h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

What would make an otherwise obedient, reliable dishwasher:

- fill up with water until it flooded out under the door
- then when you bailed it out and switched it on again, not fill with water at all
- not do any of these things, but run perfectly nicely when taken to the workshop for repair
- but when plugged in at home again, emit an 'overheating machinery' smell, and start slopping water out once more?

It is doing my head in, ruining my bank balance and I'm sick of washing dishes!

Maybe the drain is blocked, not inside the machine, but where it's plumbed into the houses waste water network... so that it can't empty itself

Power supply problem, from the socket in the house? Can you try plugging something else into the same socket and usee uif it misbehaves (with something that is A, inexpensive, and B, manageible without if it explodes).

Hmm - I wish I knew more about these things...
Why would the power supply cause it to flood?
And how do I check the waste pipe - stick a bottle brush down it?

Still thinking - Could I use drain cleaner - but where would I pour it? And how would something get stuck in the waste pipe if the sievey- thing was in the dishwasher rai

erm...there are two important bits in a dishwasher:

1. Water inlet valve...electrically operated valve, usually right next to where the water hose connects to the wishdasher. On some of them you can actually see the spool of wire that makes the electromagnetic valve open to let the water in.

See if you can see it and tell me if it looks burnt or discoloured.

2. Pump out Pump... pumps the water out of the machine. Can become jammed with debris,toothpicks,those little forks you use for holding sweetcorncobs etc.

UNPLUG THE MACHINE !!! take everything out and look under the whizzer, there is usually a grating but this does not guarantee that something hasn't gone past it and is blocking the pump. This is also where pieces of broken glass tend to go, so be careful when you stick your fingers in. You might need a screwdriver to remove the grating/cover or it might just unsnap from its location.

Nay...three important bits : The water level float switch...can also become jammed with debris and NOT shut off the water inlet valve.
It is usually on the 'floor' of the wishdasher at the front and might look like a little inverted cup. Again it might just unsnap for cleaning, or use a screwdriver.

1.Good Luck.
2.DON'T PANIC!
3.Get back to me.

alec.

Alec - you are obviously a *very* useful person to know.

The baby is asleep right now, so not a good time to attempt this, but I shall print it off and try this later

When you say "usually right next to where the water hose connects to the wishdasher" do you mean inside or outside? Sorry to be so thick...

I will freely confess to not be=ing the worlds best at preventing debris getting into my dishwasher, so I can't say I'd be too surprised at a blockage. I'll also admit that I ran a cyccle just before the first flooded one, and as I stacked the dishwasher... I dropped *an entire onion* in and didn't retrieve it might that have something to do with it?

Nice to know I'm not the only person to abuse my dishwasher

I cleaned the filter thingy the other day because the gunk was overflowing...I'm going through one of my frequent "rinse everything first" phases now out of guilt...I still maintain I need two dishwashers though - one for clean one for dirty.

I swear I'll never abuse my dishwasher again!

God, this is just like a love affair:

I wasn't looking for a dishwasher, but one day there it was. I was in a new house and there was a gap in my life, and the dishwasher seemed to fit.

At first, I was used to being independent of a dishwasher, and though I enjoyed the novelty, I resented its requirements.

Then we settled into a relationship. It did *such* good things for me, every night after work, and I treasured it...

...but the baby came along, and I hardly had time to appreciate its hard work, I just threw more and more stuff at it, didn't think to look after it...

...till after one hard morning a few weeks ago, I found it had broken down in the middle of the kitchen, even when I cleaned it up it was silent, just not itself, and one day I came home to find it had gone, just a gap where it had been. It was only then that I realised how much I loved it. I missed it. I even thought of sending it a Valentine's card - really.

I should have known, when it turned up on the doorstep this morning in the arms of two moonlighting firemen, that things were not back to normal. If only we could go back to how we were! I'd treat it right, I promise

Hi Cloviscat...

the water hose (it might even be a copper tube) connects the water supply from (say) under the sink, into the wishdasher.

Is it a 'fitted' machine, ie: part of the kitchen furniture with no bits of tin covering the sides?
Or is it a free standing device, ie:covered with tin like a fridge?

