Thread Number: 38331
KitchenAid on the news |
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Post# 568850   1/13/2012 at 20:41 (4,480 days old) by mrb627 (Buford, GA)   |   | |
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Post# 568914 , Reply# 2   1/14/2012 at 08:18 (4,479 days old) by mrb627 (Buford, GA)   |   | |
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Post# 568917 , Reply# 3   1/14/2012 at 08:35 (4,479 days old) by mrb627 (Buford, GA)   |   | |
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Post# 568928 , Reply# 4   1/14/2012 at 09:30 (4,479 days old) by KenmoreGuy64 (Charlotte, NC)   |   | |
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That is fascinating Malcolm. 400 complaints - wow.
I have a 2010 Kenmore powerclean machine new in box that I was going to install when I removed my GE TallTub. I then found the Potscrubber 1200 and have never unboxed the Kenmore. Can anyone tell if the machines of concern are all talltub machines or are there standard tub dishwashers in there too? This will be interesting to watch unfold. Gordon |
Post# 568938 , Reply# 5   1/14/2012 at 10:00 (4,479 days old) by Hunter (Colorado)   |   | |
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...fried a circuit two or three times. After the last time I said 'no more' and junked it. It was BARELY outside of a recall window and I figured that it actually had suspect parts/engineering. But who knows? |
Post# 568944 , Reply# 6   1/14/2012 at 10:37 (4,479 days old) by kqkenmore (memphis tn)   |   | |
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This scares the hell out of me as I have a Kenmore elite dishwasher and I have had to have the motor and pump replaced 2 times they have rebulit the dishwasher 2 times under service contract and now I am having issues with getting the buttons to function (push them and they wont come on). Thank you Malcolm for posting this. I am going to get Sears out quick to fix this but that does not seem to help. I think that I am going to register my dishwasher on that site because on of the repairs was because of a burnt wire that my contractor found when he pulled the dishwasher out to remodel the kitchen. |
Post# 569026 , Reply# 7   1/14/2012 at 16:24 (4,479 days old) by lotsosudz (Sacramento, CA)   |   | |
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Post# 569132 , Reply# 12   1/15/2012 at 04:15 (4,478 days old) by qualin (Canada)   |   | |
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Post# 569472 , Reply# 14   1/16/2012 at 07:40 (4,477 days old) by mrb627 (Buford, GA)   |   | |
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Post# 569872 , Reply# 15   1/19/2012 at 08:09 (4,474 days old) by combo52 (50 Year Repair Tech Beltsville,Md)   |   | |
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We have seen many of these boards that shorted and burned, I feel that it is a board overheating and burning. I have seen no evidence of water causing the problem as this part [ as you would expect ]is very well protected from water leaks from the machine or spilled water from the counter top above.
Unfortunately major appliances have been having minor shorts and electrical fires since electricity came into homes 100 years ago. The problem today is that too much plastic is used around the electrical parts and when things go wrong it can result in a BIG problem and can more easily cause a house fire. Properly protecting the electrical parts of appliances would go a long way to minimizing any danger when things go wrong. I have never liked plastic control panels on appliances, A high school friend had their house burned down by an early 1960s Westinghouse TL portable DW when water got on some electrical parts and the plastic control panel went up in a blaze and set the kitchen and house on fire.
This is another big reason why I don't want a DW, washer, dryer etc that runs for three hours at a time, I also don't want one that is so quiet that you are unaware that it is even on. Major appliances do pose some danger of fire, flooding, explosion, injury and death from electrocution. |
Post# 569876 , Reply# 16   1/19/2012 at 08:45 (4,474 days old) by franksdad (Greenville, South Carolina)   |   | |
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I purchased my Whirlpool Gold dishwasher from Sears in 2007. Knock on wood, no problem so far. The saleslady did talk me into purchasing a 3 year warranty and stated the circuit board "may go out - you know these electronic things." I though nothing about that at the time as I have always been pleased with Whirlpool quality. I'll keep an eye on it now. |
Post# 569879 , Reply# 17   1/19/2012 at 08:55 (4,474 days old) by Tomturbomatic (Beltsville, MD)   |   | |
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John, you left out loss of limb and loss of consortium. |
Post# 569891 , Reply# 18   1/19/2012 at 09:59 (4,474 days old) by DirectDriveDave ()   |   | |
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My bro's place has one that came with the house, I think it's from maybe 2000 or so. Been doing just fine as far as I can see. |
Post# 570176 , Reply# 22   1/20/2012 at 13:08 (4,473 days old) by DirectDriveDave ()   |   | |
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I'm guessing maybe it was designed right since it was made back in 1989, but the electronics for our GE oven are right over the vent, they still work. |
Post# 570185 , Reply# 23   1/20/2012 at 14:42 (4,473 days old) by mrb627 (Buford, GA)   |   | |
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A Circuit Board is only as reliable as the parts soldered to it.
