Some of you may remember that back in 2006 I got a killer deal on a KitchenAid KUDS03FBL and it has been working beautifully until recently... It has been leaving little peices of food all over the dishes. I took the spray arms out and cleaned them as well as the filter but it's still doing it. Does anyone know how to clean out the pump/motor? I'm thinking that it just needs a good cleaning. Is the pump easy to take apart? Any suggestions?
KitchenAid tall tub dishwasher issue
- Thread starter bobbyd32l
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bendixbubba
Well-known member
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- Aug 23, 2008
- Messages
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food chopper
sounds like the food chopper is broken.
sounds like the food chopper is broken.
The food chopper is very weak in these things. Someone on here had a nieghbor with a Whirlpool version that quit cleaning. Turned out it wass the chopper. Replaced nad it worked like it had preivously.
stevet
Well-known member
Doing the Bump and Grind!
Bobby,
These pumps, as you may know, are only 1/5 hp so you cannot expect a hurricane in a box from any of the WP tall tubs!
The pumps in these units are very prone to clogging as they are actually protected by at least one if not two pump protector plates inside the pump housing
Once you collect enough crap on top of the protector plates, the pump will give up the ghost and pump little or no water at all.
If you have taken the pump apart at all, you will see that there is a cover over the pump intake and chopper/screen assy which is held in by 1 torx screw. You do have to remove the upper feed tube and the 4 screws which hold the top strainer in place to see down into the sump.
If you remove the strainer first, you will immediately see if the protector is clogged with debris. I have seen this over and over and even clogged my own machine up 2 weeks ago when I threw all my barbeque stuff in there. I clogged the protector plate with pieces of rust and burned off food. I could actually hear the water pressure diminishing as the cycle went on and there was carbon and rust bits all over the tank and door.
I disassembled it and sucked it clean with my small shop vac and did a quick rinse in it and the machine came out spotless.
These pumps do a good job considering what we expect of them but they are not made to grind up anything harder than potatoes and starches in my opinion.
The parts breakdown for your model shows the 2 bladed cutter but K/A added 2 more blades to it to supposedly make it more effective.
It is an easy part to change so I would tackle it yourself. Just work with the parts diagram and you will be fine.
It also appears to have an override mechanism built in to it so it won't jam up but rather slip if it encounters something it cannot handle. It slips right into place once you get the cover off the pump intake area.
You can find a parts breakdown on the K/A website or at Sears.com/parts.
Let us know if you resolve the issue
Bobby,
These pumps, as you may know, are only 1/5 hp so you cannot expect a hurricane in a box from any of the WP tall tubs!
The pumps in these units are very prone to clogging as they are actually protected by at least one if not two pump protector plates inside the pump housing
Once you collect enough crap on top of the protector plates, the pump will give up the ghost and pump little or no water at all.
If you have taken the pump apart at all, you will see that there is a cover over the pump intake and chopper/screen assy which is held in by 1 torx screw. You do have to remove the upper feed tube and the 4 screws which hold the top strainer in place to see down into the sump.
If you remove the strainer first, you will immediately see if the protector is clogged with debris. I have seen this over and over and even clogged my own machine up 2 weeks ago when I threw all my barbeque stuff in there. I clogged the protector plate with pieces of rust and burned off food. I could actually hear the water pressure diminishing as the cycle went on and there was carbon and rust bits all over the tank and door.
I disassembled it and sucked it clean with my small shop vac and did a quick rinse in it and the machine came out spotless.
These pumps do a good job considering what we expect of them but they are not made to grind up anything harder than potatoes and starches in my opinion.
The parts breakdown for your model shows the 2 bladed cutter but K/A added 2 more blades to it to supposedly make it more effective.
It is an easy part to change so I would tackle it yourself. Just work with the parts diagram and you will be fine.
It also appears to have an override mechanism built in to it so it won't jam up but rather slip if it encounters something it cannot handle. It slips right into place once you get the cover off the pump intake area.
You can find a parts breakdown on the K/A website or at Sears.com/parts.
Let us know if you resolve the issue
Well, I took the pump apart tonight and holy god....
There was so much debris covering the blade protector! I took everything apart, filled it with water and scrubbed everything clean. Sucked everything out with the shop vac did the whole process over again, ran it empty and now its nice and clean!
I did notice that I do have the updated chopper it has 4 blades not 2. There was all kinds of crap blocking that poor 1/5 hp pump! I need to remind everyone that when they load the dishwasher that they can't put a dishes in that have all kinds of food on them! Scrape em then rinse em!
However, I am glad that I do not have the current model with the "High Efficiency" pump with a whopping 1/8th hp motor or event the new Frigidaire's that have a 1/20th! I can say for what it is and what I paid, it is a great dishwasher! Its quiet and does the job (but takes too freakin long!)
Now to find the best detergent! Liquid or Powder?
There was so much debris covering the blade protector! I took everything apart, filled it with water and scrubbed everything clean. Sucked everything out with the shop vac did the whole process over again, ran it empty and now its nice and clean!
