Restaurant Equipment Buyers Guide : dishwashers
Dishmachines vary by sizes (conveyor, upright or undercounter), capacity, and sanitization cycle (hot water rinse up to 180º degrees, or chemical disinfectant rinse). Taller models to support pizza or sheet pans are available. Dishmachines assume an incoming hot water source between 120º-140º for washing. Dishmachines that sanitize with a hot water rinse have booster heaters to take the incoming hot water up to 160º-180º degrees for the rinse cycle. Some high capacity dishmachines may require a condensate hood. The number of racks a unit can process per hour is a common way to measure capacity. Observe your workflow and the number of racks utilized in your peak hours to determine your requirements.
FEATURED PRODUCTS
Glass Washer, Submersible, Electric, 5 Brushesprice: $637.65
Compact Electric Booster Water Heater, 6 Gallon Storage Capacity, 9-KWprice: $1,348.95
Dishwasher, Door Type, 37 Racks Per Hour, Universal Unit, Low Temp, Chemical Sanitizingprice: $3,089.00
Dishwasher, Undercounter, 30 Racks Per Hour, Low Temp, Chemical Sanitizing, Energy Mizerprice: $3,234.56
Requirement Chart
| Type | Meals per Hour | Racks Per Hour |
| Under Counter | 0-100 | 50 |
| Upright | 100-500 | 200 |
| Conveyor | 500+ | 200+ |
Undercounter Dishwasher
appear similar to residential models in that they have a single front loading door. However, they may support a wash cycle as short as two minutes and certain models may even exceed 30 loads per hour. These units are used in bars and small restaurants and have a quick wash cycle.
Upright Dishwasher
are in most mid to large restaurants. Upright dishwashers support optional dishtable accessories of varied length which attach to the left and right side. The wash cycle is directional, right to left or left to right, where one table is referred to as the soiled dish table, which often supports a small pre-rinse sink and faucet, and the clean dish table. You simply put soiled dishes on racks and pass them into one side of the dishwasher, wait for wash to complete, then move out of the other side to drain or dry.
Booster Heaters
Your hot water source should provide wash temperatures of 120 - 140 degrees. (Certain facilities such as preschools and geriatric centers have a mandated limit of 120 degrees). A booster heater will heat your incoming hot water an additional 40º - 70º for the rinse cycle to sanitize your dishware. Some models of high temperature dishmachines include built in booster heaters, while others require the booster heater be purchased separately.
Glass Washers
Glass washers may simply be small submersible rotating brush systems to assist in manual washing or dishmachines that support rack or conveyor loaded glasses.