I suppose if Whirlpool had more control of the board manufacture, they wouldn't have these problems. Look at Miele for goodness sake, they control everything and rarely have any sort of problem. Never heard of anything widespread, at least. Malcolm |
Post# 570647 , Reply# 25   1/23/2012 at 06:17 (4,470 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY)   |   | |
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I have a WP tall tub that's just a few steps UP for BOL. It's half console push button & almost 7 yrs old. Never had any problems with it BUT I do notice that when I touch the control panel (even if it hasn't been operated for a few days), it's warm to the touch & it has always been that way since the day I got it. I've always thought that was ODD. Now I'm wondering if it's going to catch fire sometime. Some of those dishwashers in the video were up to ten years old they said when they caught fire.
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Post# 576874 , Reply# 26   2/18/2012 at 20:34 (4,444 days old) by electronicontrl (Grand Rapids, MI)   |   | |
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This Consumer Reports link refers to the kitchenaidfire.com site info, and more.
CLICK HERE TO GO TO electronicontrl's LINK |
Post# 577227 , Reply# 27   2/20/2012 at 12:33 (4,442 days old) by combo52 (50 Year Repair Tech Beltsville,Md)   |   | |
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This was one of the worst articles that I have seen in a long time in CRs. It was poorly written and researched and not proof read. I wish they would spend 7 pages of space to talk about actual appliances tests. I sat here and read this whole article and found it about useless. They even quoted the woman who had a [ condenser ] catch fire on her WP refrigerator, condensers are nothing but steel tubing, they cannot catch fire let alone burn. I thought that this was not up CRs standards, as they didn't suggest any real solutions. One of the most dangerous home appliances in the home today are these STUPID over the range microwave ovens. All one has to do is leave a gas or electric element on high without a pan on it or have what you are cooking catch fire and you are almost guaranteed a fire or at the very least a lot of property damage. I have for over 20 years consoled customers not to install these DANGEROUS MWs over a heat source, yet CRs continues to test and recommend this appliance. |
Post# 577533 , Reply# 28   2/21/2012 at 20:25 (4,441 days old) by mysteryclock (Franklin, TN)   |   | |
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Well....had a little problem with the ca. 2004 KA TT dishwasher again. Several actually. After having basically the whole thing (fill valve, pump, control board, dispenser) replaced last summer and then more repairs (some duplicate) again in the fall, I came out yesterday morning to unload it and discovered the tub full of water. Re-starting the drain cycle didn't get much out, so clearly something was wrong.
