InfoZone


Help! My Dishwasher Won’t Fill With Water


Repairing a dishwasher that is not filling up with water properly can seem like a daunting task. Before you run to the phone and schedule a repairman to make a house call check out our easy steps to dishwasher self-repair. Once you find the broken part you can search for the replacement easily by selecting your dishwasher’s brand name and entering the model number into our search box.

Before you get started you will need some items. Make sure you have a screwdriver, small pliers, multitester – sometimes referred to as a multimeter, a pen and labeling devices for wire labeling.

Most multitesters are hand-held with an LCD display. They have two wires referred to as leads. One wire is red and the other is black, with metal tips called probes. You can purchase one in almost any hardware store.

The multitester will be your aid in diagnosing electrical issues and you will also use it to measure resistance. The way this is done is by measuring the ohms - resistance of the wire to flow of electricity. The range of ohms goes from zero to infinity. A reading of zero ohms shows that it is very easy for the electricity to flow. A reading of infinity means there is no path for the electricity to go through.

There are five parts that may be causing your problem. They are the float assembly, float switch, water inlet valve, door switch, or the drain valve and solenoid –the coil.

-- The float assembly is a part that moves up with the rising water. When it reaches the float switch it triggers the dishwasher to stop filling up. If there is an obstruction of any kind that prevents the float assembly from reaching the switch the water will not fill up properly. If the float switch itself is broken the water will not fill up properly either.

-- The water inlet valve connects the hot and cold water to the dishwasher. The solenoids, or coils on the valve open to let the water fill to the proper temperature. If the valve is blocked or the coils fail to open properly the water will not fill completely.

-- If the dishwasher’s door doesn’t recognize that it is closed, the water will not be allowed to fill. One reason this might happen is if the prongs that are attached to the tub to alert the door switch that the door is closed, are broken. Another reason the switch might not recognize it is closed is that he door switch itself might be broken.

-- Your dishwasher has a single direction motor then you might need to check the drain valve or solenoid to see if they are working properly. Only dishwashers with single direction motors have drain valves.

To check to see if your dishwasher has a single direction or reversing motor count the amount of wires the motor has. If you see two or three wires you have a single direction motor. If you see four wires you have a reversing motor dishwasher.

The drain valve has a gate arm mechanism and a solenoid. The gate arm allows the water to flow out of the dishwasher's tub through the drain valve. The gate arm also has two springs attached to it. If the springs are missing or damaged, they should be replaced. Also look at the connectors to the solenoid. If you see corrosion of any kind they will need to be replaced. Either of these problems may be the reason the water in the dishwasher will not fill properly.

Once you have diagnosed the problem you can order your replacement part at PartStore and begin your repair.