Dishwasher Not Heating Water

[RM209]

Yesterday my 9-year old Kenmore dishwasher heating element stopped working. I used the troubleshooting guide and a couple of websites to identify the potential causes of the problem:

--Failed heating element; according to the schematic, it should have between 10 and 30 ohms of resistance. Checked mine; it has 9.6 ohms; seems pretty close to the minimum, so I'm guessing that's not the problem. Am I correct?

--Failed thermostat (high limit switch); web site said it should have 0.1 ohms of resistance. Mine has 0.1 ohms, but the website also said it could have 0.1 ohms and still fail. Is this a possible culprit?

--Electronic module; it will run the basic diagnostic checks, apears to be working correctly, and cleared the initial fault code. When I run the dishwasher it generates a 3-blink code. Doesn't seem to be an easy way to check for failure of the module.

--Jammed/dirty sump in dishwasher; although this sounds remote, a website said that a jam up in the sump could cause irregular water levels and cause the high limit switch to have incorrect readings. Update: cleaned it last night; looked clean.

Any suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks,
RM209

 

[MrMark]

Is this a temp boost feature? Why do you need this? I have one on my Maytag and it has never come on that I know of. The lower the resistance the less heat. Your element is likely bad.

 

[RM209]

As far as I know my unit doesn't have the temp boost feature. Although I suspect it's the heating element as well, I 'm looking for a way to test (or rule out) the heating element and the thermostat (high limit switch).

Thanks,
RM209

 

[Flivver250]

Buy the wife a new sponge and some Dawn.

 

[djjsr]

I had no idea that a dishwasher heated the water. I thought that heating element was to dry the dishes. I guess I learned something today. Or maybe our dishwasher doesn't do that?

 

[justsam]

Resistance seems right. If you can disconnect it and apply 120 volts that will confirm.
You can TEMP jump across high limit for test purpose ONLY!

 

[Milton Shaw]

Look at all the connections in the circuit from the module to the heater. That age could have a good chance of high resistance from soap/water in them. You haven't changed the house water heater have you. All of the new ones come set so low no dishwasher will work correctly unless hot water is run in the sink to get the lines hot.

 

[RM209]

Fixed the dishwasher; it was the thermostat (high limit switch).

Thanks for the ideas (other than Flivver's).

RM209

 

[bullnerd]

Where can I find the troubleshooting guide? I think mine has the same problem.

 

[RM209]

Where can I find the troubleshooting guide? I think mine has the same problem.

Mine was located inside the removeable kickplate cover located below the door.

Good luck.

RM209

 

[MrMark]

How did you know it was not heating water?

From what I've been able to tell the heating element is only there for "sani-rinse" and as a temp boost feature to pick up the water temp a little bit - but not from cold incoming water.

Are you running the faucet water until it runs hot before turning the dishwasher on?

The thing I'm trying to figure out is how did you even know if the heating element was working?

 

[bullnerd]

Thanks, And what Mark said.

 

[RM209]

How did you know it was not heating water?

From what I've been able to tell the heating element is only there for "sani-rinse" and as a temp boost feature to pick up the water temp a little bit - but not from cold incoming water.

Are you running the faucet water until it runs hot before turning the dishwasher on?

The thing I'm trying to figure out is how did you even know if the heating element was working?

The first clue there was a problem was the sequence of blinking lights; I went on the internet, and it revealed there was a problem with the heating process. However, the real clue was there was a film on the water glasses that apparently occurs if the heater isn't working. Also, when you open the door after the entire wash/rince/dry cycle is complete, the dishes will still be quite warm, even after 30-45 minutes. When the limit switch failed, the dishes were barely warm.

RM209

 

[MrMark]

That's for heated dry though. The same element boosts the water temp when needed from what I can tell. So you just deduced from this that it must not be heating (boosting) the water? I am wondering how anyone would ever know if the water boosting feature was not working if they just used "air dry"?

 

[RM209]

That's for heated dry though. The same element boosts the water temp when needed from what I can tell. So you just deduced from this that it must not be heating (boosting) the water? I am wondering how anyone would ever know if the water boosting feature was not working if they just used "air dry"?

If the dishes were always coming out of the dishwasher clean you might never know. However, if you wondered, you could open the diswasher during the Wash and Rinse cycles, and determine whether the water was hot.

RM209

 

[bullnerd]

My wife stuck one of these cleaners in ours that is supposed to melt and clean the inside of the washer....it didnt melt.