⟐ Answer deleted March 08, 2022 at 4:39 MST

Why does my dishwasher smell and mold my plastic?

I've had the same rotten smell problem, as many posted, after purchasing a stainless steel Bosch over a year ago. Smells like rotten garbage and my plastic dishes (pre-rinsed or not) get black mold after only one day in washer. The stink is even when only 4 or 5 items are in the washer. The vinegar and dw cleaners work for a couple of days; then stench returns. Reps came to look at it a few times during first year and adjusted temp. They recommended NOT rinsing and running it daily ! (Now how does that rate as energy saving ?) Nothing works. I've read all comments about P trap and loop. Our double sink has T configuration and the P trap is under the floor (basement ceiling) rather than under the sink. The dishwasher hose is looped mid-sink level. Note, however, this problem never existed with old dishwasher with same plumbing set up. Odors disgusting. Ruining my plastic too and wondering how much unnoticed mold we're consuming too. Any help please?

Stinkn Mad

⟐ Commented July 17, 2025 at 5:53 MST

⟐ Commented March 05, 2023 at 7:35 MST

⟐ Commented August 06, 2022 at 16:06 MST

Ive also tried to turn off the drying cycle and ive tried washing on a lower degree celcius program (40 degree celcius) and nothing helps.

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So i went on another round of soldering. this time i also resoldered some of the filled in holes just north of the big solder on the pic i posted, the one on the top alittle to the right. i also removed the metall on the sides/top just to have a look. and i took of the white styrofoam and pressed teh drainage button about ten times.

What actually fixed my problem is unclear, but it work again! Im pritty sure it was the soldering that fixed it, either the big one resoldered and cleaned up properly, and/or the holes i resoldered at the top (I pritty much just heated the holes up again and let it cool back down). the holes is attatched to one of the two big white blocks on the other side of the pcb (actually through the whole PCB there is 5 off theese, two close to eachother and 3 abit further away). the blocks have the following markings:

HF3FD 012-ZTF(576) 10A 250WAC 85*C China DP078B

Since the button behind the styrofoam is the drain water fail safe, and draining the water was never a problem then i dont think that was the fix.

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It has now stopped working again and now it again stops at "Water in - Wash and heat the water - Drain water - Water in (stops right at the end at the water intake. It stops and goes to Check watersupply while water is going in, just at the end when machine is full off water)" like it did in the beginning of the problem.

So new theory here. Maybe everythime i drain the machine compleetly of water (except the special salt compartment) somehow this makes the machine work for a about a day? maybe the soldering im doing does nothing? i just think it does? i tried to remove the pcb without removing the water intake and water drainage hose'es and redoo the soldering on the pcb then put it back together again and this did nothing. but the other times ive tried (and the machine works then for a day or two) ive reomved the hose'es and put the machin up on its side in order to access the underside of the machine. This way the water left inside the machine (after a drain cycle) pours out of the drainage hole where the drainage hose would be attatched. I feel like ive checked most of the other stuff on the machine now, even the connector on the heating pump and it all looks normal, all tho the connector on the heatingpump is abit burnt (the metal part, not the plastic), but not much.

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I just tried the old way where i disconnected it and drained the machine, redid the soldering again by removing the old solder as good as i could and reapplied new. it still crashes...

Tested a 40 and 50 degree program now and now it works :S i bet as before it will work for about 2-4 washes or 1-2 days and then stop working again >.<

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Here are the 4 types of crashes it gets. What ever type its at it will always be like this untill i drain the machine, take it out of its place and disconnect everything, open it up and remove the main PCB and do so soldering on it then put it back together. After i do that it might change or it might work for a couple of runs then suddently it will choose one of theese 4 types and stay on that type.

1: Water in - washy washy for about 15-20 minutes where it also heats the water - Drain the water - Add new water then crash as the last of the water goes in.

2: Water in - Washy washy with warming the water - Drain - Water in (to clean off any residue at the floor of the machine) - Drain water - Water in - Washy Washy with heating water for abit then open detergent door and wash for a little while more then boom crash with hot water still inside.

3: Water in - Washy washy with warming the water - Drain - Water in (to clean off any residue at the floor of the machine) - Drain water - Water in - Washy Washy with heating water for abit then open detergent door while it keeps washing - Drain water - Add water (To clean off any leftover detergent on the floor of the machine) and boom crash while water is close to end of adding.

