Have been trying to work out why our dishwasher is no longer cleaning
properly (a 5-yr-old Bosch built-in; can't find a model number).
Basically, stuff on the top rack, and sometimes on the bottom one,
invariably comes out with gritty residue stuck all over it. Things I've
tried out/checked:

- Ensured spray holes in rotor arms aren't blocked;
- Cleaned filter in bottom of machine;
- Opened door mid-cycle to check rotor arms move (but can't tell how
vigourously though)
- Changed detergent (we're in a soft water area so no need for softener)

During the wash, water reaches the upper rotor via a flat grey conduit
attached to the inside of the machine, and which mates up at the back of
the upper rack with an aperture leading to the upper rotor; I'm guessing
that for whatever reason not enough water is getting through? How can I
tell?

One thing I've noticed is that after a cycle, if you lift the filter the
water in the machine's sump is really mucky; is that normal or should it
be basically clean 'rinse' water down there?

Any advice much appreciated!

David

On Sat, 12 Nov 2005 15:04:54 GMT, Lobster
wrote:

Have been trying to work out why our dishwasher is no longer cleaning
properly (a 5-yr-old Bosch built-in; can't find a model number).
Basically, stuff on the top rack, and sometimes on the bottom one,
invariably comes out with gritty residue stuck all over it. Things I've
tried out/checked:

- Ensured spray holes in rotor arms aren't blocked;
- Cleaned filter in bottom of machine;
- Opened door mid-cycle to check rotor arms move (but can't tell how
vigourously though)
- Changed detergent (we're in a soft water area so no need for softener)

During the wash, water reaches the upper rotor via a flat grey conduit
attached to the inside of the machine, and which mates up at the back of
the upper rack with an aperture leading to the upper rotor; I'm guessing
that for whatever reason not enough water is getting through? How can I
tell?

One thing I've noticed is that after a cycle, if you lift the filter the
water in the machine's sump is really mucky; is that normal or should it
be basically clean 'rinse' water down there?

Any advice much appreciated!

David

Only thing you can do is start it and open the door when it's working
on a wash.

That way you can see if the top impeller is working and the amount of
water in the top.

It's not as dramatic as it sounds, but put a towel on the floor at the
sides and wear some sort of eye guard.

EricP wrote:
On Sat, 12 Nov 2005 15:04:54 GMT, Lobster
wrote:


Have been trying to work out why our dishwasher is no longer cleaning
properly (a 5-yr-old Bosch built-in; can't find a model number).
Basically, stuff on the top rack, and sometimes on the bottom one,
invariably comes out with gritty residue stuck all over it. Things I've
tried out/checked:

- Ensured spray holes in rotor arms aren't blocked;
- Cleaned filter in bottom of machine;
- Opened door mid-cycle to check rotor arms move (but can't tell how
vigourously though)


Only thing you can do is start it and open the door when it's working
on a wash.

That way you can see if the top impeller is working and the amount of
water in the top.

Yep, tried that (see above)! It moves, and there's water up there, but
is it 'adequate'? Presumably not...

David

On Sat, 12 Nov 2005 16:59:41 GMT, Lobster
wrote:

EricP wrote:
On Sat, 12 Nov 2005 15:04:54 GMT, Lobster
wrote:


Have been trying to work out why our dishwasher is no longer cleaning
properly (a 5-yr-old Bosch built-in; can't find a model number).
Basically, stuff on the top rack, and sometimes on the bottom one,
invariably comes out with gritty residue stuck all over it. Things I've
tried out/checked:

- Ensured spray holes in rotor arms aren't blocked;
- Cleaned filter in bottom of machine;
- Opened door mid-cycle to check rotor arms move (but can't tell how
vigourously though)


Only thing you can do is start it and open the door when it's working
on a wash.

That way you can see if the top impeller is working and the amount of
water in the top.

Yep, tried that (see above)! It moves, and there's water up there, but
is it 'adequate'? Presumably not...

David

Ours does peculiar things. Washes perfectly a dozen times and then 13
and 14 look as dirty as when you put it in.

Lobster wrote:

One thing I've noticed is that after a cycle, if you lift the filter the
water in the machine's sump is really mucky; is that normal or should it
be basically clean 'rinse' water down there?

Just a guess, but I wonder if it's draining properly?
Just thinking that maybe it's draining just quickly enough not to stop
the machine from working, but not quickly enough to remove all the dirt
- so it's still there for the next wash...

Lee
--
Email address is valid, but is unlikely to be read.

