[TVARC] GE Dishwashers - BEWARE!

[Ed Deichler]

A little over a year ago, the XYL and I bought a new dishwasher from Home
Depot.  The original one that came with the house finally gave out.  It was
a simple, dial-it-up and let it run analog type.  The GE model that we
bought has an array of lights that light up for multiple modes and wash
cycles printed in font too small for most villagers to read.  Why dishes
and utensils need so many options when the object is to just get clean I'll
never know.

Not long after it was installed, I noticed that all the LED lights were
blinking.  No amount of panic pressing the options would reset it.  In
desperation I reset the breaker in the garage to reset it.  This behavior
went on for several weeks as my frustration and adjectives grew.  A series
of calls to Home Depot ("It is not our problem; call GE") and phone tag
with GE got us a repairman.  He pulled the machine out and replaced a
couple of digital boards in it and fired it up.  It worked, of course.

Not long after that, the blinking light show popped up.  Another visit from
GE and more board replacements.  The machine behaved itself for a few weeks
then it was time for mischief again.  After another month or so, GE showed
up with a new washer and pulled the old one.  (We were now about five
months into owning the thing so the warranty was still in place.)

To shorten this story,  the new machine was no better, going into the
full-blinking mode just like the old one.  By now I had a clear path to my
breaker panel for resetting the thing.  We put up with it even though I had
argued with GE that the model we had was defective and could they give us
the next one up.  Not a chance.  By now we were approaching a year of
owning it so we opted to buy the extended warranty that GE conveniently
sent us.  Their idea of customer support.

It finally occurred to me that I was seeing a problem I had experienced
years ago with a GCFI socket I had in the garage.  It too would trip for no
reason so I replaced it since it was inside the garage and its use made no
sense to me.  After re-reading a post from John, NP2B regarding EATON
breakers being sensitive to RFI, I wondered if I was causing the problem
with my dishwasher.  I run a K3 with a KPA500 amplifier kicked in on
occasion.  With GE on call once again to come out, I began checking when I
was on the air with the amp on and the washer light show.  I found that
operating CW or SSB  with the amp on did not bother it.  Operating FT4/FT8
with amp on, however, drove it nuts.  I have a 6BTV vertical, a separate
15m vertical dipole and inverted Vs for 12 and 17 meters.  Typical
high-gain villager antennas.

Today, the GE fellow did his perfunctory board replacement.  A few hours
later I was on 30 meters running the limit of 200 watts.  When I went into
the kitchen and cautiously looked at the dishwasher - IT WAS BLINKING!  All
this time, I was the problem!

The digital age may be wonderful for the smarts machines have.  It is sad
that a few bypass caps cost way too much in China to be put in a production
run.   I told the repairman my concerns but I doubt he knows what RF
interference means so little chance GE will lean on its suppliers.

73 de Ed
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