Compact dishwasher review: Loch Capsule Solo tested
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The Loch Capsule Solo is a compact, versatile dishwasher ideal for small kitchens, boats, or holiday homes, delivering impressive cleaning performance without taking up much space
My wife and I have an agreement when we're away on our canal boat. She does the cooking, and I do the washing up.
I also fill the water, empty the toilet, take the dogs out in the morning, make the coffee, top the fuel up, grapple with the mooring ropes, check the fluids in the engine, make the beds, clean the windows, work the locks, switch the gas bottles, and open the beers. But I'm assured that, because she does the cooking, it's a fair division of labour.
Of all the jobs that need to be done while we're out on our floating home, washing up is my least favourite. And that's why I was thrilled when the nice people at Loch Electronics offered to let me test their new compact dishwasher, the Capsule Solo.
If it seems like a ridiculously decadent thing to have on a 32ft narrow boat, it really is. I'm not going to deny that, but as soon as I found out it existed, I simply had to try one out.
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The joy of finishing a meal and not having to don the Marigolds is something us landlubbers in our brick-built houses often forget because, apparently, at least half of us have a dishwasher.
But to be able to lob your crockery and cutlery in a machine while you're on holiday is the ultimate luxury. We do go on holiday to relax, after all.
Loch's Capsule range is marketed as a "table top" dishwasher, and at 50cm high and 26cm wide, it's certainly pretty compact.
It would take up very little space on a kitchen worktop and, while it's a bit of a squeeze in a small plastic boat, it did fit snugly onto part of our dinette.
It's a doddle to set up, too. You just assemble the inner dividers, plug in a drain hose, connect a second hose to a small water tank, and turn it on.
Obviously, you need AC power, and it does take up quite a bit of juice from our on-board batteries, but the quickest wash cycle is only 15 minutes, so it's a lot more efficient than you might expect. It also takes very little water, and that's handy when you're in a boat.
To start a programme, you just use the touch-sensitive buttons on the front panel. The symbols are a little confusing at first, especially if, like me, you don't read the instructions.
And, if like me, you tend to ignore the plethora of programmes offered by your dishwasher and just set it running, it's great for that too. I tended to find a 30-minute cycle was ideal for a big load from two people's daily meals, even including the odd pan.
It's a shame the display that magically emerges from the white façade isn't a bit brighter, and I'd have liked a bit more volume from the beeper that tells you it's finished - or even an app, perhaps.
But to say I'm impressed at how well it works would be an understatement. It's remarkably quiet, it just sloshes away in that way that dishwashers do, and the result when you open the door is almost always a batch of clean pots and pans.
I say almost, because it does occasionally struggle with a grotty frying pan, or some baked bean residue we've left a bit too long - but to be fair, my dishwasher at home sometimes does.
Its performance on the general day-to-day stuff though, cutlery, plates, mugs, and glasses, is just brilliant. It all comes out clean, dry, and ready to put away. Which, incidentally, is still my job, for some reason.
Obviously, you don't need to use it on a boat. Or a campervan, or a caravan, or anything like that, but the fact you can just excites me and makes it such a versatile gadget.
It's also aimed at people with compact kitchens who might not have space under the counter. This is designed to fit on a kitchen worktop, or in a cupboard, and if you get the right version, it can even be plumbed in.
Prices start at £349.99 for the Solo, and the standard Capsule, which can be plumbed in and has a few extra modes, costs £399.99.
Now, I am aware, that's twice the price of a normal domestic dishwasher, that hasn't escaped me, but not all of us have the option of fitting a normal domestic dishwasher. Especially if you spend time on a boat and the wife's a bit precious about shoe storage.
This, then, enables people to have dishwashers that have been put off by their size previously, with barely any compromise other than its overall capacity. And even that's quite impressive.
More than anything, though, it's one less job to do. And when you're on holiday and you're feeling deservedly lazy, having one less job to do is absolutely priceless.