KDM-21 Motor stopped

[joeypete]

Just wondering if anyone has an idea of what happened. Ran my dishwasher this evening and after the last wash cycle, the motor just stopped abruptly. Timer was still ticking away but it wouldn’t wash or drain. I tried hitting cancel and it ran through but still nothing from the motor.

I’d be ok with troubleshooting if it’s fairly easy. It’s an 85 Hobart so certainly has had a good run.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[appnut]

A connecting wire vibrated loose? 

 

[joeypete]

I'll take a look at this today. I tried it again this morning. Hit the cancel button and the motor did kick on. Got a funny smell though. I ran a rinse cycle and it worked but the motor sounded kinda iffy at times. It drained ok though but when I opened it, there was an odor. I'll open the bottom panel and see if anything is visibly wrong.

 

[combo52]

Unfortunately It Sounds Like A Failing Motor

Look underneath at the motor for any signs that water has leaked into the motor, also check for a burnt smell and listen for strange sounds like a failing bearing.

 

It sounds like it has a slightly shorted winding, an amp draw reading will quickly confirm this, but if it keeps cutting off before the cycle is over it replacement motor time.

 

John L.

 

[joeypete]

Thanks for the help. Yup, the motor is dead/dieing. Hate to see it go but after 33 years, she had a good run. I bought a Bosch 300 series from Lowe's with free install.

 

[joeypete]

Well actually....

After further investigating and a complete failure on Lowe's part delivering my new dishwasher. I took off the panel on my Hobart and found no evidence of water leaking anywhere. Some insulation I had put underneath was scorched...so it's possible that it was too hot under there and the motor shut off? I don't know if it has that feature but I tried it today and it works flawlessly. That could be the smell I was experiencing. Duh. Sometimes I'm a real idiot.

So I'll go with that and see how it does.

 

[joeypete]

Well...

It broke again. Is there a chance there could be something wrong with the timer? It's worked fine for the last 3 weeks basically. Tonight I ran a Normal Wash...after the first wash, it went to drain, then stopped. As the timer advanced it turned back on again so I'm not sure what to think now.

I just ran the Rinse/Hold cycle and it worked fine. It seems to be having trouble in the wash cycles though...[this post was last edited: 10/6/2018-20:45]

 

[potatochips]

There is a fair chance that a normal wash may be running the wash motor too long, long enough to trip the thermal cut out.

 

[joeypete]

I have been using Light Wash mostly, because I don't have a ton of dishes and it does perfect, so that could be the case.

I know the timer stops and starts the motor so I thinking it's possible that maybe it's "slipping" so to speak.

I just don't want to get a new timer and that doesn't fix it. lol

 

[barcoboy]

When the motor stops, how long does it stay stopped? Is it for one increment of the timer, or longer? One way to see if it is the timer or the motor is to start a Normal cycle, then once the motor stops, hit Cancel/Drain and see if the motor starts again. If it doesn't, wait until the timer finishes advancing and the cycle comes to a completion, then open the door to reset the timer, close the door, and start a Rinse & Hold. If the motor is still dead, then the motor is getting too hot and the thermal cutout is shutting it down.

 

[joeypete]

Cool, thank you!

It's been kind of random actually. This last time I selected the Normal cycle. The wash segment finished, it went to drain..drained briefly, then shut off. At that point I waited to see if it would do anything, and it didn't...the timer kept going.

Next I hit the Cancel button...it cycled through but failed to drain the water completely...again the pump came on, drained for like 2 seconds then shut off. I had to open the door to reset the timer and tried it again. Second time it completed the drain.

Next I started over with a Light Wash cycle. Part way through the wash segment, the motor stopped. The timer kept going and I left it alone. It drained and refilled and started to wash again. I opened the door and when I closed it again, the motor did not come back on.

So again I tried to hit Cancel. Same thing...took 2 tries to get it to drain completely.

Lastly, I just ran the Rinse/Hold (to at least rinse the dishes so I could let them dry, they were thankfully clean from the washing! lol). The Rinse/Hold cycle filled, washed, and drained without issue.

 

[barcoboy]

Hmmm strange. Usually if it's the motor thermal cutout, the motor won't restart until it has cooled sufficiently, which usually takes some time. One other thing to try if you are handy with a multi-meter, and of course very careful, is to check to see if there is voltage getting to the motor when it isn't running. There should be four wires going to the motor... three colored wires, and a white neutral wire (I'm basing this on my KUDS23 wiring diagram, but it should be the same for your KDM21). Two of the colored wires are for the start windings to start the motor in either direction, and will only have power for a moment, and the third colored wire is the main power wire which should have power whenever the motor is running. If this wire has power getting to it when the motor is not running, then the motor is your problem. If not, then the problem is elsewhere. If also you find that the start wires are energized after the motor has fully started, then the start relay is stuck closed and this would cause the motor to overheat, shutting it down (again, basing this on my KUD23 wiring diagram).

Hopefully one of our KitchenAid experts who unlike me has actually worked on a KDM21 before will confirm what I've said.

 

[joeypete]

Thank you so much Todd! Yes I’m hoping John will chime in. He thought it was the motor at first but I just want to be sure. I’d really like to save it.

I’m going to run it again tonight to see what happens. Someone in an older post mentioned running the Soak n Scrub cycle after resetting the timer so it starts at the very beginning. I might try that.

 

[appnut]

I thought you'd gotten a Bosch 300

 

[joeypete]

I ordered it but the installer never called me. The KA got working again so I just cancelled the order lol.