4: Water in - Washy washy with warming the water - Drain - Water in (to clean off any residue at the floor of the machine) - Drain water - Water in - Washy Washy with heating water for abit then open detergent door while it keeps washing for a whole cycle - Drain water - Add water (To clean off any leftover detergent on the floor of the machine) - Drain water - Add water washy washy - drain water - add water (to get ready for last washy washy and drying program) and then boom crash while last part off water comes in.

⟐ Answer accepted November 08, 2025 at 5:24 MST

When I got home, I turned it on, and it automatically started draining. I assume the emergency drain was triggered. The odd thing is that it didn’t matter whether the door was open or not. On a hunch that it related to the door switch, I took the door apart and checked the switch. The switch reads fine.

I took the kick plate off, and there was indeed water in the tray, so that probably explains the draining. I used towels to clear the water out.

I turned the breaker back on so I could run the diagnostic tests (which I had just found), and I can’t tell if it’s giving me something useful or not. The diagnostics show lights B and C blinking, which points to the inlet water value. The reason I’m not convinced is that pressing any other buttons causes all kinds of odd effects. I’m not sure that I’m not ascribing meaning to a random combination of lights.

With the power back on, I tried turning the dishwasher on. It launched immediately into a wash cycle, even though the door was open. I played around with choosing cycles and opening and closing the door (which had no effect). During one cycle the washer started howling at me and continued for about a minute after I turned the washer back off. It seemed to be coming from the left side of the washer, where the water line comes in. I put my hand on the water line, and I could feel the vibration. After a few more cycles of turning it on and off, it switched from running regardless of whether the door was open to refusing to run, and that’s where I am now.

I’m looking for some confirmation that a bad intake valve would cause what I’m seeing before I pull the washer out of the wall to go any further.

Aha! I just figured out how to used the diagnostic test correctly. I get E6, which is the water sensor. To use the diagnostics correctly, hold Power Scrub and Regular buttons and power it on. The display will show C1 and then P0. Press Regular again, and the display should change to P1. Press Quick to start the diagnostic test. DO NOT press Quick when the display shows P0 or P3. That’s bad. P1 is the only option that’s useful. Here’s my reference doc.

I should also add that when I try to run a dishwasher now, it acts like the door is open. The little red “active” light does not come on. I have a dishwasher full of water, and I’d like to drain it, but the drain function doesn’t no anything. Again, acting like the door is always open. Maybe I didn’t get the door switch put back in correctly?

I just took the door apart again to make sure I didn’t do something wrong with the switch. Nope. Switch is perfect. It’s doing everything a switch should do. The signal that the door is closed is definitely making it to the control board.

One more detail. When I was testing that the door switch is working, I noticed something that might be odd. Testing voltage from N on the power switch to the closed post of the door switch, I get 120V, which is expected. Measuring to the open post of the door switch, I got 110V, which seems odd to me, but I guess could be normal? (Tripping the switch causes the posts to swap, as expected.)

New behavior to report! I noticed that if I close the door hard, the washer begins draining, but it only lasts for about 1 second, then it shuts off again. Closing the door gently (less than hard) has no effect. I struggle to see how that can be anything other than a bad door switch. BUT, when I took the switch out, I could see with a meter that resistance across the closed posts was 0, across the open posts was infinite, and they swapped when I triggered the switch. Could it be that the switch is failing in some way that affects the current/voltage, but not the resistance?

I finally managed to get the washer to drain by manually triggering the emergency flood switch, which apparently works whether the door is closed or not.

Current state: I strongly suspect the door switch is bad. I also strongly suspect that one of the valves or sensors is bad. (Dishwashers don’t normally howl.) I am inclined to think that the control board is OK, but I would really love some external validation. If the control board is fried, cheaper to go buy a new washer than replace the control board, the bad value/sensor, and the switch.

I pulled out the washer this afternoon, took it completely apart, cleaned everything out, and put it back together. I found a build-up of gunk on the filter inside the water inlet valve. It looked like enough to be blocking water flow. I also checked out the turbidity sensor, and it passed visual inspection.

After I put everything back together, I powered it up (outside with no water attached), and noted no difference in behavior. The washer doesn't seem to recognize that the door is closed. While I had it lying on its back I noticed again that if I closed the door hard enough, the drain pump would run for about a second and shut off again. After I stood it upright again, it went back to completely ignoring the door, regardless of how hard I closed it.