On Sat, 12 Nov 2005 15:04:54 GMT, Lobster
wrote:

Have been trying to work out why our dishwasher is no longer cleaning
properly (a 5-yr-old Bosch built-in; can't find a model number).
Basically, stuff on the top rack, and sometimes on the bottom one,

Not being funny but does this model have a half load button ?, a mate
of mines girlfriend accidentally set his dishwasher to half load and
they thought the machine had stopped working properly until they
spotted it

Lobster wrote:
Have been trying to work out why our dishwasher is no longer cleaning
properly (a 5-yr-old Bosch built-in; can't find a model number).
Basically, stuff on the top rack, and sometimes on the bottom one,
invariably comes out with gritty residue stuck all over it. Things I've
tried out/checked:

- Ensured spray holes in rotor arms aren't blocked;
- Cleaned filter in bottom of machine;
- Opened door mid-cycle to check rotor arms move (but can't tell how
vigourously though)
- Changed detergent (we're in a soft water area so no need for softener)

During the wash, water reaches the upper rotor via a flat grey conduit
attached to the inside of the machine, and which mates up at the back of
the upper rack with an aperture leading to the upper rotor; I'm guessing
that for whatever reason not enough water is getting through? How can I
tell?

What I would do, is to put two identical bowls open side up. One on the
bottom shelf and the other on the top one. run the machine on a rinse
for a predetermined time. The bowl on the bottom should have about twice
the amount of water in it that the top one has.

Logic being, the lower bowl will collect water from top and bottom spray
nozzles, where as the top one will only get water from the top spray.

One thing I've noticed is that after a cycle, if you lift the filter the
water in the machine's sump is really mucky; is that normal or should it
be basically clean 'rinse' water down there?

I would expect that to be clean cold water. The last thing a dish washer
does, is to take on board cold water. This helps the drying cycle by
condensing the steam/water onto the base of the dish washer.

Dave

Lobster wrote:
Have been trying to work out why our dishwasher is no longer cleaning
properly (a 5-yr-old Bosch built-in; can't find a model number).
Basically, stuff on the top rack, and sometimes on the bottom one,
invariably comes out with gritty residue stuck all over it. Things I've
tried out/checked:

- Ensured spray holes in rotor arms aren't blocked;
- Cleaned filter in bottom of machine;
- Opened door mid-cycle to check rotor arms move (but can't tell how
vigourously though)
- Changed detergent (we're in a soft water area so no need for softener)

During the wash, water reaches the upper rotor via a flat grey conduit
attached to the inside of the machine, and which mates up at the back of
the upper rack with an aperture leading to the upper rotor; I'm guessing
that for whatever reason not enough water is getting through? How can I
tell?

One thing I've noticed is that after a cycle, if you lift the filter the
water in the machine's sump is really mucky; is that normal or should it
be basically clean 'rinse' water down there?

As I've just resorted to calling out an engineer to sort out the machine
(cough, spit) I thought I'd report back on the outcome for the benefit
of anyone else similarly afflicted... the guy pulled off the front of
the machine and disconnected a flexible hose which led into the sump,
through which the water circulates throughout the wash. It was totally
clogged up with gunge; once that was cleaned out the machine is working
like new.

Don't you just *hate* it when that happens? Oh well, at least I'll know
how to d-i-y it next time it occurs.

David

"Lobster" wrote in message
...
Lobster wrote:
Have been trying to work out why our dishwasher is no longer cleaning
properly (a 5-yr-old Bosch built-in; can't find a model number).
Basically, stuff on the top rack, and sometimes on the bottom one,
invariably comes out with gritty residue stuck all over it. Things I've
tried out/checked:

- Ensured spray holes in rotor arms aren't blocked;
- Cleaned filter in bottom of machine;
- Opened door mid-cycle to check rotor arms move (but can't tell how
vigourously though)
- Changed detergent (we're in a soft water area so no need for softener)

During the wash, water reaches the upper rotor via a flat grey conduit
attached to the inside of the machine, and which mates up at the back of
the upper rack with an aperture leading to the upper rotor; I'm guessing
that for whatever reason not enough water is getting through? How can I
tell?

One thing I've noticed is that after a cycle, if you lift the filter the
water in the machine's sump is really mucky; is that normal or should it
be basically clean 'rinse' water down there?

As I've just resorted to calling out an engineer to sort out the machine
(cough, spit) I thought I'd report back on the outcome for the benefit of
anyone else similarly afflicted... the guy pulled off the front of the
machine and disconnected a flexible hose which led into the sump, through
which the water circulates throughout the wash. It was totally clogged up
with gunge; once that was cleaned out the machine is working like new.

Don't you just *hate* it when that happens? Oh well, at least I'll know
how to d-i-y it next time it occurs.

David

Out of interest:: how did the guy 'pull off the front of the machine'?
I see a pull-down door-front .
I'm really interested and will put the info into my 'Just-in-Case'
memory.

--

Brian

In article ,
Lobster writes:

As I've just resorted to calling out an engineer to sort out the machine
(cough, spit) I thought I'd report back on the outcome for the benefit
of anyone else similarly afflicted... the guy pulled off the front of
the machine and disconnected a flexible hose which led into the sump,
through which the water circulates throughout the wash. It was totally
clogged up with gunge; once that was cleaned out the machine is working
like new.

Don't you just *hate* it when that happens? Oh well, at least I'll know
how to d-i-y it next time it occurs.

