# dishwasher not getting hot!



## oldfella1962 (May 1, 2017)

Okay, my dishwasher was smelling funky and not cleaning/drying dishes. I replaced the bad heating element (I tested it with an ohm meter) but the water still isn't hot. All the water cycles through and drains - so no plumbing/water issues - so my only problem is the dishwasher will not get hot.


Yes, my water heater works fine - plenty of hot water at the sink. My dish washer is a Kenmore Ultra Wash 665.1301.
Any ideas?


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## K80Shooter (May 2, 2017)

Just a couple of questions, did the dishwasher ever get hot? Is this a new installation? Has any plumbing been done recently?

Your dishwasher should be hooked to a hot water line so there should be hot water. The element is just to get the water hotter if needed.


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## sparky (May 2, 2017)

is the heating element working during the drying cycle ?


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## rjcruiser (May 2, 2017)

Google your problem and model.  You'll probably find the part and the problem from a website that sells the replacement part.  I recently had to replace the control board on my dishwasher.

Also, to help the dishwasher last longer, run hot water to your sink before starting the dishwasher....and imho, heated dry kills your dishes and your dishwasher.  Just crack it after the cycle and let air dry or towel dry.


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## rjcruiser (May 2, 2017)

Just googled and came up with this link.

https://www.applianceblog.com/mainf...re-Ultra-Wash-Quiet-Guard-3-not-heating-water

And another....saying something different.

https://www.shopyourway.com/questions/1206615


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## oldfella1962 (May 2, 2017)

K80Shooter said:


> Just a couple of questions, did the dishwasher ever get hot? Is this a new installation? Has any plumbing been done recently?
> 
> Your dishwasher should be hooked to a hot water line so there should be hot water. The element is just to get the water hotter if needed.



yes, the dishwasher used to work - it's a few years old. Then we noticed it wouldn't clean dishes well, or dry them. So I started researching online and it said to test the heating element - sure enough it read an "open" ohms check on the meter so I ordered a replacement. The replacement
read 15 ohms (the general reading an element should be, no short/no open) - so this confirms I had a bad heating element. I replaced it and ran the dishwasher on the hottest setting (to melt the wax plug in the dishwasher cleaner bottle placed in the rack) but same thing - the water never got hot enough to even melt the plug. So now I have a brand new element, all the water cycles through and drains as it should, but nothing gets hot.  So after work I'll test the limiting thermostat and the regular thermostat with a hair blow dryer (don't laugh, it works! I learned this from some AC repair guys at my work) to see if they change states from short to open/open to short with my ohm meter. 

Luckily I can reach under the dishwasher tub to do all this without taking the whole dishwasher out, making troubleshooting a lot faster.


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## oldfella1962 (May 2, 2017)

sparky said:


> is the heating element working during the drying cycle ?



It never works, for washing or drying. That is I can open the door at various times (just like you do when it is working and you have to snatch something out then resume the cycle) and there's never any heat.


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## oldfella1962 (May 2, 2017)

rjcruiser said:


> Just googled and came up with this link.
> 
> https://www.applianceblog.com/mainf...re-Ultra-Wash-Quiet-Guard-3-not-heating-water
> 
> ...



I found a great source for parts - my replacement heating element was a perfect fit (and no leaks under the tub) so I'll use them if I find any other bad parts. 
I don't think it's a problem with the control board because it runs all the different cycle choices like it should, which is actually a relief. So I'm thinking electronically everything is kosher (components are getting the voltages/grounds they need) but mechanically something is stuck open or closed. 

Now one wild card: several years ago when the installers hooked it up, they turned off the hot water valve going to my kitchen sink (my lazy self just got around to fixing my sink hot water which was just a closed valve) and they never turned it back on. 

But of course I had the hot water going to the dishwasher for several years...or did I? 
A dishwasher can work with cool water, because the dishwasher heats the water up. Maybe with several years of "working overtime" that caused components to fail. 

Before I test my thermostats I might run a cycle and adjust my water valves gradually to see if that makes a difference. In other words I might be throwing more than one "variable" into the troubleshooting equation. Now that I a have a known good heating element, I'll try to replicate the original conditions under which the dishwasher did indeed work for several years. This might save me some "tail chasing" as I troubleshoot.

Just from experience on electronic repair in general, it's rare to have more than one component fail at a time unless it's something "common" to both of them. Luckily I have the wiring diagram now that I might have to dig deeper.


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## Cmp1 (May 2, 2017)

Are you sure you've got voltage to the element,,,, coming from the board?


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## oldfella1962 (May 2, 2017)

Cmp1 said:


> Are you sure you've got voltage to the element,,,, coming from the board?



good question - how could I check that? Maybe I can disconnect the element leads, run the wires out the front of the washer, and run a cycle and check the voltage between the leads with my multimeter. Safer than reaching under the washer  with my meter leads while they are still connected to the element. But this would eliminate chasing my tail further! 

I'm leaving work in a couple of hours to start working on it.


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## Foxfire (May 2, 2017)

Put your wife in charge, dishes will be cleaned and dried,  nothing better than manual labor.


