Hotpoint DWF50 Dishwasher Tripping Breaker Switch

Hi,

I have recently acquired the above dishwasher however when i start a program it runs for about 4-5 mins and then trips the breaker switch in my home. If i turn the switch back on then the program resumes and within 30-45 seconds it trips again.

I opened up the machine and took the bottom off to check for shorted wires or loose pipes and all now appears fine (it had been leaking previously as the drip tray has rust all inside it but after tightening a few clips/pipes it no longer leaks).

Can anyone advise what may be causing the problem and how it may be fixed?

Any help would be much appreciated.

Many thanks.

if you are sure it has dried out and there is no rust sediment still caught in electrical parts, it might be that the heating element has broken down (they sometimes do that with age).

But I would suspect your leak problem first. You may need to take apart and clean out the parts that have been wet, then dry them with a hair drier.

p.s. it would be useful if you say what the Breaker Switch is that trips. What's written on it? has it got a test button?

I am guessing it is an RCD not an MCB.

Hi JohnD, thanks for your reply.

The switch that tripped was the main one in my flat which powers all the electricity (excluding lights). I think it is an RCD. After it happened a couple of times though I plugged the dishwasher into an extension lead which has a built-in circuit breaker so that I wouldn't have to reset all my alarms clocks etc if it happened again. Therefore, when it happens now, it is just the circuit breaker in the extension lead that trips. Does this make a difference?

I have noticed that the lower section of some kind of motor (which lies quite low at the bottom of the dishwasher) has rusted as a result of the previous leaking but it does not appear to have affected the coils. No other components appear to have rusted apart from the drip tray itself.

I will get a hair dryer out on the other parts as you recommend, but await any further comments in the meantime.

Many thanks again, much appreciated.

if you can post a pic of the rusty bits, someone may have experience of the problems.

Yes, it does sound like it is an RCD, which trips on a current leakage to earth, usualy due to a fault, damage, or water ingress. you can recognise an RCD because it has a Test button on it, and usually says "Test monthly" or similar. You are lucky if the "garden" RCD on the extension trips before the main one, they often both trip at the same time. though in my experience, on test, my RCD adapators used to trip faster than the big one in the CU.

MCBs trip on overcurrent or short circuit, and do not have a test button. they replaced the old fuses.

BTW an RCD that is not tested monthly, is much more likely to stick, and fail to trip in an emergency.