Thoughts on modifying my KDS-21?

[thatwasherguy]

Hey everyone! Hope you are all are well. I’m hopefully not too far off on starting the restoration work on my Hobart KitchenAid KDS-21, and I’ve been thinking about what all I want to do to it while I’ve got it so far apart. The main things I’m thinking of are adding a constant rinse arm from an 18 series to the top of the tub, and swapping out the hold thermostats for older ones that have higher temperature values. Would any of this be worth doing?
Thanks,
Thatwasherguy.

 

[combo52]

Adding a constant rinse could help a little bit.

I’m not sure what the Sandy wash temperature is on the 21. I think it’s 165 on the 18, if you have at least 120° coming into your KDS 21 and use the correct cycles and detergent. I can’t imagine there’s any reason to destroy the machine faster by heating it even hotter, nor would it likely improve the performance overall, the real trick would be trying to get an extra rinse into the 21 that was the biggest downfall of those machines.

The 21 and two machines had a more rugged pump but other than that, the 18,19 and 20 was a better dishwasher performance wise and the 23,24 and 25. KitchenAids were really the best performing ones.

John L

 

[combo52]

Adding a constant rinse could help a little bit.

I’m not sure what the Saini rinse temperature is on the 21. I think it’s 165 on the 18, if you have at least 120° coming into your KDS 21 and use the correct cycles and detergent. I can’t imagine there’s any reason to destroy the machine faster by heating it even hotter, nor would it likely improve the performance overall, the real trick would be trying to get an extra rinse into the 21 that was the biggest downfall of those machines.

The 21 and two machines had a more rugged pump but other than that, the 18,19 and 20 was a better dishwasher performance wise and the 23,24 and 25. KitchenAids were really the best performing ones.

John

 

[phillymatt53]

Adding a constant rinse could help a little bit.

I’m not sure what the Sandy wash temperature is on the 21. I think it’s 165 on the 18, if you have at least 120° coming into your KDS 21 and use the correct cycles and detergent. I can’t imagine there’s any reason to destroy the machine faster by heating it even hotter, nor would it likely improve the performance overall, the real trick would be trying to get an extra rinse into the 21 that was the biggest downfall of those machines.

The 21 and two machines had a more rugged pump but other than that, the 18,19 and 20 was a better dishwasher performance wise and the 23,24 and 25. KitchenAids were really the best performing ones.

John L

Indeed, I love my KD19!
However, I'll add that if working around the main motor, they were originally assembled "dry", using just the simple clamping force of the pump housing to seal against the outer gasket and upper spray hose connection.
Same goes for the drain hose-to-drain valve.
The minor leaks I once had are now cured forever by adding some Permatex "red" gasket sealer.
It's a high temp gasket maker good for up to 630 degrees.
It's also a good idea, if the upper pump housing is removed or disturbed, to use a new "o" ring, adding the gasket sealer aound the outer side of the ring before bolting it down again.
Making sure that the pump pressure is strong without leaks insures the best performance.
I swear, that machine will out-last me, built like a commercial machine.