Thread Number: 87457
/ Tag: Modern Automatic Washers
How to know if a dishwasher wash arm is clogged? |
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Post# 1120108   6/12/2021 at 21:50 (1,019 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY)   |   | |
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I'm not sure that's even the case...because everything is fine except for a dead spot I've noticed in my (2014) Maytag dishwasher that's developed recently. On the bottom rack(extreme from left), I used to be able to put quart mason jars, or a tall glass, or a bowl and everything came clean. Now, in that ONE SPOT, nothing comes clean. Any glasses are hazy...or almost look like they were half sprayed but the rest of the dishes in the entire dishwasher are spotless. Just that one spot. So I really don't know what it could be. I've changed nothing. Dishwasher sounds the same and performs as well as always. I don't think anything is clogged but I don't know how to tell.
thanks
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Post# 1120115 , Reply# 1   6/12/2021 at 23:56 (1,019 days old) by Cam2s (Nebraska)   |   | |
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The lower arm is held on by nut, just unscrew it and lift the arm out for a visual inspection. It’s not uncommon for the end jets to get clogged. |
Post# 1120139 , Reply# 2   6/13/2021 at 10:28 (1,019 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY)   |   | |
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OK, at first I couldn't get it off. I was unscrewing to the right. It's to the left. Anyway, got it off and it's not clogged at all. Ran water through it, water poured out the holes. I shook it, and heard nothing.. I've always about once every 6 months or so (give or take) ran citric acid on the longest cycle and empty machine. When I took the wash arm off it exposed the screen which had some white chalky stuff on the edges, but it didn't look bad. I used a toothbrush on that. But the machine sounds great when running, like everything is working properly. I guess it will remain a mystery
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Post# 1120141 , Reply# 3   6/13/2021 at 10:31 (1,019 days old) by henene4 (Heidenheim a.d. Brenz (Germany))   |   | |
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Maybe try the old " dump a gallon of water in the main wash" trick to check if it is starting to underfill? |
Post# 1120145 , Reply# 4   6/13/2021 at 12:53 (1,018 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY)   |   | |
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Hmm?
Just listening to it, opening the door and seeing the water level as it washes.....the sounds, the way it fills (the filling sequence), everything looks and sounds perfectly fine and is the same as always. I would think underfilling the entire load would show it and not just one small spot, no? anyway - no big deal |
Post# 1120158 , Reply# 5   6/13/2021 at 14:27 (1,018 days old) by combo52 (50 Year Repair Tech Beltsville,Md)   |   | |
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Almost all DWs have a few dead areas , even on my older powerful WP PC machines when I put things like empty catsup bottles in to clean them for recycling sometimes they get totally missed and most times they are completely clean,
If you find a dead area just try putting different items in those areas, lower racks were mainly designed for plates bowels etc.
John L. |
Post# 1120386 , Reply# 7   6/15/2021 at 17:25 (1,016 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY)   |   | |
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I love this dishwasher. Never had an issue with the control board (knock on wood)
It's definitely not underfilling. I know the surging sound you're talking about. In fact, everything about it sounds absolutely normal and exactly as always. But out of curiosity, if a chopper screen is clogged, is there some sort of noise you would hear? I can't think of anything I put in the dishwasher that would actually clog it as I'm the only one who loads and uses it and everything is scraped and I don't even think I've ever broken a glass in there or anything that I remember. |
Post# 1120405 , Reply# 9   6/15/2021 at 21:30 (1,016 days old) by derrick352 (United States Of America)   |   | |
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Another help is Cascade Platinum. If not using it, start! |
Post# 1120412 , Reply# 10   6/15/2021 at 22:33 (1,016 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY)   |   | |
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I have best luck using finish powerball but I add STPP
I just ran a load but this time, I rearranged my usual loading and put plates there. Everything came clean About the STPP. A long time ago, I bought some STPP from soapgoods.com. Literally years ago. I'd say maybe 10 years ago. I was cleaning out cupboards the other day and found 1/2 used container of it that I forgot all about. I started using it and even though the Finish wasn't doing a bad job on its own, I could totally tell a difference when using STPP. That Maytag is beautiful |
Post# 1120695 , Reply# 13   6/18/2021 at 12:04 (1,013 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY)   |   | |
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Wow, the manufacturers must have really figured out better formulations for their non-phosphate detergents than they did when they first started doing non-phosphate. I remember back when they banned it and people were complaining like crazy that NOTHING worked....The cascade was bad, generic was bad. Only the detergents that had phosphates worked...People seem to have the best luck with Finish, which is what I've continued to use over the years - never really paying attention to whether or not the other detergents started performing better.
