Potscrubber Water Supply

Was around 1983 IIRC.

BOL plastisol and BOL Hotpoints up until early 1980s had only about a 10-15 minute heated main wash, which was then extended to a 20-30 minute main wash in 1983.

MOL models prior to 1983 had a "Potscrubber" feature which extended the heated main wash by about 15-20 minutes enough to give good heating and wash results at 120*F IMO despite the manual calling for 140*F.

Some TOL models prior to 1983 also had a thermostat that would hold the timer during the main wash until the thermostat was satisfied.

In 1983 all BOL models came with a 30 minute heated main wash, and all MOL and TOL came with with a thermostat and cycle extender that could extend the main wash past 15 minutes if needed.

Around the mid 90s GE began dropping all the thermostats and cycle extenders for fixed 30-56 minute main washes regardless of the cycle selected or inlet temperature.

For example, when I had a new GE DW installed in 2011, the heated main wash was 47 minutes long for all cycles, despite the machine only having a 1.2 gallon water charge in the main wash.

120*F made for some hot water, and 150*F inlet easily got it near boiling. I can confirm this is indeed the key to scrubbing pots.

Today sadly the heater in most dishwasher cutouts as soon 105-140*F is reached. So, no new machine today is capable of scrubbing pots :(

Photos... < > Photo 1 of 3 View Full Size


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Post# 1146205 4/10/2022 at 14:08 (746 days old) by Cam2s (Nebraska)
Checkrate/Likes When did GE transition the Potscrubbers to use 120 degree water? Also did they ever offer them with a thermostatically held main wash? Also did they put a more powerful heater in them?

Post# 1146221 , Reply# 1 4/10/2022 at 16:56 (746 days old) by combo52 (50 Year Repair Tech Beltsville,Md)
Checkrate/Likes DOE pretty much has required all DWs to be able operate properly on 120F water since the mid 80s. For many DWs you need to select Hi-Temp wash for best results, basic GEs all had a 30 minute wash with the 500 watt heater running the whole time. John L.

Post# 1146574 , Reply# 2 4/14/2022 at 18:03 (742 days old) by Cam2s (Nebraska)
Checkrate/Likes 1 Well both my Potscrubber and the Ultra Wash request 140 degree water. Of course the difference is the Ultra Wash will do a thermostatic hold if requested to get the temperature to 140. On the Potscrubber, the only cycle with an extension is Power Scrub cycle, which has a 30 minute main wash. Otherwise on normal/heavy the main was is 11 minutes and on normal/regular and china and the main wash is 14 minutes. The heater is on during these times, but at only 3 amps vs the Ultra Wash�s 6.7 amp heater, the water is only raised a few degrees. Both of the machines clean quite well, especially with normal to heavy soils. On really nasty stuff, the Ultra Wash is the better one. I didn�t know if being able to supply the Potscrubber with hotter water would increase the cleaning ability, or if they made a more powerful heater later in the run that would boost the cleaning performance. Photos... < > Photo 1 of 4 View Full Size

Post# 1147498 , Reply# 3 4/27/2022 at 06:29 (729 days old) by Chetlaham (United States)
Checkrate/Likes 1 **120F Inlet Capability For All GE and Hotpoint Models*** Was around 1983 IIRC. BOL plastisol and BOL Hotpoints up until early 1980s had only about a 10-15 minute heated main wash, which was then extended to a 20-30 minute main wash in 1983. MOL models prior to 1983 had a "Potscrubber" feature which extended the heated main wash by about 15-20 minutes enough to give good heating and wash results at 120F IMO despite the manual calling for 140F. Some TOL models prior to 1983 also had a thermostat that would hold the timer during the main wash until the thermostat was satisfied. In 1983 all BOL models came with a 30 minute heated main wash, and all MOL and TOL came with with a thermostat and cycle extender that could extend the main wash past 15 minutes if needed. Around the mid 90s GE began dropping all the thermostats and cycle extenders for fixed 30-56 minute main washes regardless of the cycle selected or inlet temperature. For example, when I had a new GE DW installed in 2011, the heated main wash was 47 minutes long for all cycles, despite the machine only having a 1.2 gallon water charge in the main wash. 120F made for some hot water, and 150F inlet easily got it near boiling. I can confirm this is indeed the key to scrubbing pots. Today sadly the heater in most dishwasher cutouts as soon 105-140*F is reached. So, no new machine today is capable of scrubbing pots :( Photos... < > Photo 1 of 3 View Full Size

Post# 1147499 , Reply# 4 4/27/2022 at 06:37 (729 days old) by Chetlaham (United States)
Checkrate/Likes *45 minute long water heating* Sorry for the blur, here is a better version. Thats 45 minutes of 500 watts against 1.2 gallons of water <3 imgur.com/a/6UjePQt... No dishwasher on the market was ever cable of producing hotter water than a post 1983 GE dishwasher. Imagine a Whirlpool power clean, Maytag or Hobart that could take 140-150F inlet and boost it to a steady 195F. So many machines lacked real water heating.

Post# 1147500 , Reply# 5 4/27/2022 at 06:39 (729 days old) by Chetlaham (United States)
Checkrate/Likes And oh, Cams, can you post some pics of that tech sheet? ;) Love that water heating!

Post# 1147652 , Reply# 6 4/28/2022 at 20:58 (728 days old) by appnut (TX)
Checkrate/Likes Cam, I can tell you my 1987 GSD1200 on Potscrubber, main wash could be as long as 45-50 minutes. Especially in the winter.