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ApplianceGuru.com: The Samurai Appliance Repair Forums > Do-It-Yourself Appliance Repair Help > The Kitchen Appliance Repair Forum > Maytag MDB4100 Dishwasher |
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ApplianceGuru.com: The Samurai Appliance Repair Forums > Do-It-Yourself Appliance Repair Help > The Kitchen Appliance Repair Forum > Maytag MDB4100 Dishwasher |
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| Moderated by: RegUS_PatOff, Pegi, appl.tech.29501 |
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| Maytag MDB4100 Dishwasher | Rate Topic |
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| Posted: Thu Nov 5th, 2009 11:06 pm |
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1st Post |
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LonnieGL Grasshopper
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I have two MDB4100 dishwashers in my kitchen and they've been flawless for over 10 yrs, until now. About a month ago I noticed one dishwasher was not circulating water during the wash cycle. It would fill normally, quietly run the motor during the wash cycle without circulating much water, then drain normally. After some research on this site and others I diagnosed a clogged filter. I took the machine apart down to the filter and found a clogged mess. Took it out, cleaned it like new, put it back together and everything worked perfectly. I figured I would do my second dishwasher as well while I had the tools out but was surprised to find a perfectly immaculate filter in that machine. Seemed odd since they're both used about the same amount Anyway today I noticed that my formerly clogged dishwasher is not cleaning again and I suspect the filter has clogged again. What ever part that is responsible for the "self cleaning" of this filter appears to have failed. Any suggestions before I take it apart and clean the filter again? For the record I should mention that these machines haven't been perfectly flawless. They were part of the Maytag recall 2 years ago and I had the door liners replaced by Maytag service due to potential leaking jet dry dispensers. I should also mention that we always used jet-dry which was leaking and caused a gooey wet mess inside the door over the wiring on both machines. Good thing I had it fixed and the new parts were clearly improved. Lucky they didn't burn up. Any suggestion about my "failure to self clean" problem would be greatly appreciated
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| Posted: Fri Nov 6th, 2009 01:27 am |
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2nd Post |
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Samurai Appliance Repair Man Fermented Grand Master of Appliantology 
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No self-cleaning feature per se for the filter on this model. But there are other things that can cause poor washability problems besides the filter: - spray arm hole plugged with partially plugged with gookus; remove and clean. -upper or lower spray arm binding; check twirlymagig action. - water fill level too low; should come up to the heating element. - ca-ca in the power module; tear down and cleanup.
____________________  If I've helped you with your repair, please consider supporting my flavorite charity: http://beer.fixitnow.com |
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| Posted: Fri Nov 6th, 2009 01:39 am |
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3rd Post |
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LonnieGL Grasshopper
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Water level is fne. It's weird though. You can here some water circulate when was cycle first starts but then it stops moving in a few seconds as if the pump gets starved for water. I'm quite sure the filter is all clogged up again at the water level. The filter in my other identical machine looks like new so it's getting cleaned somehow. I'll break it down this weekend.
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| Posted: Sat Nov 7th, 2009 01:10 pm |
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4th Post |
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LonnieGL Grasshopper
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OK so I opened it up and again the filter was totally clogged. Cleaned it and it works fine. The machine has gone 10 years without needing a filter cleaning and now twice in 2 months? Something is not right. At some point in the drain cycle water must be pumped backwards through the filter to clean it and this is not happening. What could be clogged to cause this? I looked on craigslist and found a neighbor selling a used MBD7100 for $30. She said it works fine. This seems to be the electronic version of my dishwasher. I was tempted to buy it and swap it out but it doesn't appear to have had the recalled jet-dry problem fixed. I'm afraid that the door may be gunked up with that stuff. Don't want to risk a fire. Last edited on Sat Nov 7th, 2009 01:16 pm by LonnieGL |
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| Posted: Sat Nov 7th, 2009 01:20 pm |
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5th Post |
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Samurai Appliance Repair Man Fermented Grand Master of Appliantology
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LonnieGL wrote:At some point in the drain cycle water must be pumped backwards through the filter to clean it and this is not happening. Unlikely. Is the dishwasher draining completely between cycles? Also, are you certain that the water level fills to where it is touching the bottom of the heating element?
