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Thread Number: 49236
1969 GE Americana with Power Scrub - Won't run |
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| Post# 712584 , Reply# 1 11/1/2013 at 11:06 (3,822 days old) by toploader55 (Massachusetts Sand Bar, Cape Cod) | ||
Buzzing...
Check to see if the water to the machine is turned on.
But before you do that, remove the lower panel and make sure the drain and water lines are connected. Then take a pan of about 1/2 - 1 gal of HOT water and pour it in the bottom of the machine and let it sit for 20 minutes or so. This will swell up the rubber gaskets and lubricate the seals that have not seen water for 33 years. After pouring in the water, get a flashlight and look for leaks under the machine. If you have leaks, well...you have leaks that need to be addressed. If not, latch the door and manually advance the timer to see if the motor starts. The "buzzing" or humming could be the Fill Valve. As that is why I mentioned to check to see if the water supply to the machine is turned on. If nothing happens, let us know and all the experts will chime in. This is a start, so good luck. Could you show us pics of the interior and the Spray Arms ? Thanks. | ||
Post# 712593 , Reply# 2 11/1/2013 at 12:38 (3,822 days old) by bajaespuma  (Connecticut) |
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| Post# 712760 , Reply# 3 11/2/2013 at 10:54 (3,821 days old) by xraytech (Rural southwest Pennsylvania ) | ||
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| Post# 712768 , Reply# 4 11/2/2013 at 12:15 (3,821 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
Also Know....
....That this dishwasher (which was the TOL machine of its day), has a plastic-on-steel inner tub; the material is called Plastisol.
Plastisol is susceptible to rusting; water gets underneath the plastic layer and the steel then begins to rust. I would check this machine carefully for signs that rust has begun before putting too much money or effort into it. Signs include rust streaks and bubbled places in the plastic layer. Rusted Plastisol liners eventually become terminal, though that can take a while. There used to be Plastisol repair kits with an epoxy coating you brushed on, but I do not know if they're still available. Even if they are, they only delay the inevitable. If the Plastisol liner is okay, this is a fairly rare survival of a TOL GE machine of the '60s, so it's definitely worth saving. You do want to be careful with the Plastisol, not dropping stuff onto the inner door liner or letting stuff in the racks fall into the bottom of the tub. Those things can breach the plastic layer, and rust will get started. Plastisol is not forever, and that is one of the prime reasons it's no longer used. Neat machine to see! | ||
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Post# 712822 , Reply# 5 11/2/2013 at 18:01 (3,821 days old) by Tomturbomatic (Beltsville, MD) |
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Isn't this the model with the dials that allowed the user to adjust the wash and dry times to shorten or lengthen them by pulsing the power to the timer motor? The middle dial chose the cycles and these were on either side of that one. Didn't it also have two timer-controlled detergent dispensers? | ||
| Post# 712838 , Reply# 6 11/2/2013 at 19:40 (3,821 days old) by danemodsandy (The Bramford, Apt. 7-E) | ||
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Controls:
Here's a shot of the controls. This DW was still around in '72, renamed "Versatronic" instead of "Americana."
It seems rather an odd duck, with its dials to set everything; this was the era of pushbuttons, the more the merrier - think KitchenAid and Kenmore. And of course, the more pushbuttons, the more deluxe the model. GE always did do things differently from everyone else. 
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Post# 712941 , Reply# 7 11/3/2013 at 09:30 (3,820 days old) by bajaespuma (Connecticut) |
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| Post# 712947 , Reply# 8 11/3/2013 at 10:30 (3,820 days old) by HooverWheelAway () | ||
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Case and point on that plastisol... We saw this at an estate sale yesterday. 
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Post# 712954 , Reply# 9 11/3/2013 at 11:09 (3,820 days old) by bajaespuma (Connecticut) |
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Post# 712976 , Reply# 10 11/3/2013 at 12:58 (3,820 days old) by combo52 (50 Year Repair Tech Beltsville,Md) |
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Power Shower Arm on a GE TL Portable DW | ||
| Post# 712977 , Reply# 11 11/3/2013 at 13:55 (3,820 days old) by toploader55 (Massachusetts Sand Bar, Cape Cod) | ||
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PSA... | ||
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Post# 713374 , Reply# 13 11/5/2013 at 14:49 (3,818 days old) by lotsosudz (Sacramento, CA) |
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Don't Despair!
Older GE units often got stuck after storage. with the unit off, take the front lower panel off, and spin the motor by hand several revolutions. A repairman told me they will stick after storage, and just need to get off that same position, and then they will start up. I lived in a duplex that had an old GE. When we moved in, it had been several months since it was last used. He manipulated the motor and the old thing started right up. I'm sure one of the experts on this site, can tell you how to do it. It might be worth a try !
Hugs, David | ||
| Post# 716077 , Reply# 14 11/18/2013 at 15:43 (3,805 days old) by magnumxxl1 () | ||
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Sorry it took so long to finally reply. It slowly leaks water if it's off into the tub. I'm assuming bad water inlet valve. Which replacement valve will work on this? I've searched all over and no one knows. The one that's on their is made by Dole Valve Co. | ||
| Post# 716087 , Reply# 15 11/18/2013 at 16:29 (3,805 days old) by magnumxxl1 () | ||
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Ok so it did fill, and it apparently is running right now, it sounds to me as if it is pulsating the water in it? like every few seconds it sounds like it's shooting water up? Is that what it's supposed to do? or continually run the jets inside? | ||
| Post# 716096 , Reply# 16 11/18/2013 at 17:18 (3,805 days old) by toploader55 (Massachusetts Sand Bar, Cape Cod) | ||
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Pulsating Water... | ||
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