Add to this the fact that for the past few weeks I ~thought~ I'd noticed a burning smell coming from it and the control panel feeling warmer than usual, and I finally realized it was time for yet another service call under its extended warranty. Well the fellow came out today and managed to get it to drain somehow, but decided to check on the burning smell issue first since that was an easy reach compared to disassembling to get to the pump. As soon as he popped the control panel open he yelled "Hey, you need to see this!" Below is what we saw. The power connector / board interface had gotten so hot that one of pins on the board had either burnt loose or de-soldered itself and was stuck in the melted connector. It really is a miracle the whole thing didn't go up and result in *FIERY DEATH* for everyone here. It even scorched all the way up the power leads into the connector too! So while the technician is in there shaking his head trying to figure out what he's going to have to replace this time (control board, wiring harness, thermal fuse, etc, etc.) I'm on the phone with the warranty company telling them "I want this thing out of my house before it kills someone." Fortunately I finally got through to someone who took one look at my service history and helpfully opined that they probably should have replaced it last year after 4 trips out in July-August (*now* they tell me?) So they issued me a credit @ Sears and I ordered a brand new Bosch unit with an internal softener, which should really help with our rock-hard water in Middle TN. So the moral of the story here is - if your control panel feels hot / hotter than usual or you even think you smell hot wires, unplug and investigate immediately. I foresee a class-action lawsuit...that will probably result in all of us getting a box of Finish Powerball tabs and the lawyers getting $100m. |
Post# 577599 , Reply# 30   2/22/2012 at 09:11 (4,440 days old) by mysteryclock (Franklin, TN)   |   | |
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Interesting thing is, this is the ~second~ control board to die. The original one made it until last July until it was just electrically dead, but it showed no obvious signs of burning, etc. This one only made it 6 1/2 months before doing this! Since this one came out of a more recent manufacturing run (it was a different color than the first one IIRC) I'm wondering if there is some change they made since 2004 which caused this to happen and that could be responsible for the other incidents we keep hearing about? I've seen blown caps on a board before, but the only other time I've seen a melted power connection was on an electric kids car we got from a friend of ours, and *that* connector was hooked up to a gigantic, heavy battery (a big DC power source.) In all my years working with computers I've never seen a power lead do this. And even with blown caps I've never seen them de-solder themselves.
The fact that the scorching / arcing had continued all the way up through the connector on the the brown (?) wire is particularly alarming. Here's hoping the Bosch is better. I'm really exited to get a DW with a softener, so I don't have to add STPP or LemiShine with every load. |
Post# 579257 , Reply# 31   2/29/2012 at 09:58 (4,433 days old) by mysteryclock (Franklin, TN)   |   | |
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Update - the new Bosch is installed! This is the ADA version which was the only one with a built-in softener available from Sears (where we had replacement credit) so the tub is about 2-3" shorter than the old KA. Everything except our big pasta-cooker insert for the stock pot seems to fit just fine w/o having to remove the top rack. Being a little higher does make loading / unloading easier!
Didn't realize that most Euro-style DWs are actually shallower than US ones but again, that doesn't seem to impact capacity except for really oversized items and isn't an issue. Design is excellent - love the little combo top rack pull & tab-tray where the detergent tab can land and dissolve completely w/o sticking to the door or the silverware basket. And final rinse temps, softener level, rinse-aid level and power options can all be adjusted electronically from the control panel. Performance is also great - everything is coming out squeaky clean and completely streak & spot free. Even glasses put in the farthest corners of the top rack are perfect w/o any "crumbles", which the old KA was never good at even when new. And it is very quiet to boot! The only minor downside of all this high performance and energy efficiency is cycle time - it is LONG! The old KA would blast through a load in 60-90 minutes even with Sani selected, no matter how grimy it was. The Bosch on "Automatic" took 2:20-ish with a full load and Sanitize. There is a timed (not sensor-driven) "Express" cycle that'll run in 30 minutes flat that also does a good job and would be a viable option during a party, etc. Recommended. CLICK HERE TO GO TO mysteryclock's LINK |
Post# 579271 , Reply# 32   2/29/2012 at 10:56 (4,433 days old) by combo52 (50 Year Repair Tech Beltsville,Md)   |   | |
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Congratulations on your new DW, I love the idea of the built-in water softener, I wish more DWs would offer this option.
I do find the smaller interior size on the three European style DWs that I have had to be a big drawback, any DW I have I always wish it were a little bigger as a try to pack more into it. I also never want another DW with a filter as I an far too spoiled with the older WP Power-Clean machines I have. When I load I do not even scrape off the dishes, I just turn them side ways and if it falls into the disposer great, other wise it goes into the DW.
In the last two days I sold four new DWs [ all WP ] and three of the ones being replaced are Bosch machines all under 10 years of age. KitchenAid is not the only company having trouble with DWs [ Bosch is also in the middle of a recall for DW fires ]. If any one wants any used Bosch DWs or parts of contact me, I also saw a three year old really nice looking Miele all SS DW on the junk pile yesterday that I can get cheap if someone wants it. |
Post# 579342 , Reply# 35   2/29/2012 at 14:57 (4,433 days old) by mysteryclock (Franklin, TN)   |   | |
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