Something has crawled in my dishwasher and died

[sperman]

My dishwasher has a terrible odor. If I don't remove the dishes immediately after they cycle is done, they have to be washed again because they smell so bad. I've tried to clean everything I can, but I can't get the smell to go away. I poured some bleach down the drain, and that seemed to help for a few days, but the smell returned over time.

Any ideas?

TIA

[benos]

Does the dishwasher drain go down the same drain as the sink?

If you've left the dishwasher closed for a while (no dishes in it), then open the door and stick you head in it and smell, do you smell it?

If so, you may have dead mouse in its housing somewhere. If that's the case, they will stink bad for months and months and months. You might have to open 'er up.

be

[3quartertime]

[Poppa Bear]

Brian could be pretty close. Is the odor from the dishwasher, or the area around the dishwasher? If it is internal to the dishwasher, how long have you had it and if recent who plumbed it in? If the drain is going into the stack below the elbow of the sink it is possible you are getting sewer gas backing up through the drain hose.

If you have cleaned everything possible does that mean you took apart the internal screens, or you just poured some chemical down it?

[sperman]

I've had the dishwasher for 2 or 3 years, and the smell just stared about a month ago. The smell is definitely coming from inside the dishwasher. If I open the door after it has been closed for a while it will take my breath away. The dishwasher drains into the plumbing on the sink, but it is on the correct side of the P-Trap so that's not it. I cleaned the screens in the bottom of the dishwasher, but it sounds like it is time to tear it apart and see what is going on inside the pump. I seriously doubt an animal has gotten inside of it, but that is sure what it smells like. Maybe some nasty piece of food made it past the screens and is lodged somewhere in the plumbing.

[bobert1]

Steel or plastic tub? There is an item for D/W that has citric acid crystals in it. Run the D/W on a short cycle after pouring it in.

[AlamoShooter]

you have an access plate on the frount at the "toe kick" two to fore screws to remove it and look / smell under the unit. all so it something died on top of the dishwasher it would smell even if the door was closed.

30 + years and I never heard of a stinky dishwasher that would smell like death. For it to make the dishes stink it has to be in the water pump that makes the heated water pump back up and spray on the dishes. - its kinda like a clothes washer it fills up about 4" deep and thin addes extra heat to the water and pumps the water through the spray arms. A good dishwasher will even have a built in garbag disposal. = That part may be faulty.

The easiest thing to test is remove the drain hose under the sink ware it conects to the garbage disposal = ( have a bucket handy ) drain the hose into the bucket.

the hose will have a "loop" in it to trap water and keep the sewer smell in you sink side garbag disposal from stinkin into the DW.

If the water in the line stinks more than just a little Remove the entire unit and think about a new DW. Cheeper than patching a stinking unit back to geather.

I Would Not be eating off dishes washed in that DW untill you finde out what it is. !!

[Poppa Bear]

Try dumping some vinegar into it. Bleach kills germs but does not dissolve things, vinegar does. Pour about a quart or so in there and let it sit for a bit then run the empty machine through a cycle.

[sperman]

The smell is definitely coming from inside the dishwasher. As long as the door is closed, there is no smell. I guess I'll tear into it this weekend.

[Extractor]

Let your dog stick it's head in and have a smell and see if it can locate the exact location of whatever is stinking. At least then you'll know where to look and what to start taking apart.

Edited September 14, 2012 by Extractor

[Middle Man]

When our dishwasher starts to smell funky I wipe down the inside and run Dishwasher Magic through an empty wash cycle

[Lifeislarge]

I say shoot it, if it screams, there's a problem. Is there ever water in the bottom after a load?

[DCMJ]

If it is just dirty, the folk remedy is to pour a jar of Tang instant breakfast drink in it and run a cycle.

[Outsydlooknin75]

Check your hose, make sure that there is a high loop in it.....

Sent from my PG06100 using Tapatalk 2

[Sarge]

I know some are saying it is unusual but I can tell you with certainty that nothing smells as bad as a dishwasher when they go bad. Dishwashers have a disposal built into them usually and if it gets clogged up it just traps raw food in there. I used to install them and they will make you puke if they get just right. Now I deliver them and occasionally haul away the old ones and they all stink once the trap is opened up.

Dishwashers get funky, no doubt about it.

[Powder Finger]

God that started slow but finisged well. How you found a video with the exact diagnosis of the problem is beyond me.

[sperman]

I'm trying to decide whether to spend a few hours this weekend trying to fix the thing, or just go buy a new dishwasher. I've never been happy with this model since I bought it (my fault for not doing better homework before the purchase.) Part of me would like a new dishwasher, but I would hate to spend several hundred dollars on a new machine when 30 minutes work would have solved the problem. Now if I get the thing all apart and it turns out I need a bunch of parts, then I've wasted my time and I'm still going to guy buy a new DW. Decisions, decisions.

[Round_Gun_Shooter]

I'm trying to decide whether to spend a few hours this weekend trying to fix the thing, or just go buy a new dishwasher. I've never been happy with this model since I bought it (my fault for not doing better homework before the purchase.) Part of me would like a new dishwasher, but I would hate to spend several hundred dollars on a new machine when 30 minutes work would have solved the problem. Now if I get the thing all apart and it turns out I need a bunch of parts, then I've wasted my time and I'm still going to guy buy a new DW. Decisions, decisions.

Try the Tang first on the HD Cycle with no dishes inside. What you could be smelling is from your water. Many times you will get a residual smell from a water heater if the anode rod is reacting with the water.

[sperman]

I gave it a thorough cleaning yesterday. There was nothing obvious that would cause the smell, but there was some scum on the seal and in a couple of other spots. At the first sign of the smell returning, the dishwasher will go to the curb and I'm headed to Lowes.

[benos]

Weird, from the way you described the bad smell, I thought you were going to find a dead rodent of some kind.

[spartacuslv]

Are you getting any slimey build up under the door inside the dishwasher? Run a rag across the bottum and see. If so it could be as simple as your water is not hot enough. I have heard of running Boric acid through a cycle to clean it. I think you can get it at any home store. It does not take much and then you need to run there are articles on the web about it.

[Ultimo-Hombre]

+1 for running it with tang drink mix in it. It works.

[iainmcphersn]

I gave it a thorough cleaning yesterday. There was nothing obvious that would cause the smell, but there was some scum on the seal and in a couple of other spots. At the first sign of the smell returning, the dishwasher will go to the curb and I'm headed to Lowes.

I had to replace our dishwasher a couple months ago and found that the local Lowes and Home Depot do not stock many of the dishwashers they have on display. There was a 2-3 day delivery time if not stocked. If you think you might need one, I suggest heading over and checking the stock before pulling the old washer.