KDS-18 needs loving home!

[rollermatic]

i rebuilt this machine last summer, putting in a new pump seal and painting underside of tub to prevent rust. i also took apart drain and fill solonoids, cleaning them to insure they work properly. i thought i was gonna keep it and use it so i pretty much checked everything.

trouble is i don't like the 18 models or anything above that. once hobart added that second spray arm and changed the pump i was done with kitchenaid. but i know a lot of people swear by these later models so if anyone wants it you can have it free, i'm in milford ohio, east side of cincinnati.

i also have a kds-17 model i will gladly give away. i have too many of these so as mae west said, "one of ems gotta go"!

the 18 model is avacado, the 17 is harvest gold. both are built in ofcourse.

i need them gone by the end of the summer season so if there are no takers i will strip them both down and get rid of the tubs.

and i also have a little whirlpool apt size automatic washer that worked fine last time i tried it. i won't pitch it but if anyone wants it i will give it away.

and last but not least i still have that 70's era maytag automatic washer in harvest gold i will gladly part with. i don't see me ever using it again, i'm a frigidaire guy when it comes to old washers.

let me know please. my email is listed here on the site. i can also supply phone no. i am easy to get to, right off I-275 in cincinnati, the milford 28 exit.

thanks
pete

oh yea, if anyone knows where i could get a 1-18 agitate arm please let me know. would love to get my 1-18 running again.

 

[datalady]

Am Interested--Sent an E-Mail to You

Hi Pete,
I just sent you an e-mail about this from my account [email protected]. Thanks!
Lynn

 

[appnut]

Congratulations Lynn. I hope it works out. Pete is a super nice guy!!!

 

[datalady]

Thanks

Thanks appnut! I'm just getting started on my journey of replacing newer appliances that have broken down with older appliances and am encountering a lot of appliance repair people who think I'm crazy/stupid for doing so, telling me parts are not available, and refusing to work on them. I sometimes believe them, but reading the posts on this forum really helps! I need to become more knowledgeable about these things so I can repair things myself.

 

[rollermatic]

hello datalady

got your emails, having trouble getting to my email at home so i used my phone to briefly Answer you. will also answer here.

my 18 model will not work for parts on your 21 model. 18-20 were the last models to use a non reversing motor so yours has a completely different pump and seal. i did find your seal on ebay, it's only about 20 bucks, not bad. i also have the repair manual from hobart on that 21 model, can't get rid of it but could copy the important stuff.

i know you said you bought this 21 to use as your main dishwasher. i used to have one or 2 of those, i did like that style motor and pump better than the 18-20's which i think are a royal pain to work on!

yours has a reversing motor which means it turns one way to drive water thru the pump and spray arms, then reverses direction to drain the machine. a very simple set up, dishwashers have been doing that since the first spray arm models, even my ge bowtie impeller machine has that system. yours should be an easy fix. there is no drain solonoid to worry about or drain valve, just the motor and pump, a timer, a fill solonoid to supply water to the machine and the heater unit. i might even have a pump housing around here too, i have tons of spray arms! your model does emply a check valve in the drain line i see, this keeps water from backing up into the machine should your sink or plumbing or disposer back up. those are def out there on ebay, cheap, i proba have some here, think i do. used to have a few of these machines.

not sure what the problem with yours is but if motor is good and not damaged by a leaking pump seal or simply worn from age and you put put a new pump seal in i would guess it would be a very good machine for you.

i bet i could run down a motor for it too, i have great luck on ebay, like said i quickly found your pump seal.

dont count on any repair guy touching it! most of them weren't even born when this dishwasher was being made and they haven't a clue! they will tell you parts are NLA every time! dont let them discourage you!

you will have great luck from us here on this site, this is what we do! we love em, we get em, we fix em, we use em, we sell em and we give em away and trade info freely! we also have people on here better than me at fixing kitchenaids as they do it for a living, or did.

