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I have an older KitchenAid KUDK03FTWH3 that wasn't getting upper dishes clean, and some searches in this forum were very helpful in getting me to realize the screen was clogged.
So that's fixed and it was working well for a while, but now the top rack isn't getting clean again. I realized that years of heat dry have cracked the spray arm's feed tube, so I'm replacing that.
However, I also realized the spray arm doesn't spin because it's blocked in the back by its own feed tube where it connects to the main feed tube in the back of the dishwasher.
It seems like the probe from the main feed tube is too high, so when I push in the dish rack, the funnel in the spray arm feed tube gets nudged up, and then the spray arm can't spin.
Hope this makes sense.
Can't have always been like this. Does the spray arm itself life up a bit when there's adequate pressure from its feed tube or should it always spin freely?
Should I replace the entire assembly (feed tube, probe, hanger, etc.)?
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Rank: Member
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Joined: 4/15/2016(UTC)
Posts: 141
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First things first. The way you can accurately check to see if your spray arms are moving is by manually pointing all of them in the same direction. Then start a cycle wait until you hear it wash. Then open the door to see if they've all moved from their original position you set them at. Close the door and resume the cycle and check another 2 times just to make sure they continually move and don't get hung up. Additionally your sump can get clogged with food debris over time and sometimes needs removed in order to create better wash pressure. But that should be enough to determine whether your spray arm is moving when the door is closed or not
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Rank: Member
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Joined: 4/15/2016(UTC)
Posts: 2
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Thank you for your help. In response to your questions...
I had an issue about a month ago where the dishes on top weren't being cleaned well. That turned out to be a clogged chopper/screen. It was completely clogged with seeds and debris. I took a wire brush and cleaned that. It hadn't been cleaned since the dishwasher was new (about 8-10 years).
After that, things were good for a while.
As for the middle spray arm, I tried your experiment last night, which is what led me to the question. I would let the dishwasher run for 10-15 minutes, then open the door and look at the position of the middle spray arm. Then I'd close the door, let it continue, and come back in 10-15 minutes again.
No matter when I open the dishwasher, the middle spray arm is pointed at me. When I tried to move it, it is hitting on the back of its own feed tube, which is why it is always pointing at me when I open the door.
The back of the top rack seems to pitch downward a bit once pushed in, despite the fact that the rollers all look fine. This effectively means that the feed tube for the middle spray arm is pitched *upward*, and the middle spray arm hits it as it tries to go around.
In checking all this, the middle feed tube crumbled in my hands, so I'm replacing that, as well as the hanger and all the related items. Now there is no pressure at all, so the top spinner isn't working, and the bottom spinner doesn't have much pressure. I don't think this will solve the issue of the angle of the middle feed tube though.
Again, thanks for your help.
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Rank: Member
Groups: Registered
Joined: 4/15/2016(UTC)
Posts: 141
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I would definitely replace the middle spray arm tube but first figure out why their is no wash pressure to it. Could be clogged again or some times those choppers break and fill their metal screens with a ton of debris. Lastly their is a fine mesh screen on the sump top that can be removed with a flat blade if you can't pass water through it it with a faucet it needs to be cleaned. Hope any of this helps!
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