A dishwasher that leaves standing water, will not drain, or comes out with a film on every glass is almost never a reason to replace it. We troubleshoot drain pumps, spray arms, water inlet valves, door latches and control boards on built-in dishwashers and on dish-drawer models, and check the float switch and garbage disposal knockout plug before assuming the worst.
Leaks are the other call we get constantly — usually a worn door gasket, a cracked hose or a pump seal, not a cracked tub. We pull the unit out, find the actual source with the water running, and quote the fix before we start, rather than guessing from the outside.
Why are my dishes coming out with spots or film?
That is usually hard water buildup on the heating element or spray arm ports, or a rinse-aid dispenser that has stopped releasing — not a broken machine. We check the spray arms for clogged jets first, since that is the most common and cheapest fix.
Houston’s water supply tends toward the harder end of the scale, and mineral buildup inside a dishwasher accelerates wear on spray arms, inlet valves and heating elements. We check for scale as part of every dishwasher call and let you know if a descaling treatment is worth adding to the visit.
My dishwasher is leaving a white film on glasses – is it broken?
A white film usually means hard water deposits rather than a failing machine. A clean cycle with citric acid or a commercial descaler often clears it without any parts at all. If the film persists after a clean cycle, the inlet valve or the wash pump may need a closer look.
Most dishwasher repairs are finished in under an hour once the fault is confirmed. The pump, the inlet valve and the door latch — the three most common failures — all ride on the van. If you are running a sinkful of dishes by hand, call us and we will get the machine back on the same visit in most cases.
