SOLVED Cleaning a dishwasher's water inlets
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Our trusty dishwasher (Bosch Exxcel) had recently been getting worse at the daily job of crockery cleaning, and today it simply did no cleaning at all! On starting the wash cycle there was no water coming out of the cleaning arms, and the "check water" light had come on. To fix this, I did the following (after turning off the water and electricity supply to the machine):
Remove the top cover. This is held in place by clips at the back; use a flat-head screwdriver to prise each one up, and the top should then slide back a couple of centimetres. You can then lift it off.
Remove the left side panel. There are two torx screws on the front of the dishwasher; undo these, and the panel should pop off.
Looking at the left side of the machine, you'll see a soft-plastic pipe system. Near the top is a float devices. Ours was surrounded by brown gunk, so we removed the unit and gave it a good old clean with lots of water and detergent. It's very difficult to get at the section containing the gunk, so we kept shaking and gently banging it until most of the gunk had come out. NOTE removing this plastic pipe unit is straightforward, but there are several pipes going into it! Keep note of what goes where, and you'll need pliers to remove the circlip keeping the water inlet hose in place.
Clean out the pressure chamber. This was completely full of slimy brown gunk, and was the main culprit for a lack of water supply. Looking at the left of the machine, it's at the bottom and near the right. It has a micro-switch and a hose attached; both of these need disconnecting before pulling the unit out. After cleaning, don't forget to replace the red rod in the correct place, as otherwise the machine won't know when water is flowing!
I strongly recommend taking photos of things before you take anything apart. You can see from my photos and video below that there are lots of pipes and a bit of electrical componentry visible, so it would be easy to confuse things. If you don't feel confident, just stop and get a professional applicance repair technician in. Whatever you do, you do so at your own risk! The information here is what worked for me - but it may not work for you!
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Very helpful post. My Bosch Exxcel dishwasher has started leaving standing water in the bottom at the end of a wash cycle, although it still seems to be cleaning the dishes effectively.
Yours was the only post I could find showing pictures of the water inlet manifold, and mine has just the same gunk in the top left hand corner. I can't see What's inside that part, but I note that you refer to a float. Do you think that this might have anything to do with the machine not pumping out fully at the end of the cycle? (It does so partially, although the pump appears "hesitant", operating briefly,pausing, and then continuing, and the flow in the drain pipe doesn't sound as strong as I remember it used to be.)
Any suggestions most welcome.
Thanks for your prompt reply. The part of your original post which I was referring to read, “Looking at the left side of the machine, you'll see a soft-plastic pipe system. Near the top is a float device. Ours was surrounded by brown gunk, so we removed the unit and gave it a good old clean with lots of water and detergent.”
My problem is not water not coming into the machine, but a residue of standing water at the end of the cycle. However, having put it back together again and run a few washes it otherwise seems to be cleaning affectively, and the amount of residual water is slightly less than before. So I shall probably leave it for the time being and see how it goes. If I need to open it up again I shall clean out the water manifold as you suggest. Thanks again anyway.
Hugh