In article , Andrew Gabriel
wrote:

In article ,
"Shrek" writes:
Your diagnosis was spot on - the rotor (stator? bit that should go
round, anyway) on the main pump motor doesn't turn easily/at all. It
was suprisingly easy to get at - the whole bottom of the machine could
be taken off by removing a handful of screws. I'm not so sure how the
motor itself is attached to the main body of the machine though.

I assume that once siezed the motor isn't fixable so I'll need to
replace it? Is it normal to replace the whole motor/pump assembly or
should I be trying to separate the pump section from the motor (which
looks like it may be possible with a few screws)? I guess that the
motor is more likely to be available off the shelf than the
particular plastic moulding shape of the pump section.


You could try and lubricate the bearings, but TBH it will soon go again,
probably because there is a slight leak in the seal. You could usually see
an indication of this with a little trail of salt residue from the seal to
the bottom of the rotor.

I've had exactly this with a Creda in-cupboard dishwasher.
I bought a new motor/pump (single unit) and it did it again
within a few months. You can just about get to the water
impeller through the hole under the filter, if you push
dinner fork prongs in, which enables you to turn it just
enough to free it, and then it runs the cycle OK. Come to
think of it, it hasn't stuck for many months now, so the
new pump seems to have recovered.

The old one failed because the water seal started leaking
and water ran along the driveshaft into the motor's ball
bearing, which has gone rusty.

Thanks Andrew. I hope the replacement (assuming I can get one) won't
have the same problem yours had. I know that the Servis machine I have
is sold badged by others (incl Elica and I think Creda). Does yours
look like a grey plastic tank with a lid (and very simple controls) on
the top? Just trying to work out if its the same thing... then at least
I'd know whether the fork trick has any chance!

Having managed to remove the pump completely, and since I have to wait
until tomorrow to ring around possible suppliers for a replacement, I
decided to at least test it. The rotor is NOT completely stuck, but
there is a resistance to turning. When I wired it up, the motor does
turn but rather slowly (maybe 30-60rpm). I assume its supposed to be
much faster than this but I had also assumed that it would either stall
completely or spin at its normal speed so I'm not really sure.
I can't see any clear evidence of a leak in the water seal either.

David

--
Replace return address with drm21 at mole.bio.cam.ac.uk to reply.
Unsolicited commercial email will incur a $100 processing charge.