Hello, first post on here. I have an old Kitchen Aid Imperial dishwasher. Just found out the other day that the arm is not spinning. When I ran it for a bit I did see some water spraying out of the arms but now nothing. I still feel some air pressure coming out of the arm.
I took apart as much as I could and cleaned things up. There was only a small amount of food trash in there. I’ve seen in other posts to check the float switch but I can’t figure out how to get the kick plate off. Another thing is the chopper but again I can’t figure out how to get to it. This dishwasher is old and not put together like some of the videos I’ve seen.
Not sure if I explained this well at all so I’ll include a link to a short video showing what the issue is. Thanks in advance!
Your water supply isn’t even filling up to your float switch at all. Sounds like your sump pump or drain pump is struggling or going out. Come on dude that machine is so old did you dumpster dive to get it from an dead persons estate sale? lol. Parts aren’t even available for that unit anymore.
HumboldtRepairMan said:
the float switch is in your face and you don’t see it it’s the round object in the back
I don’t think that’s it. I took the top off, its a rigid metal dome, a round metal disc under that and nothing else in the molded tube. Link to photo below.
I’ve watched many YouTube videos but didn’t see any dishwasher that is laid out like mine. That’s why I came to this forum. Thanks!
This unit is so old there is no tech data available, at least none that I can find.
The float switch is usually just a safety device. It kills power to the water valve if the unit overfills so i doubt it is your problem.
Looking at your video I think that your unit is draining at the same time as it is trying to fill.
I did find a parts list, see below http://www.youserguide.com/wiki/Whirlpool_KDI-17A_parts-001
Page 4 has a the pump diagram and page 5 the parts listing.
Item 30 looks like a drain valve.
This should probably be off when the unit is filling.
Check if it has 120 volts to it when it is trying to fill.
If yes then it is probably a timer problem.
If no then it is probably a drain valve problem.
denman said:
Looking at your video I think that your unit is draining at the same time as it is trying to fill.
YOU WERE RIGHT! I followed the drain line to the relay or switch or whatever that stops up the line. Took the piece apart to find a small piece of plastic in there stopping the rubber stopper from sealing. Took the junk out, reassembled and everything is now working great! Thanks again for the drawings!