guess i need to know what the problem is with your machine. you can have my 18 model but i think that 21 model if tuned up with a new pump seal would be a better machine for you. i personally have never liked to 18-20 models, i find them very tempermental and not easy to work on. i love the old 15-17 models! in fact i also bought another pump seal on ebay tonite for my 17 machines, found it while looking for your seal! mine was 10 bucks, can't beat it. i will have a 15-17 kitchenaid running till the day i die!

will send you more email when i get back home to columbus, i am in milford now, i live in both places, got married 2 years ago and husband lives in columbus but i work here in milford part time anymore as i took my social security and cut back to part time when all this covid garbage started last year! i work in retail and think all new appliances are garbage basically! if i did have to buy a new one, whirlpool or maytag (whirlpool) would be all i would buy! i would never buy lg or samsung! just my preference. i also would stay away from frigidaire and g.e. again just my bias! we actually have a maytag in dougs kitchen in columbus that is about 15 years old and it does a pretty good job actually. i found a maytag in the trash here in milford that i grabbed and installed in my kitchen here that does a great job, id say its about 20 years old. have a new pump seal waiting to be installed when the time comes! one of the ones that still throws a good bit of water around and doesn't take 2 hours to do a load! good thing i'm not in the appliance dept. at work, i would be the worst!

thanks

pete oh and appnut, thanks for the nice compliment! i try but i have my moments when i think i am an ass! been trying to do better the last few years!

that part no for the seal is 242634 for the 21 models, out of my repair manual here and def on ebay!

 

[datalady]

Thank you Pete!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Pete,
Thank you so much. You have talked me off the ledge! We drove over an hour, to the middle of nowhere, to buy this 21 because I'd read so much on this site about the Hobart Superbas in general and the 21s. I was so excited one became available! We got it and it was beautiful and I was excited to get it installed. Then after talking to these people and assessing my own skills, I got really discouraged. I worried that it was a stupid idea to buy this. The lady that I bought it from said it was working when they took it out and the guy advised her to not take it out because it was so well made, but she didn't want to fool with an older dishwasher. So I'm not aware of any issues with it, and all underneath where the motor etc. is looks nice and clean. I was just panicking. I have a family of 4 that generates LOTS of dishes. We run our dishwasher almost every day, and the idea of being without is really awful. The existing dishwasher is still working but I can see it not for very long. The inside got bent and the door doesn't close correctly. It gets mixed up and thinks it's done when it just started. I found the installation manual for this online so hopefully we can figure it out!

I agree with you wholeheartedly about new appliances being junk. That's what brought me here! I am so tired of having to replace stuff all the time, and I have been replacing newer small appliances with vintage ones for years as they wear out. I have a 3 year old Frigidaire fridge that is awful. Almost all of the drawers and shelves have cracked or broken completely and the ice maker already needs to be replaced. I had a GE oven--a slide in--that was all electronic with the controls on the front. That alone is stupid because we hit them and inadvertently turned on the stove, and things can boil over into the computer, but I digress. It was here when we moved in. It got a surge from lightening when I was baking a cake that fried the computer. It had to be replaced. It worked okay for a while, but then the number 9 stopped working. I sold it before more numbers stopped working and bought a 1985 Kenmore (made by Roper) electric stove. It has the flip clock and is white, chrome, and black. It is beautiful! The best part is that it's all mechanical. With some elbow grease it cleaned up nicely. I was first convinced that older is better by my 2003 Whirlpool garage fridge that is still going after only replacing the compressor start relay for $15. I have a GE Spacemaker from 1992 that is working perfectly. The only thing wrong was a broken handle, and I was able to replace that and shine it up. It, my stove, and the 21 are going to look amazing together. My house is from 1965 and is decorated as if it were the 70s, so it all fits. I don't go for the HGTV stuff!

So I guess I'm up for the challenge, especially if it's not too hard, and since you know that the 21 is going to be a great machine. Vinyl is worn off one of the racks and there is rust. I can get the tips for now. But if I see another model with racks, are they interchangeable? Do you know if the non-Hobart dishwashers after Whirlpool bought Kitchenaid from the early 1990s use the same racks? I see those pop up for sale around here occasionally and they're really cheap since they're not Hobarts. Are any of the other parts from these interchangeable with the 21?