I finally got some time to dig a little deeper. First I built shunt to replace the switch, so that the washer always thinks the door is closed. With the shunt in place, it still acts like the door is open. The switch is officially exonerated.

I also tried connecting it back up to the water supply to see what happens. Being connected to the water (with the shunt in place) did not change whether the washer is willing to run. It still won’t run. What does happen, though, is that the washer fills with water without me doing anything. I didn’t give it the chance, but I’m will to bet it merrily would have overflowed.

As before, I was able to manually trigger the float switch to get the washer to drain the water. That is the only way to make the washer drain. Activating the drain function from the controls has no impact.

To debug the intake valve, I turned on the water and unplugged the dishwasher. It still filled with water. Bad sign. I then plugged in the dishwasher and manually triggered the float switch. With the sensor triggered, the washer still filled. According to what I read, the float switch is in series with the intake valve, so triggering the switch should shut the valve. It didn’t. Bad sign. I took out the intake valve and pulled the solenoid off the valve. No matter what I do with the solenoid, I can’t get it to retract the plunger. My guess is that there’s a short somewhere inside it. Looks like a new intake valve is $15 on Amazon, so it might be worth a shot.

OK, bought and installed a new intake valve. The washer no longer fills when it shouldn’t, but otherwise nothing has changed. The washer simply refuses to start, with or without the door sensor shunted closed. It still reports error E6, the turbidity sensor. Would that really keep the washer from running? I’d really love some suggestions that aren’t expensive. :)

I found a $10 turbidity sensor on eBay, so I bought it and installed it. After putting the washer back together, the diagnostic still says the turbidity sensor is bad. I’m inclined to take that as a sign that it’s the control board that’s bad, which means it’s time to get a new washer. I’d love to hear a dissenting opinion.

I opened the dishwasher up again tested the voltage across the water intake valve solenoid while it’s plugged in. With the power on, there’s 120VAC across the solenoid, regardless of whether the washer is trying to start a cycle or in cancel/drain mode. There’s also 120VAC across the solenoid regardless of whether the door is open or not. (Again, I’ve thoroughly tested the door switch, and it’s behaving as expected.) The voltage for the solenoid is being driven directly by the control board, which doesn’t bode well.

The other odd thing is that even with 120VAC across the solenoid, the water intake valve is not opening; it refuses to let water through. I’m also unable to hear or feel the solenoid actuate when applying power.

It’s looking to me like the control board really has failed. In addition, the new water intake valve seems bad or maybe misinstalled. At this point, I’ve run out of rope with my wife, so we’re off to buy a new washer.

⟐ Edited March 18, 2024 at 11:58 MST

⟐ Edited March 18, 2024 at 11:58 MST

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?

⟐ Edited December 19, 2023 at 8:01 MST

⟐ Commented January 11, 2023 at 14:57 MST

⟐ Edited December 19, 2023 at 8:00 MST

I did something else to check if the Drain Pump works: I lifted the floater on the inside bottom. After several clicks the Drain Pump starts working...BUT...it's pushing water inside - NOT OUTSIDE thru the hose and into the disposer! So in the filter compartment I see a jet of water that is pushed by the impeller inside. The Drain Pump is new?

Any thoughts please?

⟐ Edited March 15, 2024 at 13:29 MST

My Bosch dishwasher works perfectly as long as I only use Eco mode. Any other setting fills the base up with water after 40 minutes or so and triggers e15. I can use the machine on eco and it’s alway bone dry every time. What’s different to make it leak if not on eco mode?

Many thanks

⟐ Commented January 21, 2026 at 12:02 MST

⟐ Answer edited September 08, 2024 at 12:10 MST

I have scoured all parts diagrams I can find and come up empty. I have inspected the control panel trying to find a logical place for it, also no luck. I could not find anything like it on the control panel, inside the door, or on the stainless steel panel.

Does anyone know where this goes?

⟐ Commented March 28, 2026 at 15:24 MST

⟐ Commented July 28, 2025 at 13:06 MST

⟐ Answered September 12, 2022 at 16:41 MST

⟐ Answered May 21, 2018 at 20:20 MST

When I manually add water and lift the float, there is a strong reaction of the pump, causes a nice whirlpool in the basin like its going to drain but then stops. If I do this too many times it throws an E15 code for leaking.
Help!

⟐ Answer accepted January 21, 2026 at 17:49 MST

⟐ Commented January 09, 2026 at 18:23 MST

⟐ Answered December 11, 2025 at 11:58 MST