Needing some emergency help with a "ghost" in my machine...

I'm almost at the end of the rope that is my sanity....

As my luck would have it, just as I have gotten the mechanics and interior of the PowerClean absolutely perfect and humming along like a dream, the control board decides to go wonky on me. I don't think this is a sudden thing, as the previous owner noted to me that sometimes it would start itself over, but this entire time I've had it, between the restoration and now daily use, it has never shown signs of any unwanted operation.

Until two mornings ago... I woke to the click-whoosh sound of the dishwasher starting. We usually keep the bedroom door open, and the house was dead silent, and though it was a very faint sound, I guess my mind is subconsciously tuned to the sound of any machines in the house. I walk to the kitchen to find that the dishwasher is just chugging away, with one plate and two cups inside. It just so happened that our newish roommate had just walked out the door to leave just minutes before, so I was a bit tiffed that she would #1. start my dishwasher knowing that I take care of deciding when it's time for it to run, and #2. start it with three dishes inside. I simply hit cancel and that was that.

Later I asked her about it, and she said she didn't start it that she knew of, unless just somehow bumping it and not realizing it. That was settled.

This morning, as I grabbed my keys to run to the store, I heard the sudden hissing of water coming from over the bar, and it most certainly wasn't the refrigerator. I walk around to see, again, the Normal, Air Dry, and Washing LEDs on just as though someone clicked the cycle button. No matter how many times I would hit Cancel, it would either flash and ignore me, or it would start to drain, only to start right back over as soon as the 2 minute drain ended.

I hit the breaker twice, and each time it would just start by itself. I finally was able to hit the PowerScour-Air Dry-Power Scour-Air Dry key combo to start the diagnostics test, which it went through perfectly fine, even holding at interval 7 to reach 140F, followed by the dispenser, rinse aid, and vent tests, then drained. Once at the end, it simply flashed the Normal key, and that's where we are now. The service manual says that if the machine senses a stuck key, it will halt all operation and flash the guilty keys. If I try to hit cancel or any other key, it will flash those along with the Normal button. As of now, even with flipping the breaker for 20 seconds or so, the button sits and flashes as soon as power is restored, and I can't get it to do a thing.

It strikes me as odd that it seems the Normal key may be faulty, but when it started itself, I could click any other cycle besides Rinse Only and it would switch the LED to that button, just as it would if you changed your mind once starting it yourself. My thought is that if the key was actually 'sticking', it would immediately switch back to Normal when hitting any other key. Physically, the key clicks and feels just like the others.

I'm at a loss, because the control panel and the logic board are two separate parts, yet it's hard to tell if it's simply faulty key, or if the logic board has gone haywire. Once running, whether normally or in diagnostic mode, it progresses through each phase perfectly.

It's disheartening really, especially after the work and time put into it. If I have to buy the panel or the logic board individually, it will be painful to the wallet but I'll manage, but to buy both at once would be almost $400, and I'd probably lose sleep at that point.


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Post# 781348 9/4/2014 at 12:33 (3,511 days old) by murando531 (Augusta, Georgia - US)
Checkrate/Likes I'm almost at the end of the rope that is my sanity.... As my luck would have it, just as I have gotten the mechanics and interior of the PowerClean absolutely perfect and humming along like a dream, the control board decides to go wonky on me. I don't think this is a sudden thing, as the previous owner noted to me that sometimes it would start itself over, but this entire time I've had it, between the restoration and now daily use, it has never shown signs of any unwanted operation. Until two mornings ago... I woke to the click-whoosh sound of the dishwasher starting. We usually keep the bedroom door open, and the house was dead silent, and though it was a very faint sound, I guess my mind is subconsciously tuned to the sound of any machines in the house. I walk to the kitchen to find that the dishwasher is just chugging away, with one plate and two cups inside. It just so happened that our newish roommate had just walked out the door to leave just minutes before, so I was a bit tiffed that she would #1. start my dishwasher knowing that I take care of deciding when it's time for it to run, and #2. start it with three dishes inside. I simply hit cancel and that was that. Later I asked her about it, and she said she didn't start it that she knew of, unless just somehow bumping it and not realizing it. That was settled. This morning, as I grabbed my keys to run to the store, I heard the sudden hissing of water coming from over the bar, and it most certainly wasn't the refrigerator. I walk around to see, again, the Normal, Air Dry, and Washing LEDs on just as though someone clicked the cycle button. No matter how many times I would hit Cancel, it would either flash and ignore me, or it would start to drain, only to start right back over as soon as the 2 minute drain ended. I hit the breaker twice, and each time it would just start by itself. I finally was able to hit the PowerScour-Air Dry-Power Scour-Air Dry key combo to start the diagnostics test, which it went through perfectly fine, even holding at interval 7 to reach 140F, followed by the dispenser, rinse aid, and vent tests, then drained. Once at the end, it simply flashed the Normal key, and that's where we are now. The service manual says that if the machine senses a stuck key, it will halt all operation and flash the guilty keys. If I try to hit cancel or any other key, it will flash those along with the Normal button. As of now, even with flipping the breaker for 20 seconds or so, the button sits and flashes as soon as power is restored, and I can't get it to do a thing. It strikes me as odd that it seems the Normal key may be faulty, but when it started itself, I could click any other cycle besides Rinse Only and it would switch the LED to that button, just as it would if you changed your mind once starting it yourself. My thought is that if the key was actually 'sticking', it would immediately switch back to Normal when hitting any other key. Physically, the key clicks and feels just like the others. I'm at a loss, because the control panel and the logic board are two separate parts, yet it's hard to tell if it's simply faulty key, or if the logic board has gone haywire. Once running, whether normally or in diagnostic mode, it progresses through each phase perfectly. It's disheartening really, especially after the work and time put into it. If I have to buy the panel or the logic board individually, it will be painful to the wallet but I'll manage, but to buy both at once would be almost $400, and I'd probably lose sleep at that point.