Home |
Search |
Today's Posts |
|
Home Repair (alt.home.repair) For all homeowners and DIYers with many experienced tradesmen. Solve your toughest home fix-it problems. |
Reply |
|
LinkBack | Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
Posted to alt.home.repair
|
|||
|
|||
Kenmore dishwasher spray is weak--how to remove (lower) spray arm
Hi all,
The spray in my Kenmore dishwasher has gotten pretty weak--the dishes on the lower rack get cleaned, but the glasses and stuff I put in the upper rack don't even get wet anymore. My dishwasher has only a lower spray arm (no upper spray), and I suspect it may have gotten clogged. How do I remove it so I can clean it thoroughly? It doesn't seem to come off by itself. Also, could there be some other cause of the weak spray? I can't be sure, but I think the spray arm isn't spinning as well as it used to either. What could be causing THAT? -- Steven L. |
#2
Posted to alt.home.repair
|
|||
|
|||
Kenmore dishwasher spray is weak--how to remove (lower) spray arm
"Steven L." wrote in message m: Hi all, The spray in my Kenmore dishwasher has gotten pretty weak--the dishes on the lower rack get cleaned, but the glasses and stuff I put in the upper rack don't even get wet anymore. My dishwasher has only a lower spray arm (no upper spray), and I suspect it may have gotten clogged. How do I remove it so I can clean it thoroughly? It doesn't seem to come off by itself. Also, could there be some other cause of the weak spray? I can't be sure, but I think the spray arm isn't spinning as well as it used to either. What could be causing THAT? I forgot to mention: The spray arm is of the type that has this little extendable tower in the middle, that seems to pop up during the wash cycle. -- Steven L. |
#3
Posted to alt.home.repair
|
|||
|
|||
Kenmore dishwasher spray is weak--how to remove (lower) spray arm
On Sat, 26 Nov 2011 15:39:42 +0000, Steven L. wrote:
Hi all, The spray in my Kenmore dishwasher has gotten pretty weak--the dishes on the lower rack get cleaned, but the glasses and stuff I put in the upper rack don't even get wet anymore. My dishwasher has only a lower spray arm (no upper spray), and I suspect it may have gotten clogged. How do I remove it so I can clean it thoroughly? It doesn't seem to come off by itself. Also, could there be some other cause of the weak spray? I can't be sure, but I think the spray arm isn't spinning as well as it used to either. What could be causing THAT? -- Steven L. Two potential problems, junk in the dishwasher or buildup in the supply line. If you have hard water it is entirely possible that the supply line is so junked up that nothing you do in the dishwasher will help. I would suggest trying an acid based cleaner from Bed and Bath for coffee makers (forget the name of it) and run a bottle of it through a cycle. If it's a bad as it sounds, I'd run a half bottle through on two consecutive cycles, followed by three plain water cycles. Then run about three empty cycles with plain water. It will also clean off your glassware of lime buildup. Only need a small amount to do that. |
#4
Posted to alt.home.repair
|
|||
|
|||
Kenmore dishwasher spray is weak--how to remove (lower) spray arm
On Nov 26, 12:53*pm, Michael Dobony wrote:
On Sat, 26 Nov 2011 15:39:42 +0000, Steven L. wrote: Hi all, The spray in my Kenmore dishwasher has gotten pretty weak--the dishes on the lower rack get cleaned, but the glasses and stuff I put in the upper rack don't even get wet anymore. My dishwasher has only a lower spray arm (no upper spray), and I suspect it may have gotten clogged. How do I remove it so I can clean it thoroughly? *It doesn't seem to come off by itself. Also, could there be some other cause of the weak spray? *I can't be sure, but I think the spray arm isn't spinning as well as it used to either. *What could be causing THAT? -- Steven L. Two potential problems, junk in the dishwasher or buildup in the supply line. If you have hard water it is entirely possible that the supply line is so junked up that nothing you do in the dishwasher will help. I would suggest trying an acid based cleaner from Bed and Bath for coffee makers (forget the name of it) and run a bottle of it through a cycle. If it's a bad as it sounds, I'd run a half bottle through on two consecutive cycles, followed by three plain water cycles. Then run about three empty cycles with plain water. It will also clean off your glassware of lime buildup. Only need a small amount to do that.- Hide quoted text - - Show quoted text - run with a gallon of white vinegar and let soak for awhile |
