Whirlpool WDT750SAHZ0 dishwasher performance pretty terrible.

[KevinO]

Hi, all

I have a Whirlpool WDT750SAHZ0 dishwasher that is doing a pretty bad job.  Attaching a plate pic.  I checked the drain filter and it didn't look very bad.  Cleaned it out but no change.  I changed the water inlet valve but still no change.  Any idea what's up?  

Thanks!

Kevin 

[Guest]

Is this a new issue?

Does the grime come off if you wash it by hand?

Any idea what the grime is? 

[vee8power]

What brand and type of detergent are you using? How old is your detergent? It should be less than a year old. The hot water supply to the kitchen faucet should reach at least 120°F whithin 60 seconds of running and the dishwasher should be connected to that water, not the cold side. Why did you change the water valve? Is the dishwasher not filling with water? Is it draining the water? Do you see this problem in just one rack or both racks of dishes? Examine the spray arms; they should rotate during operation and should be free of plugged holes and split sides. Let us know what you find.

[KevinO]

2 hours ago, Dr. Horshenschwartz said:

Is this a new issue?

Does the grime come off if you wash it by hand?

Any idea what the grime is? 

We bought the dishwasher used.  The only thing different than what we were doing before is the dishwasher.  Same detergent (it is echo friendly stuff that my wife buys), same hookup, same habits of waiting until it is full before running.  The old dishwasher did much better until it went bad.  

[KevinO]

1 hour ago, vee8power said:

What brand and type of detergent are you using? How old is your detergent? It should be less than a year old. The hot water supply to the kitchen faucet should reach at least 120°F whithin 60 seconds of running and the dishwasher should be connected to that water, not the cold side. Why did you change the water valve? Is the dishwasher not filling with water? Is it draining the water? Do you see this problem in just one rack or both racks of dishes? Examine the spray arms; they should rotate during operation and should be free of plugged holes and split sides. Let us know what you find.

The detergent is well under a year old.  We keep the hot water very hot.  It burns my hand.  I changed the water valve because it didn't seem to be getting enough water.  I'll run it again and check that it is draining ok.  The issue seems to be both racks but I have not ran it in quite a while.  I'll do a test run.  

I did find some clogging in the spray arm.  I'll post pictures below.  

Thanks! 

[KevinO]

[KevinO]

The water running throught the spray arm was after my attempt to clear debris from the holes. I was hoping that I could open it up but could not find a way.  Felt like I was going to damage it.  

[Guest]

Just off the top of my head perhaps the float in the bottom of the dishwasher is stuck and not allowing enough water to flow in. If it's stuck in the floating position it will think there is water when there is not. 

I think a good way to determine that is to run it as normal and soon after you hear it doing the wash cycle open the door and observe how much water is in the bottom. I do know how to express how much should be there but if it's really shallow then there's a problem. 

My other question is where is the grime coming from?  Did the example plate go in looking like that?  Can you guess what the grime is? Without knowing how the dishwasher was used before you got it someone could have been using it to clean auto parts.  I'm really not joking either. 

We have a really cheap dishwasher and I think just hot water alone would do better than what you're showing. You could try another dishwasher soap and see if it changes. 

You mentioned cleaning the filter but I saw on the diagram that there is a filter cup as well that can be cleaned. 

[KevinO]

The float moves freely but there is water sitting in the drain.  Is this normal?  Here is the drain and filter.  Could it be a issue with it not draining or pumping out the water properly?  I'll try to run it again today.  

[Guest]

Hard to say if any water should remain.  I'd lean on saying no but I don't know how much you're saying is in there. 

The basket and filter are obviously in need of a cleaning but I don't see anything on the pictures causing the grime. 

Did the example plate go in looking like it came out or did it become more visibly dirty after running a cycle?

Maybe there is an issue with the way you have it draining. Can you show your drain hose and where it connects to the drain? 

[KevinO]

Thank you very much for your help.  

It's hard to get pics of the drain hose but it's routed like my drawing below.  The hose goes up and through the cabinet and connects to a disposal.  

The water level in the drain is where dark plastic meets the lighter color in the picture.  I can get a closer pic if that helps.  

[Guest]

We can narrow some more things down if you can answer the following.

1. Did the example plate go in looking like it came out or did it become more visibly dirty after running a cycle? If it came out more dirty there has to be something contaminating the dishwasher.

2. Is the substance on plate oily to touch or give any indication as to what it is?

My best guess, and it's only a guess is that something is coming back through the drain and into the dishwasher.  

Without knowing how your homes drain sytem I couldn't confirm that to be possible.  

If the drain hose could be routed to drain into the sink while you run another load you could eliminate that something is backing up into the dishwasher.

 

 

[Guest]

Also you need to try running a load again and soon after the dishwasher stops filling with water and starting the wash cycle open the door and see how much water is in the bottom of the dishwasher. It should be pretty well full.

[Nathaniel Peterson]

By the looks of the filter and spray arms it looks like you're not checking for stickers at the bottom of the plates, cups. Most likely you need to thoroughly clean those spray arms with a paperclip or two until no debris is caught in the holes. After that use some cascade or finish detergent because not all dishwashers can use the organic detergents. Make sure when loading the dishwasher that nothing is right side up catching water because these dishwasher nowadays use very little water and anything turned right side up the can cause the wash pump to starve for water. Remove any food larger than a pea from the dishes. Anything larger especially rubber cutting board feet can clog the dishwasher. After that start a cycle and when it's done filling and starts washing about 4-5 minutes open the door really fast with your face out of the way and see if the spray arms are moving. Only one at a time will be moving. If there not you may have a clogged wash pump causing it not to pump the water fast enough with enough pressure to spin the spray arms. It's normal to have water underneath the filter to keep the seals from drying out. Also check the spray arms on the sides to see if they're starting to separate but usually this will cause the dishwasher to leak creating a tidal wave going towards the door. Good luck!

[KevinO]

I don't know what was on the example plate.  We had ran the dishwasher a few time and then just left it sit for a few months since the dishes were not coming clean.  But whatever was on it, it was not greasy.  Other dishes were not that bad.  

Good news.  After cleaning out the spray arm, it is doing quite a bit better.  My wife cleaned the filter today so hopefull the next wash will be even better.  

[KevinO]

Update.  Just pulled a couple of fruit bar code stickers out of the upper spray arm.  Bet it does a better job now.  These were not my stickers.  Bought it used.  

I also realized that the soap dispenser spring was loose.  I fixed that and now the dispenser opens all the way.  So many little things.