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My dishwasher is not filling with water! What could cause that to happen?
Is the water to the house turned off?
No, it's nothing that obvious.
The first step is to check the water inlet valve. If the valve has broken, it may not
let water in.
That's one possibility. Could hard water cause that?
Hard water leaves behind mineral buildup that could clog the valve, but it could simply
break. A second possibility is the float switch.
What does the float switch do?
It tells the washer when to turn off the water. If it is malfunctioning, the unit won't fill
because it thinks it is full.
That's frustrating.
It's better than the opposite problem, when the unit continues to fill despite being full,
flooding your kitchen.
What's another possibility?
If the door switch is broken, the unit won't fill with water because it thinks there isn't
a proper seal.
Would opening and closing the dishwasher fix the switch problem?
Only if the door wasn't closed all the way the first time. And a malfunctioning switch
or door should be repaired before the problem gets worse.
So a failure to fill now is a prelude to a bigger failure later?
Maybe. And if the electronic controls are broken, it doesn't process the commands to
run, making the door switch irrelevant.
You mentioned a float switch. Is there a float, too?
Yes. If the float is stuck in the top position, the unit thinks it is full and won't fill
up.
And that is separate from the float switch.
Which could also be stuck in a "full" position.
I like all of the safety features until they become possible causes of the problem.
A dishwasher that won't run is an excuse to order pizza while the kids wash the dishes
by hand. Conversely, an air bag that deploys while you're driving is downright dangerous.
My kids with knives, soap and boredom are dangerous, too.
The work will make them appreciate the labor saving devices they have.
If you asked them what that was, they’d say it’s me.