GE Dishwasher not cleaning properly

[scoutabout]

So - it figures - I just drop a whack o dough on a new fridge and now the dishwasher is acting up. It is now leaving fine particles of crud in and on glasses stowed in the top rack when the wash is finished. Dishes and cutlery still come out relatively clean.

(Sounds like a bad dishsoap commercial doesn't it....)

Anyway, I've disassembled and cleaned the screens in the base of the tub (which did have a lot of crap in them) and checked the spinner seems to spin freely. This has made little difference.

There is no top spinner, but rather the hub of the bottom spinner has a telescoping tube that I presume extends upwards with water pressure and fires a spray into a diffuser in the top rack.

One thing I do notice is that when I open the door during a wash cycle, the spinner is already stopped - in most cases no matter how fast I yank the door open it's already at rest. This is surprising as I would expect to see it coast at least a little bit and makes me think something is preventing it from turning. But as noted - I can spin it freely with my hand.

Any ideas out there on what the problem might be and how to ensure the thing is actually spinning like it should? There is a rhythmic sound to the machine when it's running that would seem to indicate it is rotating and splashing water everywhere. The machine is about 15 years old and I haven't gone as far as to take the bottom panel off and poke around in there. The only other symtom is that the motor has been getting progressively louder over the last year and has a distinct whine to it.

 

[BIGALF]

Re: GE Dishwasher not cleaning properly

Is the crud on the heating coil? Mine is and it is calcium from the water quality. I used a calcium remover and ran the washer a few times and it cleaned it up. Also, use the water spot remover in the front door if you have one. It works.

 

[scoutabout]

Re: GE Dishwasher not cleaning properly

Thanks for that idea however the coil is clean. Actually, we've never used the dry cycle. It used to drip dry just fine. And these aren't water spots but a fine grit that I guess are food fragments?

Also, we haven't changed our soap, or loading procedures.

 

[MTboatguy]

Re: GE Dishwasher not cleaning properly

It sounds like your spinner arms may have build up in them that is reducing water flow, which would also cause the pump to work harder and get louder, I have to clean ours about once a year to ensure it does not get plugged up, we live in an area with high mineral content in the water..so I have to clean our stuff every year to keep them working right..

Also, 15 years is a pretty good duty cycle for a dishwasher, it may just be worn out..

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: GE Dishwasher not cleaning properly

I have SUPER hard water that leaves calcium deposits and it actually kills the inside of the faucets........ I am with MTboatguy on this one...... even that dish soap may be built up in it.

Can you remove the spinner arm and soak it in vinegar the same way that coffee pots get cleaned??

 

[Mark42]

Re: GE Dishwasher not cleaning properly

The non-spinning lower arm is the clue to the problem. The arm spins just from the force of the water shooting out of it. When the holes get clogged, it stops spinning, and therefore, it stops cleaning. You may not see the junk inside. Often a piece of shredded plastic wrap is floating around loose, then when the water comes out, pushes it into the end of the arm, blocking the hole.

I spend 10 or 15 minutes every month cleaning out junk from the arm. Tooth pick and tweezers work well. Also reverse wash it in the sink. If you lift and turn it backwards, it will unscrew and come off.

I am always telling the wife and kids that the dish washer is not a garbage disposal. From what I find in the arms, I have to admit that GE has a powerful motor with mascerator to chew up plastic into small pieces. A new motor is available for about $100 online if you shop around.

 

[jkust]

Re: GE Dishwasher not cleaning properly

Wow don't get me started on GE diswashers. We paid $1000 for our GE and it has been the most disappointing appliance we've ever owned. My wife even broke her toe when when she stubbed it when I only had it 3/4 of the way under the counter when I was waiting for parts to get shipped in. I've replaced two pumps over 4 years and our middle arm won't spin much so anything on the top rack only gets marginally clean. Remove the bottom arm completely. It takes about 10 seconds. Run a 4 minute cycle and see how much pressure you have coming out of the hole where the arm should be. When you open the door it will be evident how much pressure you have. If you have a lot of pressure, it is your spray arm. While it's off run the spray arm out to the air compresser and clean the gunk out. If it is your pump (there are two) they are easily purchased at your local parts store and semi easy to replace but when you tip the unit over a ton of water will come out if you don't vacuum the resoivoir water out. Our dishwasher had been a huge pain for us.

