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Bosch Dishwasher Warning

14 years ago

Just so others don't make the same mistake -- we bought a Bosch SHE4AM1 less than a year ago. Decided to go low end since we were replacing an expensive Kitchen Aid that died just short of five years old. Anyhow, the Bosch cleaned well for a couple of months. Now, after spending more time than we should have to cleaning gunk out of the sprayers we are basically washing our dishes first in hopes that the sprayers don't get gunked up again. Before we cleaned them out, everything in the top rack was gritty and spotted with gunk.

I googled "Bosch gritty glasses" and discovered I wasn't the only one with the problem. So I pass my experience on for what it is worth.

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Comments (8)

User
14 years ago
are you cleaning your filters too?
weissman
14 years ago
Do you have a high loop in your drain hose and/or an air gap to prevent backup of dirty water?
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ginih
14 years ago
Check to see if the rear tower that carries the water to the top racks is cracked at the side seam. You can take it out to inspect it. I've never had a problem with the spray arms getting clogged--might be that tower? Also, Dishwasher Magic once a month works great.
pigeen
Original Author
14 years ago
Thanks -- I clean the filters very regularly, also use Cascade Complete and rinse agent regularly -- no problem with the drain hose but will check the rear tower as that didn't occur to us. Thanks for the suggestions.
nesting12
14 years ago
Sometimes you do need to use that stuff that really cleans the whole thing out-- it's a big bottle of stuff and you run it with only that in. Maybe it's the Dishwasher Magic Gini2 mentions-- I don't remember the brand I used. But at any rate, if you don't always wash your dishes before they go in (and who does?) it's really helpful to use that stuff. It isn't the Bosch-- all dishwashers get yucky eventually from food.
homepro01
14 years ago
Nesting12,
It is incorrect to state that all dishwashers get yucky eventually. With constant use and hot water washings, unless you have extremely hard water and something is wrong with the functioning of your dishwasher there should be no real reason to use these cleaners. I use a dishwasher cleaner once a year on my miele just because it is what I have been taught. The machine is not dirty.
Pigeen,
There are methods to clean the sprayer with each machine, have you tried that? Also, do yo have hard water? Before throwing in the towel, I would try the various remedies. Also, what setting are you using on the dishwasher? Make sure you run the dishwasher cleaner at the highest temperature setting you dishwasher can go to.

Good luck!
wwu123
14 years ago
We had problems with black specks and residue on our dishes with our top-end Maytag. At first I thought the machine was corroded after sitting idle and neglected during a yearlong remodel. But the water heater had also been moved, and so I checked the dishwasher water temp after the initial fill. It was mostly getting cold to lukewarm water standing in the pipes because it only uses a few gallons, and this was probably not enough to really dissolve powdered detergent and activate the enzymes well.

So now I run the sink faucet until the water is hot before starting the machine, or set the high temp option when running on delay, and the specks and residue are gone. Still don't think the Maytag is a great dishwasher, but at least doing an OK job.
pigeen
Original Author
14 years ago
Thanks for all the feedback -- so far we can't find anything wrong other than clogged sprayers. So now that things are unclogged I'm being extra careful about what I put into the dishwasher. A pain, but better than dirty dishes. Will see how long this fix lasts.

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