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## Cmp1 (May 2, 2017)

oldfella1962 said:


> good question - how could I check that? Maybe I can disconnect the element leads, run the wires out the front of the washer, and run a cycle and check the voltage between the leads with my multimeter. Safer than reaching under the washer  with my meter leads while they are still connected to the element. But this would eliminate chasing my tail further!
> 
> I'm leaving work in a couple of hours to start working on it.



I don't have the schematic,,,, but it should show power to the element,,,, or through a timer circuit,,,, just be careful,,,, if it doesn't feel right don't do it,,,, safety, safety, safety,,,,


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## oldfella1962 (May 2, 2017)

Cmp1 said:


> I don't have the schematic,,,, but it should show power to the element,,,, or through a timer circuit,,,, just be careful,,,, if it doesn't feel right don't do it,,,, safety, safety, safety,,,,



I hear that! I'm paranoid about electrical safety - *murphy's law *just loves to lurk around electricity!  Yes I do have the schematics that came with the dish washer so that will be yet another time saver.


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## dixiecutter (May 2, 2017)

think he's right. i couldnt begin to tell you how to check it- but sounds like youre not sending voltage to the element


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## Artfuldodger (May 2, 2017)

I'm with the others, look at the drawing and check the power leaving to the heating element. Those control boards have relays on them that are prone to sticking or not working. Maybe before the element opened, it did something weird to the relay on the board.
Regardless, starting there will let you know you have voltage leaving on it's way to the element. Then you can look at the drawing to see if there is a thermal fuse in the circuit to the element.

I did see a thermal fuse attached to the circuit board but folks said that the unit wouldn't come on if that was bad.

The problem I see though troubleshooting the board is, it's behind the inner door panel. How can you run the unit through a cycle test the power leaving the board.

You might still be back to checking it underneath before any other thermal fuses. If no thermal fuses, then I'd say the board. 

I would guess the board also contains the thermostat that cycles power to the element. Must be a float that tells the water solenoid to shut off when it's full which should also tell the boatd it's safe to turn on the element and pump. Your pump comes on so that proofing circuit must be good. 

What about the temperature sensor that cycles the heating element? Maybe it's not telling the heating element relay on the control board to close.


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## Artfuldodger (May 2, 2017)

The thermistor for your model mister, is on the water pump housing. Maybe they all are. Some have heat sink grease on them. 

I think this part is the temperature sensor that opens and closes the power to the heating element relay.


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## 3ringer (May 3, 2017)

Our dishwasher over a period of time started doing a poor job of cleaning. We were prewashing before loading in the dishwasher. Ours was 7 years old. I decided not to throw money at an old dishwasher. We ended up purchasing a new one. I was amazed when I opened the dishwasher. The dishes were super clean. Also the dishwasher is so much quieter than the old one. I am sure it is more energy efficient too. You can find good deals at HD or Lowes. They have open boxes or displays marked way down. I spoke  with a manager and asked if he could do better on the price. He slashed another 100 off. I said sold. I have repaired my washing machine twice and it is still going. When it breaks down for an expensive part , I will purchase a new one. I will look for one marked down with a dent in the side. Who cares if it has a dent on the side. My wife calls me tightwad. I am always looking for a deal.


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## mattech (May 3, 2017)

I would suspect the element burning up is the cause of what the real problem is. I don't know much about dishwashers, but I know electronics. It's going to either be a thermister, or the relay that adds power. You can oh the thermister, but you will need to know what ohms it reads at ambient temperature, as it will change with different temps. If it seems to read correctly, I would suspect the relay.


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## oldfella1962 (May 3, 2017)

mattech said:


> I would suspect the element burning up is the cause of what the real problem is. I don't know much about dishwashers, but I know electronics. It's going to either be a thermister, or the relay that adds power. You can oh the thermister, but you will need to know what ohms it reads at ambient temperature, as it will change with different temps. If it seems to read correctly, I would suspect the relay.



The schematics show what resistance I should read for the thermistor. Last night I checked the overheat thermostat and it was good. I'm trying to physically locate the thermistor because the company I order parts from (and every...single...other company too!) has a "no image" for that part so I can't actually see what I'm looking for!  I'll have more time tonight to find it via tracing the actual wires that should be running to it.
Yes I think it might be adjacent to the water pump (they do have a picture of that!). If it checks good I'll look at the control board and see if I have a stuck relay - a little gentle tap (while energized) with a plastic handle from a screwdriver sometimes gets them working. 

That said if I have to order any expensive parts I'll get another dishwasher - two or three parts and I can almost buy a brand new washer for the same price!


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## GA native (May 5, 2017)

First the dryer, now the dishwasher... Perhaps it is time to upgrade your appliances. Appliances have a useful life cycle of about ten years.


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## GoldDot40 (May 5, 2017)

GA native said:


> First the dryer, now the dishwasher... Perhaps it is time to upgrade your appliances. SOME Appliances have a useful life cycle of about ten years.


Fixed it for you...

Every single (7 total) GE appliance I left in the house I sold was 15 years old and never had anything major happen to any of them. Defrost element in the fridge ($10 fix) and a drum guide kit for the dryer ($25 fix). Not too shabby for GE stuff. Now, some of this new stuff might be a different story.


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