Need help fixing our Maytag quiet series 300 dishwasher......

[TheGoodGuy]

So about 3 weeks ago our dishwasher after it finished its cycle did not cut off the heating part as required. The heating element was on all night along until the next afternoon when I pulled the dishes out. It shuts off when you open the door, but restarts when you close the door.

My mom called Sears (where we bought it from) and they scheduled a person to come out today.
In the mean time between sears's service call and the day it broke, I called Maytag and they took the information and then referred us to sears who does the maytag repair stuff.

Anyway Sears came by today and this what apparently is wrong with it.
1. Electronic Timer - $158
2. Latch assembled - $63 (latch has been broken for a few months now, has not given us a problem with the machine though)
3. Electronic Board controller / Panel - $170
4. Labor - ~$150

All together it came to around 500+ bucks in total. I told my parents it might be cheaper to buy a new dishwasher, however given that I'd rather try fix it myself than pay sears 500+ for it.

I found the parts are rather cheap, the latch assembly is about 10 bucks. But the rest of it is about 250 or so.

So the question is what may be wrong with it. Obviously the sears guy is replacing all electronic parts to fix the problem, the timer and the control board (without actually finding the problem to fix it - replace parts, hope it works). This series of Maytag has been known to have major issues just google it and you will see it. The panel breaks easily apparently.

So question is how much of doo doo have I gotten into by trying to go the "buddha" way of fixing things.

[The Buddha]

The buddha has a parts washer ... not a machine that sloshes cleaning solution onto motorcycle parts, but a washing machine that is mainly for donating parts for the working one.
If it was a kenmore 70-90 series I'd be your man ...
Maytag - there is a appliance repair site actually ... search around ... its the GSTwin of appliance repair (ironic, cos the gstwin sounds like a vacuum cleaner, so gstwin could be your appliance help site) ...
Cool.
Buddha.

[TheGoodGuy]

Well  there are appliance sites and what not, I know I got to disassemble it and replace the panels and what not. However I am wondering if anybody can guess what it might be or should I just do what the sears guy is doing, replace everything and hope it works.

Me thinks that the problem might be in the timer itself, but who knows. I just want it to work.

[DoD#i]

Overly computerized appliances. Probably fried it's motherboard in some sort of power surge, or hit the end of the "am I in warrantee? Is it time to self-destruct yet?" timer and committed suicide.

Certainly the Sears approach is the "shotgun" - replace it all and hope you got what was broken. Works for them - either you pay them inflated parts prices and labor, or you give up and buy a new washer. Probably one of the timer or the controller is broken, unless one breaking killed the other - but which is anyone's guess unless you can see a physical problem. Of course, if you are having them do the labor it's likely cheaper to replace both than to replace one and have the guy do over if that wasn't it.

New might still be better - sure, it's less satisfying - but your new parts probably come with no warrantee at all, so if you fix it and it breaks again next week (bad design, after all) you're out the hassle and what you spent on parts this time...fixing stuff really doesn't make economic sense sometimes the way crap is built like crap these days. They put in fragile computers where a nice robust electro-mechanical timer is called for, and laugh all the way to the bank.

[Paulcet]

Best place to buy appliance parts: http://www.repairclinic.com/

If it was me, I'd look carefully at the timer controller and main board to see if it make sense that both would need to be replaced.  If it looked like the timer alone could be the problem, I'd just replace that.  Then maybe the main board.  Post a pic of the two maybe?  Maybe the electronics gurus here can give some advice then.

[TheGoodGuy]

Well I found an online maytag repair guide (factory i think) Its poorly written.

Anyway I put the dishwasher into its field service test mode and it passed that no problems. I then put it into manual test mode but they didnt give any instructions on what you are supposed to do with that. I turned on the heater and that works... well duh.

I looked at the wiring diagram for the board. I may have to run some resistance testing with it. I am supposed to get between 14.5 and 16.5 ohms between the heating coils. However there is a 'thermostat' before the heating coils and I believe that may have failed.

Since the heating coils are working fine the only thing upstream of that is the thermostat. I hope its a replaceable piece and not part of the main board.

I'll need some torx bits to open this unit, any place to get good quailty torx bits. The screws on the unit look like cheap crap.

[TheGoodGuy]

Okay I am 100% sure its the thermostat. Its a 5$ part but I have NO idea where that is located.

Any clues?

[The Buddha]

I got torx at harbor freight, including the security bits. So its secure as long as the theif does not shop @ harbor freight.

The thermostat sometimes is right behind the knob - it was on my kenmore, in fact everythign in my kenmore is behind there ... and of course its only problem tends to be leaking and that was down @ the bottom ... so there ...

Cool.
Buddha.

[cafeboy]

Just hand your wife a dish rag and say " hey the dishwasher looks to be working fine from here "
I told my wife ones when she said I want a dishwasher that I married one. Did not like what I got from that but you can give it a try. 

[jserio]

i don't care who ya are, that's funny right there! i got my lil dishwashers growing up....that's why my parents said they had me anyways. 

[cafeboy]

i got my lil dishwashers growing up....that's why my parents said they had me anyways. 

[TheGoodGuy]

too bad i am not married .. so no wife to pawn it off on.

I found some schematic that says its in the bottom behind the kick panel.. so i will look into it. However do you guys know if the thermostat is the problem.. i could replace and see if that fixes it.

[Jughead]

Just hand your wife a dish rag and say " hey the dishwasher looks to be working fine from here "
I told my wife ones when she said I want a dishwasher that I married one. Did not like what I got from that but you can give it a try. 

You know why a womans feet are smaller than a mans?


So they can stand Closer to the Sink.


OH I'm going to catch Hell on that one.  

[DoD#i]

Almost certainly not the thermostat. read your own problem description:

"After the cycle ends it does not cut off as required" - That's a timer / control logic problem, not a thermostat problem. Thermostat problem is too hot, too cold. You have "On when should not be on" - could be a relay welded closed, could be a logic chip with a bad case of fritz. Not a thermostat, IMHO.

[cafeboy]

You know why a womans feet are smaller than a mans?
So they can stand Closer to the Sink.

I need to use that one. 

[spc]

I've got the same washer and quite frequently have the urge to shoot it.

[jserio]

how long have you had it? maybe it has served its use and you've gotten your money's worth and it's time for an upgrade?

[TheGoodGuy]

DoD#I, you are right, its probably not the darn thermostat, but its an easy fix and costs $5 to see if that could be it.

SPC: Apparently there are a lot of negatives against this series of dish washers, ours works fine. Apparently the new ones dont clean well and this is because they forgot to put something called a "Section D" clip on the upper and lower control arms or something.. Google for it.

Ours works fine, we bought it in December 2005.

Manjul

[The Buddha]

how long have you had it? maybe it has served its use and you've gotten your money's worth and it's time for an upgrade?

I paid 50 for mine in 1995. I got the kenmore 90 for parts, free in 2006. Afterall I had to haul it to my house from this clown's second floor bathroom.
I'd definetly no say I have my $$ worth from it. It spins, it is OK ...  ... anyway, I swapped the 90's pump into the 70 in 06. When somehting else in the 70's body broke, I reversed the swap and put the 90 to work with the other part that it had broken (door switch) zip tied shut. That switch broke several times till I hard wired it and got rid of it completely.
I aint buying another POS with fragile electronics ... this gotta rally realy really die ...
Cool.
Buddha.

[DoD#i]

If it otherwise works OK, put a heavy-duty countdown timer (2 hours would cover most cycles) in the line feeding power to the dishwasher, and add "set the timer" to procedures for starting the dishwasher. That will cut the heater off when it's done.