Thread Number: 29661
Old GE dishwasher--any good?
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Post# 451007   7/21/2010 at 20:13 (4,999 days old) by LordKenmore (The Laundry Room)        

lordkenmore's profile picture
I found an ad on Craigslist for a GE dishwasher. I'm tempted--but before I get too tempted, I'm wondering how good a machine it is, rough age, etc.

The ad is about to expire, but I pulled a photo of the front:





Post# 451017 , Reply# 1   7/21/2010 at 20:44 (4,999 days old) by Tomturbomatic (Beltsville, MD)        

It has no filter and the sump holds about a quart of water after each drain so food particles that go into the machine have a rough time getting out through the drain. That's why you will find them resting on or stuck to some surface when you are unloading the machine. Unless you have a sentimental reason for wanting this machine, I would not advise you to buy it, especially if you want it to clean dirty dishes. It does work OK if you rinse all food soil off the dishes except for stuff like smooth sauces and ice cream. Also, the lower rack arrangement restricts loading large items. And, it's loud. Given its age, if it has had much use, it probably has rust. It might not be the exposed orange type of rust that has broken through the Plastisol, but there might be patches where the Plastisol has bubbled up or developed a bumpy texture. That means rust is underneath.

Post# 451063 , Reply# 2   7/22/2010 at 00:47 (4,999 days old) by roto204 (Tucson, AZ)        
Dreck!

roto204's profile picture
The dishwasher that was unceremoniously booted from our Tucson apartment, minus the heated dry selector.

The only dishwasher I've used that could take a load of clean dishes and make them come out dirty.


Post# 451351 , Reply# 3   7/23/2010 at 17:11 (4,997 days old) by gmmcnair (Portland, OR)        
I had one of those in an apartment I lived in....

gmmcnair's profile picture
One word described it....craptacular. Roto204 was right....the only dishwasher that could dirty up a clean load of dishes.

Post# 451365 , Reply# 4   7/23/2010 at 17:54 (4,997 days old) by redcarpetdrew (Fairfield, CA)        
The only dishwasher I've used that could take a load of

redcarpetdrew's profile picture
Oh, the books I could write on THAT subject... GE may be the heavyweight champion there but the newer D&M's weren't slouches in that department, either...

RCD


Post# 451428 , Reply# 5   7/23/2010 at 21:30 (4,997 days old) by amyswasher ()        

I know several people that had these in their apartment(without the buttons on the top) and they would hand wash their dishes. Useless!!!

Post# 451432 , Reply# 6   7/23/2010 at 21:55 (4,997 days old) by cfz2882 (Belle Fourche,SD)        

my grandma had a rollout GE dishwasher of that style from
around 1972-the large shaded pole pump motor was quite noisy
Dishwasher was retired from service around 1985 when the motor
fan came loose...


Post# 451446 , Reply# 7   7/23/2010 at 23:45 (4,997 days old) by appnut (TX)        
minus the heated dry selector.

appnut's profile picture
Nate, the buttons were actually Rinse & Hold and normal cycle. Energy save dry wasn't in existence when hese were made.

Post# 451452 , Reply# 8   7/24/2010 at 00:19 (4,997 days old) by lebron (Minnesota)        
Energy save dry wasn't in existence

lebron's profile picture
DAMN STrAIGHT!

Post# 451453 , Reply# 9   7/24/2010 at 00:20 (4,997 days old) by LordKenmore (The Laundry Room)        

lordkenmore's profile picture
Thanks for the answers!

I guess this dishwasher proves that just because it's vintage doesn't always mean it's better!

Were the GE Mobile Maids this bad? They seem to be somewhat common among collectors.


Post# 451478 , Reply# 10   7/24/2010 at 05:37 (4,996 days old) by Tomturbomatic (Beltsville, MD)        
Were the GE Mobile Maids this bad?

While "Mobile Maid" was GE's term for a portable dishwasher, the models most of us collect are the models with the stainless steel "bow tie" impeller. Normally, the newer machines that used a pump and wash arm were better at cleaning and offered more flexible loading than the older impeller machines, but GE is an exception. The bow tie impeller GE dishwashers offered much better cleaning and food disposal than GE's Bakelite impeller dishwashers. We have figured that the stainless steel impeller offered a sharper leading edge to cut into the water and the wider design of the blade threw water better than the more cone with fins Bakelite design. Also very important, the stainless steel did not become dulled or chipped along the leading edge as it aged like the Bakelite was wont to do. Another thing that improved cleaning with these machines was the reversing pump. The earlier GE's ran the timer off the dishwasher's motor so the motor could not stop during drain. The timer just adtivated the drain pump motor, but this did not give the soil time to settle out of the water before draining, nor did the drain pump eliminate food particles by grinding them up as they were pumped out. The stainless impeller machines came to a stop before reversing. They used the same continuously advancing timer motor technology as GE washing machines which means that there had to be greater distance between the contacts to prevent arcing between them as the timer slowly revolved which meant longer pauses between having the dishwasher motor turn in one direction to throw water and then reverse to drain it. So the heavier soil got to settle in the sump before the pump out. When these machines drained, they pumped out completely and, during the last few seconds of the drain, the fill valve opened to flush the pump before the next fill.

The GEs like in your picture did not pump out completely each time they drained so heavier soil was retained in the water that sat in the pump and they had no filter to prevent particles from being recirculated. GE used a relatively large pump housing with a much smaller diameter turbine-type impeller in it. It could develop good pressure when the pump chamber was full, but as soon as the drain valve opened and water volume dropped, the pump could not empty itself. Sometime in the 80s or 90s, some of GE's TOL models had an auxillary drain pump to suck out the water in the bottom of the wash pump chamber. It was activated during a couple of the drain periods, one of which was after the main wash. It was a help, but long overdue.

It is because of these factors that what should have been an advance in dishwashing technology with the move from impeller to wash arm was, for GE, a step back.


Post# 451657 , Reply# 11   7/24/2010 at 20:07 (4,996 days old) by mikepaquette ()        
Thanks Tom

You explained why I love the GE bowtie impeller dishwasher to a T. Mike

Post# 451706 , Reply# 12   7/24/2010 at 23:58 (4,996 days old) by sensi-temp ()        

I have a Mobile Maid, not sure the age but has no filter & holds water in the sump. I DO NOT pre rince anything, a stupid habit of long standing & it washes extremely clean, as clean as I KA I have had. It also has the upper rack trim that Comsumer's Reports & others have trashed, mine does not collect stuff there. Has anyone looked at the filter in vintage KA ? It never gets washed out of the machine as the GE does, your clean rince water gets circulated through that crud.

Post# 451735 , Reply# 13   7/25/2010 at 06:09 (4,995 days old) by Tomturbomatic (Beltsville, MD)        

Actually, Sensi-temp, the owner's manuals for older KA dishwashers instruct users to inspect the filter regularly and clean it with a brush under running water when necessary. There was a time when people who bought high end merchandise invested time and a bit of energy in caring for it.


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