If it is 'fitted' you can usually see into the machine from one side or the other. Look under the sink and try to follow the water line to see where it enters the wishdasher. There is usually a connection like a garden hose thingy.

TRY THIS:
You could set the machine to the beginning of its cycle, and turn it on : You should be able to hear a click (that is the water valve opening) and the water coming in.
Now turn the machine OFF and the water should stop.

If it doesn't then the valve needs replacing.

One small point...you say that you took the wishdasher to be repaired then brought it home again...Did someone re-connect the water AND turn the water supply BACK ON ?? ( there is usually a valve under the sink just for the wishdasher supply ).

alec.

As Pencil Queen says, most problems can be solved by removing the 'gunk' from inside.

I'm home sick with the 'flu today so get back to me when you can.

Poor Alec - hope you feel better soon!

It's free standing - when we bought the house (see love affair above) there was a gap for a dishwasher between a cupboard and the washing machine. It sits on the lino, under the worktop. so we bought the dishwasher to go there - it's a Bosch, a slimline one, three years old

As stated above - it's true I swear it! - it was returned by two moonlighting firemen. They put it back in, put the plug back on (you can't get the pug through the gap to the socket in the cupboard) and reconnected all the tubes under the sink. Then they left. Three minutes later, one of them came back and said "Oops, I forgot to turn the water back on". Despite this, they seemed reasonably conscientious and savvy.

The hose has to go behind the washing machine before it reaches the sink, so it's very tight - it's hard to have the machine pulled out *and* operational, without disconnecting the washing machine as well.

Baby still asleep, btw...

aaaaah

from what you've said, i'd go for the water level float switch being stuck. Probably just needs the crud removed

Open the front door, and look around on the 'floor' of the machine.
Is there something like an inverted beaker that is fastened to the floor?

Inside will be a plastic float that rises as the water level inside the machine does. When it gets to a certain height, it turns the incoming water OFF.

If something is jamming the float and not letting it rise to the 'cut-off' point, then water will continue to enter the machine.

alec.

moonlighting firemen

Moonlighting firemen indeed... does your husband know the place is full of firemen when he's away at work


Oh and alec... Bosch is a german company... so you can't blame the french for this one

Oh dear, if it's a Bosch one it is really for it to develope problems so soon in it's short life.

My poor Bosch just gets everything hurdle in it. Somehow it managed to survive 2 weeks without me supervising it's loading when we abandoned the sons for a fortnight's holiday. Actually, judging by the state of the crockery and cutlery in the cupboards, either they used fingers and paper plates or eat out! Unless the g/fs came round and switched it on.

I do use a proprietory dishwasher cleaner occasionally and because the waste pipe is connected to the sink outlet I also pour in huge quantities of soda crystals followed by a kettleful of boiling water, very satisfying

We've got an indesit...didn't like the handles on the bosch's to clunky and pointy (and of course choosing white goods on the basis of handles is obviously the way to get the best quality). The pump went after 2 months but it was still under warrenty and was fixed and we've had no problems since (apart from an overenthusiastic mother in law trying to put everything in it at once).

The washing machine is a bosch and I it...its got the simplest dial in the world (three wash options, rinse, spin, drain...simplicity).

No clunky or pointy handles on my dishwasher.

The best thing I ever did was to vow never to buy another appliance from the large retailers. I now go to a local independently owned store and follow their advice.

So I now have a Bosch washing machine and tumble dryer. I shall look pretty if those start to misbehave now.

Most, but not all of Bosch's machines are made in their shiny big factory in Spain.

For the second time, I've forgotten to say you're poorly, Alec. Ihope you are feeling better soon.

We got the lot (washing machine, dishwasher, cooker, fridge and freezer) from scottish power in one go - the stores where closing and my mum (who was paying (we hadn't bought the house yet but her shares had just come through)) got 25% discount through work...got the lot for less than £1000.

The downside is that they're all likely to break at the same time

...and...

just like in the Kevin Bacon game, the Fr*nch are never more than a couple of steps removed from anything that is giving trouble.

They can justifiably be blamed fair and square for EVERYTHING whisky.

i will soon start a "Whats WRONG with the Fr*nch" thread.

alec.