Replacing Dishwasher Circulation Pump Bearings without buying a whole new unit
Posted by Admin • Friday, April 26. 2019 • Category: Low Tech HacksI have a DW80j3020us/AA Samsung dishwasher. It has been producing a loud noise for some time, and the noise kept getting worse. It was a matter of time before it either seized or melted the motor. The reason I know that the problem is with the circulation pump is that the noise is only audible while it's washing (circulating), not while draining or filling. Clearly the problem could be the motor (bearings) or some part of the impeller/grinder (less likely).
My options were:
- New dishwasher
- New Circulation Pump motor DD31-00008A ($150)
- Try to change the bearings (I've found nothing online about anyone doing this)
You can find lots of videos online on how to properly replace the circulation pump motor/assembly. I followed the guides for removing the internal components down to the food chopper, since the chopper is on the motor shaft. This takes about 20 minutes. After that, it was easy - all I had to do was pull the bottom cover off and remove 4 screws to get the motor out. Then a magical thing happened.
Four more screws and the motor casing is off. The motor is brushless, so no brush springs flying out and no painstaking tricks to get them back in. The rotor simply slides out, with the two bearings on the shaft. There was little doubt about the issue - the bottom bearing was noisy.
This is where I got lucky. The bearings are clearly marked (608Z in my case, which are 8*22*7 mm). I just happened to have a 10 pack of 608RS (same bearing but with rubber seals) that I bought for the frame pivots on my mountain bike (a vintage Trek Fuel). Pulled it off with vice grips, put it back together, and I have a quiet dishwasher again!
Analysis
My dishwasher also had a small leak from one of the corners, and, on closer inspection, the moisture (leak) detector was removed. After some thinking I pieced together what happened in its lifetime:
- Dishwasher was (probably) dropped onto the lower back corner, deforming the body and causing a small leak
- The slow leak caused the sensor to throw alarm codes but since it was a slow leak, it was not obvious
- Some enterprising repairman removed the leak sensor and called it a day
- The water continued to drip and pool under the bearing, causing it to rust
- you know the rest
- In the end, a little bit of Quicksteel on the leaking corner took care of everything.
Updates
It is now August 2023 and the bearing I put in wore out and started making noise again. It's been 4 years since I first wrote this post. It didn't look as if it got any water on it. It's possible that I have low quality bearings that just don't last. It only takes about 30 minutes to replace, so I guess it's still a major win over buying a new dishwasher.
Thank you so much for this. My dishwasher, same model, suffered the same fate just a few months off warranty.
It cost me less than $3 for a new bearing and about an hour of my time overall from start to finish. In my case, the shaft seal appears to have begun a minor leak, dripping directly into the bearing... Destroyed.
I went from having to turn up the tv because it had become so loud to having to now mute the TV to even hear the dishwasher.
Thanks!