#5
Posted to alt.home.repair
|
|||
|
|||
Kenmore dishwasher spray is weak--how to remove (lower) spray arm
bob haller wrote:
On Nov 26, 12:53 pm, Michael Dobony wrote: On Sat, 26 Nov 2011 15:39:42 +0000, Steven L. wrote: Hi all, The spray in my Kenmore dishwasher has gotten pretty weak--the dishes on the lower rack get cleaned, but the glasses and stuff I put in the upper rack don't even get wet anymore. My dishwasher has only a lower spray arm (no upper spray), and I suspect it may have gotten clogged. How do I remove it so I can clean it thoroughly? It doesn't seem to come off by itself. Also, could there be some other cause of the weak spray? I can't be sure, but I think the spray arm isn't spinning as well as it used to either. What could be causing THAT? -- Steven L. Two potential problems, junk in the dishwasher or buildup in the supply line. If you have hard water it is entirely possible that the supply line is so junked up that nothing you do in the dishwasher will help. I would suggest trying an acid based cleaner from Bed and Bath for coffee makers (forget the name of it) and run a bottle of it through a cycle. If it's a bad as it sounds, I'd run a half bottle through on two consecutive cycles, followed by three plain water cycles. Then run about three empty cycles with plain water. It will also clean off your glassware of lime buildup. Only need a small amount to do that.- Hide quoted text - - Show quoted text - run with a gallon of white vinegar and let soak for awhile Exactly. But with vinegar at only eighty cents a gallon, I'd dump in three or four gallons. Also, in the future, use powdered detergent that has been fortified with 10-20% of TSP. |
#6
Posted to alt.home.repair
|
|||
|
|||
Kenmore dishwasher spray is weak--how to remove (lower) spray arm
On Nov 26, 10:39*am, "Steven L." wrote:
Hi all, The spray in my Kenmore dishwasher has gotten pretty weak--the dishes on the lower rack get cleaned, but the glasses and stuff I put in the upper rack don't even get wet anymore. My dishwasher has only a lower spray arm (no upper spray), and I suspect it may have gotten clogged. How do I remove it so I can clean it thoroughly? *It doesn't seem to come off by itself. Also, could there be some other cause of the weak spray? *I can't be sure, but I think the spray arm isn't spinning as well as it used to either. *What could be causing THAT? -- Steven L. @Steve: Two things can cause poor water flow through the nozzles in your dishwasher: Hard Water Deposits Bio-film/Lipid Build Up Hard water can be an issue if your local water chemistry is bad, you would know if this was the problem or not based on other water applications in your home being affected (the shower, sinks, and clothes washer). Bio-film is actually what most people see on their dishes even when they think it looks like hard water deposits. If you don't rinse off the grease and food from your dishes it builds up on surfaces inside the dishwasher where you can't see it and becomes a soup which supports growth. This same issue causes smelly front loading washing machines as the film builds up on the outer surface of the clothes drum where you would never see it unless you took the machine apart. You need to use some CLR in a cycle if you suspect hard water and definitely need to begin using an enzymatic dishwasher detergent which will break up the fats/greases/food proteins in your dish washer and not allow them to become deposits and create a bio-film. ~~ Evan |
#7
Posted to alt.home.repair
|
|||
|
|||
Kenmore dishwasher spray is weak--how to remove (lower) spray arm
On Nov 26, 8:06*pm, Evan wrote:
