Thanks so much for your insight @Sea Sea. The on staff plumber did remove the drain tube from the sink and put the tube in the bucket while it drained. They checked the connection into the drain pipe for debris. But they put it back together. Then did a little test cycle. I can see how it could yield different results by doing these two steps together.

I just spent a chunk of time calling around to different repair places and found one that changes only $75 to come diagnose. I think I will call them out and make sure they try what you described. Very useful. Thanks.

The only appliance seller left that still offers their own maintenance or repair services is Sears.

Surviving Sears stores:

• Alaska: Anchorage (Home & Life)
• California: Burbank, Concord, Stockton, Whittier.
• Colorado: Fort Collins (Appliance & Mattress)
• Florida: Miami, Orlando, Palm Beach Gardens.
• Hawaii: Honolulu (Appliances & Mattress)
• Kansas: Overland Park (Home & Life)
• Louisiana: Lafayette (Home & Life)

The pump issue, if that's what it is, is not caused by small bits of debris in the supply line. It might cause it to not fill properly, but it won't cause a problem draining. There is a screen in the water inlet to prevent such crud from making it to the solenoid valve, and if there's a lot of debris, that clogs up. Again, that won't cause it not to drain.

Was the dishwasher circulating water still - even though it didn't drain? I ask because that's typically the same pump.

Typically it's at least two trips to fix anything like that: 1. to diagnose it, and 2. to install the replacement part. It's all time intensive (travel, order parts, etc.). and a lot of boogie - and it's not always done in 2 trips. I had my new dishwasher out four times for the same warranty issue. The last time I told them just to send me the part - forget the service tech - and I'd replace it (the control module). That entire episode probably cost somebody (not me) more than a replacement unit by the time the tech was out there 3 times ( one to diagnose, two trips with parts that didn't repair the issue).

It's tough to make appliance repair like that be even reasonably profitable.

What's more, I had to take off work, etc.

You are going to get this fixed faster, with less time off work, if you just replace the machine.

So let's talk about the extended warrantee...

If the pump is bad, 2.5 years is a premature failure. It doesn't happen often. I'm sorry it failed, but sometimes it happens.

It's going to cost you $1,540 to replace it (not including extended warranty) or less if you purchase it at a big box ( that unit sells for $750 at Lowes in your area).

It's not very wise to spend $200 to "insure" a $1,500 purchase - for what - 4 years past the factory warranty? What's more, generally there are plenty of "exclusions" such as issues the customer causes, electrical surges, water supply issues, etc.. And labor may or may not be included. You may not be getting the protection you think you are.

Put that $200 in the bank, along with all the other extended warrantees you are tempted to pay for, and self-insure.

Appliances Connection

• Bosch SHSM63W55N ($830 after rebate)
• Dellivery ($0)
• Installation parts ($20)
• Installation ($150)
• Haul-away of old dishwasher ($40)

Total: $1,040

The drain pump on a Bosch is a separate component from the recirculation pump.

I got my 800 repaired at 5 years - $500 to repair. I considered buying a new one but they no longer had the same model - it's black so that's a limiting factor. My problem was the main board and the control panel - took five trips for the repair person to get the entire job done. Couldn't tell that the control panel was bad until the main board was replaced. I too wondered about getting another Bosch but in spite of this problem repair person felt Bosch is still the best choice in dishwashers. I had a Miele in a previous home - at twice the price of the Bosch - and it was also problematic.

I would repair it if you can find someone to do it for a reasonable price (though of course that's a big if!) We had the impeller pump fail a few years ago on our then 10-year-old Miele, which resulted in the same symptoms yours has. After all was said and done, it looks like it was caused by glass or some other foreign object jamming the impeller, which then exhausted itself trying to move and eventually quit. We are decently handy so used the Miele repair manual to decode the error and then took it apart with the help of YouTube videos. We discovered that through dumb luck, we live a few miles from one of the makers of some of the DIY videos (shout out to Scott The Fix-It Guy--highly recommend his helpful channel!) He was able to help us isolate the problem via email. We then ordered the part from Miele and had him install it for us since I didn't feel super confident that we'd get everything put back together correctly. All has been well in the years since then, so more than worth the cost of the repair. The actual replacement of the pump was pretty straightforward on the Miele, and I believe Boschs are (or at least used to be?) similarly easy to work with mechanically. Hope the repair person is able to help you figure it out!

After a bum Kitchen Aid and Bosch (both high end) we just buy low end and plan to replace every five years.

@pigeen: "we just buy low end and plan to replace every five years."

You may not have to. They can last a long time. I just replaced the control board on my 2005 Whirlpool DU1055XTPS3 -- "The Greatest Dishwasher Ever Sold" -- after it failed and energized the detergent dispenser solenoid continuously. I could have replaced the DW for <$700 (DIY install) but why not pay $130 for the part to save a dishwasher that washes perfectly? (Cascade Powder detergent highly recommended.)

Have you tried removing the bottom rack, the wash arm and filter and take a look in the sump? That's where the drain pump impeller is and something like a seed, bone or piece of glass could have jammed it.

couple questions, does it also fail to heat up the water and is there a smell coming from the dishwasher. If so I wonder if you are having the same problem I had on my Bosch in my last home. I don't honestly remember the model number. It also didn't drain. Turns out the control board? had to be replaced. I hired a local repair guy and I believe the whole thing cost me about $450. That was about 2 1/2 years ago. He also pointed out that as good as Bosch is their circuitry can fry quickly.

This can be hard to diagnose over the internet, but you had mentioned you're not very handy. That turns this into largely a personal question of much you're ok spending to have it repaired. Are you ok potentially spending more than 50% of the purchase price? I'm not being sarcastic here. I've had things I would literally spend 100% of the purchase price to have repaired. I would first get the $75 person out to look at it and decide from there. At least you'll have an idea of the scope of what would be indicated. As to the question of a dirty supply line - yes it's possible but you'll usually see signs of residue elsewhere in the home if the supply is crummy enough to start affecting appliances. That being said, a 25 or 50 micron sediment filter is a very simple way to remove the basic debris in the water that can start to affect appliances. If there's rust in the water, which isn't uncommon, it can slowly build up in appliances and a sediment filter will address this.

Thanks for all of your comments.

1. It drained fine for the repair guy!

I had the $75 repair guy out, who ended up being $140 after taxes and charging me to put on the pump cover, which I had left off thinking he would be taking it off anyway. It drained fine for him - Murphy's law! He said it wasn't working because the drain cover was not on. I explained to him that prior to removing the drain cover, it had failed to drain on three different trials. He still insisted this was the cause, which makes no sense to me. I ran a 9-minute rinse cycle after he left and it drained fine. Go figure? I'll be so lucky if there really is not problem.

2. He said it is absolutely not the pump.

He said if it happens again he suspects it will be the control board. Because he has seen the machine he can give me an estimate for that over the phone and will deduct the $140. I think I would rather pay to repair a machine than have it end up in a scrap pile or worse a landfill.

3. "That being said, a 25 or 50 micron sediment filter is a very simple way to remove the basic debris in the water that can start to affect appliances."

I need to look up what this is and how easy it is to install myself. Our subzero water dispenser will not work because of debris from pipes. Our sinks are slow and have to be cleaned regularly. We have full building water shut off about every 6 weeks and it really blows so much crud out.

4. "Flush the lines for a while with that faucet if you can. The other water inlets will still have debris, but the this faucet will take a lot of the load. It helps, a little bit."

This is very good advice. I had not realized that the majority of crud could come out of one line. I thought it would be evenly distributed throughout supply lines no matter what.