Dishwasher is overflowing, help please (please... please...)
Sean
I've got a GE Potscrubber dishwasher and it overflows sometimes and
spills on the floor. I believe it might be related to the timer, but
I'm not sure.
Here are the conditions which it occurs. Only on Long Wash, never on
Short. The timer knob seems to get stuck, and the washer will
continue to fill, and overflows onto the floor. I've tried filling
different amounts of soap in the bowl, but it doesn't make a
difference. Although it occurs only on Long Wash, it doesn't occur
all the time (maybe 1 out of 5 times, and seems to be getting more
frequent)
If the timer gets stuck on this washer, can it cause the dishwasher to
overfill?
Thanks again for any help!
Sean
Vox Humana
"Sean" <seancl...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:bce50403.02091...@posting.google.com...
There should be a float switch on the bottom of the dishwasher When the
water rises to a predetermined point it should override the timer and shut
off the water. Maybe it is defective or there is something lodged in it
that prevents it from freely floating. The timer may also be bad.
Dan O.
>"Sean" wrote
>>
>> I've got a GE Potscrubber dishwasher and it overflows sometimes and
>> spills on the floor. I believe it might be related to the timer, but
>> I'm not sure.
>>
>> Here are the conditions which it occurs. Only on Long Wash, never on
>> Short. The timer knob seems to get stuck, and the washer will
>> continue to fill, and overflows onto the floor. I've tried filling
>> different amounts of soap in the bowl, but it doesn't make a
>> difference. Although it occurs only on Long Wash, it doesn't occur
>> all the time (maybe 1 out of 5 times, and seems to be getting more
>> frequent)
>>
>> If the timer gets stuck on this washer, can it cause the dishwasher to
>> overfill?
Vox Humana wrote in message ...
>
>There should be a float switch on the bottom of the dishwasher When the
>water rises to a predetermined point it should override the timer and shut
>off the water. Maybe it is defective or there is something lodged in it
>that prevents it from freely floating. The timer may also be bad.
I doubt a timer could cause such a problem due to the float switch mentioned
above that should shut the water fill off regardless of the timer functions.
Is it leaking during the fill or during the wash?
Where is it leaking from? Usually you will be able to see soap trails on the
tub from a leak.
If during the wash and leaking from the door, the spay arm could be getting
stuck pointing directly at the door opening. This could be caused by a bad
wash arm support or its plastic bearings being warn. (There should be no
wobble to it.) It's possible that during a long wash, the fault becomes
more so, hence only leaking at that time.
If leaking elsewhere, one possible cause could be a partially plugged fill
gap mounted to the side of the tub, like with scale and lime. This may be
able to be cleaned but may need to be replaced.
Dan O.
-
Appliance411.com
http://ng.Appliance411.com/?ref411=GE+dishwasher
=Ð~~~~~~
Sean
First let me say thank you for your replies!
The float switch was one of the first things I checked, and it seems
to be ok.
Besides, I've been able to run (for the past 2 months) on the short
wash and I'll never seen the overflow problem. And I usually see the
overflow problem on long wash about every 1 out of 5 washes.
I read another persons post about problems he was having with the
dishwasher not draining correctly. And someone replies saying the
timer was what controlled the draining.
My question is, does the timer also affect the filling of the
dishwasher? If so, then I must have a bad timer. I've also noticed
that the timer gets stuck and the dishwasher seems to keep pumping in
water, and then it overfills. But if the float switch controls the
timer, then I guess I could be back to the float switch again.
If anyone can answer these two questions, I would be very grateful.
1. On a GE Potscrubber (Model GSD2230 Z00WW), does the timer affect
the filling of the dishwasher. Where if the timer was bad, and got
stuck, it could overfil the dishwasher.
2. Does the float switch affect the movement of the timer? So if the
float switch is bad, then the timer wont advance.
Thanks again for any and all replies!!!
Sean
"Dan O." <see_m...@www.appliance411.com> wrote in message news:<4ZKh9.57093$Bj.53...@read2.cgocable.net>...
Dan O.
Sean wrote in message ...
>
>The float switch was one of the first things I checked, and it seems
>to be ok.
>Besides, I've been able to run (for the past 2 months) on the short
>wash and I'll never seen the overflow problem. And I usually see the
>overflow problem on long wash about every 1 out of 5 washes.
>
>I read another persons post about problems he was having with the
>dishwasher not draining correctly. And someone replies saying the
>timer was what controlled the draining.
>
>My question is, does the timer also affect the filling of the
>dishwasher? If so, then I must have a bad timer. I've also noticed
>that the timer gets stuck and the dishwasher seems to keep pumping in
>water, and then it overfills. But if the float switch controls the
>timer, then I guess I could be back to the float switch again.
>
>If anyone can answer these two questions, I would be very grateful.
>
>1. On a GE Potscrubber (Model GSD2230 Z00WW), does the timer affect
>the filling of the dishwasher. Where if the timer was bad, and got
>stuck, it could overfil the dishwasher.
The timer does control the filling but the float will cut off to the water
valve before the dishwasher can overflow, regardless of what the timer is
doing.
>2. Does the float switch affect the movement of the timer? So if the
>float switch is bad, then the timer wont advance.
Not usually. The float switch is most often just in series with the water
valve (you can confirm that by looking at the wiring diagram on your
machine) and only opens the circuit to it. It doesn't do anything with the
timer except *maybe* on electronically controlled models which may cause it
to display some sort of error code and *maybe* shut the unit off.
Gordon
I don't know your GE but on my Simpson the timer is not powered during fill
times. There is a water level sensor/switch that makes when the set water
level is reached which then applies power to the timer so that it can
advance to the next cycle ( wash cycle).
