How to Choose the Right Commercial Warewasher for Your Kitchen.

Choosing a commercial warewasher usually comes down to three things: how busy you get at peak, what you’re actually washing, and what your site can handle in terms of power and water. If one of those is wrong, you’ll feel it during service.

1) Start With Throughput — What Happens at Peak?

Don’t base your decision on a quiet afternoon. Base it on your busiest hour.

• 350 × 350mm basket glasswashers suit lower-volume bars and cafés.
• 400 × 400mm basket glasswashers suit small to medium hospitality sites.
• 450 × 450mm basket machines handle busier pubs and mixed glassware.
• 500 × 500mm basket machines suit restaurants washing plates, crockery and utensils.

If racks wait to be washed during peak service, capacity is too low.

Higher-volume environments such as schools, care settings, hotels and large restaurants often move up to passthrough or rack conveyor machines to maintain flow.

2) Frontloader or Passthrough?

Frontloading machines keep the footprint compact. They suit tight kitchens and lower to mid-volume service.

Passthrough machines improve workflow in busier operations. With inlet and outlet tabling, they separate dirty and clean areas and support a smoother wash line.

Choose based on:

• available space
• service flow
• staffing levels
• peak demand

A Flexible Option — Bottle, Glass and Dish in One Footprint

Some kitchens don’t just wash plates or glasses. They wash bottles, jugs, glassware and crockery throughout the same shift.

The DC BW50A D Multi-Purpose Bottle, Glass & Dish Washer shows how a standard 500 × 500mm platform can cover multiple tasks.

Fit the dedicated bottle rack and internal jets clean bottles from the inside. Swap to a standard rack and it runs as a conventional 500mm warewasher.

No plumbing changes. No manual reconfiguration. Change the rack and run the cycle.

With output of up to 40 racks per hour, it suits mixed-service bars and restaurants that want flexibility without installing separate machines.

3) Water Hardness — Do You Need a Softener?

In most parts of the UK, yes.

If water hardness exceeds 100ppm — which is common — a softener will:

• improve wash results
• reduce limescale build-up
• lower servicing costs
• extend machine lifespan

Internal softeners suit moderate use and moderately hard water. High-cycle sites or very hard water areas usually benefit from an external softener.

4) Check Your Utilities Before Ordering

Confirm site requirements before placing an order. It prevents installation delays and unexpected upgrades.

Electrical supply
Check whether the machine requires single-phase or three-phase power and confirm site capacity matches the amperage rating.

Water pressure
Most commercial warewashers perform best at 2–4 bar (28–56 psi). Low pressure affects rinse performance.

Flow rate
Most machines require a minimum flow rate of around 10 litres per minute.

Drain height
If the waste outlet sits higher than the machine’s drain connection, you will need a drain pump.

5) Compliance — Do You Need a Type A Break Tank?

UK Water Supply Regulations and Scottish Water Byelaws often require a Type A break tank for commercial dishwashers connected directly to mains water. Confirm compliance requirements before installation.

Common Mistakes

• underestimating peak demand
• ignoring water hardness
• failing to check electrical capacity
• choosing a smaller machine to reduce upfront cost

In busy hospitality environments, capacity matters more than saving a small amount of space.

A Final Word

A warewasher should make life easier during service, not create another pressure point.

If you’re not sure what suits your site, speak to Anglia Catering Equipment before you commit. We’ll run through capacity, utilities and compliance with you so you know it will work properly.