On Nov 26, 10:39*am, "Steven L." wrote: Hi all, The spray in my Kenmore dishwasher has gotten pretty weak--the dishes on the lower rack get cleaned, but the glasses and stuff I put in the upper rack don't even get wet anymore. My dishwasher has only a lower spray arm (no upper spray), and I suspect it may have gotten clogged. How do I remove it so I can clean it thoroughly? *It doesn't seem to come off by itself. Also, could there be some other cause of the weak spray? *I can't be sure, but I think the spray arm isn't spinning as well as it used to either. *What could be causing THAT? -- Steven L. @Steve: Two things can cause poor water flow through the nozzles in your dishwasher: Hard Water Deposits Bio-film/Lipid Build Up Hard water can be an issue if your local water chemistry is bad, you would know if this was the problem or not based on other water applications in your home being affected (the shower, sinks, and clothes washer). Bio-film is actually what most people see on their dishes even when they think it looks like hard water deposits. *If you don't rinse off the grease and food from your dishes it builds up on surfaces inside the dishwasher where you can't see it and becomes a soup which supports growth. *This same issue causes smelly front loading washing machines as the film builds up on the outer surface of the clothes drum where you would never see it unless you took the machine apart. You need to use some CLR in a cycle if you suspect hard water and definitely need to begin using an enzymatic dishwasher detergent which will break up the fats/greases/food proteins in your dish washer and not allow them to become deposits and create a bio-film. ~~ Evan- Hide quoted text - - Show quoted text - Has everyone forgotten about the pump?? If the water inlet to the pump or the impellers of the pump itself are crudded up with food residue, there will be low pressure, |
#8
Posted to alt.home.repair
|
|||
|
|||
Kenmore dishwasher spray is weak--how to remove (lower) spray arm
"HeyBub" wrote in message m: bob haller wrote: On Nov 26, 12:53 pm, Michael Dobony wrote: On Sat, 26 Nov 2011 15:39:42 +0000, Steven L. wrote: Hi all, The spray in my Kenmore dishwasher has gotten pretty weak--the dishes on the lower rack get cleaned, but the glasses and stuff I put in the upper rack don't even get wet anymore. My dishwasher has only a lower spray arm (no upper spray), and I suspect it may have gotten clogged. How do I remove it so I can clean it thoroughly? It doesn't seem to come off by itself. Also, could there be some other cause of the weak spray? I can't be sure, but I think the spray arm isn't spinning as well as it used to either. What could be causing THAT? -- Steven L. Two potential problems, junk in the dishwasher or buildup in the supply line. If you have hard water it is entirely possible that the supply line is so junked up that nothing you do in the dishwasher will help. I would suggest trying an acid based cleaner from Bed and Bath for coffee makers (forget the name of it) and run a bottle of it through a cycle. If it's a bad as it sounds, I'd run a half bottle through on two consecutive cycles, followed by three plain water cycles. Then run about three empty cycles with plain water. It will also clean off your glassware of lime buildup. Only need a small amount to do that.- Hide quoted text - - Show quoted text - run with a gallon of white vinegar and let soak for awhile Exactly. But with vinegar at only eighty cents a gallon, I'd dump in three or four gallons. Also, in the future, use powdered detergent that has been fortified with 10-20% of TSP. Maybe I should pre-rinse my dishes also. I'm accustomed to just throwing them in the dishwasher, but maybe all those bits of food are clogging up the thing. -- Steven L. |
#9
Posted to alt.home.repair
|
|||
|
|||
Kenmore dishwasher spray is weak--how to remove (lower) sprayarm
Steven L. wrote: "HeyBub" wrote in message m: bob haller wrote: On Nov 26, 12:53 pm, Michael Dobony wrote: On Sat, 26 Nov 2011 15:39:42 +0000, Steven L. wrote: Hi all, The spray in my Kenmore dishwasher has gotten pretty weak--the dishes on the lower rack get cleaned, but the glasses and stuff I put in the upper rack don't even get wet anymore. My dishwasher has only a lower spray arm (no upper spray), and I suspect it may have gotten clogged. How do I remove it so I can clean it thoroughly? It doesn't seem to come off by itself. Also, could there be some other cause of the weak spray? I can't be sure, but I think the spray arm isn't spinning as well as it used to either. What could be causing THAT? -- Steven L. Two potential problems, junk in the dishwasher or buildup in the supply line. If you have hard water it is entirely possible that the supply line is so junked up that nothing you do in the dishwasher will help. I would suggest trying an acid based cleaner from Bed and Bath for coffee makers (forget the name of it) and run a bottle of it through a cycle. If it's a bad as it sounds, I'd run a half bottle through on two consecutive cycles, followed by three plain water cycles. Then run about three empty cycles with plain water. It will also clean off your glassware of lime buildup. Only need a small amount to do that.