We use our small dishwasher regularly and over the past months we noticed the dishes have not been getting as clean. I cleaned the filters, took apart the arms and cleared them of debris and cleaned the stainless steel interior. I ran an empty load with vinegar in the bottom and in a cup on the lower rack. Doing this maintenance helped get the dishes cleaner but it seemed that something was wrong. Finally we got an E1 error just after the start of a load and the dishwasher stopped running. The owners manual said that meant the water input was too slow. The manual lists low water pressure or partially closed faucets or restricted input as causes, but upon further research it appeared that the most likely culprit was the water inlet valve.
It was not difficult to take the dishwasher apart. The bottom comes off with four screws and the pump and inlet valve were located behind the kickplate which is removable. The dishwasher has a heavy concrete bottom but the workings are above and in front of that. I had to take off the back and loosen the side to reach the two bolts that held on the inlet valve. I broke the valve’s connection to the hose that supplies the water to the machine but I was replacing the valve anyway.
Unfortunately, the parts for the SPT seem to only be available from Suppentown and the inlet valve was not listed as an available part. I read several SPT repair questions and at some point I saw that a Frigidaire 154637401 Inlet Valve would work as a replacement. I ordered one from Amazon because although a bit more expensive, I can get delivery in two days.
 Frigidaire Inlet Valve |
 Frigidaire Inlet valve 2 |
This valve was very similar to the broken one from the dishwasher however its attachment plate was too long so that if bolted in the same place as the original, it crimped the inlet hose. So instead of bolting it on the side, I screwed it to the metal bottom above the concrete and attached a 3/8″ IPT male to 1/2″ sharkbite instead of the original dishwasher hose.
I think the Danby portable 18 inch dishwasher valve would have fit exactly. But it was only later that I found that part and Amazon didn’t carry it.
Danby Inlet Valve
The Danby 18″ dishwasher is similar to the SPT and I found a service manual for the built in model. So in the future I may be able to use that to help make needed repairs.
I have enough left over 1/2″ pex to use through the rear of the dishwasher and I hooked the pex up with more sharkbites at the wall. I added a ball valve as the outlet did not have a valve, although there is one not far away, I prefer to have one right behind the machine. I put all the panels back on and only ended up with four extra screws. Then I ran the short cycle without dishes and it worked fine.
Dishwasher repaired
I was very pleased to get our $500 dishwasher that I bought used for $150 repaired for only $20. The internet is a wonderful tool.