill these up. THEN... there are buttons to press (the Owners Manual explains just which combination of buttons to press) that serve to program the AMOUNT of rinse agent and salt that will be used.  You tell the machine how much of these to use!  Of course, I told the machine to use the LEAST amount of rinse agent and the LEAST amount of salt.  Now, guess what?  All the dishes and glasses come out completely spotless and shining. (Emphasis on the SHINING!)  I've been running this machine for months now and have yet to refill either the rinse agent or the salt dispensers.  A special light would come on to tell you if either of those needed to be re-filled.  I use Finish liquid rinse agent---not the cheapest stuff, but the machine is extremely frugal with it.  I use Whirlpool dishwasher salt---because it is priced lower and yet is still the same consistency granules preferred by Bosch AND it does the job even when using so little of it. My water is extremely hard; I've never seen even one spot on any glass or dish!  I use Finish POWDER dishwasher detergent... because it is the best... and because using powder is very economical in that you can judge HOW MUCH of it each load of dishes requires.  Quite honestly, I have not yet figured out how LITTLE of it I can use and still get clean spotless dishes.  I have yet to see anything come out of that machine that isn't totally clean.

Sounds good so far?  Wait... it gets better.  Bosch advertises this machine as quiet:  44 decibels.  I could not believe how quiet the machine is. It is so quiet, that the Bosch engineers had to put in a little red LED light that shines on the floor----just to let you know that the machine is on!  Otherwise---you wouldn't have a clue. It doesn't make a sound---not in filling, running, or draining.  OK.... if you put your ear right up against it, you can make out that SOMETHING is going on inside.  The old Maytag JetClean machine that we had a number of years ago was at least aptly named; it really did sound like a jet preparing for take-off when it was washing.... and then when draining, it sounded like a jet actually leaving the ground under full power.  Wow, I sure don't miss that.... and I sure like this new Bosch.  The Bosch has more different cycles than you can shake a stick at: Heavy, Automatic, Economy, Normal, Express, RInse, Half Load, Delicate, Extra Rinse, and for that special germophobe in your household---it even has a Sanitize cycle which completely knocks the stuffing out of even the most determined cooties.

This top of the line model comes with a shallow cutlery drawer at the top which holds each knife, fork and spoon separated. I also put spatulas,etc in it.  I even put in my chef's knives (how blasphemous) since they have stainless blades and Fibrox handles. They come out squeaky clean and with no damage or dulling.  The machine also comes with a "standard" cutlery basket for the bottom rack---but I took it out.  I love the cutlery drawer.  It was a little bonus added to the top model, and was well worth the cost.

I'm a fairly handy person, so I did much of the prep work getting ready for the machine. I had my plumber do most of the under-sink work, and then I did the final leveling and finish work around the machine---which really helps when you want that custom tailored look. One big reason I went for the Bosch machine is because I could download a complete parts listing for it... AND every single part in the machine is available on the internet from quite a few different parts suppliers at reasonable prices. In other words, you are NOT at the mercy of some dealer that has you all locked up when and if you need a repair.  Before I buy ANY piece of equipment, I make sure that the company is not secretive about their parts and that the parts are easily available.

As with any dishwasher, you have to learn where YOUR dishes fit best. In the beginning, sit down with the four or five different size plates you have, and see where each size goes.  On this top model, the middle drawer can be adjusted UP or DOWN.  I found it best to adjust the height of that drawer so that the largest dinner plate would JUST fit below it.  For me, that works out fine... the big blender jars, food processor containers, cookie pans, and all other sorts of flotsam and jetsam fits right in without any further rack adjustments. There is not even a single thing that I own that does not fit into this 18" Bosch dishwasher and then come out sparkling.  Well, OK... I haven't tried driving the Honda in there.... yet. The ramps are still on the drawing board.