Over the years the water level in my machine got higher until, like your's,
it overflowed once in a while. My water level switch is in the door and has
a tube running down to the "sump". It has an adjusting screw. My fix was to
adjust this by trial and error to get the water level down to an inch below
the top of the pan and just covering the heating element.
Hope this helps
Gordon
remove AT for email
Sean <seancl...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:bce50403.02091...@posting.google.com...
John Smith
Usually it's a case of the float getting gummed up with debris and soap,
enough so it does not ride up/down the switch column. The float ball on many
models can be lifted out and cleaned.
Another possibility, depending on the exact design of the float is that it
may be cracked and letting water seep in. Thus the float is 'heavier' and
doesn't float as well, thus letting more water come into the unit than it
should before it manages to stop the fill. This may explain why the problem
occurs only on long wash cycles. Short washes often use less water to begin
with.
Dan O.
>"Sean" wrote
>>
>> I've got a GE Potscrubber dishwasher and it overflows sometimes and
>> spills on the floor. I believe it might be related to the timer, but
>> I'm not sure.
>>
>> Here are the conditions which it occurs. Only on Long Wash, never on
>> Short. The timer knob seems to get stuck, and the washer will
>> continue to fill, and overflows onto the floor. I've tried filling
>> different amounts of soap in the bowl, but it doesn't make a
>> difference. Although it occurs only on Long Wash, it doesn't occur
>> all the time (maybe 1 out of 5 times, and seems to be getting more
>> frequent)
>>
>> If the timer gets stuck on this washer, can it cause the dishwasher to
>> overfill?
John Smith wrote in message ...
>
>Usually it's a case of the float getting gummed up with debris and soap,
>enough so it does not ride up/down the switch column. The float ball on
many
>models can be lifted out and cleaned.
>
>Another possibility, depending on the exact design of the float is that it
>may be cracked and letting water seep in. Thus the float is 'heavier' and
>doesn't float as well, thus letting more water come into the unit than it
>should before it manages to stop the fill. This may explain why the problem
>occurs only on long wash cycles. Short washes often use less water to begin
>with.
FWIW
Dishwashers are time filled (ie. the timer activated the fill valve for a
certain length of time). The float it only there as a safety precaution and
should never usually be activated so a problem in the float and/or float
switch would not in itself cause an "overflow" problem on any cycle.
The water level should also be the same no mater what cycle it's on so I
would think a leaking float stem would cause a consistent leak. JMO
John Smith
>
> John Smith wrote in message ...
> >
> >Usually it's a case of the float getting gummed up with debris and soap,
> >enough so it does not ride up/down the switch column. The float ball on
> many
> >models can be lifted out and cleaned.
> >
> >Another possibility, depending on the exact design of the float is that
it
> >may be cracked and letting water seep in. Thus the float is 'heavier' and
> >doesn't float as well, thus letting more water come into the unit than it
> >should before it manages to stop the fill. This may explain why the
problem
> >occurs only on long wash cycles. Short washes often use less water to
begin
> >with.
>
> FWIW
>
> Dishwashers are time filled (ie. the timer activated the fill valve for a
> certain length of time). The float it only there as a safety precaution
and
> should never usually be activated so a problem in the float and/or float
> switch would not in itself cause an "overflow" problem on any cycle.
>
> The water level should also be the same no mater what cycle it's on so I
> would think a leaking float stem would cause a consistent leak. JMO
Dan,
I'm no expert in this regard but ....
I had a portable dishwasher not so long ago --one of the ones that you
wheeled over to the kitchen sink and connected the hose to tap. No matter
whether I opened the tap wide open or had it opened only part way, the
dishwasher would always fill to the same level, but NOT in the same amount
of time. If the tap was wide open it filled faster, and slower when the tap
was only partially opened. Maybe this was a peculiarity of that particular
Kenmore, or of portables generally, or of portables of that era...but that
seems to poke a hole in the timer premise.
This particular dishwasher had a marked propensity to have the float switch
get gummed up with detergent and debris. Every time it became gumed up, it
would overfill and leak. Can't tell you how rich Kimberly-Clark got from me,
but I'm sure I single-handedly kept at least one paper towel mill open.
Dan O.
>"Dan O."
>>
>> FWIW
>>
>> Dishwashers are time filled (ie. the timer activated the fill valve for a
>> certain length of time). The float it only there as a safety precaution
>> and should never usually be activated so a problem in the float and/or
>> float switch would not in itself cause an "overflow" problem on any
cycle.
>>
>> The water level should also be the same no mater what cycle it's on so I
>> would think a leaking float stem would cause a consistent leak. JMO
John Smith wrote
>
>I had a portable dishwasher not so long ago --one of the ones that you
>wheeled over to the kitchen sink and connected the hose to tap. No matter
>whether I opened the tap wide open or had it opened only part way, the
>dishwasher would always fill to the same level, but NOT in the same amount
>of time. If the tap was wide open it filled faster, and slower when the tap
>was only partially opened. Maybe this was a peculiarity of that particular
>Kenmore, or of portables generally, or of portables of that era...but that
>seems to poke a hole in the timer premise.
>
>This particular dishwasher had a marked propensity to have the float switch
>get gummed up with detergent and debris. Every time it became gumed up, it
>would overfill and leak.
Maybe there was a problem with your dishwasher to make it act that way or it
was designed differently than most on the market in the last 30 years? (I
doubt it) But if you don't believe my explanation you can also read about
the dishwasher fill cycle at the following link:
http://www.appliparts.com/dishwasher.html#What
Dan O.
-
Appliance411.com
http://ng.Appliance411.com/?ref411=+dishwasher
=Ð~~~~~~