Kenmore Ultra Wash II question

[1980Americana]

Hello Dishwasher Denizens,
When I bought my house and moved in a few weeks ago the dishwasher didn't seem to work well at all, I realized it was missing the cone that moves the water from the bottom to the top. Sourced one off ebay, and still it doesn't seem to clean that well.
After reading reviews it seems like this model should perform pretty well. I took the lower arm off, and it was clean in there, and I didn't see any screens or anything to clean off.
Symptoms are that it seems like it doesn't fully fill with water, but hot water does flow through the valve, just seems like the level is low inside as the cycle is running.
In addition the heating element seems to be on all the time when it is running.
Do the mechanical timers get old and worn inside?
Pictures attached, am I missing any interior parts?
would hate to have to replace it if I don't have to, and the last two more modern dishwashers (Bosch) I had were both junk IMHO.

 

[qsd-dan]

Water valves plug up over time via mineral deposits, the valves also get weak with age. This causes the tub to underfill and performance suffers. Replace the water valve and give it another try.

 

[1980Americana]

That's what I figured, I ordered a replacement and we'll see if it solves the issue. thanks!

 

[maytaga806]

As said before replace that inlet valve. Also make sure that the tower is in the direct center of the lower rack so that it sits above the black rubber nozzle cap of the spray arm that shoots water up into the top arm. In my experience these black rubber nozzle caps wear out and it reduces water pressure to the top arm resulting in no dishes being cleaned on the top rack I hope that won’t be the case for you because they do not sell new ones and you cannot find new ones.

 

[maytaga806]

And yes, this is an incredible model very powerful and reliable. Those racks look really bad, replacements can be found on eBay.

 

[1980Americana]

Replaced inlet valve and it works great! yes the racks are in pretty bad shape. I ordered repair paint and figured I would try to clean up the rust with a dremel and paint them for now.

 

[phillymatt53]

Replaced inlet valve and it works great! yes the racks are in pretty bad shape. I ordered repair paint and figured I would try to clean up the rust with a dremel and paint them for now.

Get some J-B Weld Epoxy, the slow curing version, not the "quick" version.
Clean and prep the rust spots of the racks, and apply a thin coat of the epoxy to cover the spots up completely.
Wait at least 24 hours for the epoxy to completely cure before using the machine.

I did my Kitchenaid dishwasher racks 15 years ago, and it's still good.
Never mind that the dark gray epoxy doesn't match the racks, it's inside, who cares.

 

[maytaga806]

Get some J-B Weld Epoxy, the slow curing version, not the "quick" version.
Clean and prep the rust spots of the racks, and apply a thin coat of the epoxy to cover the spots up completely.
Wait at least 24 hours for the epoxy to completely cure before using the machine.

I did my Kitchenaid dishwasher racks 15 years ago, and it's still good.
Never mind that the dark gray epoxy doesn't match the racks, it's inside, who cares.

Wow that’s great. Well if you ever do need new racks they have them on eBay, but they won’t be this beautiful turquoise color! Is the upper rack cleaning well during loads of dishes??

 

[phillymatt53]

Wow that’s great. Well if you ever do need new racks they have them on eBay, but they won’t be this beautiful turquoise color! Is the upper rack cleaning well during loads of dishes??

Yes it is!
My glasses and stuff up there come out spot-free.
Both spray arms are cleared and free of any residue.

 

[1980Americana]

Wow that’s great. Well if you ever do need new racks they have them on eBay, but they won’t be this beautiful turquoise color! Is the upper rack cleaning well during loads of dishes??

Mine seems to be working well so far!