There is some type of grease which dishwasher detergent fails to
dissolve, and it does build up in the pipework eventually blocking
it. You can avoid this by either running the machine with a
dishwasher cleaner occasionally, or by adding one drip of washing
up liquid to each wash, which does dissolve this mistery grease.

--
Andrew Gabriel

On 24 Nov 2005 19:30:33 GMT, (Andrew
Gabriel) wrote:

In article ,
Lobster writes:

As I've just resorted to calling out an engineer to sort out the machine
(cough, spit) I thought I'd report back on the outcome for the benefit
of anyone else similarly afflicted... the guy pulled off the front of
the machine and disconnected a flexible hose which led into the sump,
through which the water circulates throughout the wash. It was totally
clogged up with gunge; once that was cleaned out the machine is working
like new.

Don't you just *hate* it when that happens? Oh well, at least I'll know
how to d-i-y it next time it occurs.

There is some type of grease which dishwasher detergent fails to
dissolve, and it does build up in the pipework eventually blocking
it. You can avoid this by either running the machine with a
dishwasher cleaner occasionally, or by adding one drip of washing
up liquid to each wash, which does dissolve this mistery grease.

There is one type of dishwasher contamination that makes the
dishwasher (and the whole house) smell just like a backstreet garage -
the first and only time I put a few engine parts (actually a cylinder
head) in there for a quick rinse before commencing a rebuild will be
my last. Fortunately SWMBO was away on business for the whole week.
It took me about a dozen dummy washes to get rid of the smell - a
mixture of hot gunk and old engine oil was wafting through the house
every time and I was rapidly running out of ideas. The final desperate
solution with a few hours to spare was to use some shower gel - got
rid of the stink and the dishwasher came up looking like new.


--

Brian Sharrock wrote:
"Lobster" wrote in message
...

Lobster wrote:

Have been trying to work out why our dishwasher is no longer cleaning
properly (a 5-yr-old Bosch built-in; can't find a model number).
Basically, stuff on the top rack, and sometimes on the bottom one,
invariably comes out with gritty residue stuck all over it. Things I've
tried out/checked:

- Ensured spray holes in rotor arms aren't blocked;
- Cleaned filter in bottom of machine;
- Opened door mid-cycle to check rotor arms move (but can't tell how
vigourously though)
- Changed detergent (we're in a soft water area so no need for softener)

During the wash, water reaches the upper rotor via a flat grey conduit
attached to the inside of the machine, and which mates up at the back of
the upper rack with an aperture leading to the upper rotor; I'm guessing
that for whatever reason not enough water is getting through? How can I
tell?

One thing I've noticed is that after a cycle, if you lift the filter the
water in the machine's sump is really mucky; is that normal or should it
be basically clean 'rinse' water down there?

As I've just resorted to calling out an engineer to sort out the machine
(cough, spit) I thought I'd report back on the outcome for the benefit of
anyone else similarly afflicted... the guy pulled off the front of the
machine and disconnected a flexible hose which led into the sump, through
which the water circulates throughout the wash. It was totally clogged up
with gunge; once that was cleaned out the machine is working like new.

Don't you just *hate* it when that happens? Oh well, at least I'll know
how to d-i-y it next time it occurs.

Out of interest:: how did the guy 'pull off the front of the machine'?
I see a pull-down door-front .
I'm really interested and will put the info into my 'Just-in-Case'
memory.

Sorry, I was just being a bit flippant - he unscrewed the fixed metal
plinth below the door to access the hose.

David

On Thu, 24 Nov 2005 22:24:12 +0000, Matt
wrote:


There is one type of dishwasher contamination that makes the
dishwasher (and the whole house) smell just like a backstreet garage -
the first and only time I put a few engine parts (actually a cylinder
head) in there for a quick rinse before commencing a rebuild will be
my last. Fortunately SWMBO was away on business for the whole week.
It took me about a dozen dummy washes to get rid of the smell - a
mixture of hot gunk and old engine oil was wafting through the house
every time and I was rapidly running out of ideas. The final desperate
solution with a few hours to spare was to use some shower gel - got
rid of the stink and the dishwasher came up looking like new.

A friend of mine used to be a nightclub lighting engineer.

They would dismantle some of the lights, remove the electrics so they
were just left with the metal or plastic housing around the light
itself.

He said a dishwasher was great for getting all the tar and gunk off
the lights.

Graham

On 24 Nov 2005 19:30:33 GMT, (Andrew
Gabriel) wrote:

There is some type of grease which dishwasher detergent fails to
dissolve, and it does build up in the pipework eventually blocking
it. You can avoid this by either running the machine with a
dishwasher cleaner occasionally, or by adding one drip of washing
up liquid to each wash, which does dissolve this mistery grease.

Hi,

If the DW does a _cold_ prewash, IME it's possible to use a _lot_ more
than one drop as a prewash detergent without it foaming excessively,
and it helps degrease the plates etc for the main wash. I just keep
adding 10 drops at a time until it starts to foam.

I'd expect the powder DW detergents work by dispersing grease with the
aid of hot water, however it can then solidify in parts of the machine
if they are cooler than the water.

cheers,
Pete