Bosch Logixx Dishwasher Stopping

[boschproblems]

Hi,

We have a Bosch Logixx SGS0902GB dishwasher that is, I think, about 6 years old. Two or three works ago we discovered that it stopped completing the cycle with anywhere between 52 and 54 minutes to go, but not every time. By opening the door, turning it off and on again, and re-starting it it usually then works fine. It happens probably every other time we use the dishwasher.

Yesterday, however, it stopped before it had even started. I pressed start, shut the door and walked away. Several hours later we discovered that it hadn't done anything.

I'm wondering if limescale may have caused a problem. We always used to use Finish dishwasher products but recently switched to Simply to try to be a bit more eco-friendly. In doing so the inside of the dishwasher became coated in limescale within a week of the switchover. I contacted Simply who said that even though their products say you don't need to use separate rinse aid etc that in high limescale areas you do need to use it. Since also using separate rinse aid the visible limescale has cleared up. This may just be a red herring, but it seems highly coincidental that we have never had a problem before and then this happens a short while after switching to a different product.

Any suggestions as to what I can try to fix it?

Thanks,

 

[caulkehead]

Did it actually stop at around the 50 minutes remaining - or just appear to have stopped (not making any noises) but with the timer continuing to count down ?

When in this state did you check to see if there was any water in it ?

The reason I ask is that I'm having a problem with ours which is does not seem to be taking in water at the stage between main wash and rinse cycles (ie. around the 50 minute mark) and then attempts to complete the rinse cycle with insufficient water in it. The timer continues to count down to 1 but the machine just sits there making a pumping noise and never completes the programme. If however I pour in a couple of pints of water (at the 50 minute mark) it's fine and finishes the cycle, the timer goes to 0 and the machine switches off.

Also I'm not sure whether you actually started the machine when you thought you had as with our Bosch Logixx (about 7 years old) the start button won't respond until the door is closed as there is a safety cut-out on the door latch. So 'pressed start, shut the door and walked away' wouldn't work.

 

[boschproblems]

It does actually stop around 54 to 52 minutes - it does not continue to count down. There is no water in it by the time we realise that it has stopped, other than a little bit in the filter area at the bottom.

On the one occasion it didn't seem to start at all it had displayed the words 'auto wash' something-or-other and then the length of time to run, which is what it always displays when it is starting. It does not display this if you haven't started it properly or if you have not shut the door properly. I presume ours is a different model than yours as the buttons are hidden along the top of the door, and totally inaccessible once the door is shut - therefore you have to press start and then shut the door.

We checked the water inlet filter last night and there was absolutely nothing in it, so I don't think it is a problem with that - although there is a big boxy thing that the water goes through just before this filter that I haven't a clue what it does, so don't know if it is related to this.

Did it actually stop at around the 50 minutes remaining - or just appear to have stopped (not making any noises) but with the timer continuing to count down ?

When in this state did you check to see if there was any water in it ?

The reason I ask is that I'm having a problem with ours which is does not seem to be taking in water at the stage between main wash and rinse cycles (ie. around the 50 minute mark) and then attempts to complete the rinse cycle with insufficient water in it. The timer continues to count down to 1 but the machine just sits there making a pumping noise and never completes the programme. If however I pour in a couple of pints of water (at the 50 minute mark) it's fine and finishes the cycle, the timer goes to 0 and the machine switches off.

Also I'm not sure whether you actually started the machine when you thought you had as with our Bosch Logixx (about 7 years old) the start button won't respond until the door is closed as there is a safety cut-out on the door latch. So 'pressed start, shut the door and walked away' wouldn't work.

 

[caulkehead]

As you say I think you have a different model to ours - certainly when it comes to the timer display and the location of the buttons. Our timer is numeric only and as far as I know cannot display error messages. So your machine is probably a later generation and might well have more sophisticated electronic programme controls, timing and sensors.

The reason I say this is because if our machine has an error (as it does at the moment) it doesn't just stop mid-programme as yours appears to be doing. But it's possible that it's related to the same, or similar fault which is that it is failing to take in more water between the main wash and the rinse. Perhaps your machine is clever enough to 'know' that there's not enough water in it so it stops. Ours just keeps going and we are oblivious to the problem until it gets to the end of the programme and then just 'hangs' with 1 minute on the display and the circulatory pump chunters away until someone turns it off. This is probably not doing the pump or other parts much good so maybe Bosch have now seen fit to instal an additional sensor and cut-out to prevent damage.

The configuration of the water inlet also sounds different to ours so I'm not sure I can help identify potential problems in that area - unless there is an element of confusion in what you mean by 'filter' and 'big boxy thing'. Are you describing the cylindrical filter in the sump at the bottom of the machine which you get to when you pull out the bottom crockery tray and the perforated stainless-steel panel ? If so, although the water does enter the machine via the sump it's not really anything to do with the water supply - but the filter should certainly be kept clean.

Can you try a test ? Run the machine on a normal setting and, assuming that the water supply is ok for the main wash cycle, let it get to the point where it stops. Then open the door and add water from a bucket or bowl until it just covers the base of the wash chamber. Close the door and re-start the machine. If it's like ours it will pick up from where it left off (although the timer may change to add another 10 minutes or so) but then it should complete the cycle. If this is what happens then it sounds like our machines have the same problem.

 

[boschproblems]

Thanks for the suggestion. Next time it stops I will try throwing in some water and see if it carries on.

I mean the filter on the end of the hose that feeds the water into the dishwasher. There is a boxy thing (oh, I'm so technical!) just before the filter as part of the hose.

We had obviously done the usual clean of the filter in the dishwasher itself previously - and that seems to very quickly clog but the only symptom of that getting disgusting is that the dishes don't get cleaned properly, so I already presumed it wasn't anything to do with that.