Dishwasher basket makes smooth adjustments with engineering resins
Canadian Plastics
Washing the dishes is already an annoyance, without having to struggle with adjusting the components inside your dishwasher.
Washing the dishes is already an annoyance, without having to struggle with adjusting the components inside your dishwasher.
Du Pont Engineering Plastics has just helped make the process a little easier with its Delrin acetal resin and its Minlon mineral-reinforced nylon. Both materials are used in a new device designed to adjust the height of the upper basket in automatic dishwashers.
Manufactured by Vestal A. S. of Turkey, the adjustment mechanism allows consumers to move the basket up or down, even when full.
According to Orhan Hulagu, a research and development engineer with Vestal, Delrin was selected for its low wear and friction properties, and Minlon for its strength and stiffness.
The basket features a base plate molded from Delrin interlocking with a rail plate molded from Minlon. Between the two plates, which slide above each other in a vertical motion, there is a fixing plate made of Delrin that locks the basket in place at the desired height.
“We had previously tested other polymers, but had encountered problems with warpage,” Hulagu said. “The Du Pont materials provided the right combination strength and dimensional stability, as well as additional benefits such as appealing surface finish, and overall colourability.” E. I. du Pont Canada Company (Mississauga, Ont.);www.plastics.dupont.com; 1-800-387-2122