Yes, the Maytag's are my favorite dishwashers (even though they are Whirlpool made) but I think the models they offer now are somewhat different than the older models. |
Post# 1120772 , Reply# 15   6/19/2021 at 10:06 (1,013 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY)   |   | |
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can anyone find a video on youtube showing this for my model? Here's what the inside looks like
I think I'm good though honestly, the dishes are spotless, but it would be good to have in the future if I decide to dig in there. I will admit, those clips make me paranoid. I've never been good with clips I always end up breaking the clip Over the years I'm trying to think back of anything I could possibly have put in there. I'm the only one who uses it or has ever used it....but you never know. The other day after I ran dishwasher cleaner through it, later, I found a rubber band just sitting in the bottom undamaged. No clue how that got there. I did a quick search and came across a few videos but none of them looked like my model. One video a guy found a teabag clogging his because his wife was bad about not taking tea bags out of the cup.
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Post# 1120794 , Reply# 17   6/19/2021 at 16:52 (1,012 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY)   |   | |
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Post# 1120922 , Reply# 19   6/21/2021 at 02:04 (1,011 days old) by mark_wpduet (Lexington KY)   |   | |
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I've lived so many places. One apartment in Knoxville had a Magic Chef dishwasher that looked straight out of the mid-70s and I HATED it. It worked as it was supposed to but it was just a horrible dishwasher. Next, I lived in 2 different apartments in Lexington....they both were Kenmore (I'm almost positive they were Whirlpool made power cleans from the 90s. I loved them both. Next I lived in one last apartment (before where I have lived now in my home for years) and it was another Magic Chef looking 70's type Kenmore (horrible) I don't know who made those (maybe it was Whirlpool, but I never liked them.) They didn't look like Whirlpool's to me though. At least not 80s or 90s Whirlpools. Then when I moved in here, I had a point voyager for 9 and a half years before it died. This is when I got the Maytag in 2014 which I feel like has been my favorite dishwasher of all of them, or at least Equal to the 2 Kenmore power cleans I lived with. I do remember those being louder and more powerful...but at the same time, this Maytag isn't skimpy with water at all and sloshes around really good, though much quieter.
FYI - I took everything out and there was nothing in there. I cleaned the filter which wasn't that bad, but it did have a little bit of white lint type sludge on it. I didn't dare touch the chopper. I was paranoid as hell the whole time I was doing it thinking I wouldn't be able to get something back together exactly right. Since I first posted this, I started rearranging my loading and it's been better. Even the plates in that one dead spot come clean..So I don't know why the mason jar never would. We use a lot of tall glasses and the way the Maytag top rack is, you can only fit tall glasses on one row of the extreme top right, so I end up having to put half of them in the bottom. I've just started putting all the tall glasses in the back bottom rack instead of the front (which I used to) and just put the plates in the front bottom rack instead of the back. anyway - I feel better after doing it that next time I do it I don't think it will be so bad. This has me thinking back of my previous point voyager. What happened with that was the grinding sound started and it would get louder and louder and I could see smoke and smell something burning. I cancel/drained the water and just got a new dishwasher. What I should have done was exactly what I just did with this one. Take it apart to see if something was stuck in the chopper. But I seriously don't think that was it. This was a major loud sound almost to the point that I thought something was going to explode. I think it might have been the motor but who knows, maybe something was stuck in the chopper. |