____________________ If I've helped you with your repair, please consider supporting my flavorite charity: http://beer.fixitnow.com |
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| Posted: Sat Nov 7th, 2009 01:22 pm |
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6th Post |
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LonnieGL Grasshopper
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Drains quickly and completely and yes, fills right to the bottom of the element
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| Posted: Sat Nov 7th, 2009 01:37 pm |
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7th Post |
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RegUS_PatOff Fellow, Academy of Sublime Masters of Appliantology 
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LonnieGL wrote: ... The machine has gone 10 years without needing a filter cleaning and now twice in 2 months? Something is not right... Is there a difference on how (who) operates the dishwasher ? … and remember, no matter what the salesman says, it’s a dishwasher, not a garbage disposal. 
____________________ RegUS_PatOff http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPAY2LsKVEw my video production: “Easter Seals Walk With Me” (also in HQ) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EBiLyYXMiA Upon leaving this Earth "Do you want the Smoking or Non-Smoking section ?" |
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| Posted: Sat Nov 7th, 2009 02:37 pm |
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8th Post |
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LonnieGL Grasshopper
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nope. no difference. In fact we have two of them in our kitchen and we alternate. They both see identical use. When I opened the filter in the other one it was immaculate. The filter keeps the mess from circulating during the wash cycle. it should pump out during drain and this machine has a blade that spins and chops, so it does kinda work like a disposer. Anyway, we've been doing a better job pre-rinsing to try and keep the filter cleaner longer. I would hate to replace these machines because they have been incredible. It's the only dishwasher I ever had you can put in a burnt-on roasting pan and it gets it almost perfectly clean
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| Posted: Thu Dec 31st, 2009 04:09 am |
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9th Post |
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LonnieGL Grasshopper
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I am surprised nobody has had any suggestions on how to fix this problem. I have two identical dishwashers and suddenly one of them gets a clogged filter every month that I have to remove and clean out. Once cleaned, it works perfectly for about a month then I have to do it again. I never had to clean a filter on either machine for 10 yrs. Perhaps I need to break down the machine past the filter and see if anything is clogging the system. Apparently during the drain cycle, something shoud be pushing water backwards through the filter and down the drain. Somehow this self cleanng function is not happening. Anybody?
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| Posted: Thu Dec 31st, 2009 12:05 pm |
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10th Post |
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appl.tech.29501 Fellow, Academy of Sublime Masters of Appliantology 
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Never had this problem but I would tear it completely apart an inspect
____________________ If you would like to make a donation you may do so at the link below http://homepage.mac.com/zenzoidman/appl.tech.29501/ |
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| Posted: Thu Dec 31st, 2009 05:11 pm |
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11th Post |
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LonnieGL Grasshopper
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Ok I think I finally solved the problem, with little help from you guys I might add. It's Ok, I still love you anyway. Comments about the system not being self cleaning are incorrect. The Rinse Arm Assembly (Part 7 in schematic below) shoots water backwards through the filter keeping in clean. I'm surprised I didn't notice it before but all of the slits in my rinse arm were clogged, which prevented this self-cleaning function. Result? a clogged filter in about a month of use. Very simple fix to clean the slits in the arm out with a knife. In my machine, the slits are only half the depth of the arm with two toward the top, and two towards the bottom. I opened up my other machine which never had a problem and noticed the slits were the entire depth of the rinse arm. This other machine is about 1 year older but probably a slightly better design. Another easy reassembly mistake (which I did) which impacts the self cleaning function is that the pump cover (part 4) goes on one way, with the ducts on the bottom lined up to the ducts towards the rear of the pump assembly. It's easy not to notice it because the ducts are in the back and hidden. If you fail to do this, clean water during fill up will not get pushed through the assembly. If installed correctly, the lower arm should spin slowly during fill-up. One more comment regarding the comment about the machine not being a garbage disposal. That is not totally true. The cutter blade (part 18) actually does chop up the waste before going down the drain. You need to rinse off big stuff, but the machine does a fine job at chopping the rest. The culprit that causes problems is paper. The paper labels that come off of glass bottles we clean prior to recycling clogs the inner workings. I will not be doing that anymore. These dishwashers (I have two of them) have been the best I've ever owned, with minimal problems in 10 years. They clean incredibly with little or no pre-rinsing. Hopefully I found the problem this time. I'm pretty sure I did. Happy New Year http://www.partselect.com/Schematics/Maytag/52756.gif  Last edited on Thu Dec 31st, 2009 05:13 pm by LonnieGL |
