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Repair information for Bosch dishwashers.

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Why does my dishwasher only work on a 70 degree wash?

I have a Bosch dishwasher - model - SMV50c00 and I keep getting water left in the bottom and the tap warning light with an incomplete cycle.

I have checked the filters and pipes for a blockage or kink. All ok.

However the machine will run perfectly on a 70 degree hot cycle but none of the others- not even a rinse. I end up with an incomplete cycle and water in the bottom of the machine covering the filter.

The machine is 2 1/2 years old and now out of warranty so not sure if i should just buy a new one or pay for a repair.

Surely this can't be a heating problem because it heats on the 70 deg cycle. Is this something to do with the programming?

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This is probably related to the labyrinth being polluted with sludge (it’s the most common cause in this type of dishwasher). Quite a lot of Bosch dishwashers have this problem, but luckily it’s fixable without paying for repairs.

What happens is that the switch for the bottom compartment fails to trigger the pump. Once that one fails to trigger, the fallback will, which will shut off the cycle to prevent flooding the house, which is actually quite a nice feature :) This switch is normally triggered by a small floater, which is most often embedded in the labyrinth. The labyrinth is where all water flows through, and over the years can get accumulated sludge in it. Normally this isn’t a problem, but the floater can get sticky, and therefore no longer respond to the changing water level. Washing on higher temperatures makes it ‘unstick’ for a while, and trigger the pump as it should. Cold rinses just make it stick better.

The labyrinth can be found on the outer left side of the dishwasher, so unfortunately you need to remove it from it’s enclosure if it’s a built-in. Remove the left side panel, and you’ll find a large part of slightly opaque white plastic. This is the labyrinth. In there should be a small (probably red) floater. Prepare a few liters of scalding hot water, with a dishwasher tabled solved in it. Using a small funnel or a small watering can, rinse the floater with the prepared solution. The labyrinth will drain itself, and the system should not flood, but keep towels handy just to be sure. Once you poured a few liters you should see the floater start to move freely again.

Test the dishwasher while still open, and verify everything is in expected working order before building it back in.

Good luck, and please let us know if it’s fixed by this or that we need to dig a bit further.

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4 Comments:

Thank you so much for this detailed reply. Unfortunately we couldn't work out how to remove the labrynth to flush it & ended up damaging one of the wire clips :-(

I think you must be correct because when I poured boiling water into the filter inside the machine it seemed to help with the cycle

After spending g quite a time trying to remove the labrynth and feeling rather frustrated we damaged one of the clips so decided to just go and buy a new machine because we need it for Christmas entertaing!

I really appreciate the time you took to try to help me.

I have purchased a cheaper model this time - a Beko and it has been a nightmare to install- instructions were awful but no point in wasting money on a more expensive model that didn't last anyway.

Thanks again.

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Hi,

Could you help me on how to clean the labyrinh? Where can I find a hole to put some cleaning liquid into the system?

THX,

Balazs

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Hi Balazs, You can either try to remove it completely (but i would advise against it), or you can just pour the water on top of the red floater. There is a small (2 cm) opening there which allows you to (using a small funnel) rinse that part of the labyrinth.

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I have a Siemens sn54d501eu and it has a different configuration I guess. Check pics please in a different post below. It's not my machine, I found them on the internet. However, the arrowed part looks the same. There is a brownish material sticked to the plastic. Maybe this causes the problem?

I tried to apply some common cleaning solutions like washing machine cleaning powder or fluid. I'm not sure if it does make any sense.

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