- Hide quoted text - - Show quoted text - run with a gallon of white vinegar and let soak for awhile Exactly. But with vinegar at only eighty cents a gallon, I'd dump in three or four gallons. Also, in the future, use powdered detergent that has been fortified with 10-20% of TSP. Maybe I should pre-rinse my dishes also. I'm accustomed to just throwing them in the dishwasher, but maybe all those bits of food are clogging up the thing. -- Steven L. Hi, Is your water hard? What is the point of running DW if plates have to be pre-rinsed.? For us organic phospate free detereget tablet work well. Maybe DW should be put thru couple cleaning cycles using vinegar or CLR. |
#10
Posted to alt.home.repair
|
|||
|
|||
Kenmore dishwasher spray is weak--how to remove (lower) spray arm
Steven L. wrote:
Exactly. But with vinegar at only eighty cents a gallon, I'd dump in three or four gallons. Also, in the future, use powdered detergent that has been fortified with 10-20% of TSP. Maybe I should pre-rinse my dishes also. I'm accustomed to just throwing them in the dishwasher, but maybe all those bits of food are clogging up the thing. Nope, that's not it. Food particles are chopped before they're flushed out to the garbage disposal, except, maybe leg bones from a turkey. Clean the washer with vinegar as above and add TSP to your detergent. You'll be surprised by the result. |
#11
Posted to alt.home.repair
|
|||
|
|||
Kenmore dishwasher spray is weak--how to remove (lower) spray arm
Tony Hwang wrote:
Hi, Is your water hard? What is the point of running DW if plates have to be pre-rinsed.? For us organic phospate free detereget tablet work well. Maybe DW should be put thru couple cleaning cycles using vinegar or CLR. Phosphate-free detergents do NOT work well. Perhaps they work well enough for you, but most cannot abide the hazy film left on flatware and glasses. |
#12
Posted to alt.home.repair
|
|||
|
|||
Kenmore dishwasher spray is weak--how to remove (lower) spray arm
On Sun, 27 Nov 2011 17:48:40 -0600, "HeyBub" wrote:
Steven L. wrote: Exactly. But with vinegar at only eighty cents a gallon, I'd dump in three or four gallons. Also, in the future, use powdered detergent that has been fortified with 10-20% of TSP. Maybe I should pre-rinse my dishes also. I'm accustomed to just throwing them in the dishwasher, but maybe all those bits of food are clogging up the thing. Nope, that's not it. Food particles are chopped before they're flushed out to the garbage disposal, except, maybe leg bones from a turkey. Depends on the dishwasher. Bosch, for example, doesn't have a grinder. Instead, it has a screen/filter than has to be cleaned out. ...the reason we passed on Bosch. Clean the washer with vinegar as above and add TSP to your detergent. You'll be surprised by the result. |
#13
Posted to alt.home.repair
|
|||
|
|||
Kenmore dishwasher spray is weak--how to remove (lower) spray arm
When I was a little boy, my sister used to like to
paraphrase the dish washer detergent commercial. While in or near a store, she would very loudly say "do I embarass you, Mrs. Young? Spotting and streaking your glasses and dishes???" -- Christopher A. Young Learn more about Jesus www.lds.org .. "HeyBub" wrote in message ... be pre-rinsed.? For us organic phospate free detereget tablet work well. Maybe DW should be put thru couple cleaning cycles using vinegar or CLR. Phosphate-free detergents do NOT work well. Perhaps they work well enough for you, but most cannot abide the hazy film left on flatware and glasses. |
#14
Posted to alt.home.repair
|
|||
|
|||
Kenmore dishwasher spray is weak--how to remove (lower) spray arm
|
Reply |
Thread Tools | Search this Thread |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Forum | |||
Dishwasher spray - how powerful should it be? | UK diy | |||
Kenmore Dishwasher, intermittent weak wash and rinse | Home Repair | |||
How does one remove spray paint from brick and cement | Home Repair | |||
Will a Critter spray gun work to spray dye-based stain? | Woodworking | |||
Dishwasher spray tower sticking | Home Repair |