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| Posted: Thu Dec 31st, 2009 06:08 pm |
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12th Post |
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KurtiusInterupptus Sublime Master of Appliantology
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UH correct me if I'm wrong but I believe our fearless leader instructed you to clean out your spray arm holes in a post much earlier in this thread...first thing on his list I believe. Little help from us? I think not. (but we still luv you) 
____________________ As every cockroach knows , thriving on poisons is the secret of success. |
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| Posted: Thu Dec 31st, 2009 07:49 pm |
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13th Post |
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LonnieGL Grasshopper
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KurtiusInterupptus wrote: UH correct me if I'm wrong but I believe our fearless leader instructed you to clean out your spray arm holes in a post much earlier in this thread...first thing on his list I believe. Yep, he did instruct me to clean out the spray arm holes (part 2 on the schematic link above), which I did. Many of them were clogged and the machine probably is cleaning better now as a result. Thanks fearless leader, but that wasn't the problem. The problem was in the slits on the rinse arm assembly (part 7). This part spins around on the inside of the filter assembly essentially blasting water backward through the filter. You can see the long slits drawn on the part in the schematic, but mine doesn't have those. Mine has short thin slits and when they're clogged with paper which is the same color as the part, its not really noticeable. Actually someone could help me if they would tell me how to remove the upper spray arm. I would like to clean all the holes in that one too. Thanks
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| Posted: Thu Dec 31st, 2009 08:40 pm |
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14th Post |
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Samurai Appliance Repair Man Fermented Grand Master of Appliantology
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Check these slits, too:
____________________ If I've helped you with your repair, please consider supporting my flavorite charity: http://beer.fixitnow.com |
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| Posted: Thu Dec 31st, 2009 08:54 pm |
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15th Post |
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LonnieGL Grasshopper
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nice
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| Posted: Thu Dec 31st, 2009 09:03 pm |
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16th Post |
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RegUS_PatOff Fellow, Academy of Sublime Masters of Appliantology
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similar Pump Assembly used on this model: Maytag Performa Dishwasher Service Manual
____________________ RegUS_PatOff http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oPAY2LsKVEw my video production: “Easter Seals Walk With Me” (also in HQ) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-EBiLyYXMiA Upon leaving this Earth "Do you want the Smoking or Non-Smoking section ?" |
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| Posted: Fri Jan 1st, 2010 12:06 am |
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17th Post |
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KurtiusInterupptus Sublime Master of Appliantology
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now look what you gone and done... you made the Boss wanna cut himself  Jokes aside, that is a valid distinction and worth remembering Last edited on Fri Jan 1st, 2010 12:09 am by KurtiusInterupptus ____________________ As every cockroach knows , thriving on poisons is the secret of success. |
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| Posted: Fri Jan 1st, 2010 01:50 am |
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18th Post |
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Samurai Appliance Repair Man Fermented Grand Master of Appliantology
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KurtiusInterupptus wrote:
Well, 'course you never really want to cut yourself. But, it's an honor kind of a thing. And since I couldn't go to Lonnie's house to slice open my belly and spill my steaming entrails on her carpet, I had to improvise like they done taught us in Samurai school. In fact, here's my class picture:  Can you guess which one is me?
____________________ If I've helped you with your repair, please consider supporting my flavorite charity: http://beer.fixitnow.com |
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| Posted: Fri Jan 1st, 2010 02:21 am |
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19th Post |
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LonnieGL Grasshopper
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Samurai you're fully redeemed if you'd kindly tell me how to remove the upper spray arm so I can clean out the clogged holes. It stays stationary so I'm sure it's clogged up.
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| Posted: Fri Jan 1st, 2010 02:32 am |
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20th Post |
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Samurai Appliance Repair Man Fermented Grand Master of Appliantology
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Dayyam, you're EASY, darlin'! Behold: Just unscrew that plastic retaining nut and you're golden. It'll fall right off in your palm.
____________________ If I've helped you with your repair, please consider supporting my flavorite charity: http://beer.fixitnow.com |
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| Current time is 09:36 pm | Page: 1 2 |
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