Again, thank you so much. I am so glad I found this site. People here think like I do, which is not the way most people think! I might not be so crazy after all. I appreciate all your knowledge and that of the collective!!!

 

[rollermatic]

i have a lot of kitchenaid racks

as i used to have about 20 or more kitcenaids. i did get rid of all the later
models but if i pitch them i always save the racks. when that time comes i could probably help you out.

right now i would just get it installed and see how it is running. i would remove bottom panel at first and watch for any leaks. if there is or it later develops a seal leak (a leak from the pump around the motor shaft going into the pump) it needs immediate attention. i would consider getting an extra pump seal, not totally neccessary as they will probably show up on ebay for awhile but it could not hurt. a seal leak can ruin the motor over time. and you don't any leaks anyway.

if you do get a seal on ebay don't pay more than 20 bucks or so. i find seals for kitchenaids all the time for 10-20 bucks. then i will see some people list parts for old dishwashers at ridiculous prices, so you have to be cautious when on ebay. some people are there just to take advantage of someone elses need.

it will install just like any other. hook up the drain hose (to your disposer if you have one on your sink) connect the water supply to the fill valve, hook the power up. you said you have a dishwasher now so i would think it would be an easy swap. we can help you on this site if you need it. anyone you know that is good with plumbing can probably help you out.

how about posting some pics of it, inside and out. would love to see them and i'm sure other kitchenaid fans here would too.

i'm in columbus now so i will check my yahoo email that i can't do at home in milford for some reason. but you can continue to reach any of us here.

good luck and enjoy!

 

[ad]

Hobart Kitchenaid

This is a tangent to your post (Hope that’s okay). I’m an owner of a Kitchenaid Deluxe KDD-20 made by Hobart. Not looking to buy another vintage model , but curious if you repair dishwashers for others (?). We’re in Cincinnati. We bought our house last fall, and we’ve been using this vintage dishwasher that came with the house. However, the top rack rails are losing screws (so the rack falls off the track on occasion) and it doesn’t do a great job cleaning. We filed with our home warranty company requesting repairs, and they denied our claim (still working through the reasons for that). The repair person said he didn’t think the arm was spinning (I think that was what he said). I have no doubt it needs servicing. We’re at a point where we either need to improve the thing or replace it. Reading your thread, I was curious if you might have any advice. Or know of somewhere in the Cincinnati area that could repair it. We’d welcome your suggestions.

 

[rollermatic]

sorry to take so long

to answer. i live in both columbus and milford so i'm back and forth almost every other day and sometimes don't hop on this website for a couple weeks at a time.

if a spray arm isn't rotating (i have had that problem) it can probably be fixed easy enough. i usually just clean up the spindle it rotates on and the bearing with a fine steel wool, just did my kd-15 tonite actually.

that wouldn't surprise me that no repair company will want to fix it or even look at it. but if you are in any way mechanically inclined they are not that hard to work on.

i could possibly look at it, or if you sent me pics of the top rack screw problem i might be able to help you fix it.

as far as not cleaning well i have found that generally when a kitchenaid doesn't clean well it's either the bottom spray arm not rotating, or the top spray arm not getting enough water. a person here recently posted that their machine was not cleaning the top rack and they found that when they pushed the top rack in all the way it still left a gap where the water supply tube meets the port on the back of the machine. maybe that could be related to the top rack not being positioned properly due to the screw problem you mentioned.

the earlier machines only had one spray arm in the bottom and if loaded properly to not block water to the top rack they do a great job so even if your upper spray arm isn't performing well if that bottom arm is able to rotate freely it should clean!

let me know if you are still interested in possibly repairing it. i still have that 18 that i put on here, i'm giving it away not selling it. i plan on keeping it for awhile since there are no takers. was gonna strip it down for parts but decided to keep it intact another year.

i will look to see if you answer back, again sorry i didnt see your post.