I did notice that I do have the updated chopper it has 4 blades not 2. There was all kinds of crap blocking that poor 1/5 hp pump! I need to remind everyone that when they load the dishwasher that they can't put a dishes in that have all kinds of food on them! Scrape em then rinse em!
However, I am glad that I do not have the current model with the "High Efficiency" pump with a whopping 1/8th hp motor or event the new Frigidaire's that have a 1/20th! I can say for what it is and what I paid, it is a great dishwasher! Its quiet and does the job (but takes too freakin long!)
Now to find the best detergent! Liquid or Powder?
toggleswitch2
Well-known member
- Joined
- May 23, 2008
- Messages
- 5,000
~I need to remind everyone that when they load the dishwasher that they can't put a dishes in that have all kinds of food on them! Scrape em then rinse em!
One should not have to because of bad engineering.
Liquid DW detergents are sudsy and loaded with clay, BEWARE!
One should not have to because of bad engineering.
Liquid DW detergents are sudsy and loaded with clay, BEWARE!
bendixbubba
Well-known member
- Joined
- Aug 23, 2008
- Messages
- 86
hey Bob
was my roomate's machine that stopped spraying...and she moaned and groaned about having it repaired. SOOOOO...when she was outta town, went to the parts shop, bought a new chopper (the one in the machine had snapped off the post) and put it in. Works like a new machine again. Even tho she wouldnt admit it, she is pretty happy with the machine now, catch her looking for stuff on the dishes every once in a while... nothing to find now tho, spotless again
was my roomate's machine that stopped spraying...and she moaned and groaned about having it repaired. SOOOOO...when she was outta town, went to the parts shop, bought a new chopper (the one in the machine had snapped off the post) and put it in. Works like a new machine again. Even tho she wouldnt admit it, she is pretty happy with the machine now, catch her looking for stuff on the dishes every once in a while... nothing to find now tho, spotless again
stevet
Well-known member
Powder! ( and Fresh)!
I would caution against the gels as well due to the clay in them. Also, I have found that you need to use fresh powdered detergent or keep it well sealed. Here in Florida, I keep a box in the garage near my spare Kenwhirl machine and it gets awfully clumpy in the un-airconditioned space out there. Still cleans well, but sometimes it doesn't all come out of the dispenser. I have had excellent success with the Finish Power blocks with the red ball.
They work better than the Cascade powder and don't leave any film or spots on the glasses or silverware like the Cascade does.I use them also in my KDS21M and put it in the first detergent section so I know it will be all rinsed away by the end of the cycle.
Also, you might want to read the ingredient labels more carefully now. Some detergents are very low on the phosphates and some are a lot higher than you might have thought. Needless to say, the higher level ones do a better job for us. My water varies between 7 and 10 grains of hardness and I prefer to use the higer phosphate products like the Finish/Electrasol for the results they provide.
I would caution against the gels as well due to the clay in them. Also, I have found that you need to use fresh powdered detergent or keep it well sealed. Here in Florida, I keep a box in the garage near my spare Kenwhirl machine and it gets awfully clumpy in the un-airconditioned space out there. Still cleans well, but sometimes it doesn't all come out of the dispenser. I have had excellent success with the Finish Power blocks with the red ball.
They work better than the Cascade powder and don't leave any film or spots on the glasses or silverware like the Cascade does.I use them also in my KDS21M and put it in the first detergent section so I know it will be all rinsed away by the end of the cycle.
Also, you might want to read the ingredient labels more carefully now. Some detergents are very low on the phosphates and some are a lot higher than you might have thought. Needless to say, the higher level ones do a better job for us. My water varies between 7 and 10 grains of hardness and I prefer to use the higer phosphate products like the Finish/Electrasol for the results they provide.
magic clean
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- Joined
- Oct 15, 2004
- Messages
- 511
Scrape but don't rinse
the user instructions advise to remove excess food and hard items(toothpicks etc.) from the dishes. Rinsing is unnecessary; except tomato sauces to avoid staining of plastics utensils and dishwasher parts. It is also recommended to remove labels from any jars before machine washing.
For best results use an enzyme boosted detergent like Electrasol/Finish Powerball tablets, Quantum tablets or Cascade Action Paks or powders. These are very robust detergents and will break down food residue so it is washed away. The Cascade Complete All in One gel, does not have clay thickening agents. It is safe to use and works quite well.
the user instructions advise to remove excess food and hard items(toothpicks etc.) from the dishes. Rinsing is unnecessary; except tomato sauces to avoid staining of plastics utensils and dishwasher parts. It is also recommended to remove labels from any jars before machine washing.
For best results use an enzyme boosted detergent like Electrasol/Finish Powerball tablets, Quantum tablets or Cascade Action Paks or powders. These are very robust detergents and will break down food residue so it is washed away. The Cascade Complete All in One gel, does not have clay thickening agents. It is safe to use and works quite well.