 

[Mark42]

Re: GE Dishwasher not cleaning properly

Wow don't get me started on GE diswashers......

Wow! Other than kids putting plastic wrap and twist-ties and other stuff in our washer, it is very reliable and does a good job. The prior washer was budget model GE and it lasted 10 years before the plastic coating was coming off the racks and they rusted. So I bought the middle grade as a replacement, and it works well, its quiet, so I'm happy.

Seems people either have good or bad experiences with GE. Maybe it has to do with what plant the product came from?

 

[kenmyfam]

Re: GE Dishwasher not cleaning properly

Check, poke out and clean all the water holes in the spinners. Check the drain is completely clear. It will only replace clean water to the "full level" when re-filling. If all the dirty water can not get out then then you are moving to the next stage with dirty water. If the pump output is low then that is another reason the dirty water may not be getting out. Run some "CLR" or equivalent through a few cycles once you know the paths are clear and see if any improvement.
15 years is pretty good for a dishwasher if it has seen a few runs per week or more.
Good Luck.

 

[jonesg]

Re: GE Dishwasher not cleaning properly

TWist the arms on the spinner so the spray isn't pointing straight up.

I bought a used hobart undercounter commercial, 90 second cycle at 240v drawing 50 amps, the rinse cycle runs 192 degsF.

 

[dolluper]

Re: GE Dishwasher not cleaning properly

Frig the pumps on our GE sound like a float plane taking off or landing..and wifee piling stuff to high the banging going on....so I give up and let her be crazy and go play in the garage when she turns it on...she will come and get me if it quits 4 sure...ah peace in the garage

 

[jkust]

Re: GE Dishwasher not cleaning properly

Wow! Other than kids putting plastic wrap and twist-ties and other stuff in our washer, it is very reliable and does a good job. The prior washer was budget model GE and it lasted 10 years before the plastic coating was coming off the racks and they rusted. So I bought the middle grade as a replacement, and it works well, its quiet, so I'm happy.

Seems people either have good or bad experiences with GE. Maybe it has to do with what plant the product came from?

Yep I had no preconceived notions about GE before the purchase. Any $200, most basic model will perform better than our fully optioned. stainless GE. I need to replace a few more broken, plastic parts and the center arm too. Sort of a 200 hour service where I found water in the oil and the outdrive is leaking. The funny thing is my wife doesn't and won't adapt to its disabilities and won't budge from the thinking that watever you put in there no matter how much or how poorly placed should come sparklingly clean. Like it is a magic box of cleaning. Then she thinks I am crazy for trying to explain that it is designed to hold bowls there and cups there and plates there. It's like thunderdome the way she loads it. Maybe now that the boat is put away for the year I'll have some time to fix it all (before the sleds come out).

 

[scoutabout]

Re: GE Dishwasher not cleaning properly

Thanks for your tales of adventure folks. Sounds like taking the spinner arm off and checking that out is my next step.

I'm pretty sure the machine now is draining completely. Couldn't say that before considering the crud buildup in the bottom. Agree, though that 15 years at least evey other day is a lot of duty.

 

[Boomyal]

Re: GE Dishwasher not cleaning properly

Thanks for your tales of adventure folks. Sounds like taking the spinner arm off and checking that out is my next step.

I'm pretty sure the machine now is draining completely. Couldn't say that before considering the crud buildup in the bottom. Agree, though that 15 years at least evey other day is a lot of duty.

Hang it there scoutabout. Our GE is now going on 22 years and still going strong. In it's early years it got used daily. The last couple of years it is more like every other day.