Technical > Home Improvement > Dish washer arms not spinning

Dish washer arms not spinning

It would probably help to post the model number. Is there a lot of mineral buildup in it?

Thought it would be a more generic answer... Maytag - model MDC5100AWB. Some mineral deposits - been running vinegar thru it pretty regular, though not on a monthly basis.
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Brian

"It drops into your stomach like a Abrams's tank.... driven by Rosanne Barr..." A. Bourdain

reply to CylonRed
Maybe this will help:
»forum.appliancepartspros.com/dis···pin.html
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"Executive orders" or rule by fiat. You decide.

reply to CylonRed
I've had problems in recent years due to a combination of low hot water temp and the new detergents. Try running some citric acid dishwasher cleaner through it. Amazon has several brands. It has worked good for me. A few times I have needed multiple treatments to get everything clean.

reply to DataDoc
Hmmm - could be - though after looking at the bottom arm - I can't figure out how it comes off. I don't see any type of screw. I can take part 36 off (3rd diagram) or how part #5 is remotely located.
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Brian

"It drops into your stomach like a Abrams's tank.... driven by Rosanne Barr..." A. Bourdain

Look at the Q&A at the lower part of this page:
»www.appliancepartspros.com/whirl···625.html
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"Executive orders" or rule by fiat. You decide.

reply to CylonRed
I helped a neighbor with a similar problem. Through a very unsophisticated process, I discovered that the water supply screen had gotten clogged with debris. The city had just flushed hydrants days before, so I am guessing that knocked this stuff loose - rust and slivers of wood.

reply to CylonRed
No problem with flushing of the hydrants - they do tell us and when it is done - the water is never discolored even though we have a hydrant in our front yard.

I finally got the parts apart - lots of minerals - I took a picture and will upload it shortly.

Going to use a lot of vinegar though I might have to break out the CLR and gloves...
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Brian

"It drops into your stomach like a Abrams's tank.... driven by Rosanne Barr..." A. Bourdain

The CLR is great! The real one if you can find it. They cahnged the ingredients and made a new bottle but it does not work as well as the real one.
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Expecting the world to treat you fairly because you are good is like expecting the bull not to charge because you are a vegetarian.

reply to CylonRed

reply to CylonRed
Head to TSC - they'll have more heavy-duty stuff than the watered-down, consumer grade stuff Lowes and similar will sell.

reply to CylonRed
Got it cleaned up as well as I could - we have the older CLR. Had to work hard to clear out the arms - both ends were plugged up, especially on the upper arm.

Running CLR thru a cycle again - sounds like the arms are spinning again...
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Brian

"It drops into your stomach like a Abrams's tank.... driven by Rosanne Barr..." A. Bourdain

How did you cycle some CLR through it?

I have a dishwasher issue as well. I think the water doesn't get jetted up the arms as much as it should (If I interrupt mid-cycle, msot top dishes are only steamed, not soaked). So I want to do an attempt at clearing the residues. I can hear the dishwasher pump still works, or it's the arms, but there's a lot of noise, just not the splashing I'd usually hear against the door.

reply to CylonRed
By the looks of your picture, I'd be willing to bet that you are either on very hard water or are using the gel detergent. If your are using the gel, STOP. The stuff is crap and that is the end result from prolonged use. I see it just about every day.

reply to alkizmo
FYI - the newer CLR bottle that says something to the effect of "better for the environmental" sucks.

Try to find the original formula and stock up

I love CLR.
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Expecting the world to treat you fairly because you are good is like expecting the bull not to charge because you are a vegetarian.

reply to Bornloser
We have very hard water... I have used gels before and have some now but still trying to find a detergent I like.
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Brian

"It drops into your stomach like a Abrams's tank.... driven by Rosanne Barr..." A. Bourdain

reply to alkizmo
Used the instructions on the CLR bottle. Normal wash - when it gets to the actual wash cycle (past the first rinse) then add in a half cup of CLR and let it finish the cycle. Then run another full cycle using cold water.

Our arms were full of lime - I could not get all of it out but had to do a LOT of poking and prodding in the holes.

All I can do now if keep clearing the holes and call the softener repairman tomorrow.
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Brian

"It drops into your stomach like a Abrams's tank.... driven by Rosanne Barr..." A. Bourdain

I dont know if those instructions work every time.

My dishwasher sort of cause into a confused seizure when you interrupt it. It doesn't really resume, it seems to flush its water tank and start over with a fresh batch.

You and me, buddy, will be cleaning our dishwashers this week.
May I suggest you take OUT the arms, lay them in a shallow bucket large enough to hold the arms, then soak in CLR to let it sit for 24h or something.