Miele 898 SCI (dw) drainage problem...WTF?

My Miele 898SCI Plus (vintage 2005) has recently begun exhibiting an unusual problem. At the end of any cycle, the bottom of the DW is clean and dry, as one would expect. When I open the door several hours later/next morning to unload, the bottom of the DW is full of clean water! So it's creeping back in from somewhere.

Before you get an "ah-hah" moment, I have recently (within a month) replaced the non-return valve, and the issue continues to happen!

I had a (so they say) Miele trained repairman out, and he spent about an hour on the phone with Miele tech support,and the only thing that their collective brains could come up with is that it's a "control board" issue, and I would be advised to replace the machine, since a new control board would be $500+ dollars, and a new (BOL) Miele DW would be $1,000.00 My intelligence was mildly insulted, but since he was young, yery cute, earnest and polite, I gave him a pass. (He also disassembled and cleaned out an amazing amount of lint, and an abandoned mouse nest(!)from the innards of my W1930 dryer, so that was $135.00 well-spent dollars for both machines).

Now, as it happens, through the magic of timing, my local Miele retailer has a (beginning of the line, not "bottom") Miele 4925SCI on sale for $899.00, instead of it's usual MSRP of $1,099.00. It's on sale because of a "horse kick" dent in the front SS panel. And, here I sit with a working TOL 10 year old DW with a matching perfect panel, that I could remove and place on the new 4925 unit, and "Bob's your uncle", a new 4925SCI with a good front panel.

However...

I don't NEED to replace the 898. It still leaves me with clean dry dishes at the immediate end of a cycle, it just has the water incursion issue. This unit originally retailed for $2,395.00, back in the day, and I bought it for $1,295.00 because it was a floor model. 10 years ago, $2,395.00 was a heart-stopping amount of money to spend (even)on a TOL German dishwasher.

Is this the beginning of the end for the 898? Do I ignore the water issue, since it purges out at the beginning of the next cycle, or do I work myself into a tizzy and replace it? Any thoughts on a possible fix? I'd be giving up the water softener and 5 cycles that I rarely use to go from one to the other.
It's a "first-world problem to have, I know, but I would welcome some advice from you Miele enthusiasts out there.

Photos... < > Photo 1 of 5 View Full Size


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Post# 901857 10/5/2016 at 09:38 (2,752 days old) by drhardee ( Columbia, SC)
Checkrate/Likes My Miele 898SCI Plus (vintage 2005) has recently begun exhibiting an unusual problem. At the end of any cycle, the bottom of the DW is clean and dry, as one would expect. When I open the door several hours later/next morning to unload, the bottom of the DW is full of clean water! So it's creeping back in from somewhere. Before you get an "ah-hah" moment, I have recently (within a month) replaced the non-return valve, and the issue continues to happen! I had a (so they say) Miele trained repairman out, and he spent about an hour on the phone with Miele tech support,and the only thing that their collective brains could come up with is that it's a "control board" issue, and I would be advised to replace the machine, since a new control board would be $500+ dollars, and a new (BOL) Miele DW would be $1,000.00 My intelligence was mildly insulted, but since he was young, yery cute, earnest and polite, I gave him a pass. (He also disassembled and cleaned out an amazing amount of lint, and an abandoned mouse nest(!)from the innards of my W1930 dryer, so that was $135.00 well-spent dollars for both machines). Now, as it happens, through the magic of timing, my local Miele retailer has a (beginning of the line, not "bottom") Miele 4925SCI on sale for $899.00, instead of it's usual MSRP of $1,099.00. It's on sale because of a "horse kick" dent in the front SS panel. And, here I sit with a working TOL 10 year old DW with a matching perfect panel, that I could remove and place on the new 4925 unit, and "Bob's your uncle", a new 4925SCI with a good front panel. However... I don't NEED to replace the 898. It still leaves me with clean dry dishes at the immediate end of a cycle, it just has the water incursion issue. This unit originally retailed for $2,395.00, back in the day, and I bought it for $1,295.00 because it was a floor model. 10 years ago, $2,395.00 was a heart-stopping amount of money to spend (even)on a TOL German dishwasher. Is this the beginning of the end for the 898? Do I ignore the water issue, since it purges out at the beginning of the next cycle, or do I work myself into a tizzy and replace it? Any thoughts on a possible fix? I'd be giving up the water softener and 5 cycles that I rarely use to go from one to the other. It's a "first-world problem to have, I know, but I would welcome some advice from you Miele enthusiasts out there. Photos... < > Photo 1 of 5 View Full Size

Post# 901886 , Reply# 1 10/5/2016 at 14:16 (2,752 days old) by askomiele (Belgium Ghent)
Checkrate/Likes 1 The slow rate your dishwasher is filling up, seems to me that the internal cap of the inletvalve is leaking. Althought the valve is functioning, a small leak overtime can fill up the sump of your dishwasher. Replacing the inlet valve is the option. Any backup for this theory?

Post# 901888 , Reply# 2 10/5/2016 at 14:35 (2,752 days old) by COLDSPOT66 (Plymouth, Mass)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Try shutting off the hot water feed after the cycle is complete. It does sound like a leaky inlet valve.

Post# 902638 , Reply# 3 10/11/2016 at 09:06 (2,746 days old) by drhardee ( Columbia, SC)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Thanks, Coldspot and Askomiele, for your wise words. The problem seems to have disappeared...maybe there was some grit in the inlet valve that was keeping it from closing completely. We're back to normal now for the time being...no more water incursion. I don't know why the repairman, nor his counterpart in NJ could think of that solution!