What Is Causing My Dishwasher To Stop Mid-Cycle?

Dishwashers have gone from being luxurious bonuses in middle-class houses, to being essential fixtures in homes up and down the country. With our lives never having been so busy (the creation of the modern term ‘time-poor’ should tell you a lot), we seek any and every gadget that can save us a bit of time. From automatic vegetable choppers to Roombas to Amazon Alexas, our home purchases are increasingly centred around items that reduce our need to put in more effort around our house. Dishwashers are, perhaps, the ultimate examples of this trend. With dishes being a daily occurrence in every household and taking up hours of our spare time, dishwashers dramatically reduce how often we spend our lives in the kitchen.

Well, that is until your dishwasher suddenly stops washing all of the family’s dishes in the middle of a cycle for no apparent reason. Not to worry, however, as we’re going to list four of the primary reasons behind why this can happen, and offer the simplest solution to each of the problems.

#1: A Broken Motor

Dishwashers have a limited lifespan and many should be expected to reach at least a decade of service. This can, of course, change depending on how well you keep your dishwasher maintained, how often you use it, where your dishwasher is located and, well, luck.

Whatever the case, dishwasher motors aren’t built to last forever. These are the motors that spin the spraying arms that spray your dishes with hot water and detergent to remove grease, grime and stains. So the motor failing will pretty much put your dishwasher’s cleaning efforts to a stop.

Solution: A simple one – hire a technician to either fix or replace the motor.

#2: A Broken Latch

While it may not seem it, your dishwasher door could be the culprit in stopping your dishwasher from running a complete cycle. A dishwasher door will stay closed thanks to the combination of a latch and rubber gaskets. This is what prevents water from the dishwasher ending up on the floor – particularly the latch. If the latch is broken, the dishwasher will not restart – no matter how hard you slam the door. This is due to the latch being connected to an automatic switch that stops a rinse cycle as soon as the connection is disrupted to ensure no water spills out.

Solution: To solve the problem, you’ll need to replace the latch to stop the disconnect. Check your dishwasher’s user manual or guide in order to find out the procedure for your model as this process can vary between models.

#3: A Broken Human

Don’t worry, us humans are inherently imperfect – so don’t panic! Bad joke aside, it’s always possible that your dishwasher’s problems are actually not anything to do with your machine – but could be to do with you not setting the correct cycle. As dishwashers, like washing machines, have many different settings and modes, you may have mistakenly changed the dishwasher’s regular cycle to one that is causing a problem. For example, a quick wash function may be cutting the cycle short, or you may have set it to a longer drying time.

Solution: Although it may seem silly, it’s worth just looking at the analogue or digital dials on your machine to see if the function or cycle has been changed. If you’re not great with the controls, then consult your model’s user manual or guide. If you don’t have the physical copy in your possession, then search for it online.

#4: A Tripped Breaker

Circuit breakers are built to stop electrical fires caused by an unsafe amount of electricity surging through circuits. Because of this, they tend to trip when an appliance is consuming a high amount of power. As dishwashers are huge power gobblers, they should be one of the first appliances you test when trying to determine what is causing the breakers to trip. Items that have been affected by the trip can be reactivated by finding your breaker box and resetting the breaker.

Solution: Try and test different appliances out to see if you can work out if one of them is causing the problem. It’s worth noting that if the problem keeps happening, irrespective of what appliances you have on, then it may be worth getting your home’s wiring checked out.

These are just a few of the most common reasons behind why dishwashers unexpectedly stop during a cycle. If you’re not sure how to deal with the problem, or don’t feel comfortable in tackling the issue, then you can always phone a dishwasher repair company such as Repair Aid.